Once you have a topic, make sure it fits your assignment. Just like the fairy tale Goldilocks and the Three Bears, you want your topic to be just right for your assignment, not too broad and not too narrow.
Broad topics are too general and have little to no direction. They are difficult to cover in detail in your assignment and are hard to research because there is too much information.
Broad topics retrieve hundreds or more results when you search.
Broad topic example: Bears
Narrow topics are too focused. They can be covered in specific detail but not meet the required size of your assignment. They are difficult to research because there isn’t much information.
Narrow topics retrieve less than 10 results when you search. This can also happen if the topic is too current.
Narrow topic example: Bears in Nebraska folktales
Just right topics have a focus and a direction for your research. They fit the assignment by covering the topic and by meeting the size requirements. Also you can find enough information to examine the topic in detail.
Just right topic example: Bears in fairy tales and folktales