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How I Spent My Summer Vacation Essay for Class 4

Summer vacations are the most anticipated season for each understudy in their life. Summer vacations carry a ton of opportunities to engage in numerous things that we have wanted to do. It advises me that occasions are more helpful on the off chance that you use them appropriately by accomplishing something valuable.

We are providing two essay samples for students of class 4 on the topic ‘How I Spent My Summer Vacation for reference.

Short Essay on How I Spent My Summer Vacation Of 100 Words

Vacations are the best and ideal opportunity to have a good time. Moreover, it is simply the best and ideal opportunity to engage in new things and grow new aptitudes. Throughout my summer vacation, I joined the summer camp. It was the day camp directed by my school.

I have gone to moving, painting, singing, yoga, and karate in the camp. It was fifteen days camp, and on the most recent day, my educators organized an excursion to the close-by park.

The climate was not all that good; we as a whole appreciated it a ton. Encountering untamed life with so close was my first experience. I have gathered numerous recollections from the camp. Indeed, even I made new companions, and I effectively partook in all the exercises.

Engage your kid into diverse thoughts and motivate them to improve their English with our Essay for Class 4 and avail the Simple Essays suitable for them.

Long Essay on How I Spent My Summer Vacation Of 150 Words

Summer Vacations are a hotly anticipated vacation for each understudy. Understudies make the most of their vacation with their loved ones. I have spent the previous summer vacation at my home with my folks.

We didn’t go on any visits and outings this year. I played a ton with my companions and completed my summer vacation schoolwork with my folks’ assistance. Indeed, even I finished my schoolwork while playing around with my companions.

We know that I have invested the greater part of the energy in understanding books and rehearsing dance and karate. My uncle’s family gave us an unexpected visit, and I felt upbeat by meeting with my little cousin.

We went out to see a film and a close-by park. My mom coordinated a child’s gathering on my patio; we as a whole appreciated it a ton. I love watching the enlivened arrangement, and my dad gave me a few DVDs.

10 Lines on How I Spent My Summer Vacation in English

Summer vacation is the best season as it allows me to unwind and investigate new things.
It offers me a chance to take a break from my everyday study routine and receive new interests like planting, to move, and painting, while likewise playing around with companions.
This summer, I visited my grandparents’ place, which is situated far away from the hurrying around the city.
My cousins visited our grandparents too throughout their summer vacation, and we went through the entire day playing outside.
Our granddad loves cultivating, and we caused him to plant saplings and water the plants in the nursery.
Our grandma arranged delightful and mouth-watering dishes for us, and we savoured each chomp of the food.
Towards the night, we as a whole used to sit together by our grandma’s bed and hear her out hypnotizing stories.
From that point, we all used to go to the patio and mess around like find the stowaway.
At evening time, we looked at the stars and tuned in to the intriguing stories about the moon, stars, and the sun described by our granddad.
I made some brilliant memories going through some precious minutes with my grandparents.

Frequently Asked Questions on How I Spent My Summer Vacation Essay

Why are summer vacations significant?

Summer vacations are the most significant and anticipated season of an understudy’s life. It offers them a reprieve from their dreary everyday practice. Besides, summer vacations shield understudies from the burning warmth and allow them to visit bumpy stations.

How would one be able to use their summer vacation?

There a ton of approaches to using summer vacation. It tends to be done by enjoying numerous exercises. One can join summer camps which show new abilities to understudies. One can likewise visit their grandparents or to some nippy spot or abroad to appreciate it without limit.

How I Spent My Summer Vacation Essay for Kids

Summer vacation is the most awaited time of the year in the lives of students. It gives them an opportunity to take a break from their daily routine, relax and enjoy their time with family and friends. Every year, students eagerly await their summer vacations with the hope of doing something worthwhile that liberates them from the monotonous and regular routine of school and studies. For kids, writing an essay on how I spent my summer vacation gives them a wonderful opportunity to reminisce and express what they enjoyed about their vacation.

In this article, we bring you – How I spent my summer vacation essay that mentions the essence of summer vacation in a student’s life and the experiences that they share after enjoying a wonderful vacation away from their hectic schedule.

Download FREE PDF of How I Spent My Summer Vacation Essay For Kids

How i spent my summer vacation essay for kids.

I have a lot of fun during my summer vacation. I do new things.
I love doing art work and playing with my friends.
During my summer vacation, I visited my grandparents.
My cousins and I played outside all day.
Our grandfather loves gardening. We help him water the plants.
Our grandmother makes tasty food.
Our grandmother tells us stories at bedtime.
We play hide and seek on the terrace.
Our grandfather tells us stories about the moon, stars and the sun.
I love visiting my grandparents.
I love spending time with my family during our vacations.

How I Spent My Summer Vacation Essay 100 Words

Holidays are an incredible time for us to visit hilly destinations with the family. The summer season is an excellent time for us to take stress-free excursions and get close to nature, which we are unable to do in our busy schedules for the entire year. Last year I visited my grandparents and stayed there for 15 days. The cool thing about the summer holidays is discovering and creating new things in the village. While enjoying my stay, I also learned some new things that expanded my knowledge. I spent the rest of the holidays playing games and cooking under my mother’s supervision.

Liked the above How I spent my summer vacation paragraph? Children can also attempt to write a few lines or a paragraph on how I spent my summer vacation and mention what they loved about their vacation. Want to explore more such mind-boggling stuff? Are you wondering where you can find more such interesting English essay topics for kids ? We’ve got you covered! You can visit our Kids Learning section, where you can find a huge array of resources such as worksheets, stories, poems for kids, GK questions, etc. and make your child fall in love with learning.

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How I Spend My Summer Vacation Essay for Kids

Introduction

One of the ways to reminisce about the vacations and improve skills for kids is to write a summer vacation essay on topics like “how I spent my summer vacation essay.” Writing short stories like “my summer vacation short story” is also a very fun and creative way to document the vacation.

The article below provides a sample essay on how I spent my summer vacation. We hope that this will help kids to be imaginative and draft their rendition of an essay on summer vacation.

A Long Essay on “How I Spend My Summer Vacation”

Summer vacation is one of my favorite times of the year as almost every year me and my family make plans for long vacations. Summer is an ideal time for us to go on stress-free trips and get closer to nature, something we are unable to do throughout the rest of the year due to our hectic schedules.

We generally go to meet our grandparents or go on a trip with family and friends. This year, I went on a trip to the hill stations of Ooty along with my parents, grandparents and cousins. The most important thing about these vacations is the time spent with family during these vacations we make life-long memories.

We started the vacation by going to the native village of our grandparents, which is around 100 km away from the city in which we reside. My cousins and our extended family also joined us in our ancestral home. We then took a train to Ooty.

The train ride was filled with laughter and songs, and I greatly enjoyed the ride. We got to see the beautiful landscapes of India on our way to the destination. We reached our Ooty in the evening. It is a small hill station with beautiful natural scenery and vegetation.

I started the next day with an early morning walk with my grandparents and cousins. I then ate my breakfast after which the whole family traveled around the town. I learnt about the birds and trees of the hill stations. During nights I and my cousins would hear stories from my grandparents. I thoroughly enjoyed these stories. At the end of my trip, we went shopping to take some mementoes to my hometown.

Despite the fact that my summer vacation was longer, the trip was by far the most memorable experience I had at that time. I am very grateful for the time I spent with my family. During the vacation, I not only learnt new things about the natural and cultural heritage of the place but also had a great time with my family. I like summer vacations and have the satisfaction of knowing that I have utilized my time productively.

How I Spend My Summer Vacation Paragraph for Kids

Summer vacations are the most fun time of the year as I get to enjoy my time with my family and friends. I start planning my summer vacations as soon as the final exams end. Our family usually goes together for a vacation during the holidays. We also visit our grandparents during the summer vacations.

This summer vacation we traveled to the hill station of Ooty, along with our grandparents and cousins. I had a great time watching the scenery around the hill station and being in nature. We learnt about the different types of vegetation and the cultural heritage of the place. My grandparents helped me in learning the names of different trees.

We went bird watching with the whole family. I learnt about the different birds that are found only in the Ooty. We would start the day with an early morning walk with my cousins and then we would play and travel through the city for the day. Towards the end of the trip, we also went shopping to take souvenirs of the place. I am very grateful for the love of my family, and I had the best time during this summer vacation. It was one of the most memorable vacations.

FAQs on How I Spend My Summer Vacation Essay for Kids

1. Why are summer vacations important for kids?

Summer vacations are times during which kids get to relax from the hectic daily schedule. Summer vacation provides a chance for kids to explore their interests and creativity. It is during this time kids tend to develop their hobbies. Also, summer vacations are the time when kids can get to spend relaxed time with their family which helps in their overall emotional development.

2. How does writing a summer vacation paragraph or short stories on summer vacation help in the development of kids?

Writing a short story or essay on summer vacation helps kids to document their experiences during the time. It also helps kids to boost their creativity. Apart from this, writing short stories and essays are creative ways to reminisce about memories. This also helps in their academic development.

How I Spent My Summer Vacation Essay for Children and Students

Table of Contents

Summer holidays are considered to be the best time for students to explore themselves and their surroundings more as they have no study pressure and mental stress. This also gives them the much-required respite from the scorching heat. How I Spent My Summer Vacation

Different students have different ways of spending their summer holidays. While some visit their grandparents, others join summer camps, yet others like to stay at home and catch up on their studies. Here are essays of varying lengths on How I Spent My Summer Vacation to help you with the topic of your exam. It is written in very easy and understandable language. It may be a better reference point for you, and you can also add your own experience to make your essay the best.

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Long and Short Essay on How I Spent My Summer Vacation in English

Below are short and long essays on how I spent my summer vacation essay in English.

The essays have been written in simple yet effective English so that you can easily memorize them and present them when needed.

After going through these how I spent my summer vacation essay, you will know what I did during vacation, what was our experience at our grandparent’s place during summer vacation, what I learned during vacation, etc.

The essays will be useful for your school and college assignments when you need to speak on something or give a speech on the subject.

Essay on How I Spent My Summer Vacation At Home – Essay 1 (200 words)

Introduction

Summertime is a treat for all the students struggling the whole year with exams and assignments. This is when they can spend their days doing whatever they want without restrictions and pressure from parents or teachers. Most students and their parents or friends prefer to go to some hill station or village or for other outings to relax. But holidays can also be fun when they are spent staying at home.

Things I Did Staying at Home

This summer, I decided to stay at my home during summer vacation instead of going anywhere for the trip. To spend my time fruitfully, I joined classes where I learned canvas painting, and along with it, I also started learning table tennis. I helped my mom in the kitchen afternoons and assisted my dad with some accounts-related tasks. This was the best time when I felt close to and involved with my family. Then, for the remaining time, I went out with friends. I also spent some time watching movies and web series. Besides entertainment, these shows and movies also taught me some life lessons.

So, this summer vacation was spent getting closer to myself and my family, which I couldn’t do during my academic year. I realized how fruitful and satisfying it could be to spend holidays at home.

Essay on How I Spent My Summer Vacation with My Grandparents – Essay 2 (300 words)

Summer vacation is the most awaited time in a student’s life. It is the time to relax and explore the world around us. This time I decided to spend my summer break with my grandparents. Here’s a brief account of my stay at my grandparents’ house during my summer vacation.

Our Experience at our Grandparents’ Place

My sister and I decided to spend summer vacation with my grandparents this year. They live in a small village near Kutch district, Gujarat. We were unsure about this trip because we had never visited any town before and knew nothing about their lifestyle. But as days passed, we adjusted to their way of living and enjoyed it.

Our stay was full of fun. My grandmother told us funny incidences about my dad as a little mischievous and a notorious kid. She told us how he used to play pranks on his school teachers and their neighbors. She also told us how my sister and I behaved when we were young. She told us we were as notorious as our dad.

One day my grandfather took us to the Great Ran of Kutch, located in the Thar Desert and one of the world’s largest salt deserts. We took a camel ride and stayed there till the sunset. After spending some quality time there, we went to the main market. My grandma told us about Kutch’s unique handicrafts and how many women make their living by selling different embroidered clothes. We bought an embroidered kurta for dad and a sari for mom. After this, we headed back home and helped grandma with dinner. The next day we went with our grandpa to a farm, and he taught us various farming techniques, which was fun. We indulged in different activities each day.

This was one of the best trips where we had loads of fun and learned about Kutch’s culture and heritage. I am looking forward to more trips like these.

Essay on How I Spent My Summer Vacation in My Village – Essay 3 (400 words)

For those living in metropolitan cities, summer holidays mean watching movies and television series, hanging out with friends, or surfing the internet. This consumes all of our time. But, this summer, spending time at my aunt’s place in Bhiwani village was an enthralling experience. It seemed like a different world to me.

Knowing Village Culture

The houses in the village are as big as palaces, but still, people are emotionally attached and aware of what is going on in each other’s life. Eating together, understanding situations and opinions of other people, and working together are some of the small things that add to beautiful village life .

Waking up early in the mornings is a practice that most villagers follow. It keeps them healthy and makes their day more productive. So, all the people in the house are required to be awake by 6 in the morning, which initially seemed like a curse to us. My uncle owns a kitchen utensils shop; he opens it at 7 in the morning daily. He left for work before 7 am each day. Most people were seen heading for their work around the same time.

I spent my mornings in the kitchen with all the ladies of the house, doing preparations for breakfast and lunch. I also helped them clean up the house after the kitchen tasks. In the afternoon, my brother and I took a round of the village and delivered lunch at my uncle’s shop. The rest of the afternoon was spent in slumber after having a heavy diet and loads of gossip.

The evening time in the village was the time for which I waited with a lot of excitement. One evening we went to the village well where women went to fetch drinking water. It was great to see them balance the pots full of water and walk back in a row. But the main treat was to see the confidence and happiness on their faces. The village also encompassed a big playground that used to be full of kids during the evening hours.

Our aunt and uncle also took us to the farm to show us the beautiful process of growing and nurturing fruits and vegetables. Looking at the farmers putting so much effort into their harvest and faces during the harvesting time was a great sight.

I also went to one of the panchayats going on in the village under a banyan tree, where issues of the village were being solved by the elders of the village with the consent of all other people of the village. This is where I witnessed a small example of democracy.

The simplicity of life in the village is where its beauty lies. My visit to the village always teaches me compassion and love towards our family.

Essay on How I Spent My Summer Vacation in Hill Station – Essay 4 (500 words)

The summer season is mainly known for the heat waves and holidays we students get. It’s a great time for students to go for a stress-relieving trip and to be closer to nature, for which they don’t get time during their hectic schedule throughout the year.

We Decided to Go to a Hill Station

Our family decided to go for a summer trip to a hill station this year. Many beautiful places in India are known for their scenic beauty, such as Mussoorie, Ooty, Wilson Hills, Kufri, Nainital, Manali, Kerala, and Rishikesh. After a long discussion about which hill station to go for, we finally settled for Shimla.

Our Trip to Shimla

We all went there via road in our car and reached there in the morning. Then, we directly went to the hotel that we had already booked. Shimla has everything to lure the tourists, from lavish hotels to picturesque locations and mall roads to shopping streets full of people from different cultures.

We had planned the trip for 5 days. So in the evening of our first day of the trip, we went to the mall road and Jhaku hills which are known as the main tourist spots in the city. In the evening, many different activities are going on there. It was amazing to witness the nightlife of Shimla. We visited the Footloose Discotheque, full of vibrant people and buzzed with great music.

Our next day included traveling on the toy train. This toy train here runs from Kalka to Shimla. There are only 3 such trains in our country, and one of them is here. It’s an amusing experience to travel through them irrespective of the fact that they are slow. The evening was spent doing snow adventures such as skiing and bungee jumping.

The next days were spent visiting places near Shimla, such as Chail, Kufri, and Chitkul. These places can be visited for some snow adventure besides enjoying their beautiful scenic beauty.

Shimla is also a good treat for foodies like me. A bizarre thing about Shimla’s food is – that tiny diners or cafes are offering just fast food, a variety of teas and cold drinks, or fancy eateries that have overpriced alcohol on the menus – there is no ground in between. We had salami burgers at Beekays, which were delicious.

During all these days filled with loads of activities to do, we used to get tired in the evening, but the nightlife there or just staring at the starry sky gave us an immense sense of joy and filled us with new energy. There is enchanting music from tall trees standing upright there, curvy roads that make one look at those beautiful hills from all angles, and that lively breeze that fills one’s soul and heart with ecstasy.

We came back to Delhi after spending five fun-filled days in Shimla. The memory of this trip is fresh in my head. Shimla is indeed the queen of hill stations. I would love to revisit the place.

Essay on How I Spent My Last Summer Vacation – Essay 5 (600 words)

Summer is the most awaited time in any student’s academic year. Despite the scorching sun and blazing heat, these months have always brought a peculiar type of calmness to my soul that oozes freedom from monotony and dullness. As it is time for vacation, it is the time to explore, wander, plan, and much more. Summer vacations are always fun, but my summer holidays were especially memorable. What made it special was that it was my first advent on foreign land or, I might say, “lands.”

My First Foreign Trip

The year 2017 was my last academic session in school. So, before going to college, a complete family gateway to exotic lands was the gift I got from my family. I could not have asked for more. Our travel plan was a perfect mixture of fairy Disneyworld and glamorous Hong Kong and then to the multi-ethnic country island of Malaysia.

On the very next day, when my summer vacation began, I found myself at terminal 2 of Chhatrapati Shivaji airport, Mumbai, looking for my flight boarding pass and posting stories about it on my social media accounts. My parents, siblings, and cousins surrounded me. There was excitement on everyone’s face. Being a full extended family vacation with all my cousins, aunts, and uncles, it seemed super fun from the time we set out in cabs to the airport. It was not my first time being amidst the clouds, but it was my first international flight giving a magnificent view of the night lights of the complete city, and looking at that, I knew that this trip was going to be a one-of-a-kind experience for me.

