Thesis Statement and Annotated Bibliography

small home. Her article was written for E magazine, which is a 20-year running
magazine on environmental issues and solutions. This source is relevant to the thesis
statement because it provides examples of the benefits of building tiny homes, the
reasons actual homeowners choose to build and live in tiny homes, and the increased
market for tiny homes

Chatzky, J. (2005). When a smaller home is smarter. Money, 34(6), 36-38.

 This article begs the housing question, is bigger really better? Chatzky notes that as an
alternative to the current surge in larger homes being built, many home-buyers are
actually starting to seek out a smaller space. She cites money saved in the actual home
purchase, thereby freeing up financial strains in the home and allowing more money for
savings and retirement, as the primary drive toward smaller homes. She notes that many
home-buyers who seek smaller homes are driven by a "life-stage transition" or "a
financial challenge." Therefore, smaller homes offer not only a lower up-front cost to
purchase the home but also save money down the line with fewer utilities (smaller homes
equal smaller utility bills and up-keep). Ultimately, the article demonstrates the amount
of money that can potentially be saved by seeking out smaller--rather than larger--homes.

Jean Chatzky is the financial editor for NBC's Today Show. Her professional role on
such a well-regarded news source gives her, and her work credibility. She has her own
website, jeanchatzky.com, which focuses on financial advice, so it's clear that the articles
she produces are written with the intention of helping readers save money. This
article will be relevant in the research paper because it focuses on tangible financial
benefits of moving toward smaller homes. This article will work well to support the
assertion that one of the core benefits of tiny homes is both the financial accessibility and
financial security they potentially provide

Glinski, N. (2004, July 9). Tiny houses are big with U.S. owners seeking economic freedom.

Bloomberg. Retrieved from www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-07-09/tiny-houses-big-with-u-s-

owners-seeking-economic-freedom.html
The article effectively shows how a wide variety of people (ages, incomes, jobs,
locations) and their motivations as to why they have decided to own tiny homes. The
article's example revolves primarily around economic reason, in terms of the vast amount
of savings that comes with tiny homes. It also shows similar motivations people share as
 to why they decide to invest in tiny homes. This article really delves into personal
anecdotes by tiny house homeowners and offers interesting insight into their perspectives
on why this "phenomenon" is happening. It also explores zoning issues, highlighting this
as the primary barrier for tiny home owners. Nina Glinski is a reporter for
Bloomberg.com, a well-respected financial website. This source is relevant to the
thesis because it explores the benefits of tiny home ownership and offers both concrete
and anecdotal sources to quote and cite. It also offers a new dimension to the thesis
statement: zoning laws as a primary barrier

Hurson, L. (2013, May 10). Creating small, environmentally friendly living spaces. Psychology

Today. Retrieved from www.psychologytoday.com/blog/life-simplified/201305/creating-small-

environmentally-friendly-living-spaces
This article addresses what the author sees as the most common reasons people choose
tiny homes, which are often rooted in three primary sources of inspiration: environmental
awareness, finances, and simple living. Hurson looks more closely at what
constitutes a home as a tiny one. She also states that many who build and live in tiny
homes prefer quality over quantity, which stands, she says, in stark contrast to more
traditional American home-building and home-owning practices. Laurie Hurson is a
Ph.D. student in Environmental Psychology, where she researches sustainability and
lifestyle choices. She writes for a section of Psychology Today called "Life, Simplified."
Hurson's professional aspirations, since she is working on her Ph.D., shows she is
invested in credible research to substantiate her own claims. This article is relevant
to the thesis because it gives three, well-researched reasons why people own tiny homes.
It provides credible evidence that supports each of the major points

Idlebrook, C. (2008). Home petite home. Mother Earth News, 230, 56-58.
 This article is a profile of Sarina Speed, a tiny homeowner who comes up in a lot of the
articles on tiny homes. Unlike other articles, this one is a profile strictly on Sarina, her
husband Ben and toddler son, and their 640 square foot home. Sarina's investment in her
tiny home is partially out of a desire to save money and resources and partially out of a
desire to use "good design" to utilize her space well. It also is about keeping only that
which is truly important, rather than loading up a living space with a lot of what the
Speeds see as unnecessary material items. Craig Idlebrook is, according to
vtdigger.org, a freelance writer and editor with over 30 publications under his belt.
Idlebrook's articles come up in quite a few searches on tiny homes. His long-established
career as a writer and editor, as well as his publication in Mother Earth News, lend
credibility to his article. This article is relevant to the research and thesis because it
provides a good example of how people desire their spaces to maximize resources and to
save money. Speed's many fantastic quotations on her life in her tiny home will prove
useful as supportive evidence in the paper