Landing in Hong Kong, I was taken aback by the mere sight of their airport. I think they lived to the “first impression is the last impression.” I was amazed beyond imagination, but somewhere, I knew this was just the beginning. The first day at this beautiful place mainly consisted of exploring the streets of this breathtaking city, which was rich in fashion, food, tech, and everything that screamed modern and at the same time archaic in their way of life.

The next place we visited was what all of us had dreamed of visiting for a long. It was the mesmerizing Disneyland. The first thing that caught my attention was not the people around dressed in Disney characters or the marvelous expanse of the space and rides and shops but the castle at the far end – The Disney Castle. It was just spectacular. The very charm and enchantment of it knocked me out of breath. The fireworks at night after a complete parade show make you wonder if you had crossed a line and entered the fantasy world. It had been much more than I imagined, even in my make-believe.

The next was a traveling day as we moved to our next destination Malaysia. The City gateway was the complete opposite of where we came from. This city did not have many skyscrapers, but the beautifully spread horizontal city was rich in culture and diversity. The exquisiteness of mosques, museums, and heritage sites perfectly blend with the city’s modern lifestyle and layout. The hilltop parts of the country, like Genting Highlands, could be called heaven on earth. The beaches here offer a perfect place to relax and rejuvenate. I am glad we choose this as our last destination during this trip.

This has been one of the best holidays I have ever gone on. I saw so many beautiful places, had great experiences, and spent a lot of time with my loving family. My last summer vacation was indeed the best so far.

Long Essay on How I Spent my Summer Vacation – Essay 6 (800 Words)

Summer vacation is the most awaited time of the year by the students. With almost a year of classes, schedules, tests, and examinations behind them, they look forward to a joyous and relaxed month. Summer vacation could be spent in many ways, depending on your choices and preferences—some like playing and visiting places, while others prefer watching TV and their favorite movies.

I wouldn’t say I like watching TV, even when my parents don’t object. My heart craves the woods and the serenity of nature, away from the hustle-bustle of everyday existence. I have always wanted to visit forests and similar landscapes in the lap of nature.

Below I have narrated a journey to a few places I took during my last summer vacation. Though I returned and joined the school after that, the memories of the journey and the places are deeply engraved in my heart.

The journey started with a visit from my town to my ancestral village and then to a wildlife reserve, which I am sure you too will plan to go on this vacation, after going through my experiences.

At Village with my Grandparents

The journey began on the next day of my summer vacation. My father made these arrangements well in advance, supposedly when I was preparing for my exams. When I came back home after writing my last exam, my mother and sister were already packing for the journey. Though I knew we would visit our grandparent’s village and stay there for a couple of days, I had no idea about the further planned trip.

The journey to the village was smooth. We started well ahead of the train’s arrival time and reached the platform before its arrival time. It is three hours of a train journey from my city to the grandparent’s village, passing through lush green agricultural fields and glimpses of village life.

When we got off the train, I saw my grandfather waving and walking toward us, accompanied by my cousins. After exchanging initial greetings, we walked towards our house a couple of kilometers from the station. Though there is a road to reach the house, we took rather secluded trails, passing through the fields.

Something is mesmerizing about an Indian villages ; the cool breeze, the peace and calm, the smell and sound of cattle, and the distant sound of a pumping set from the fields entices you and makes you cherish every passing moment.

The food, milk, and even water taste much better in the village than in the city. We stayed in the village for four days, during which I met many of my relatives, elders, and friends from the village. I even went to our family’s agricultural field and learned a few tips for farming. Four days passed quickly, and the day soon arrived when we had to move on a further journey. However, it appeared that a few surprises were waiting for me.

Trip to the Dudhwa National Park

When the day arrived, I was in for two surprises firstly, that we were going to “Dudhwa National Park” and secondly that my grandparents were also going with us.

Dudhwa tiger reserve is a protected area spanning over 1280 sq km in Uttar Pradesh. It stretches across the districts of Lakhimpur Kheri and Bahraich, sharing the northeastern boundary with Nepal.

We boarded the train to Bareilly from Varanasi, an unforgettable overnight journey spent with family and like-minded wildlife enthusiasts, traveling to the same destination as us. From Bareilly, we took a connecting train to Dudhwa, which is approximately a distance of 12 kilometers.

We reached the park in the evening and stayed in a simple yet comfortable resort, having all the comforts and basic amenities. The staff was accommodating, and the food was simply delicious. The resort was securely surrounded by forest on all s, use and was well guarded. We fell to sleep listening to the voices of jungle fowls and animals from a distance.

The next morning we all woke up early and got ready for the jungle safari. The forest deforests deforest department organized the safari in anth a guard and an experienced guide onboard. As soon as we entered the forest, we started seeing birds and animals, which we had only seen in books and television. Birds like Bengal Florican and great slaty woodpecker were a delight to watch. Different species of lizards were also seen crawling to cover.

As we progressed deeper, many species of deer- swamp deer, barasingha, and chital came into view. We were also lucky enough to spot barking deer, which is very difficult due to its shy nature. We were lucky enough to spot a tiger lurking in the bushes on our third and last day. With this last sighting, our journey ended, and we headed back home on the same evening.

Summer vacation is the best time in any student’s life. A month or more of a fun time at your disposal is nothing less than a blessing. There are several ways to spend a summer vacation, although we must spend it in such a way that we learn new things and gain new experiences. Also, take care not to harm or disregard anyone during your enjoyment.

Related Information:

Essay on Summer Vacation
Essay on my plans for summer vacation
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How to Write an Essay on How You Spent Your Summer Vacation

Last Updated: January 4, 2020

This article was co-authored by Alexander Peterman, MA . Alexander Peterman is a Private Tutor in Florida. He received his MA in Education from the University of Florida in 2017. This article has been viewed 52,489 times.

Writing an essay on how you spent your summer vacation is a classic way of starting a new school year. Think about this essay as an opportunity to tell a story about your summer while reflecting on the experiences you had. Choose a memorable moment you had this summer and start crafting your essay, giving as many details as possible.

Choosing a Topic

Step 1 Look back on mementos you kept from the summer.

These can also make nice visual aids if you are asked to present your essay.

Step 2 Make a list of the things you’ve done over summer vacation.

A list might be full of things like babysitting, attending a camp, working at a local store, taking a road trip, etc. This type of brainstorming can help you pick major events and other important moments from your summer.

For example, maybe you spent your summer traveling around Japan. Think of a memorable moment you had while traveling — maybe you walked up a mountain in the pouring rain — and write about this moment, adding lots of details.

For example, if you're writing about spending time at the beach, your outline could remind you to talk about the sandcastle building contest you entered, the dolphins you saw, and the ice cream you ate every day.
Details might be what the other sandcastles looked like, how far away the dolphins were, and what kind of toppings were on your ice cream.
Your outline is just to help you organize your thoughts — it can be written by hand or typed.

Crafting the Essay

Step 1 Focus on your feelings, interactions, and thoughts.

Instead of saying that you worked in a pet store, ate a PB&J sandwich, and walked home every day, talk about more than just your actions. You could talk about which pets are your favorites to work with, how it felt to eat the same sandwich every day, or what you thought about on your walk home.

Step 2 Use your 5 senses to explain your experiences.

Using sensory details like these will help your readers visualize and engage with your writing. These help your audience make your experiences feel real to them, even though they weren't there.

Step 3 Describe activities you did in each place you went.

For example, instead of saying “I went to the beach this summer,” try saying “I spent my summer swimming in the frigid water at Virginia Beach.” The more details you can provide, the more engaged your reader will be.

Step 4 Choose precise, descriptive adjectives.

Instead of saying “the burger was really good,” you could say, “the burger was juicy and filling.”

Step 5 Revise and edit your essay carefully.

Don't just rely on spellcheck. It will help catch some errors, but it will miss some things, too.
Ask a parent or other adult to read over your essay too, if you'd like.
Setting your essay aside for a little while will give you a fresher perspective when you go back to revise it.

Structuring Your Essay

Step 1 Start with a strong introduction.

Make sure your conclusion doesn’t just copy the introduction.

Community Q&A

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About This Article

If you need to write an essay on how you spent your summer vacation, there are simple ways to take your writing to the next level. Choose a moment that stands out to you, like playing at the park with your friends or watching a movie you enjoyed. Think about all the feelings and thoughts you had, and use them to write sensory descriptions that will take the reader on the journey with you. Use your introduction to set the scene and draw your reader in. Then, use each paragraph to explore different aspects of your favorite moment. For example, if you won a video game competition with your friends, you can talk about the rivalry between you, the rounds of the game, and how you celebrated. For more tips from our Education co-author, including how to edit your essay, read on! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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Essay On Summer Vacation For Class 4 Students – Read Here

Summer vacation is a time for rest and relaxation, but it can also be a time to catch up on school work. This essay will provide some tips for students who need to study during the summer break.

Introduction:

Summer vacation is a wonderful time to spend with friends and family. We have a lot of fun planned for our summer vacation. Everyone in the family expresses their thoughts. It is the period when students are no longer worried about their exams and can relax.

Students need a break from their academic obligations, and their parents usually take them to some interesting locations.

Location of Origin

Essay-On-Summer-Vacation-For-Class-4-Students-8211-Read

As they engage with the fields, handpumps, trees, and other objects, the children seem to be quite enthusiastic about their visit.

As the name implies, the vacation takes place throughout the summer, which is also mango season. Children like plucking mangoes from trees, which they can only obtain in their local areas.

When individuals visit their hometown for at least that long, they are able to disconnect from their technological devices because they are preoccupied with connecting with their loved ones.

Additional Places to Visit During Your Summer Vacation

You may also visit some peaceful and exciting locations.

1625964440_664_Essay-On-Summer-Vacation-For-Class-4-Students-8211-Read

Shimla is one of the best places to visit during the summer. During the summer, Shimla has a temperate climate.

1625964441_450_Essay-On-Summer-Vacation-For-Class-4-Students-8211-Read

When one visits this lovely location, one feels totally rejuvenated. It seems to be a fairyland.

There are also many lovely locations to visit in India.

Summer Vacation’s Importance

1625964441_798_Essay-On-Summer-Vacation-For-Class-4-Students-8211-Read

Summer vacation is primarily given to students to give them a break from their studies and to re-energize them for the following academic year.

Summer vacation restores the minds of both parents and children.

1625964442_747_Essay-On-Summer-Vacation-For-Class-4-Students-8211-Read

I used to get a kick out of every single moment. I used to look at our farms, gardens, temples, mountains, and so on.

On the chulha, my grandma used to cook my favorite meals (Hearth). There was a wonderful fragrance emanating from the fire while the meal was cooked, something we don’t get with urban style cooking.

Conclusion:

Summer break is necessary for everyone, particularly students. It energised pupils and prepared them for their future academic endeavors.

You may post any additional questions regarding Essay On Summer Vacation For Class 4 in the comment box below.

The summer vacation essay 10 lines is an essay that has been written by a teacher. It has been written to help students with summer vacation plans for class 4.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you write a summer vacation essay.

A summer vacation essay is a personal reflection on a time spent during the summer. It can be about a trip, or something that happened during the summer break.

How did I spend my summer vacation 10 lines essay?

You spent it in the sun, swimming, and playing outside.

Why summer vacation is good for students?

Related tags.

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how i spent my summer vacation essay 100 words
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Essay on Summer Vacation For Students in English: Samples Class 3 to 5

Summer vacation is the long-awaited time of joy, long holidays, trips, and relaxation. Summer vacation allows us to spend time with our family, go on trips, and take off from work or school. Children enjoy summer vacation by indulging in fun and creative activities. Children learn new hobbies like music, art, dance, and sports practice—during summer vacation. In short, everybody enjoys summer vacation in their own way.

An essay on summer vacation is an academic activity assigned to students after or during their summer vacation. In an essay on summer vacation, you are required to highlight the importance of summer vacation, fun activities to do, hobbies and skills to learn, places you visited, etc. Let’s dig into some samples of essays on summer vacation to give you an idea of how it is done.

Table of Content

Essay on Summer Vacation for Class 2

Essay on summer vacation for class 3, essay on summer vacation for class 4, essay on summer vacation for class 5, summer vacation essay 100 words, essay on summer vacation 200 words, summer vacation essay 250 words.

Summer Vacation is the best time of the year. In summer vacations, schools are closed and we enjoy long vacations. We go on trips and play football, cricket, badminton, and other sports.

This summer vacation, we visit the Juhu beach in Mumbai. I built sandcastles and splashed in the waves. We also drank a lot of coconut water, which is good for our health in the hot summer.

From there, we visited my grandmother’s house in Navi Mumbai. Every year, my grandmother prepares chocolate cookies for me and my sister. We gifted her a pair of shoes as her old ones had worn out.

From there, we went to the Shivaji Maharaj Waterpark, where we enjoyed a lot in the long water slides. Then we had a great lunch at the nearby dhaba.

Overall, my summer vacation was full of joy and happiness. I’ll never forget my summer vacation. It was the best time ever!’

‘Summer vacation is a holiday time. I love summer vacation as there is no school and no homework for the 2 months. I can sleep in late and play football and cricket all day. I can watch TV, eat ice cream, and mangoes and enjoy all day.

This summer vacation I took a swimming lesson. My father bought a swimming costume for me and from 4 to 5 PM every day, I had swimming lessons at the nearby sports complex.’

Every day, after swimming classes, we have yummy ice cream cones on hot evenings. Sometimes, we even make popsicles at home!

Before dinner, I used to play with my dog, Coco. At night, we sit outside and watch the fireflies light up the dark sky. My grandma tells me stories about her childhood summers.

Summer vacations are full of fun and adventures. Now, they are coming to an end I am going to miss this precious time.’

‘Summer vacation is one of my favourite times of the year. There are so many things we can do during summer vacation without worrying about school and homework. We can play outside all day, eat pizza, ice cream and mangoes, watch cartoons and movies, learn new hobbies and go on vacation.’

‘This year, my family and I went on a road trip to the mountains. There were amazing views of rivers flowing and wild animals in the jungle. We stayed at a hotel in the mountains and had tasty food.’

‘From there, we visited my grandmother’s house. My grandmother is the best cook in the world. He makes tasty buttermilk and some local dishes. My grandmother had an old radio where we listened to old Bollywood songs. At night, she used to tell us interesting stories about mountains and how beautiful life is.’

‘After coming from my grandmother’s house, I joined music lessons. I like playing the guitar and it makes me look cool. This new skill is very important to me and I like playing the guitar every day.’

‘At last, I just want to reminisce all the beautiful memories of my summer vacation and the great time I had. My summer was a perfect mix of nature, family, friends, and endless fun. I can’t wait for the next one!’

‘Summer vacation is a time of joy, happiness, long vacations and relaxation. I love summer vacation as I can do a lot of fun things without worrying about school and homework.’

‘This summer vacation first completed my school homework. With homework completed, I was able to completely focus on playing games, watching TV and long trips. We visited on a trip to Kerala. The beautiful beach, green valleys and backwaters was an amazing experience. We were lucky to witness the Nehru Boat Race in the Vembanad Lake, and I was so excited to cheer all the competitors.’

‘After coming back from the trip, I wanted to learn a new skill, so my father enrolled me in cricket coaching. Near my house, there is the South Indian Cricket Statidum, where I used to practice every day from 4 PM to 6 PM. After exhausting from cricket practice, my father would buy me a glass of banana shake.’

‘I also visited my grandmother’s house in Bangalore. Visiting my grandmother during summer vacation has been like a tradition. She holds a special place in our hearts. She told us stories, baked cookies, and we played games. Family time is the best time!’

‘In the end, my summer vacation was fantastic! I did so many cool things with family and friends. Can’t wait for the next one!’

Summer vacation is the most awaited time for students. It’s a break from school when we can have fun, relax, and spend time with loved ones. We often travel to different places, enjoy outdoor activities, and pursue our hobbies. It’s a time to recharge and make memories that last a lifetime.

Summer vacation is a special time of the year for students. It’s a time when we can take a break from our studies and enjoy the sunny weather. During summer vacation, I love to spend time outdoors, playing with my friends and family. We often go on picnics, visit parks, or go swimming in the nearby lake.

Apart from outdoor activities, summer vacation also gives me the opportunity to pursue my interests and hobbies. I spend a lot of time reading books, painting, and exploring new things. It’s a time of self-discovery and personal growth.

One of the best things about summer vacation is the chance to travel to new places. Whether it’s a road trip to the mountains or a beach vacation with family, every trip leaves me with wonderful memories.

In conclusion, summer vacation is a time of fun, relaxation, and exploration. It’s a time to make the most of every moment and create lasting memories with loved ones.

Summer vacation is the best time of the year for students like me. It’s a time when we can finally relax and have fun after a long year of studying hard. During summer vacation, I get to spend quality time with my family and friends. We often go on trips to different places, like the beach or the mountains, where we can enjoy nature and create wonderful memories together.

Apart from traveling, I also like to indulge in my favorite hobbies, such as reading books, playing outdoor games, and learning new skills like painting or cooking. Summer vacation gives me the freedom to explore my interests and try out new things without the pressure of schoolwork.

Overall, summer vacation is a time of joy, relaxation, and adventure. It allows me to recharge my batteries and come back refreshed for the new school year ahead.

This was all about an essay on summer vacation. we hope the above-listed essay samples will help Class 2, 3, 4 and 5 students with their essay writing assignments. For more information on such creative essay topics, visit GeekforGeeks.

Also Read : Essay on My Mother: 10 lines, 100 Words and 200 words essay Essay on My Family: Short, 10 Lines, 100 Words Essay

Essay on Summer Vacation- FAQs

How do you write a summer vacation essay.

Start with a basic introduction explaing what summer vacation are. Then begin by explaing how you spend your summer vacation. Keep your essay to the point. Making it humorous can be a great option to keep your audience engage. Try to avoid grammatical mistakes.

What are some lines on summer vacation?

Summer vacation is the best time of the year. Summer vacation means no worries about school and homework. Summer vacation brings joy, happiness, tasty food, long trips and family time. Children and adults both enjoy summer vacation with great enthusiasm. Summer vacation is like a festival, where each day is celebrated with great joy and enthusiasm.

How do I spend my summer holiday essay 100 words?

During my summer holiday, I had an amazing break filled with exciting adventures. I explored beautiful beaches, building sandcastles and playing in the waves. A road trip to the mountains showcased breathtaking scenery and glimpses of wild animals, making me feel like a true explorer. Camping under the starry sky was an unforgettable experience, complete with marshmallow roasting and family stories. Days at the amusement park brought laughter, thrills, and cotton candy delights with friends. Grandma’s house provided warmth, delicious cookies, and board games. Movie nights and popcorn added cosy relaxation. Overall, my summer holiday was a perfect blend of fun, family, and discovery.

What is a short paragraph for summer vacation?

Summer vacation is the best time of the year. This is a percious time filled with sunny days, outdoor adventures, and precious moments with family and friends. Whether it’s building sandcastles at the beach, exploring new places, or simply enjoying lazy afternoons with a good book, summer allows us to unwind and recharge. The break from school routines brings a sense of freedom, giving us the opportunity to create lasting memories and embrace the beauty of nature. From picnics in the park to late-night movie marathons, summer vacation is a magical time that brings smiles and happiness to everyone.

What is the purpose of essay writing?

Essay writing is an important part of academic writing, which serves as a way to communicate ideas, thoughts, expressions and experiences on the given topic. Students can show their creativity in essay writings. Academic essays require research on the particular topic. This can encourage students to explore an in-depth. This process fosters critical thinking, analytical skills, and the ability to synthesize information.

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10 Lines, Short & Long Essay On ‘Holiday’ For Children

Key Points To Remember: Essay On ‘Holiday’ For Lower Primary Classes

10 lines on ‘holiday’ for kids, a paragraph on ‘holiday’, short essay on ‘holiday’ in english for children, long essay on ‘holiday with the family’ in english for kids, what will your child learn from this essay, points to note.

A holiday is a magical word, loved by everyone – students, working people, teachers, and parents collectively! An essay on ‘holiday’ is the most popular essay topic for every grade, as every kid feels enthusiastic writing about their holiday experiences. Making kids write an essay on the topic ‘holiday’ for classes 1, 2 and 3 has its benefits as it will allow kids to relive their happy memories related to their holidays. Holidays are the time for them to do everything they usually can’t do during the rest of the year. Their holiday list is endless. From trips to learning new hobbies and visiting grandparents to playing sports, kids have so much to share. It will be a good writing exercise for kids as they write an essay on their holiday fun.

All kids love to talk about how they spent or will be spending their holidays. However, they may struggle with how to write an essay on their holiday. Here are some key points to make it easier to write an essay on holiday:

Give a brief introduction about holidays.
State the importance of holidays.
Write what all things or activities the kid will or can do in the holidays.
Write about all the fun they’ve had during the holidays.
Conclude briefly by expressing joy for the holidays.

Writing an essay for classes 1 and 2 on the holidays may sometimes be a bit of a struggle. Here are 10 lines to help kids write:

Holidays are the happiest time for everybody, especially students.
Students get a break from their regular school hours.
Holidays are a time when they can pursue hobbies, learn new sports and relax.
They also spend more hours playing with their friends.
We visit our grandparent’s or relatives’ homes during holidays.
We have a lot of fun at our grandparent’s or relatives’ home, since we eat delicious food and have our cousins over.
Some families go for trips to hill stations or beaches.
Students also complete their school assignments during holidays.
Some students go for extra classes to do better in academics.
Holidays are the time to enjoy, relax, learn good things, and cherish good times with close family members.

Holidays are the most joyous time for every student. Let’s relive the joy through this short paragraph:

Everyone loves holidays, whether they are for one day or one month! Students especially look forward to their annual school vacation. They love that they don’t need to get up early for school and can get extra sleep hours. It’s a healthy break from a routine. Kids plan so many things for their holidays; some want to spend it with their cousins in their grandparent’s or relatives’ house. Some plan for a family holiday where they visit and explore new places. It is also a good time to learn new things or pursue new hobbies. Holidays are magical days full of fun and enjoyment.

Kids love to talk about their holidays. Therefore, writing a holiday essay for classes 1, 2 and 3 kids is a joy. Here is a short essay on holidays for children:

Routine life is boring, especially for kids. Holiday is the magic word that gives them a break from their school routine. Whether it’s a short break or the annual holidays, every student eagerly waits for them. Holidays are the time when they can sleep late, wake up late and spend hours playing. Parents won’t rush them to complete homework. Nor would their parents stop them from playing extra hours. Some kids even invite their friends for sleepovers or movie nights. Most kids don’t get enough time to learn new sports or hobbies during school days. So, the holidays are the perfect time to learn how to play the guitar or go swimming or even join that reading club. Most families plan a get-together during long holidays. It is the time to visit new places and enjoy yourself with family. Holidays give us a break from everyday life to relax and rejuvenate.

Here is a long holiday essay for class 3 students. Kids can read and learn from it to write a long essay on holidays for their school assignments.

One thing that never fails to make us smile is the word holiday. Whether we are young or old, we all look forward to holidays. They are the perfect time to relax and take a break from our daily routine. Our days of leisure, are the most important and memorable days of our lives. Let’s understand how important are holidays and ways to enjoy them the most.

Importance of Holiday For Students And Working People

Everyone loves holidays. However, they hold a different level of importance for different people. For students, holidays are the time when they can do extra things apart from their studies. In their daily school lives, students don’t get much time to pursue their hobbies or interests. During holidays, they can explore a new interest or get themselves enrolled to learn new sports. Trying new things is important for a kid’s overall development. Kids also get more time to spend with their families and friends. So, holidays give them the perfect opportunity to do things they cannot do during school days.

Working people equally love holidays as young kids. Their long working hours and hectic lifestyle don’t leave them much time to relax or enjoy their hobbies. So, during the holidays, they relax and rejuvenate. They sleep in late, wake up late and enjoy the whole day with the family. During holidays, they can go on trips with family or friends to rejuvenate.

How To Make The Most Of Your Holidays

To fully utilise the holidays, one should list what they want to do or don’t get to do on their normal days. It could be spending time with friends, learning a new hobby, or sleeping late. Then, as per the time and number of days, start ticking things off the list. A new hobby or sport can be learned if you have long holidays. For a short holiday of a few days, a family trip can be planned. Just remember your holidays are the time to enjoy, relax and have lots of fun.

An essay on ‘holiday’ is a great way to teach your child the importance of relaxing, unwinding and doing better in our lives. Through this essay, they will also learn about various things they can do during holidays. While writing an essay on holidays, kids will learn the value of playing sports and learning new hobbies to become active and smart.

Some noteworthy points about holidays:

1. Why Is A Holiday Important?

Holidays are important as they give us time to relax and rejuvenate. During holidays we get more time with our near ones and can pursue our hobbies.

2. How One Can Spend His/Her Holiday?

One can spend their holidays in numerous ways. They can pursue their hobbies, learn new interests like singing, dancing, sports or arts, spend time with friends or go on a trip. The list is endless.

Holidays are best enjoyed when they are spent doing things we like or with people we love. They are the ideal time to learn or do extra activities, spend time with family and relax. Writing an essay on holidays will allow kids to explore their thoughts and desires related to this beautiful topic.

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literature review on keywords

Literature Reviews

Introduction: What, Who & Why
Define a topic
Identify keywords

Identifying keywords

Comprehesive vs precise, using text mining to identify keywords.

More search tips
Understand & Analyse
More resources
Accessing help
Systematic Style Reviews Guide

It is important to find all the relevant keywords for the topic to ensure the search is comprehensive by identifying:

different spellings, tenses and word variants of keywords
related concepts
names of people or authors associated with these ideas

There are many ways to locate these terms, including

recommended readings, textbooks and other review articles that provide an overview of the field of research
dictionaries, thesauri, handbooks and encyclopedias that provide definitions and general information about topics.
database thesauri or subject headings that tell you which terms are used in the databases and professional literature.
text mining tools that allow you to analyse large amounts of text or information and identify commonly used terms in the field.

The process of searching will also help identify more terms that you should be adding to your list.

There needs to be a balance in searching between making the search comprehensive enough to encompass everything on the topic and precise enough to only capture those results that are specifically relevant.

Both approaches have advantages and disadvantages

Increasing the comprehensiveness (or sensitivity) of a search will reduce its precision and will retrieve more non-relevant articles.

Text mining will help identify how often terms come up in the literature and help identify other related terms and subject headings that have not been considered or thought of as being useful.

Text mining is a process used to look at large amounts of text and find relationships in the results by using computer programs designed to extract and analyse this data.

It is used to categorise information and identify trends and patterns which can be done across large documents or multiple sources (or both).

1. Mining for terms Use these tools to find alternate search terms that are related by identifying how often keywords appear and which other terms appear with them by number of occurrences.

2. Mine within the text Locate terms within blocks of text (e.g. an article) to find word patterns and frequency. More frequent words are more likely to be relevant to the topic.

3. Use visualising tools These tools create word clouds related to search terms

These are just some of the tools available for mining text that are available on the web. There is also both commercial and free software that can be downloaded and installed. The web pages linked below have lists of yet more tools.

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Methodology

How to Write a Literature Review | Guide, Examples, & Templates

How to Write a Literature Review | Guide, Examples, & Templates

Published on January 2, 2023 by Shona McCombes . Revised on September 11, 2023.

What is a literature review? A literature review is a survey of scholarly sources on a specific topic. It provides an overview of current knowledge, allowing you to identify relevant theories, methods, and gaps in the existing research that you can later apply to your paper, thesis, or dissertation topic .

There are five key steps to writing a literature review:

Search for relevant literature
Evaluate sources
Identify themes, debates, and gaps
Outline the structure
Write your literature review

A good literature review doesn’t just summarize sources—it analyzes, synthesizes , and critically evaluates to give a clear picture of the state of knowledge on the subject.

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What is the purpose of a literature review, examples of literature reviews, step 1 – search for relevant literature, step 2 – evaluate and select sources, step 3 – identify themes, debates, and gaps, step 4 – outline your literature review’s structure, step 5 – write your literature review, free lecture slides, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions, introduction.

Quick Run-through
Step 1 & 2

When you write a thesis , dissertation , or research paper , you will likely have to conduct a literature review to situate your research within existing knowledge. The literature review gives you a chance to:

Demonstrate your familiarity with the topic and its scholarly context
Develop a theoretical framework and methodology for your research
Position your work in relation to other researchers and theorists
Show how your research addresses a gap or contributes to a debate
Evaluate the current state of research and demonstrate your knowledge of the scholarly debates around your topic.

Writing literature reviews is a particularly important skill if you want to apply for graduate school or pursue a career in research. We’ve written a step-by-step guide that you can follow below.

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Writing literature reviews can be quite challenging! A good starting point could be to look at some examples, depending on what kind of literature review you’d like to write.

Example literature review #1: “Why Do People Migrate? A Review of the Theoretical Literature” ( Theoretical literature review about the development of economic migration theory from the 1950s to today.)
Example literature review #2: “Literature review as a research methodology: An overview and guidelines” ( Methodological literature review about interdisciplinary knowledge acquisition and production.)
Example literature review #3: “The Use of Technology in English Language Learning: A Literature Review” ( Thematic literature review about the effects of technology on language acquisition.)
Example literature review #4: “Learners’ Listening Comprehension Difficulties in English Language Learning: A Literature Review” ( Chronological literature review about how the concept of listening skills has changed over time.)

You can also check out our templates with literature review examples and sample outlines at the links below.

Download Word doc Download Google doc

Before you begin searching for literature, you need a clearly defined topic .

If you are writing the literature review section of a dissertation or research paper, you will search for literature related to your research problem and questions .

Make a list of keywords

Start by creating a list of keywords related to your research question. Include each of the key concepts or variables you’re interested in, and list any synonyms and related terms. You can add to this list as you discover new keywords in the process of your literature search.

Social media, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, TikTok
Body image, self-perception, self-esteem, mental health
Generation Z, teenagers, adolescents, youth

Search for relevant sources

Use your keywords to begin searching for sources. Some useful databases to search for journals and articles include:

Your university’s library catalogue
Google Scholar
Project Muse (humanities and social sciences)
Medline (life sciences and biomedicine)
EconLit (economics)
Inspec (physics, engineering and computer science)

You can also use boolean operators to help narrow down your search.

Make sure to read the abstract to find out whether an article is relevant to your question. When you find a useful book or article, you can check the bibliography to find other relevant sources.

You likely won’t be able to read absolutely everything that has been written on your topic, so it will be necessary to evaluate which sources are most relevant to your research question.

For each publication, ask yourself:

What question or problem is the author addressing?
What are the key concepts and how are they defined?
What are the key theories, models, and methods?
Does the research use established frameworks or take an innovative approach?
What are the results and conclusions of the study?
How does the publication relate to other literature in the field? Does it confirm, add to, or challenge established knowledge?
What are the strengths and weaknesses of the research?

Make sure the sources you use are credible , and make sure you read any landmark studies and major theories in your field of research.

You can use our template to summarize and evaluate sources you’re thinking about using. Click on either button below to download.

Take notes and cite your sources

As you read, you should also begin the writing process. Take notes that you can later incorporate into the text of your literature review.

It is important to keep track of your sources with citations to avoid plagiarism . It can be helpful to make an annotated bibliography , where you compile full citation information and write a paragraph of summary and analysis for each source. This helps you remember what you read and saves time later in the process.

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To begin organizing your literature review’s argument and structure, be sure you understand the connections and relationships between the sources you’ve read. Based on your reading and notes, you can look for:

Trends and patterns (in theory, method or results): do certain approaches become more or less popular over time?
Themes: what questions or concepts recur across the literature?
Debates, conflicts and contradictions: where do sources disagree?
Pivotal publications: are there any influential theories or studies that changed the direction of the field?
Gaps: what is missing from the literature? Are there weaknesses that need to be addressed?

This step will help you work out the structure of your literature review and (if applicable) show how your own research will contribute to existing knowledge.

Most research has focused on young women.
There is an increasing interest in the visual aspects of social media.
But there is still a lack of robust research on highly visual platforms like Instagram and Snapchat—this is a gap that you could address in your own research.

There are various approaches to organizing the body of a literature review. Depending on the length of your literature review, you can combine several of these strategies (for example, your overall structure might be thematic, but each theme is discussed chronologically).

Chronological

The simplest approach is to trace the development of the topic over time. However, if you choose this strategy, be careful to avoid simply listing and summarizing sources in order.

Try to analyze patterns, turning points and key debates that have shaped the direction of the field. Give your interpretation of how and why certain developments occurred.

If you have found some recurring central themes, you can organize your literature review into subsections that address different aspects of the topic.

For example, if you are reviewing literature about inequalities in migrant health outcomes, key themes might include healthcare policy, language barriers, cultural attitudes, legal status, and economic access.

Methodological

If you draw your sources from different disciplines or fields that use a variety of research methods , you might want to compare the results and conclusions that emerge from different approaches. For example:

Look at what results have emerged in qualitative versus quantitative research
Discuss how the topic has been approached by empirical versus theoretical scholarship
Divide the literature into sociological, historical, and cultural sources

Theoretical

A literature review is often the foundation for a theoretical framework . You can use it to discuss various theories, models, and definitions of key concepts.

You might argue for the relevance of a specific theoretical approach, or combine various theoretical concepts to create a framework for your research.

Like any other academic text , your literature review should have an introduction , a main body, and a conclusion . What you include in each depends on the objective of your literature review.

The introduction should clearly establish the focus and purpose of the literature review.

Depending on the length of your literature review, you might want to divide the body into subsections. You can use a subheading for each theme, time period, or methodological approach.

As you write, you can follow these tips:

Summarize and synthesize: give an overview of the main points of each source and combine them into a coherent whole
Analyze and interpret: don’t just paraphrase other researchers — add your own interpretations where possible, discussing the significance of findings in relation to the literature as a whole
Critically evaluate: mention the strengths and weaknesses of your sources
Write in well-structured paragraphs: use transition words and topic sentences to draw connections, comparisons and contrasts

In the conclusion, you should summarize the key findings you have taken from the literature and emphasize their significance.

When you’ve finished writing and revising your literature review, don’t forget to proofread thoroughly before submitting. Not a language expert? Check out Scribbr’s professional proofreading services !

This article has been adapted into lecture slides that you can use to teach your students about writing a literature review.

Scribbr slides are free to use, customize, and distribute for educational purposes.

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If you want to know more about the research process , methodology , research bias , or statistics , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

Sampling methods
Simple random sampling
Stratified sampling
Cluster sampling
Likert scales
Reproducibility

Statistics

Null hypothesis
Statistical power
Probability distribution
Effect size
Poisson distribution

Research bias

Optimism bias
Cognitive bias
Implicit bias
Hawthorne effect
Anchoring bias
Explicit bias

A literature review is a survey of scholarly sources (such as books, journal articles, and theses) related to a specific topic or research question .

It is often written as part of a thesis, dissertation , or research paper , in order to situate your work in relation to existing knowledge.