Knack, R. (1999). Cutting monster houses down to size. Planning, 65(10), 49.
This article details zoning laws, both for land and for remodeling existing structures.
Knack focuses on options that maximize space that already exists, rather than opting for
teardowns of existing structures and replacing existing structures with larger ones. The
article asserts that what homeowners should focus on is using the space they have rather
than building out, so coming up with creative use of smaller spaces rather than making
room for larger structures. Ruth Knack is an executive editor at Planning magazine,
so her work is well-researched and peer-reviewed. This article is relevant to the
thesis because it gives detailed information on how to re-thinking zoning and space,
which works well in supporting a push toward tiny homes from a technical standpoint
Mitchell, R. (2012, August 13). Solutions to the top 5 barriers of the tiny house movement. The Tiny

Life. Retrieved from thetinylife.com/solutions-to-the-top-5-barriers-of-the-tiny-house-

movement/
This article covers the top five barriers for people who want to build and own tiny
homes: land, loans, laws, social pressures, and fear. More specifically, the author notes
the following barriers as important things to consider: the costliness of land, the issues
banks have with offering loans for non-traditional housing, finding contractors who
understand tiny home regulations, social pressure to consumer more (not less!), and the
fear of spending money upfront rather than extending the cost in manageable chunks, as
a homeowner would do with a traditional mortgage. The author also provides insight and
advice on how to overcome each barrier: making a tiny home portable and on someone
else's land, paying cash rather than obtaining a loan, know the laws and find contractors
who know them, look within for the answer rather than sucumbing to social pressures,
and moving forward, despite fears, and mindfully plan for the costs and risks associated
with non-traditional housing. Ryan Mitchell runs the site The Tiny Life and is
referenced by other sites and tiny home builders (such as Tumbleweed Houses, one of the
biggest and longest-standing tiny home builders). This article is relevant to the
research and paper because it will help address the possible barriers and offer solutions to
the barriers around building tiny homes

Tucker, L. M. (2012). Net zero housing: The architects' small house service bureau and

contemporary sustainable singlefamily house design methods for the United States. Journal of

Interior Design, 37(1), 115.

This article focuses on sustainability and design as the greatest challenge for current
architects and interior designers. Tucker suggests that readers look closely at small house
 initiatives from the early 20th century and couple those plans and their logic with the
new materials and technologies they now have. This combination of what worked in the
past and what resources builders have in the present, she argues, will allow architects and
designers to build small homes that have zero net resource consumption. Lisa M.
Tucker has a Ph.D. in Architectural Studies and teaches in the School of Architecture and
Design at Virginia Tech. This source is relevant to the thesis statement and research
because it offers practical design solutions that lead toward sustainability, which is one of
the major points in the paper

Wilson, A., & Boehland, J. (2005). Small is beautiful: U.S. house size, resource use, and the

environment. Journal of Industrial Ecology, (9), 277-287.

This article looks at distinct reasons why tiny houses benefit the environment and use
less natural and non-sustainable resources. The author notes that with bigger homes, the
cost and amount of resources goes up. The author argues that more land is used up, more
storm-water runoff is created, construction costs increase, and non-renewable energy use
increases. Since homes were smaller in the past, and this push toward bigger and bigger
homes is a relatively new phenomenon in the U.S., the author suggests looking back to
housing sizes in the mid-20th-century and comparing energy consumption and efficiency
with what is used today. From there, the author asserts readers will see the clear need to
downsize homes. Jessica Boehland is a program officer at the Kresge Foundation, a
highly respected organization that focuses on urban planning that assists low-income
families. Alex Wilson is founder of BuildingGreen, LLC and executive editor of
Environmental Building News. Their professional roles lend credibility to their research
and arguments. This article will be helpful in the research paper because it discusses
tangible evidence that larger homes consume resources unnecessarily. It will provide
statistics and numbers that will clearly support the arguments about why people should
build and live in smaller homes

Recommendations to write a competent

annotated bibliography
Thesis

Before beginning research and writing annotations, you'll need a

strong thesis. Here is an example:

"Research suggests that general education courses are valuable

because they provide a solid foundation for more advanced
coursework, help develop important critical thinking skills, and give
students a better understanding of the world around them."

Annotated bibliography

After your thesis, you will need 10 reliable sources for your annotated
bibliography, and we suggest using the WGU library to find them.

For each of the 10 bibliography entries, you'll need an annotation

written in your own words, without quotations or excessive
paraphrase.

Strong annotated bibliography entries contain the following:

 An APA-formatted reference citation with the source's

publication information.

 An annotation of about 300-500 words, in paragraph format, that

includes the following:

o Summary of the source's main points (3-4 sentences): What

are the source's main points? What new information is
presented?
 o Evaluation of the source author's or organization's
credibility (1-2 sentences): Evaluate the credibility of the
author or organization. This may illustrate where the author
attended university, research done in the field, where the
author currently works, and the author's publication history.

o Explanation of the source's relevance to your thesis

statement (1-2 sentences): How does this source relate
directly to your thesis statement? Does it provide evidence
for one of your main points? Discuss the relevance of the
source for your research paper.

Start the annotation with an APA-formatted reference citation.