There are several reasons to conduct a literature review at the beginning of a research project:

To familiarize yourself with the current state of knowledge on your topic
To ensure that you’re not just repeating what others have already done
To identify gaps in knowledge and unresolved problems that your research can address
To develop your theoretical framework and methodology
To provide an overview of the key findings and debates on the topic

Writing the literature review shows your reader how your work relates to existing research and what new insights it will contribute.

The literature review usually comes near the beginning of your thesis or dissertation . After the introduction , it grounds your research in a scholarly field and leads directly to your theoretical framework or methodology .

A literature review is a survey of credible sources on a topic, often used in dissertations , theses, and research papers . Literature reviews give an overview of knowledge on a subject, helping you identify relevant theories and methods, as well as gaps in existing research. Literature reviews are set up similarly to other academic texts , with an introduction , a main body, and a conclusion .

An annotated bibliography is a list of source references that has a short description (called an annotation ) for each of the sources. It is often assigned as part of the research process for a paper .

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Writing a Literature Review

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A literature review is a document or section of a document that collects key sources on a topic and discusses those sources in conversation with each other (also called synthesis ). The lit review is an important genre in many disciplines, not just literature (i.e., the study of works of literature such as novels and plays). When we say “literature review” or refer to “the literature,” we are talking about the research ( scholarship ) in a given field. You will often see the terms “the research,” “the scholarship,” and “the literature” used mostly interchangeably.

Where, when, and why would I write a lit review?

There are a number of different situations where you might write a literature review, each with slightly different expectations; different disciplines, too, have field-specific expectations for what a literature review is and does. For instance, in the humanities, authors might include more overt argumentation and interpretation of source material in their literature reviews, whereas in the sciences, authors are more likely to report study designs and results in their literature reviews; these differences reflect these disciplines’ purposes and conventions in scholarship. You should always look at examples from your own discipline and talk to professors or mentors in your field to be sure you understand your discipline’s conventions, for literature reviews as well as for any other genre.

A literature review can be a part of a research paper or scholarly article, usually falling after the introduction and before the research methods sections. In these cases, the lit review just needs to cover scholarship that is important to the issue you are writing about; sometimes it will also cover key sources that informed your research methodology.

Lit reviews can also be standalone pieces, either as assignments in a class or as publications. In a class, a lit review may be assigned to help students familiarize themselves with a topic and with scholarship in their field, get an idea of the other researchers working on the topic they’re interested in, find gaps in existing research in order to propose new projects, and/or develop a theoretical framework and methodology for later research. As a publication, a lit review usually is meant to help make other scholars’ lives easier by collecting and summarizing, synthesizing, and analyzing existing research on a topic. This can be especially helpful for students or scholars getting into a new research area, or for directing an entire community of scholars toward questions that have not yet been answered.

What are the parts of a lit review?

Most lit reviews use a basic introduction-body-conclusion structure; if your lit review is part of a larger paper, the introduction and conclusion pieces may be just a few sentences while you focus most of your attention on the body. If your lit review is a standalone piece, the introduction and conclusion take up more space and give you a place to discuss your goals, research methods, and conclusions separately from where you discuss the literature itself.

Introduction:

An introductory paragraph that explains what your working topic and thesis is
A forecast of key topics or texts that will appear in the review
Potentially, a description of how you found sources and how you analyzed them for inclusion and discussion in the review (more often found in published, standalone literature reviews than in lit review sections in an article or research paper)
Summarize and synthesize: Give an overview of the main points of each source and combine them into a coherent whole
Analyze and interpret: Don’t just paraphrase other researchers – add your own interpretations where possible, discussing the significance of findings in relation to the literature as a whole
Critically Evaluate: Mention the strengths and weaknesses of your sources
Write in well-structured paragraphs: Use transition words and topic sentence to draw connections, comparisons, and contrasts.

Conclusion:

Summarize the key findings you have taken from the literature and emphasize their significance
Connect it back to your primary research question

How should I organize my lit review?

Lit reviews can take many different organizational patterns depending on what you are trying to accomplish with the review. Here are some examples:

Chronological : The simplest approach is to trace the development of the topic over time, which helps familiarize the audience with the topic (for instance if you are introducing something that is not commonly known in your field). If you choose this strategy, be careful to avoid simply listing and summarizing sources in order. Try to analyze the patterns, turning points, and key debates that have shaped the direction of the field. Give your interpretation of how and why certain developments occurred (as mentioned previously, this may not be appropriate in your discipline — check with a teacher or mentor if you’re unsure).
Thematic : If you have found some recurring central themes that you will continue working with throughout your piece, you can organize your literature review into subsections that address different aspects of the topic. For example, if you are reviewing literature about women and religion, key themes can include the role of women in churches and the religious attitude towards women.
Qualitative versus quantitative research
Empirical versus theoretical scholarship
Divide the research by sociological, historical, or cultural sources
Theoretical : In many humanities articles, the literature review is the foundation for the theoretical framework. You can use it to discuss various theories, models, and definitions of key concepts. You can argue for the relevance of a specific theoretical approach or combine various theorical concepts to create a framework for your research.

What are some strategies or tips I can use while writing my lit review?

Any lit review is only as good as the research it discusses; make sure your sources are well-chosen and your research is thorough. Don’t be afraid to do more research if you discover a new thread as you’re writing. More info on the research process is available in our "Conducting Research" resources .

As you’re doing your research, create an annotated bibliography ( see our page on the this type of document ). Much of the information used in an annotated bibliography can be used also in a literature review, so you’ll be not only partially drafting your lit review as you research, but also developing your sense of the larger conversation going on among scholars, professionals, and any other stakeholders in your topic.

Usually you will need to synthesize research rather than just summarizing it. This means drawing connections between sources to create a picture of the scholarly conversation on a topic over time. Many student writers struggle to synthesize because they feel they don’t have anything to add to the scholars they are citing; here are some strategies to help you:

It often helps to remember that the point of these kinds of syntheses is to show your readers how you understand your research, to help them read the rest of your paper.
Writing teachers often say synthesis is like hosting a dinner party: imagine all your sources are together in a room, discussing your topic. What are they saying to each other?
Look at the in-text citations in each paragraph. Are you citing just one source for each paragraph? This usually indicates summary only. When you have multiple sources cited in a paragraph, you are more likely to be synthesizing them (not always, but often
Read more about synthesis here.

The most interesting literature reviews are often written as arguments (again, as mentioned at the beginning of the page, this is discipline-specific and doesn’t work for all situations). Often, the literature review is where you can establish your research as filling a particular gap or as relevant in a particular way. You have some chance to do this in your introduction in an article, but the literature review section gives a more extended opportunity to establish the conversation in the way you would like your readers to see it. You can choose the intellectual lineage you would like to be part of and whose definitions matter most to your thinking (mostly humanities-specific, but this goes for sciences as well). In addressing these points, you argue for your place in the conversation, which tends to make the lit review more compelling than a simple reporting of other sources.

Why Keywords Are Necessary to Build a Comprehensive Literature Review

The Importance of Preparation

The quotation, “Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend four sharpening my axe,” has been attributed to Abraham Lincoln. Whether or not that attribution is valid, the message of the quotation definitely applies to the development of a comprehensive literature review . With over half a billion active websites, and academic databases with hundreds of millions of entries available for search, adequate preparation for your review is critical to not only ensure that you capture accurate and relevant data, but also that you avoid wasting your most precious resource in academic research—your time!

There’s More to This than Google

The fact that the name of the search engine company has now been adopted in the global vernacular as a verb, gives some indication of the extent to which the ease of searching for anyone and anything has influenced our lives. However, the search skills you may have developed on Google will not, in themselves, automatically make you a proficient academic researcher. The databases you will be searching will probably have their data coded and sorted differently than the rankings attributed to individual websites by Google’s ever-changing search algorithms .

The World of Boolean Search

Named after the British mathematician George Boole , the creator of Boolean logic, Boolean search involves the extension of the search keywords with “operators,” (and, or, not, and near) in order to refine the logical relationships between the search terms. In the PubMed database, for example, those Boolean operators “must be entered in uppercase letters.”

Putting quotation marks around your search term (“Boolean logic”) will limit the search to that pairing, even in general search engines such as Google. The operators will allow you to start with broader keyword pairings and then to narrow the results with each iterative search request. This enables you to track or pursue a keyword pairing that you may not have originally considered in your initial list of keywords.

Moving from Quantity to Quality

When a simple search for “Boolean logic” in Google delivers 462,000 results in 0.29 seconds, you quickly realize the challenge that is facing you. You will never be short of results (unless you pick the most obscure terms imaginable), and the success of your literature review will rest on how well you plan and refine your scientific keyword search. Remember that a literature review is a process.

While your end goal will be sufficient knowledge to establish your expertise and to validate your research question, in the early stages of the process you must come to terms with not knowing what you do not know about the subject.

On that basis, every relevant search result should be assessed before proceeding. Just as goals should be SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time-based), your search results can be measured using the CARS checklist:

C – Is this a credible resource? Anyone can put up a website and claim expertise in any field. Look for evidence of credentials.
A – How do you know the information is accurate? In this era of predatory and fabricated academic journals , “trust but verify,” should be applied at all times.
R – Are the research assumptions reasonable? Academic publishing favors the new and counterintuitive, but that should serve as a warning for cautious interpretation of any new results that relate to your topic.
S – Is this information supported by other sources? Citations from other journals and by other authors are one thing, but has this work ever been verified by a replication study?

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Literature Review - Finding the Resources

The Literature
Search Tools
Formulating your search statement

Keyword search

More search tips - 1, more search tips - 2.

Buliding on what you have found
Keeping Track
Academic Reading
Citing Sources

During your literature search, especially when you search for articles in databases, you will rely very much on keyword searching. To conduct a keyword search , you need to formulate a search statement .

Below are the basic steps to develop a search statement. After going through these steps, try to build up your own search statement using this worksheet [pdf]

Here is a diagram to help you understand:

1. Identify the keywords or the main concepts of your research topic.

For example, for the topic Globalization of Chinese companies , the keywords are Globalization , Chinese and Companies .

2. Think of similar terms (synonyms) or phrases that might also be used to describe these concepts, to ensure that you do not miss out any relevant information. You can use a thesaurus to help you find synonyms. For example, you can first arrange the main concepts in columns. Then under each column write down similar terms or phrases that may also be used to represent that concept:

3. Combine your search terms in a way that a database can understand. To do this, you need to use the words AND , OR , NOT (Boolean operators).

AND combines different concepts (e.g. Globalization and Chinese listed in different columns of the table above are different concepts).
OR combines similar concepts (e.g. Chinese and China listed in the same column above are similar concepts).
NOT excludes the undesirable concepts

4. Make use of truncation, wildcards, parentheses and phrase searching for more productive searching. Symbols commonly used in many search tools including catalogues and databases are:

5. A search statement can then be developed

e.g. Globali?ation AND (Chinese OR China) AND (Compan* OR Corporat* OR Firm*)

Use a form (sometimes called "Quick Search", "Advanced Search" or "Form Search") to search if possible.

For example, this is more user-friendly

When necessary, in order to make the search more focused, limit the search by

Specific search fields (e.g. journal titles, abstracts, subjects)
Document types (e.g. scholarly articles, conferences)
Year of publication, etc.
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Next: Buliding on what you have found >>
Last Updated: Jan 17, 2024 7:25 PM
URL: https://libguides.library.cityu.edu.hk/litreview

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UOW Library
Key guides for students

Literature Review

How to search effectively.

Find examples of literature reviews
How to write a literature review
Grey literature

Follow our suggested steps below.

We also have an introductory Literature searching interactive tutorial that includes self-paced guided activities to help you as you learn more about the literature searching process.

1. Identify search words

Analyse your research topic or question.

What are the main ideas?
What concepts or theories have you already covered?
Write down your main ideas, synonyms, related words and phrases.
If you're looking for particular types of research, you can use these as search words. E.g. qualitative, quantitative, methodology, review, survey, test, trend (and more).
Be mindful of UK and US spelling variations. E.g. organisation OR organization, ageing OR aging.
Interactive Keyword Builder
Identifying effective keywords

2. Connect your search words

Find results with one or more search words.

Use OR between words that mean the same thing.

E.g. adolescent OR teenager

This search will find results with either (or both) of the search words.

Find results with two search words

Use AND between words which represent the main ideas in the question.

E.g. adolescent AND “physical activity”

This will find results with both of the search words.

Exclude search words

Use NOT to exclude words that you don’t want in your search results.

E.g. (adolescent OR teenager) NOT “young adult”

3. Use search tricks

Search for different word endings.

Truncation *

The asterisk symbol * will help you search for different word endings.

E.g. teen* will find results with the words: teen, teens, teenager, teenagers

Specific truncation symbols will vary. Check the 'Help' section of the database you are searching.

Search for common phrases

Phrase searching “...........”

Double quotation marks help you search for common phrases and make your results more relevant.

E.g. “physical activity” will find results with the words physical activity together as a phrase.

Search for spelling variations within related terms

Wildcards ?

Wildcard symbols allow you to search for spelling variations within the same or related terms.

E.g. wom?n will find results with women OR woman

Specific wild card symbols will vary. Check the 'Help' section of the database you are searching.

Search terms within specific ranges of each other

Proximity w/#

Proximity searching allows you to specify where your search terms will appear in relation to each other.

E.g. pain w/10 morphine will search for pain within ten words of morphine

Specific proximity symbols will vary. Check the 'Help' section of the database you are searching.

4. Improve your search results

All library databases are different and you can't always search and refine in the same way. Try to be consistent when transferring your search in the library databases you have chosen.

Narrow and refine your search results by:

year of publication or date range (for recent or historical research)
document or source type (e.g. article, review or book)
subject or keyword (for relevance). Try repeating your search using the 'subject' headings or 'keywords' field to focus your search
searching in particular fields, i.e. citation and abstract. Explore the available dropdown menus to change the fields to be searched.

When searching, remember to:

Adapt your search and keep trying.

Searching for information is a process and you won't always get it right the first time. Improve your results by changing your search and trying again until you're happy with what you have found.

Keep track of your searches

Keeping track of searches saves time as you can rerun them, store references, and set up regular alerts for new research relevant to your topic.

Most library databases allow you to register with a personal account. Look for a 'log in', 'sign in' or 'register' button to get started.

Literature review search tracker (Excel spreadsheet)

Manage your references

There are free and subscription reference management programs available on the web or to download on your computer.

EndNote - The University has a license for EndNote. It is available for all students and staff, although is recommended for postgraduates and academic staff.
Zotero - Free software recommended for undergraduate students.
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J Med Libr Assoc
v.106(4); 2018 Oct

A systematic approach to searching: an efficient and complete method to develop literature searches

Associated data.

Creating search strategies for systematic reviews, finding the best balance between sensitivity and specificity, and translating search strategies between databases is challenging. Several methods describe standards for systematic search strategies, but a consistent approach for creating an exhaustive search strategy has not yet been fully described in enough detail to be fully replicable. The authors have established a method that describes step by step the process of developing a systematic search strategy as needed in the systematic review. This method describes how single-line search strategies can be prepared in a text document by typing search syntax (such as field codes, parentheses, and Boolean operators) before copying and pasting search terms (keywords and free-text synonyms) that are found in the thesaurus. To help ensure term completeness, we developed a novel optimization technique that is mainly based on comparing the results retrieved by thesaurus terms with those retrieved by the free-text search words to identify potentially relevant candidate search terms. Macros in Microsoft Word have been developed to convert syntaxes between databases and interfaces almost automatically. This method helps information specialists in developing librarian-mediated searches for systematic reviews as well as medical and health care practitioners who are searching for evidence to answer clinical questions. The described method can be used to create complex and comprehensive search strategies for different databases and interfaces, such as those that are needed when searching for relevant references for systematic reviews, and will assist both information specialists and practitioners when they are searching the biomedical literature.

INTRODUCTION

Librarians and information specialists are often involved in the process of preparing and completing systematic reviews (SRs), where one of their main tasks is to identify relevant references to include in the review [ 1 ]. Although several recommendations for the process of searching have been published [ 2 – 6 ], none describe the development of a systematic search strategy from start to finish.

Traditional methods of SR search strategy development and execution are highly time consuming, reportedly requiring up to 100 hours or more [ 7 , 8 ]. The authors wanted to develop systematic and exhaustive search strategies more efficiently, while preserving the high sensitivity that SR search strategies necessitate. In this article, we describe the method developed at Erasmus University Medical Center (MC) and demonstrate its use through an example search. The efficiency of the search method and outcome of 73 searches that have resulted in published reviews are described in a separate article [ 9 ].

As we aimed to describe the creation of systematic searches in full detail, the method starts at a basic level with the analysis of the research question and the creation of search terms. Readers who are new to SR searching are advised to follow all steps described. More experienced searchers can consider the basic steps to be existing knowledge that will already be part of their normal workflow, although step 4 probably differs from general practice. Experienced searchers will gain the most from reading about the novelties in the method as described in steps 10–13 and comparing the examples given in the supplementary appendix to their own practice.

CREATING A SYSTEMATIC SEARCH STRATEGY

Our methodology for planning and creating a multi-database search strategy consists of the following steps:

Determine a clear and focused question
Describe the articles that can answer the question
Decide which key concepts address the different elements of the question
Decide which elements should be used for the best results
Choose an appropriate database and interface to start with
Document the search process in a text document
Identify appropriate index terms in the thesaurus of the first database
Identify synonyms in the thesaurus
Add variations in search terms
Use database-appropriate syntax, with parentheses, Boolean operators, and field codes
Optimize the search
Evaluate the initial results
Check for errors
Translate to other databases
Test and reiterate

Each step in the process is reflected by an example search described in the supplementary appendix .

1. Determine a clear and focused question

A systematic search can best be applied to a well-defined and precise research or clinical question. Questions that are too broad or too vague cannot be answered easily in a systematic way and will generally result in an overwhelming number of search results. On the other hand, a question that is too specific will result into too few or even zero search results. Various papers describe this process in more detail [ 10 – 12 ].

2. Describe the articles that can answer the question

Although not all clinical or research questions can be answered in the literature, the next step is to presume that the answer can indeed be found in published studies. A good starting point for a search is hypothesizing what the research that can answer the question would look like. These hypothetical (when possible, combined with known) articles can be used as guidance for constructing the search strategy.

3. Decide which key concepts address the different elements of the question

Key concepts are the topics or components that the desired articles should address, such as diseases or conditions, actions, substances, settings, domains (e.g., therapy, diagnosis, etiology), or study types. Key concepts from the research question can be grouped to create elements in the search strategy.

Elements in a search strategy do not necessarily follow the patient, intervention, comparison, outcome (PICO) structure or any other related structure. Using the PICO or another similar framework as guidance can be helpful to consider, especially in the inclusion and exclusion review stage of the SR, but this is not necessary for good search strategy development [ 13 – 15 ]. Sometimes concepts from different parts of the PICO structure can be grouped together into one search element, such as when the desired outcome is frequently described in a certain study type.

4. Decide which elements should be used for the best results

Not all elements of a research question should necessarily be used in the search strategy. Some elements are less important than others or may unnecessarily complicate or restrict a search strategy. Adding an element to a search strategy increases the chance of missing relevant references. Therefore, the number of elements in a search strategy should remain as low as possible to optimize recall.

Using the schema in Figure 1 , elements can be ordered by their specificity and importance to determine the best search approach. Whether an element is more specific or more general can be measured objectively by the number of hits retrieved in a database when searching for a key term representing that element. Depending on the research question, certain elements are more important than others. If articles (hypothetically or known) exist that can answer the question but lack a certain element in their titles, abstracts, or keywords, that element is unimportant to the question. An element can also be unimportant because of expected bias or an overlap with another element.

An external file that holds a picture, illustration, etc.
Object name is jmla-106-531-f001.jpg

Schema for determining the optimal order of elements

Bias in elements

The choice of elements in a search strategy can introduce bias through use of overly specific terminology or terms often associated with positive outcomes. For the question “does prolonged breastfeeding improve intelligence outcomes in children?,” searching specifically for the element of duration will introduce bias, as articles that find a positive effect of prolonged breastfeeding will be much more likely to mention time factors in their titles or abstracts.

Overlapping elements

Elements in a question sometimes overlap in their meaning. Sometimes certain therapies are interventions for one specific disease. The Lichtenstein technique, for example, is a repair method for inguinal hernias. There is no need to include an element of “inguinal hernias” to a search for the effectiveness of the Lichtenstein therapy. Likewise, sometimes certain diseases are only found in certain populations. Adding such an overlapping element could lead to missing relevant references.

The elements to use in a search strategy can be found in the plot of elements in Figure 1 , by following the top row from left to right. For this method, we recommend starting with the most important and specific elements. Then, continue with more general and important elements until the number of results is acceptable for screening. Determining how many results are acceptable for screening is often a matter of negotiation with the SR team.

5. Choose an appropriate database and interface to start with

Important factors for choosing databases to use are the coverage and the presence of a thesaurus. For medically oriented searches, the coverage and recall of Embase, which includes the MEDLINE database, are superior to those of MEDLINE [ 16 ]. Each of these two databases has its own thesaurus with its own unique definitions and structure. Because of the complexity of the Embase thesaurus, Emtree, which contains much more specific thesaurus terms than the MEDLINE Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) thesaurus, translation from Emtree to MeSH is easier than the other way around. Therefore, we recommend starting in Embase.

MEDLINE and Embase are available through many different vendors and interfaces. The choice of an interface and primary database is often determined by the searcher’s accessibility. For our method, an interface that allows searching with proximity operators is desirable, and full functionality of the thesaurus, including explosion of narrower terms, is crucial. We recommend developing a personal workflow that always starts with one specific database and interface.

6. Document the search process in a text document

We advise designing and creating the complete search strategies in a log document, instead of directly in the database itself, to register the steps taken and to make searches accountable and reproducible. The developed search strategies can be copied and pasted into the desired databases from the log document. This way, the searcher is in control of the whole process. Any change to the search strategy should be done in the log document, assuring that the search strategy in the log is always the most recent.

7. Identify appropriate index terms in the thesaurus of the first database

Searches should start by identifying appropriate thesaurus terms for the desired elements. The thesaurus of the database is searched for matching index terms for each key concept. We advise restricting the initial terms to the most important and most relevant terms. Later in the process, more general terms can be added in the optimization process, in which the effect on the number of hits, and thus the desirability of adding these terms, can be evaluated more easily.

Several factors can complicate the identification of thesaurus terms. Sometimes, one thesaurus term is found that exactly describes a specific element. In contrast, especially in more general elements, multiple thesaurus terms can be found to describe one element. If no relevant thesaurus terms have been found for an element, free-text terms can be used, and possible thesaurus terms found in the resulting references can be added later (step 11).

Sometimes, no distinct thesaurus term is available for a specific key concept that describes the concept in enough detail. In Emtree, one thesaurus term often combines two or more elements. The easiest solution for combining these terms for a sensitive search is to use such a thesaurus term in all elements where it is relevant. Examples are given in the supplementary appendix .

8. Identify synonyms in the thesaurus

Most thesauri offer a list of synonyms on their term details page (named Synonyms in Emtree and Entry Terms in MeSH). To create a sensitive search strategy for SRs, these terms need to be searched as free-text keywords in the title and abstract fields, in addition to searching their associated thesaurus terms.

The Emtree thesaurus contains more synonyms (300,000) than MeSH does (220,000) [ 17 ]. The difference in number of terms is even higher considering that many synonyms in MeSH are permuted terms (i.e., inversions of phrases using commas).

Thesaurus terms are ordered in a tree structure. When searching for a more general thesaurus term, the more specific (narrower) terms in the branches below that term will also be searched (this is frequently referred to as “exploding” a thesaurus term). However, to perform a sensitive search, all relevant variations of the narrower terms must be searched as free-text keywords in the title or abstract, in addition to relying on the exploded thesaurus term. Thus, all articles that describe a certain narrower topic in their titles and abstracts will already be retrieved before MeSH terms are added.

9. Add variations in search terms (e.g., truncation, spelling differences, abbreviations, opposites)

Truncation allows a searcher to search for words beginning with the same word stem. A search for therap* will, thus, retrieve therapy, therapies, therapeutic, and all other words starting with “therap.” Do not truncate a word stem that is too short. Also, limitations of interfaces should be taken into account, especially in PubMed, where the number of search term variations that can be found by truncation is limited to 600.

Databases contain references to articles using both standard British and American English spellings. Both need to be searched as free-text terms in the title and abstract. Alternatively, many interfaces offer a certain code to replace zero or one characters, allowing a search for “pediatric” or “paediatric” as “p?ediatric.” Table 1 provides a detailed description of the syntax for different interfaces.

Field codes in five most used interfaces for biomedical literature searching

Searching for abbreviations can identify extra, relevant references and retrieve more irrelevant ones. The search can be more focused by combining the abbreviation with an important word that is relevant to its meaning or by using the Boolean “NOT” to exclude frequently observed, clearly irrelevant results. We advise that searchers do not exclude all possible irrelevant meanings, as it is very time consuming to identify all the variations, it will result in unnecessarily complicated search strategies, and it may lead to erroneously narrowing the search and, thereby, reduce recall.

Searching partial abbreviations can be useful for retrieving relevant references. For example, it is very likely that an article would mention osteoarthritis (OA) early in the abstract, replacing all further occurrences of osteoarthritis with OA . Therefore, it may not contain the phrase “hip osteoarthritis” but only “hip oa.”

It is also important to search for the opposites of search terms to avoid bias. When searching for “disease recurrence,” articles about “disease free” may be relevant as well. When the desired outcome is survival , articles about mortality may be relevant.

10. Use database-appropriate syntax, with parentheses, Boolean operators, and field codes

Different interfaces require different syntaxes, the special set of rules and symbols unique to each database that define how a correctly constructed search operates. Common syntax components include the use of parentheses and Boolean operators such as “AND,” “OR,” and “NOT,” which are available in all major interfaces. An overview of different syntaxes for four major interfaces for bibliographic medical databases (PubMed, Ovid, EBSCOhost, Embase.com, and ProQuest) is shown in Table 1 .

Creating the appropriate syntax for each database, in combination with the selected terms as described in steps 7–9, can be challenging. Following the method outlined below simplifies the process:

Create single-line queries in a text document (not combining multiple record sets), which allows immediate checking of the relevance of retrieved references and efficient optimization.
Type the syntax (Boolean operators, parentheses, and field codes) before adding terms, which reduces the chance that errors are made in the syntax, especially in the number of parentheses.
Use predefined proximity structures including parentheses, such as (() ADJ3 ()) in Ovid, that can be reused in the query when necessary.
Use thesaurus terms separately from free-text terms of each element. Start an element with all thesaurus terms (using “OR”) and follow with the free-text terms. This allows the unique optimization methods as described in step 11.
When adding terms to an existing search strategy, pay close attention to the position of the cursor. Make sure to place it appropriately either in the thesaurus terms section, in the title/abstract section, or as an addition (broadening) to an existing proximity search.

The supplementary appendix explains the method of building a query in more detail, step by step for different interfaces: PubMed, Ovid, EBSCOhost, Embase.com, and ProQuest. This method results in a basic search strategy designed to retrieve some relevant references upon which a more thorough search strategy can be built with optimization such as described in step 11.

11. Optimize the search

The most important question when performing a systematic search is whether all (or most) potentially relevant articles have been retrieved by the search strategy. This is also the most difficult question to answer, since it is unknown which and how many articles are relevant. It is, therefore, wise first to broaden the initial search strategy, making the search more sensitive, and then check if new relevant articles are found by comparing the set results (i.e., search for Strategy #2 NOT Strategy #1 to see the unique results).

A search strategy should be tested for completeness. Therefore, it is necessary to identify extra, possibly relevant search terms and add them to the test search in an OR relationship with the already used search terms. A good place to start, and a well-known strategy, is scanning the top retrieved articles when sorted by relevance, looking for additional relevant synonyms that could be added to the search strategy.

We have developed a unique optimization method that has not been described before in the literature. This method often adds valuable extra terms to our search strategy and, therefore, extra, relevant references to our search results. Extra synonyms can be found in articles that have been assigned a certain set of thesaurus terms but that lack synonyms in the title and/or abstract that are already present in the current search strategy. Searching for thesaurus terms NOT free-text terms will help identify missed free-text terms in the title or abstract. Searching for free-text terms NOT thesaurus terms will help identify missed thesaurus terms. If this is done repeatedly for each element, leaving the rest of the query unchanged, this method will help add numerous relevant terms to the query. These steps are explained in detail for five different search platforms in the supplementary appendix .

12. Evaluate the initial results

The results should now contain relevant references. If the interface allows relevance ranking, use that in the evaluation. If you know some relevant references that should be included in the research, search for those references specifically; for example, combine a specific (first) author name with a page number and the publication year. Check whether those references are retrieved by the search. If the known relevant references are not retrieved by the search, adapt the search so that they are. If it is unclear which element should be adapted to retrieve a certain article, combine that article with each element separately.

Different outcomes are desired for different types of research questions. For instance, in the case of clinical question answering, the researcher will not be satisfied with many references that contain a lot of irrelevant references. A clinical search should be rather specific and is allowed to miss a relevant reference. In the case of an SR, the researchers do not want to miss any relevant reference and are willing to handle many irrelevant references to do so. The search for references to include in an SR should be very sensitive: no included reference should be missed. A search that is too specific or too sensitive for the intended goal can be adapted to become more sensitive or specific. Steps to increase sensitivity or specificity of a search strategy can be found in the supplementary appendix .

13. Check for errors

Errors might not be easily detected. Sometimes clues can be found in the number of results, either when the number of results is much higher or lower than expected or when many retrieved references are not relevant. However, the number expected is often unknown, and very sensitive search strategies will always retrieve many irrelevant articles. Each query should, therefore, be checked for errors.

One of the most frequently occurring errors is missing the Boolean operator “OR.” When no “OR” is added between two search terms, many interfaces automatically add an “AND,” which unintentionally reduces the number of results and likely misses relevant references. One good strategy to identify missing “OR”s is to go to the web page containing the full search strategy, as translated by the database, and using Ctrl-F search for “AND.” Check whether the occurrences of the “AND” operator are deliberate.

Ideally, search strategies should be checked by other information specialists [ 18 ]. The Peer Review of Electronic Search Strategies (PRESS) checklist offers good guidance for this process [ 4 ]. Apart from the syntax (especially Boolean operators and field codes) of the search strategy, it is wise to have the search terms checked by the clinician or researcher familiar with the topic. At Erasmus MC, researchers and clinicians are involved during the complete process of structuring and optimizing the search strategy. Each word is added after the combined decision of the searcher and the researcher, with the possibility of directly comparing results with and without the new term.

14. Translate to other databases

To retrieve as many relevant references as possible, one has to search multiple databases. Translation of complex and exhaustive queries between different databases can be very time consuming and cumbersome. The single-line search strategy approach detailed above allows quick translations using the find and replace method in Microsoft Word (<Ctrl-H>).

At Erasmus MC, macros based on the find-and-replace method in Microsoft Word have been developed for easy and fast translation between the most used databases for biomedical and health sciences questions. The schema that is followed for the translation between databases is shown in Figure 2 . Most databases simply follow the structure set by the Embase.com search strategy. The translation from Emtree terms to MeSH terms for MEDLINE in Ovid often identifies new terms that need to be added to the Embase.com search strategy before the translation to other databases.

An external file that holds a picture, illustration, etc.
Object name is jmla-106-531-f002.jpg

Schematic representation of translation between databases used at Erasmus University Medical Center

Dotted lines represent databases that are used in less than 80% of the searches.

Using five different macros, a thoroughly optimized query in Embase.com can be relatively quickly translated into eight major databases. Basic search strategies will be created to use in many, mostly smaller, databases, because such niche databases often do not have extensive thesauri or advanced syntax options. Also, there is not much need to use extensive syntax because the number of hits and, therefore, the amount of noise in these databases is generally low. In MEDLINE (Ovid), PsycINFO (Ovid), and CINAHL (EBSCOhost), the thesaurus terms must be adapted manually, as each database has its own custom thesaurus. These macros and instructions for their installation, use, and adaptation are available at bit.ly/databasemacros.

15. Test and reiterate

Ideally, exhaustive search strategies should retrieve all references that are covered in a specific database. For SR search strategies, checking searches for their recall is advised. This can be done after included references have been determined by the authors of the systematic review. If additional papers have been identified through other non-database methods (i.e., checking references in included studies), results that were not identified by the database searches should be examined. If these results were available in the databases but not located by the search strategy, the search strategy should be adapted to try to retrieve these results, as they may contain terms that were omitted in the original search strategies. This may enable the identification of additional relevant results.

A methodology for creating exhaustive search strategies has been created that describes all steps of the search process, starting with a question and resulting in thorough search strategies in multiple databases. Many of the steps described are not new, but together, they form a strong method creating high-quality, robust searches in a relatively short time frame.

Our methodology is intended to create thoroughness for literature searches. The optimization method, as described in step 11, will identify missed synonyms or thesaurus terms, unlike any other method that largely depends on predetermined keywords and synonyms. Using this method results in a much quicker search process, compared to traditional methods, especially because of the easier translation between databases and interfaces (step 13). The method is not a guarantee for speed, since speed depends on many factors, including experience. However, by following the steps and using the tools as described above, searchers can gain confidence first and increase speed through practice.

What is new?

This method encourages searchers to start their search development process using empty syntax first and later adding the thesaurus terms and free-text synonyms. We feel this helps the searcher to focus on the search terms, instead of on the structure of the search query. The optimization method in which new terms are found in the already retrieved articles is used in some other institutes as well but has to our knowledge not been described in the literature. The macros to translate search strategies between interfaces are unique in this method.

What is different compared to common practice?

Traditionally, librarians and information specialists have focused on creating complex, multi-line (also called line-by-line) search strategies, consisting of multiple record sets, and this method is frequently advised in the literature and handbooks [ 2 , 19 – 21 ]. Our method, instead, uses single-line searches, which is critical to its success. Single-line search strategies can be easily adapted by adding or dropping a term without having to recode numbers of record sets, which would be necessary in multi-line searches. They can easily be saved in a text document and repeated by copying and pasting for search updates. Single-line search strategies also allow easy translation to other syntaxes using find-and-replace technology to update field codes and other syntax elements or using macros (step 13).

When constructing a search strategy, the searcher might experience that certain parentheses in the syntax are unnecessary, such as parentheses around all search terms in the title/abstract portion, if there is only one such term, there are double parentheses in the proximity statement, or one of the word groups exists for only one word. One might be tempted to omit those parentheses for ease of reading and management. However, during the optimization process, the searcher is likely to find extra synonyms that might consist of one word. To add those terms to the first query (with reduced parentheses) requires adding extra parentheses (meticulously placing and counting them), whereas, in the latter search, it only requires proper placement of those terms.

Many search methods highly depend on the PICO framework. Research states that often PICO or PICOS is not suitable for every question [ 22 , 23 ]. There are other acronyms than PICO—such as sample, phenomenon of interest, design, evaluation, research type (SPIDER) [ 24 ]—but each is just a variant. In our method, the most important and specific elements of a question are being analyzed for building the best search strategy.

Though it is generally recommended that searchers search both MEDLINE and Embase, most use MEDLINE as the starting point. It is considered the gold standard for biomedical searching, partially due to historical reasons, since it was the first of its kind, and more so now that it is freely available via the PubMed interface. Our method can be used with any database as a starting point, but we use Embase instead of MEDLINE or another database for a number of reasons. First, Embase provides both unique content and the complete content of MEDLINE. Therefore, searching Embase will be, by definition, more complete than searching MEDLINE only. Second, the number of terms in Emtree (the Embase thesaurus) is three times as high as that of MeSH (the MEDLINE thesaurus). It is easier to find MeSH terms after all relevant Emtree terms have been identified than to start with MeSH and translate to Emtree.

At Erasmus MC, the researchers sit next to the information specialist during most of the search strategy design process. This way, the researchers can deliver immediate feedback on the relevance of proposed search terms and retrieved references. The search team then combines knowledge about databases with knowledge about the research topic, which is an important condition to create the highest quality searches.

Limitations of the method

One disadvantage of single-line searches compared to multi-line search strategies is that errors are harder to recognize. However, with the methods for optimization as described (step 11), errors are recognized easily because missed synonyms and spelling errors will be identified during the process. Also problematic is that more parentheses are needed, making it more difficult for the searcher and others to assess the logic of the search strategy. However, as parentheses and field codes are typed before the search terms are added (step 10), errors in parentheses can be prevented.

Our methodology works best if used in an interface that allows proximity searching. It is recommended that searchers with access to an interface with proximity searching capabilities select one of those as the initial database to develop and optimize the search strategy. Because the PubMed interface does not allow proximity searches, phrases or Boolean “AND” combinations are required. Phrase searching complicates the process and is more specific, with the higher risk of missing relevant articles, and using Boolean “AND” combinations increases sensitivity but at an often high loss of specificity. Due to some searchers’ lack of access to expensive databases or interfaces, the freely available PubMed interface may be necessary to use, though it should never be the sole database used for an SR [ 2 , 16 , 25 ]. A limitation of our method is that it works best with subscription-based and licensed resources.

Another limitation is the customization of the macros to a specific institution’s resources. The macros for the translation between different database interfaces only work between the interfaces as described. To mitigate this, we recommend using the find-and-replace functionality of text editors like Microsoft Word to ease the translation of syntaxes between other databases. Depending on one’s institutional resources, custom macros can be developed using similar methods.

Results of the method

Whether this method results in exhaustive searches where no important article is missed is difficult to determine, because the number of relevant articles is unknown for any topic. A comparison of several parameters of 73 published reviews that were based on a search developed with this method to 258 reviews that acknowledged information specialists from other Dutch academic hospitals shows that the performance of the searches following our method is comparable to those performed in other institutes but that the time needed to develop the search strategies was much shorter than the time reported for the other reviews [ 9 ].

CONCLUSIONS

With the described method, searchers can gain confidence in their search strategies by finding many relevant words and creating exhaustive search strategies quickly. The approach can be used when performing SR searches or for other purposes such as answering clinical questions, with different expectations of the search’s precision and recall. This method, with practice, provides a stepwise approach that facilitates the search strategy development process from question clarification to final iteration and beyond.

SUPPLEMENTAL FILE

Acknowledgments.

We highly appreciate the work that was done by our former colleague Louis Volkers, who in his twenty years as an information specialist in Erasmus MC laid the basis for our method. We thank Professor Oscar Franco for reviewing earlier drafts of this article.

Before you begin, steps to take.

Topic Selection
Keywords & Search Terms
Advanced Search Techniques
Government Information
Find Images This link opens in a new window
News & Journalism
Evaluating Information Sources This link opens in a new window
Citation Style Help This link opens in a new window
Citation Management

Organizing Sources

Need help grouping and synthesizing your sources? Try a synthesis matrix!

Synthesis Matrix One way that seems particularly helpful in organizing literature reviews is the synthesis matrix. The synthesis matrix is a chart that allows a researcher to sort and categorize the different arguments presented on an issue.

Questions to Consider

What is the scope of your literature review? What does your research question want to answer?
What are the key sources in the field?
What are the key theories, concepts, and ideas tied to your topic?
What are the major issues and debates about the topic?
What are the origins of the topic?
What are the main questions and problems that have been covered already?
Why is your topic important in your field?
Can you identify gaps where further research is needed?

Step 1. Define your project.

First, you must choose, explore and focus your topic. After some basic background research, you may discover that you need to tweak the scope of your question. If your topic is too broad, refine your research question so that it is specific enough to lead you to the relevant literature. If you are finding too little research, brainstorm related ideas and fields to broaden your search. Choose your methodology or methodologies.

Develop a working list of keywords and refer to it often. This list of keywords will expand and change as you continue your research.

Stumped? Brainstorm with a librarian for useful subject terms to get you started.

Step 2. Do preliminary research.

If you're just starting out in the field, look for books first or journals that are well-known in your area. Try CatSearch for items local to MSU and and other Montana libraries. If you find something at another library that looks promising, request it via Interlibrary Loan. MSU might not have everything you need to be thorough in your research, so be sure to use this great service!

To gather articles, go to the library databases with your list of keywords and related fields. Start with databases in your field, but be sure to look at databases in related fields. Import appropriate articles directly to Zotero, Mendeley, or EndNote. Explore and note the keywords assigned to the best articles, and use those for subsequent searches. Keep notes (electronically or in a notebook) to refer back to throughout the writing process. Read and critically evaluate these sources, making quick notes in your citation manager.

Step 3. Refine your focus and take a deeper dive into the research.

Now that you have a broad idea of the state of the field, identify the most important scholars and works. Use Google Scholar or Web of Science to determine who has cited the most important works. Read critically and identify how your work fits into the scholarly conversation. Evaluate at a deeper level. You're starting to look at significance now, rather than quality.

Step 4. Group and synthesize the literature.

Identify schools of thought and experiment with the organization of your literature review. You don't have to include everything you have found during the course of your literature review your work, but include enough so your reader understands the history of the field (or related fields) and how your work relates to that history. Make sure you are analyzing the scholarship, not simply describing it.

Step 5. Place the literature in context as you write the review.

Determine where your research question fits within the literature as a whole. Are you going to perform a study that will fill the gaps you've identified in the scholarship so far? If so, make this point clear to your reader. Be ready to rewrite your literature review as you progress through your project (capstone, thesis, dissertation, etc). There may be references you did not include in your first draft that become more important to include as your complete your study.

Reid, M., Taylor, A., Turner, J. & Shahabudin, K. (n.d.). University of Reading Study Advice team & LearnHigher CETL (Reading). Literature reviews.

Rowland, D. R. (n.d.) The Learning Hub, Student Services, The University of Queensland. Reviewing the literature: A short guide for research students .

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Next: Topic Selection >>
Last Updated: Feb 16, 2024 10:47 AM
URL: https://guides.lib.montana.edu/literaturereviews

Accessibility Statement

How to undertake a literature search: a step-by-step guide

Affiliation.

1 Literature Search Specialist, Library and Archive Service, Royal College of Nursing, London.
PMID: 32279549
DOI: 10.12968/bjon.2020.29.7.431

Undertaking a literature search can be a daunting prospect. Breaking the exercise down into smaller steps will make the process more manageable. This article suggests 10 steps that will help readers complete this task, from identifying key concepts to choosing databases for the search and saving the results and search strategy. It discusses each of the steps in a little more detail, with examples and suggestions on where to get help. This structured approach will help readers obtain a more focused set of results and, ultimately, save time and effort.

Keywords: Databases; Literature review; Literature search; Reference management software; Research questions; Search strategy.

Databases, Bibliographic*
Information Storage and Retrieval / methods*
Nursing Research
Review Literature as Topic*

How to do a Literature Search: Choosing keywords

Introduction.

Choosing a database
Choosing keywords
Using keywords
Author searching
Managing your search/results

Choosing keywords: things to think about

It may be tempting to simply type the title of your project into the database search box, but this will not give you the best results! You need to carefully put together a search strategy taking into account the following:

Endings of words

Abbreviations

American vs english spellings.

On this page we will look at these in turn. The following page will look at how to construct a search strategy.

A synonym is another word with the same meaning. The main problem with topic searching is that there are many words which different authors can use to describe the same topic. For example, if you are looking for articles about drug addiction an author could have used any of the following words or phrases: drug addiction, drug abuse, substance abuse, street drugs, narcotics, heroin use/abuse etc.

Ideally, you should use as many synonyms as possible in your search strategy, particularly if you're having difficulty finding enough information.

If you have difficulty thinking of synonyms, start with one article that is relevant to your topic and view the full record in the library database. It may provide added keywords that will help.

Word endings

Many Library databases, and Google, will automatically find a simple plural for you. For example if you type in drug many databases will search for drug or drugs . Some will attempt to find other word endings too, but with varying levels of success. For example if you type in drug addiction will the database also find articles with the phrase drug addict ? We recommend that you take account of different word endings in your search strategy.

Most databases use a special character to represent zero or any number of letters, called a truncation symbol. It is normally an asterisk *.

addict* will find addic t

addic ts

addic ted

addic tion

addic tions

Phrase searching

A phrase is two or more words linked together in a particular order, for example football match , social work . Most databases will allow you to search for a phrase, in other words to insist that your keywords appear next to each other in a specific order. Entering the phrase in double quotes " " will normally work, but check your specific database help guide to be certain. For example:

"General practitioner" will help you to find articles about GP practices. If you do not use quotes you could find articles on any type of practitioner, that just happen to have the commonly used word word 'general' in the title or abstract.

Is there a common abbreviation for your search topic? The author of an article may have used the abbreviation instead of the full term, so you need to look for both:

GP or General Practitioner
ADHD or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
UFO or Unidentified Flying Object

Journals published in Europe will normally use UK English spellings but journals published in North America will use US English spellings. If you want to find all the articles, you need to take different spellings into account. Here are some common differences in spellings:

US English generally uses fewer vowels:

Color / colour
Fetus / foetus
Archeology / archaeology

US English often uses 'z' where UK English uses 's' near the end of a word:

Analyze / analyse
Marketize / marketise

US English sometimes uses 'er' where UK English uses 're':

Meter / metre
Fiber / fibre

US English sometimes uses one L near the end of a word where UK English uses two:

Labeled / labelled
Canceled / cancelled

The reason is that the first image has been catalogued with the UK English word ' boot ' and the second one with the American English word ' trunk '. The only way to find both images is to search for both words.

Video: tips for keyword searching (04:38)

<< Previous: Choosing a database
Next: Using keywords >>
Last Updated: Nov 22, 2022 9:56 AM
URL: https://library.bath.ac.uk/literaturesearch

Literature Reviews & Search Strategies

Defining the Literature Review
Types of Literature Reviews
Choosing Databases

Overview of Search Strategies

Search strategies, subject searching, example: iteratively developing + using keywords, demonstration: developing keywords from a question, demonstration: an advanced search.

Organizing Your Literature
Books: Research Design & Scholarly Writing
Recommended Tutorials

There are many ways to find literature for your review, and we recommend that you use a combination of strategies - keeping in mind that you're going to be searching multiple times in a variety of ways, using different databases and resources. Searching the literature is not a straightforward, linear process - it's iterative (translation: you'll search multiple times, modifying your strategies as you go, and sometimes it'll be frustrating).

Known Item Searching
Citation Jumping

Some form of a keyword search is the way most of us get at scholarly articles in database - it's a great approach! Make sure you're familiar with these librarian strategies to get the most out of your searches.

Figuring out the best keywords for your research topic/question is a process - you'll start with one or a few words and then shift, adapt, and expand them as you start finding source that describe the topic using other words. Your search terms are the bridge between known topics and the unknowns of your research question - so sometimes one specific word will be enough, sometimes you'll need several different words to describe a concept AND you'll need to connect that concept to a second (and/or third) concept.

The number and specificity of your search terms depend on your topic and the scope of your literature review.

Connect Keywords Using Boolean

Make the database work more.

...uses the asterisk (*) to end a word at its core, allowing you to retrieve many more documents containing variations of the search term. Example: educat* will find educate, educates, education, educators, educating and more.

Phrase Searching

...is when you put quotations marks around two or more words, so that the database looks for those words in that exact order. Examples: "higher education," "public health" and "pharmaceutical industry."

Controlled Vocabulary

... is when you use the terms the database uses to describe what each article is about as search terms. Searching using controlled vocabularies is a great way to get at everything on a topic in a database.

Databases and search engines are probably going to bring back a lot of results - more than a human can realistically go through. Instead of trying to manually read and sort them all, use the filters in each database to remove the stuff you wouldn't use anyway (ie it's outside the scope of your project).

To make sure you're consistent between searches and databases, write down the filters you're using.

A Few Filters to Try

Once you know you have a good article , there are a lot of useful parts to it - far beyond the content.

Not sure where to start? Try course readings and other required materials.

Useful Parts of a Good Article

Ways to use citations.

Interactive Tutorial: Searching Cited and Citing Practice starting your search at an article and using the references to gather additional sources.

Older sources eat into the found article as references, and the found article is cited by more recent publications.

Your search results don't have to be frozen in the moment you search! There are a few things you can set up to keep your search going automatically.

Searching using subject headings is a comprehensive search strategy that requires some planning and topic knowledge. Work through this PubMed tutorial for an introduction to this important approach to searching.

tutorial on PubMed Subject Search: How it Works

Through these videos and the accompanying PDF, you'll see an example of starting with a potential research question and developing search terms through brainstorming and keyword searching.

Slidedeck: Keywords and Advanced Search PowerPoint slides to accompany the two demonstration videos on developing keywords from a question, and doing an advanced search.
<< Previous: Choosing Databases
Next: Organizing Your Literature >>
Last Updated: Jun 14, 2023 11:18 AM
URL: https://mcphs.libguides.com/litreviews

Training videos | Faqs

Academic Phrases for Writing Literature Review Section of a Research Paper

The literature review should clearly demonstrate that the author has a good knowledge of the research area. Literature review typically occupies one or two passages in the introduction section. A well-written literature review should provide a critical appraisal of previous studies related to the current research area rather than a simple summary of prior works. The author shouldn’t shy away from pointing out the shortcomings of previous works. However, criticising other’s work without any basis can weaken your paper. This is a perfect place to coin your research question and justify the need for such a study. It is also worth pointing out towards the end of the review that your study is unique and there is no direct literature addressing this issue. Add a few sentences about the significance of your research and how this will add value to the body of knowledge.

The literature review section of your research paper should include the following:

Previous literature
Limitations of previous research
Research questions
Research to be explored

1. Previous literature

The literature review shows that __ Previous research showed __ Seminal contributions have been made by __ A series of recent studies has indicated that __ Several theories have been proposed to __, some focusing on __, others on __ There has been numerous studies to investigate __ This has been used in several studies to assess __ Previous studies have shown __ Several studies suggest that __ This has also been explored in prior studies by __ Prior research suggests that __ Previous studies have emphasized __ The majority of prior research has applied __ Most early studies as well as current work focus on __ For instance, the following studies were conducted on __ Studies of __are well documented, it is also well acknowledged that __ A number of authors have recognized __ Some authors have also suggested that __ Some authors have driven the further development of __ This has been discussed by a great number of authors in literature. For example, research has provided evidence for __ The authors bring some information about the background of the problem, __ As has been previously reported in the literature, __ A large number of existing studies in the broader literature have examined __ The literature review shows that __ There exists a considerable body of literature on __ In short, the literature pertaining to __ strongly suggests that __ Over time, an extensive literature has developed on __ This section presents a review of recent literature on __ This paper begins with a short review of the literature regarding the __ Several methods are reported in the literature to address this issue. There is a wide choice of __ available in the literature. This section reviews the literature related to __ It was reported in literature that __ A recent study by __ concluded that __ In the light of reported __ it is conceivable that __ The method introduced by __ has the advantage that __ One method employed by __ is __ A more comprehensive description can be found in __ For example, recent research suggests that __ This was successfully established as described by __ The author employed a __ methodology which prescribes the use of __

2. Limitations of previous research

A number of questions regarding __ remain to be addressed. A closer look to the literature on __, however, reveals a number of gaps and shortcomings. This question has previously never been addressed because__ Most studies have relied on __ Previous studies by __ cannot be considered as conclusive because __ Previous studies have almost exclusively focused on __ This has been previously assessed only to a very limited extent because __ In the present studies __ were constrained to __ In previous studies were limited to __ Although results appear consistent with prior research, they appear inconsistent with __ These are previously unstudied because __ As far as we know, no previous research has investigated __ Moreover, although research has illuminated __ no study to date has examined __ Despite decades of research, this continues to be debated among __ This section points out some of the problems encountered in the extant research. Although there are many studies, the research in __ remains limited. However, the existing research has many problems in representing __ The literature on __ is less consistent Historically, there has been a great deal of confusion in the literature regarding __ This approach remains briefly addressed in the literature. These are rarely analyzed in the literature as __ There are key questions and notions that are still not discussed in the literature __ This is not clearly presented in the literature because __ This paper addresses the need for __, so far lacking in the scientific literature. To fill this literature gap, this paper identifies __ Only a few works in literature demonstrate __ Although studies have been conducted by many authors, this problem is still insufficiently explored. To our knowledge, no prior studies have examined __ However, the existing research has many problems in __ Therefore, important issue in the literature is __ However, we argue that previous literature suffers from certain weaknesses: __ Previous research can only be considered a first step towards a more profound understanding of __ The previous studies reveal that __ are usually the most problematic to __

3. Research questions

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Systematic review update
Open access
Published: 14 February 2024

A systematic review of school-based weight-related interventions in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries

Mohammed Banany ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-1281-7902 1 ,
Melissa Kang 2 ,
Klaus Gebel 1 , 3 &
David Sibbritt 1

Systematic Reviews volume 13 , Article number: 66 ( 2024 ) Cite this article

366 Accesses

Metrics details

The prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity has increased at alarming levels in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries (Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, and Qatar). Weight-related interventions are urgently required in these countries to tackle childhood overweight and obesity and their-related consequences. To date, no systematic review has synthesised school-based weight-related interventions in the six GCC countries. This study aims to systematically review school-based, weight-related interventions conducted in the GCC countries, investigating the intervention characteristics, components, and outcomes.

Medline, Scopus, and ProQuest databases were searched for peer-reviewed literature published in English without date restriction and Google Scholar for grey literature using combined Medical Subject Heading (MeSH) terms and keywords under five relevant concepts including population, setting, interventions, outcomes, and geographical location. Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA), records were identified, screened for eligibility, and included in this review. Using the Effective Public Health Practice Project tool, the methodological quality of the included studies was assessed independently by two authors.

Out of 1303 initially identified records, eight peer-reviewed articles and three doctoral theses were included in this review. The age of the students in the included studies ranged between 5 to 19 years, and the sample sizes between 28 and 3,967 students. The studies included between one and thirty public and private schools. Of the included studies, six were randomised controlled trials, four pre-post studies and one used a post-study design. Only four of the eleven studies were theory based. The included studies reported various improvements in the students’ weight or weight-related lifestyle behaviours, such as healthier dietary choices, increased physical activity, and decreased sedentary behaviour.

Conclusions

This review suggests the potential effectiveness of school-based interventions in the GCC countries. However, a thorough evaluation of these studies revealed significant methodological limitations that must be acknowledged in interpreting these results. Future studies in this field should be theory-based and use more rigorous evaluation methods.

Systematic review registration

PROSPERO registration number: CRD42020156535.

Peer Review reports

The global prevalence of childhood obesity, defined here as affecting children and adolescents aged under 18 years [ 1 ], has substantially increased in recent decades. In 2016, over 340 million children and adolescents were considered either overweight or obese [ 2 ]. Childhood obesity is associated with obesity in adult life, which in turn adversely affects health [ 3 , 4 , 5 ]. It is also associated with multiple co-morbidities, including metabolic syndrome, type 2 diabetes, pulmonary, cardiovascular, and musculoskeletal complications [ 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 ]. Furthermore, social (e.g. discrimination) and mental (e.g. depression, low self-esteem, and negative body image) health issues are important consequences of obesity that predispose to poor quality of life [ 10 , 11 , 12 ].

In the past two decades the prevalence of childhood obesity has risen significantly among the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries (Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, and Qatar) and is considered among the highest in the world [ 13 , 14 ]. In 2019, 18.4% and 12% of Saudi boys aged 6–16 years, were obese and overweight, respectively; compared to 18% and 14.2% of girls of the same age [ 15 ]. Al Yazeedi and Berry in 2019 [ 16 ], also reported that the average rate of combined overweight and obesity for boys aged 6–10 years in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Emirates was 14.2% compared to 25% among girls.

Various strategies and interventions have been explored to address childhood overweight and obesity [ 17 , 18 , 19 ]. The implementation of multi-component school-based interventions, targeting diet, physical activity, and sedentary behaviour [ 20 ], is a common strategy used for addressing obesity among schoolchildren. Such strategies emphasise the integral role of schools as venues for health promotion and aligns with the broader literature, which consistently highlights schools as ideal settings for childhood obesity interventions [ 21 , 22 , 23 ]. In the context of obesity prevention interventions, “school stakeholders” refers to a diverse group, including school principals and teachers as well as students’ parents/caregivers, health professionals, government entities, and community organisations. These stakeholders collaborate to implement and support various aspects of obesity prevention initiatives, ranging from curriculum development to policy advocacy and program evaluation [ 24 ]. Moreover, science, physical education and senior management staff can facilitate discussions with students on health-related topics such as body image, nutrition, and weight control [ 25 ].

Multiple systematic reviews have examined school-based obesity interventions in other parts of world [ 21 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 ], however, no such review has been conducted in the GCC countries. Two systematic reviews have investigated the prevalence of overweight and obesity in the Gulf countries [ 13 , 31 ], one systematic review looked at interventions for obesity among adults [ 32 ], and another study reviewed physical activity interventions among people in the Arabic countries, where one third of the included studies targeted children and adolescents [ 33 ]. This systematic review adds value in the context of addressing childhood obesity, by specifically focusing on the GCC countries, where such reviews are lacking. The review’s findings can potentially inform and influence health promotion strategies and policies within the education systems of the GCC countries. In addition, these findings can guide policy decisions related to students’ dietary behaviours and practices, and physical activity types and duration in schools. Therefore, this systematic review aims to synthesise school-based weight-related interventions conducted in the GCC countries.

Materials and methods

In 2020, the protocol for this review was registered with the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO ID: CRD42020156535). Our reporting conforms to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) [ 34 ].

Search strategy

A systematic search was conducted in November 2022 using the databases Medline, Scopus, and ProQuest, which were chosen due to their comprehensive coverage of medical and health sciences literature to retrieve all relevant peer-reviewed studies published in English. The search was conducted without date restrictions to capture the full extent of research conducted in this area, with the search being completed on 17 November 2022.

Combinations of Medical Subject Heading (MeSH) terms and keywords were used under five common concepts: (1) population [‘adolescence’ or ‘teen’ or ‘youth’ or ‘child’ or ‘student’], (2) setting [‘school’ or ‘school-based’], (3) interventions [‘intervention’ or ‘initiative’ or ‘program’ or ‘project’ or ‘physical’ or ‘exercise’ or ‘sedentary’ or ‘diet’ or ‘nutrition’ or ‘behaviour’], (4) outcomes [‘obesity’ or ‘weight’ or ‘body mass index’ or ‘BMI’], and (5) geographical location [‘Gulf’ or “Saudi’ or ‘Emirates’ or ‘Kuwait’ or ‘Bahrain’ or ‘Oman’ or ‘Qatar’ or ‘KSA’ or ‘UAE’ or ‘Arab’]. Google Scholar was searched for grey literature. All identified records were imported into EndNote version 9 (Clarivate Plc, Philadelphia, United States and London, United Kingdom).

In the initial screening phase, after the removal of duplicates, two authors independently reviewed the titles and abstracts of the remaining studies to exclude irrelevant records. To minimise potential bias and enhance the decision-making process, any discrepancies between the authors were resolved by a third author. Backward citation tracking was also used to identify any additional studies.

As illustrated in Fig. 1 , the initial search of the databases yielded 1303 records. After removing 414 duplicates, 889 records were screened based on their titles and abstracts, excluding 846 and leaving 43 potential records. These records were further screened based on their full-texts, and an additional three records were added through cross-referencing, yielding 46 studies. Based on the full text examination, 11 studies met the inclusion and exclusion criteria: 8 peer-reviewed studies [ 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 ] and three doctoral theses [ 43 , 44 , 45 ] were included in this systematic review.

PRISMA flowchart for the included studies in this systematic review

Inclusion and exclusion criteria

The full texts of all potential studies were assessed for their eligibility to be included in this review if they (1) were school-based interventions conducted in any of the GCC countries; (2) targeted school-aged students (5–18 years old) during school hours; (3) included at least one weight-related lifestyle intervention (physical activity, sedentary behaviour or diet); and (4) had at least one anthropometric measure of body weight or weight-linked lifestyle factor (physical activity, sedentary behaviour or diet) as a primary or secondary outcome of interest. However, a study was excluded if it was not conducted in any of the GCC countries, was not school-based, was not an intervention study, or if the outcome was not related to weight or weight-related lifestyle factors. A systematic review of correlates of, and interventions for weight and weight-related behaviours among adults in the Gulf countries [ 32 ] only identified seven interventions, four of these did not have control groups. Therefore, this review also included pre-post school-based intervention studies.

Data extraction and synthesis

Data from each included study was extracted into a table that included study title, authors, publication year, country, study aim(s), design, participant characteristics, sample size, school characteristics, intervention components, duration, and outcomes. Due to the heterogeneity of the studies’ characteristics, intervention components and outcome measures, meta-analysis was not suitable and hence a narrative synthesis was conducted. The tabulated data were analysed to explore the study design, intervention components and outcomes of interest, and limitations of the studies. Driven by the “Behaviour Change Wheel” (BCW) [ 46 ], the intervention components included nine intervention functions, which are education; persuasion; incentivisation; coercion; training; enablement; modelling; environmental restructuring; and restrictions. Outcomes of interest were measures of students’ anthropometrics, diet, physical activity, and sedentary behaviour. For each particular outcome, the interventions were broadly categorised as effective, not effective, or mixed effects. An intervention was considered ‘effective’ if there was a statistically significant improvement concerning a particular outcome. An intervention was regarded as ‘not effective’ if the results showed a non-significant improvement or no change at all. If the results were mixed among a particular outcome (e.g. a significant reduction in the prevalence of obesity, but no improvement in the prevalence of overweight), the intervention was considered mixed in terms of the effectiveness.

Quality assessment

Two authors independently assessed the quality of the included studies using the Effective Public Health Practice Project (EPHPP) quality assessment tool, which has six key quality components, including selection bias, study design, confounders, blinding, data collection methods, and withdrawals or dropouts [ 47 , 48 ]. Each individual component was independently rated as strong, moderate, or weak. An overall quality assessment for each study was rated strong, moderate, or weak accordingly. The overall quality of each study was assigned ‘strong’ if at least 4 of 6 quality criteria were rated strong and no criterion was rated weak; assigned ‘moderate’ when only one quality criterion was rated weak; and assigned ‘weak’ if two or more quality criteria were rated weak (Table 3 ). To ensure consistency, the authors crosschecked the quality of the included studies. Discrepancies between the reviewers’ ratings was discussed until a consensus was achieved.

Characteristics of the studies, such as study design and duration, as well as the participants’ characteristics in terms of age, gender, sample size and school characteristics, are provided in Table 1 .

Study characteristics

As illustrated in Table 1 , six studies were conducted in Saudi Arabia [ 35 , 37 , 39 , 41 , 44 , 45 ], two in Kuwait [ 36 , 43 ], and one each in Qatar [ 38 ], the UAE [ 40 ] and Oman [ 42 ]. All included studies were published between 2017 and 2022 except the one by Shama and Abdou [ 42 ] in Oman, which was published in 2009. Out of the eleven studies, six were randomised controlled trials [ 35 , 36 , 37 , 39 , 41 , 43 ], four were pre-post studies [ 38 , 40 , 44 , 45 ] and one used a static group comparison design [ 42 ]. Six studies were purely quantitative [ 35 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 45 ], and two adopted a mixed methods design [ 43 , 44 ].

Participant characteristics and settings

The sample sizes ranged from 28 in an RCT [ 35 ] to 3,967 participants across two schools in a pre-post study [ 40 ]. The age of the participants ranged from five to nineteen years. In six studies, the study participants were girls only [ 35 , 37 , 39 , 43 , 44 , 45 ], while four studies had male and female students [ 36 , 38 , 40 , 42 ] and one study had only male participants [ 41 ]. In six studies, the participants were students from intermediate and/or secondary schools [ 35 , 37 , 39 , 42 , 43 , 44 ], two studies had primary school students [ 36 , 38 ], one had students from primary, intermediate, and secondary schools [ 41 ], while the school education stage was not clearly reported in two studies [ 40 , 45 ]. The number of schools participating in the studies ranged from one [ 38 , 43 , 44 , 45 ] to thirty [ 42 ]. The interventions were either only conducted at public schools [ 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 43 , 44 , 45 ], only at private schools [ 40 ], at public and private schools [ 36 ], while two studies did not report the school type [ 41 , 42 ]. The study in Oman by Shama and Abdou [ 42 ] compared conventional schools with health-promoting schools, which have three main components: health education, health services, and a healthy environment. Intervention components and outcomes of the included eleven studies are detailed in Table 2 .

Intervention components

The intervention duration ranged between one month [ 35 ] and one year [ 42 ]. However, it was not clearly reported in one study [ 44 ] and not reported at all in another study [ 36 ]. To change participants’ behaviour as per the BCW, intervention components in our systematic review were reported under nine intervention functions, including education; persuasion; incentivisation; coercion; training; enablement; modelling; environmental restructuring; and restrictions.

Participants in all included studies [ 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 43 , 44 , 45 ] were educated on various topics related to nutrition, physical activity, or health, including the study by Shama and Abdou [ 42 ], where health education was a component of the health-promoting schools initiative. Different methods of educational interventions were implemented by providing factual nutritional information and advice (e.g. nutritional posters and cards, recipe cards) to the students and their families [ 38 ], instructions for changing nutritional and physical activity behaviours (e.g. increasing fruit and vegetable intake and reducing the intake of sugar sweetened beverages, receiving information about the function of the pedometer) [ 35 , 36 ], health education and awareness workshops and sessions on diet, physical activity, and obesity risk factors [ 37 , 40 , 41 , 43 , 44 ], and counselling sessions [ 38 , 39 ].

Out of the eleven studies, only two [ 35 , 45 ] used the persuasion function to change participants’ behaviours. There were changes in the perceptions of the intervention group in one study [ 35 ], and positive attitudes were reported in the other study [ 45 ]. Similarly, incentivisations were reported in two studies [ 36 , 38 ]. In Allafi’s study [ 36 ], the FB + R group was provided with rewards in the form of stickers for achieving the step count milestone. However, in Choudhury’s study [ 38 ], participants received stamps in a book when they chose a healthy option in the cafeteria and were awarded a badge at the end, to motivate and reinforce healthy eating behaviours.

Interventions via training were reported in six studies [ 36 , 37 , 39 , 42 , 44 , 45 ], where the participants were engaged in various practical activities related to nutrition, physical activity, and body image perception (see Table 2 ). Environmental restructuring was reported in three studies in the forms of food labelling and promotion of healthy diets at the school cafeteria [ 40 ] and redesigning the school canteen, which included posters and leaflets about healthy diets [ 38 ] and was a component of the health-promoting school initiative in the study conducted in Oman by Shama and Abdou [ 42 ].

Five studies [ 37 , 40 , 42 , 44 , 45 ] reported changes in participants’ behaviours through partnerships with stakeholders, including students’ parents [ 40 , 42 , 44 , 45 ] or by enabling various teaching aids such as PowerPoint presentations, booklets, games, papers and cards, school boards, group discussions, and stickers [ 37 ]. The restriction function of the BCW to change students’ behaviours was reported only in the study conducted by Al-Mughamisi [ 44 ], where restricting access to unhealthy food was applied as a part of the environmental changes.

In addition to targeting the school students, three interventions [ 38 , 40 , 44 ] also targeted the teachers and other school staff, while another five studies involved the students’ parents [ 35 , 36 , 37 , 39 , 44 ].

Intervention outcomes

The outcomes of interest were weight-related measures, dietary behaviour, physical activity, and sedentary behaviour. All studies reported weight-related outcomes, such as a change in BMI, BMI-for-age z-score (BAZ), the prevalence of overweight or obesity, body weight perception, body fat percentage, body fat mass, waist circumference, or waist-to-hip ratio, except one study [ 44 ]. Most of the included studies [ 35 , 38 , 39 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 ] reported changes related to dietary intake and/or behaviour. Eight studies reported outcomes related to physical activity [ 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 45 ], and five reported sedentary behaviour outcomes [ 35 , 37 , 41 , 43 , 45 ].

Changes in weight-related measures

One study found a significant decrease in BMI, based on the Saudi growth chart [ 35 ], while four studies reported either a non-significant difference or no chage in BMI [ 36 , 41 , 43 , 45 ]. Two studies reported a non-significant reduction in BAZ [ 37 , 38 ]. Three studies [ 38 , 39 , 40 ] reported the prevalence of overweight and obesity as a weight-related measure, with mixed results. Elfaki et al. [ 39 ] reported a borderline significant decrease in the prevalence of obesity ( p = 0.064), and Choudhury et al. [ 39 ] found a non-significant decrease in overweight ( p = 0.15). However, Hussein [ 40 ] reported a reduction in the prevalence of obesity and overweight across the two schools under study ( p values not provided). A range of statistics of participants’ anthropometrics and weight change was reported in the included studies, such as numbers, percentages, means, standard deviations, and odds ratios. Participants’ weight change was presented in terms of the number and percentage in four studies [ 35 , 37 , 42 , 43 ], while the prevalence of overweight and obesity was presented using the percentages in one study [ 40 ]. In comparison, five other studies reported weight change using means and standard deviations [ 36 , 38 , 39 , 41 , 45 ]. Means and standard deviations were reported for diverse anthropometrics, such as participants’ weight, height, BMI, BMI z-scores, fat mass, waist circumference, and waist-to-hip ratio in six studies [ 36 , 38 , 39 , 41 , 43 , 45 ]. However, none of the included studies reported odds ratio for the association between body weight and other variables of interest, except in one study [ 44 ].

Changes in dietary behaviour

All studies reported different outcomes related to dietary behaviours, except three studies [ 36 , 37 , 40 ]. Al-Failakawi [ 43 ] reported a significant increase in dietary knowledge ( p < 0.0005) with a significant increase in the percentage of students who had breakfast ( p < 0.004), dairy intake per week ( p < 0.02), and water intake per week ( p = 0.003). There was a significant increase in students considering themselves to have a healthy diet ( p = 0.03) [ 35 ] or those who had access to healthy food ( p < 0.001) and drinks ( p < 0.01) [ 44 ]. Hefni [ 45 ] also found a reduction in the consumption of unhealthy food and an increase in healthy food intake ( p -values not provided). Elfaki et al. [ 39 ] reported a significant reduction in the intake of fast food ( p < 0.001) and Shama and Abdou [ 42 ] reported a significant reduction in fast food and soft drink intake ( p < 0.05). Choudhury et al. [ 38 ] reported a borderline significant reduction in energy drink intake ( p = 0.05) and a significant decrease in rice intake ( p = 0.01). Shama and Abdou [ 42 ] reported a significant increase in the proportion of participants that had breakfast ( p < 0.05) and in vegetable intake ( p < 0.05) among girls in health-promoting schools. Kutbi and colleagues [ 41 ] also reported similar findings with increased vegetable and fruit consumption.

Changes in physical activity

Eight interventions targeted physical activity [ 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 41 , 43 , 45 ] with various indicators to measure the outcomes while the other three studies [ 40 , 42 , 44 ] did not report any physical activity outcomes. Seven studies [ 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 43 , 45 ] reported a significant change in at least one physical activity outcome except one study [ 41 ], where Kutbi et al. found a non-significant increase in the total metabolic equivalents (METs) among the intervention group between pre- and post-intervention, (2098.41 ± 1922.67 and 2497.95 ± 2291.13, respectively). Elfaki and colleagues [ 39 ] reported increases in the number of days with walking for more than 10 min ( p < 0.001) and time engaged in moderate physical activity during the intervention ( p < 0.001). Two studies reported significant increases in daily light-intensity activity [ 38 , 43 ], energy expenditure measured by accelerometer ( p < 0.02) [ 43 ], or performing any kind of physical activity outside school ( p = 0.003) [ 35 ]. A study in Qatar [ 38 ] found no significant changes in moderate-to-vigorous activity, while a study from Saudi Arabia [ 39 ] reported a significant increase in moderate physical activity.

Changes in sedentary behaviour

Five studies evaluated intervention effects on sedentary behaviour [ 35 , 37 , 41 , 43 , 45 ]. Al-Failakawi [ 43 ] reported a significant decrease in time spent in sedentary behaviour ( p = 0.03) and elevator use ( p < 0.023). Bahathig and Abu Saad [ 37 ] reported significant improvements in sedentary behaviours ( p < 0.001) among the intervention group compared with the control group. Hefni [ 45 ] reported reduced time spent watching television, computer use and using smartphones (no p -values provided) and Kutbi et al. [ 41 ] reported non-significant differences between intervention and control groups for TV watching ( p < 0.58), computer use ( p < 0.17) and sleep time ( p < 0.69). However, Al-Jaaly [ 35 ] found a non-significant influence of watching TV on students’ eating behaviours ( p = 0.119).

Quality of included studies

Based on the Effective Public Health Practice Project (EPHPP) quality assessment tool, the quality of two studies was rated as ‘moderate’ [ 41 , 43 ], and ‘weak’ for the other nine [ 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 42 , 44 , 45 ] (Table 3 ). The study by Hussein [ 40 ] was rated ‘weak’ in all six components of the assessment tool. All included studies were rated ‘weak’ in blinding, except for the study by Hefni [ 45 ]. Other ‘weak’ ratings were mainly due to selection bias [ 36 , 40 , 42 ], study design [ 35 , 38 , 40 , 42 , 44 , 45 ], confounders [ 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 42 , 44 , 45 ], data collection methods [ 35 , 36 , 40 , 44 ], withdrawal and dropouts [ 35 , 36 , 37 , 40 , 42 , 44 ].

This is the first systematic review that explores school-based weight-related interventions among children and adolescents in the GCC countries. Despite the high prevalence of childhood obesity in the six GCC countries [ 13 , 14 ], we only found eleven intervention studies aimed at reducing obesity among school students. Similarly, a systematic review on promoting physical activity across all Arab-speaking countries reported that only 13 of the included 39 studies focused on participants between 5 and 19 years of age [ 33 ].

The included studies were limited in their study designs in terms of sampling errors and participant allocation. Six of the included studies were randomized controlled trials (RCTs) [ 35 , 36 , 37 , 39 , 41 , 43 ], which are generally considered robust for intervention evaluations [ 49 ], including school-based weight-related interventions [ 20 ]. However, several methodological weaknesses were noted among these studies. For instance, in one RCT [ 35 ], the sample size was notably small (n = 28), leading to concerns about statistical power. Additionally, this study and another RCT [ 39 ] had unequal numbers of participants in the intervention and control groups, potentially affecting the balance and comparability of these groups. These issues, beside others, such as unreported confounders and variations in study designs, collectively suggest that the overall strength of the study designs was weak or moderate at best. Such limitations should be carefully considered when interpreting the results of these interventions. The RCT by Al-Failakawi [ 43 ] had a large sample size (n = 128) with participants assigned equally among the control and intervention groups, however, the study is limited in terms of blinding. Four interventions were pre-post studies [ 38 , 40 , 44 , 45 ], and one used a post-test design [ 42 ], which threatens internal validity in terms of selection bias. Furthermore, only two studies [ 41 , 43 ] included in this review reported confounders. In addition to these methodological concerns, the lack of detailed reporting on confounders and other potential statistical errors (such as improper use of p -values or effect sizes) further limits our ability to accurately gauge the interventions’ true effects, in line with the concerns raised by Brown et al. [ 50 ]. These methodological limitations warrant more rigorous study designs for future school-based interventions. Habib-Mourad et al. [ 51 ] pointed out that weight-related interventions involving children would require large sample sizes and sufficient follow-up periods to observe significant changes in the outcomes. The studies included in this review had sample sizes between 28 and 2890 and follow-up times between 1 and 12 months. The finding regarding the methodological limitations of the included studies is in line with another systematic review on obesity interventions for adults in the GCC states, which found that most evaluations of interventions did not have control groups [ 32 ].

Theoretical concepts and frameworks

Various intervention’s components were used in the studies included in this review, typically in multi-component weight-related interventions in school settings [ 52 ]. However, the development of the intervention components was not explicitly discussed in some of the included journal articles. Previous studies that reported successful outcomes, such as weight-related measures, physical activity, and nutrition behaviours, adopted one or more theoretical frameworks [ 52 , 53 ]. None of the journal articles included in our systematic review reported any theoretical underpinning except the study conducted by Kutbi and colleagues [ 41 ], which was based on the social cognitive theory. However, one of the doctoral theses was based on the social-ecological model [ 44 ], and the other two were based on social cognitive theory [ 43 , 45 ]. Particularly in school settings, where multiple stakeholders can work together to achieve a common goal in health promotion interventions, it would be crucial to consider theoretical concepts in the design of the studies [ 24 ]. Theory-driven interventions are also important for translating evidence into practice and in making relevant decisions for applying the intervention components in practice [ 54 ]. Our review found that a variety of theoretical frameworks underpinned the interventions, emphasising the importance of a multifaceted approach to obesity intervention. These theories highlight the significance of multiple and combined factors in shaping health outcomes. However, the inconsistent application of these theories across studies suggests a need for more robust theoretical grounding in future research.

Interventional aspects

Despite the limitations of the included interventions, this review suggests that though there is some potential, the overall evidence supporting the effectiveness of school-based interventions in addressing obesity is mixed and warrants cautious interpretation. This is consistent with other reviews of similar interventions in high-income countries [ 55 , 56 ] and low to middle-income countries [ 57 , 58 ].

Studies have revealed that the success of interventions could potentially be attributable to the school’s environmental support in terms of finance, incentives, and applying weight management-related policies [ 56 , 57 , 58 , 59 ], highlighting the importance of multiple concomitant approaches to counteract obesity or its linked factors among students at schools. Environmental components were only included in three of the school-based interventions [ 38 , 40 , 41 ], indicating more research is required in this area. Considering the social context of the school environment, facilitators and barriers are crucial to determine the success or failure of weight-related interventions [ 33 , 60 ].

There was considerable variation in the outcomes of the included studies, with some showing improvements in students’ anthropometrics in terms of reducing the prevalence of overweight or obesity, and decreases in BMI or waist circumference, while others did not, highlighting the need for a cautious interpretation of these results. Students’ weight outcomes were improved in some of the included studies [ 35 , 37 , 39 , 40 , 42 ]. Some systematic reviews in other parts of the world have suggested a range of outcomes, from mild to significant effectiveness of school-based interventions for addressing childhood obesity, particularly if they were long enough, used multiple components, and had parental involvement in delivering the intervention [ 58 , 59 ]. However, it is important to note that results vary widely, and some studies, including a notable Cochrane Review, report limited effectiveness [ 61 ], two meta-analyses conducted by Kanekar and Sharma [ 62 ], covering studies from the USA and UK and the other by Harris et al. [ 63 ], including twelve studies from the USA, three from Canada and one each from Australia, Chile, and Sweden. Accordingly, there is various evidence that school-based interventions can improve students’ weight status.

The studies in this review demonstrated significant improvements in dietary habits, such as decreased energy and soft drink consumption and increased intake of fruits and vegetables, water, fish, and dairy. These findings align with other similar systematic reviews about school-based weight-related interventions from the USA and Europe [ 64 , 65 ]. Overall, this suggests that school-based interventions in the GCC countries may improve students’ dietary habits and eating behaviours.

The intervention outcomes of the included studies suggest that physical activity and sedentary behaviour can potentially be improved with school-based interventions in the Gulf countries, which is consistent with studies on school students from other parts of the world [ 66 , 67 ]. The included studies used various measures for physical activity and sedentary behaviour, which did not allow for direct comparisons across the studies. This calls for standardised, valid, and reliable measurements to improve evidence-based health promotion [ 33 ].

Strengths and limitations

A key strength of this study is that to the best of our knowledge, it is the first comprehensive systematic review of school-based weight-related interventions in the GCC countries, a region with one of the highest obesity rates in the world. This review fills a significant gap by providing information on the participants, characteristics, components, outcomes and strengths and limitations of the interventions. A further strength of this systematic review is that we utilised a rigorous and comprehensive study design, including PROSPERO registration, following the PRISMA statement, and using the EPHPP tool for quality appraisal of the interventions. However, including only studies published in English is a limitation of our systematic review, potentially introducing language bias, although scientific studies and policy documents from the GCC countries are usually published in English rather than Arabic. An additional limitation was the preclusion of a meta-analysis due to the heterogeneity of the included studies in terms of study design and intervention components.

Despite the methodological limitations of the included studies, this systematic review has identified important insights into school-based interventions for addressing childhood obesity in the GCC countries. A range of intervention strategies were reported, with a notable emphasis on multi-component approaches. The social-ecological model and social-cognitive theory were the conceptual frameworks commonly employed. Various study designs were reported, with several randomised controlled trials providing the highest level of evidence, albeit with limitations such as small sample sizes and unreported confounders. Significantly, these studies have provided tentative evidence as to the potential of school-based interventions to positively impact students’ weight status, dietary habits, physical activity levels, and sedentary behaviours, which will support evidence-based health promotion to address the obesity epidemic in the GCC countries. These findings emphasise the need for continued research with more rigorous, theory-based studies, particularly those that address the identified methodological gaps and contribute to developing effective, evidence-based strategies to combat childhood obesity in the GCC region. Policy initiatives that encourage and support the implementation of well-designed RCTs in schools are also highly recommended to evaluate the effectiveness of these interventions.

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This systematic review is part of a Ph.D. thesis in Public Health. Special thanks to the Saudi Ministry of Health, Makkah Healthcare Cluster, which provided the scholarship to conduct this PhD at the University of Technology Sydney, Australia.

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MB conceptualised the design of the study. All authors contributed to the data screening and critical revision, analysis, and the assessment of the quality of the included studies. MB drafted the manuscript and DS, KG and MK reviewed it. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Banany, M., Kang, M., Gebel, K. et al. A systematic review of school-based weight-related interventions in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries. Syst Rev 13 , 66 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13643-024-02475-7

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ICSE Class 10 English Literature Paper Analysis 2024: Exam Review, Student Feedback and Expert View

Cisce class 10 english literature paper analysis 2024: in this article, students can find icse class 10 english paper 2 (english literature) exam analysis along with discussions on the difficulty level of the question paper, students' reactions, and experts' opinions on the same.

ICSE Class 10 English Literature Exam Paper Analysis 2024: The Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE), the board exams organising committee for students of Class 10 and 12 is currently conducting the ICSE and ISC board exams 2024 for students of Class 10 and 12 respectively. Today, on February 23, students will appear for the ICSE Class 10 English Literature exam from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM, spanning two hours. Post-exam, students and parents become quite curious about how other students have performed in the exam and what are the experts’ opinions about the question paper. So, calm down your nerves we have brought to you the ICSE Class 10 English Literature paper analysis 2024 in detail.

ICSE Class 10 English Literature Exam 2024 Key Highlights

Icse class 10 english literature paper review 2024.

The ICSE Class 10 English Literature question paper 2024 was moderate.
Section A was a bit tough while others were a combination of easy and average
The paper was not too long. All the students who had devised a strategy might have completed the paper on time
All the questions belonged to the syllabus
The question paper format was also similar to the specimen paper released by the board
The most challenging part of the question paper was MCQs

ICSE Class 10 English Literature Paper Analysis 2024 - Students' Reaction

Challenging Areas in English Literature Questions : Section A (Objective Type Questions)
Type of Questions Asked in the Today’s English Literature Exam: Objective Type questions, Questions from Drama, poetry, and short stories (where students had to read the excerpt/paragraph and answer the questions below)
Section-wise Class 10 English Literature Exam Review: Section A was tough, Section B, C, and D were average

ICSE Class 10 English Literature Paper Analysis 2024 - Experts Review

Experts have said that the question paper was moderate. It consisted of questions that were easy, thoughtful, and tricky at the same time.
The paper was not too lengthy
The question paper sticked to the syllabus and format followed in specimen paper
Section A can be said to be a bit challenging for students
Overall the paper was easy for those who had read all the textbooks, since everything was completely based on the syllabus

ICSE Class 10 English Literature Question Paper & Answer Key 2024

The link to the ICSE Class 10 English Literature question paper and answer key 2024 has been attached above. Kindly check the answers to your questions by using the link above.

Also Check:

ICSE Class 10 Specimen Paper 2024

ICSE Class 10 Syllabus 2024

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Published: 12 February 2024

The negative pressure wound therapy for prevention of sternal wound infection: Can we reduce infection rate after the use of bilateral internal thoracic arteries? A systematic literature review and meta-analysis

Hind Elhassan 1 ,
Ridha Amjad 2 ,
Unna Palaniappan 2 ,
Mahmoud Loubani 1 &
David Rose 3

Journal of Cardiothoracic Surgery volume 19 , Article number: 87 ( 2024 ) Cite this article

233 Accesses

Negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) is traditionally used to treat postoperative wound infections. However, its use in closed wound sternotomy post cardiac surgery in high-risk patients has become increasingly popular. The potential preventive benefit of reducing sternal wound infections has been recently acknowledged. Bilateral internal mammary artery (BIMA) grafts are used in coronary artery bypass grafting but have been associated with an increased risk of sternal wound infections (SWIs).

This systematic analysis examines whether NPWT can reduce the incidence of SWI following BIMA grafts, leading to more patients benefiting from the better survival outcome associated with BIMA grafting.

A comprehensive systematic search and meta-analysis were performed to identify studies on the use of NPWT in closed wound sternotomy. Ovid MEDLINE (in-process and other nonindexed citations and Ovid MEDLINE 1990 to present), Ovid EMBASE (1990 to present), and The Cochrane Library (Wiley), PubMed, and Google Scholar databases were searched from their inception to May 2022 using keywords and MeSH terms. Thirty-four articles from 1991 to May 2022 were selected.

Three studies reported on the outcome of NPWT following BIMA grafting. The pooled analysis did not show any significant difference in the incidence of sternal wound infection between NPWT and standard dressing (RR 0.48 95% CI 0.17–1.37; P = 0.17) with substantial heterogeneity (I 2 65%). Another seven studies were found comparing the outcome of SWI incidence of negative pressure closed wound therapy with conventional wound therapy in patients undergoing adult cardiac surgery. The pooled analysis showed that NPWT was associated with a low risk of SWIs compared to conventional dressing (RR 0.47 95% CI 0.36–0.59; P < 0.00001), with low heterogeneity (I 2 1%).

The literature identified that NPWT significantly decreased the incidence of sternal wound complications when applied to sutured sternotomy incisions in high-risk patients, and in some cases, it eliminated the risk. However, the inadequate number of randomized controlled trials assessing the effectiveness of NPWT in BIMA grafting emphasizes the need for further, robust studies.

Sternal wound infections (SWIs) can cause extensive complications following median sternotomy in cardiac operations. Studies have shown that the incidence of SWI after cardiac surgery ranges from 0.9% to 20%. 1.6% of these patients develop deep sternal wound infections (DSWIs), which can affect muscle tissue, sternum, sub sternum, and mediastinum [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]. According to Perezgrovas-Olaria et al. [ 1 ] on their recent meta-analysis deep sternal wound infection found to be associated with higher mortality, longer postoperative hospitalization, stroke, myocardial infarction and respiratory and renal failure. Superficial sternal wound infection, which involves the skin, subcutaneous tissue, and deep fascia [ 3 ]. Coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) patients are susceptible to developing DSWIs and have been found to have a 2.5 times greater long-term mortality than those without any infection [ 4 ]. The literature has described numerous risk factors for SWIs [ 5 ]. The use of the bilateral internal mammary artery (BIMA) for coronary artery grafting is the most consistently reported independent risk factor for SWI, together with insulin-dependent diabetes and obesity BIMA use alone can increase the risk by 4.23 times [ 1 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 ]. This has resulted in the use of BIMA in CABG, despite better long-term prognosis, which has been restricted to low-risk patients [ 1 , 6 , 11 ].

Traditionally, the use of NPWT has been restricted to treating wound complications with open post-sternotomy incisions [ 2 , 11 , 12 , 13 ]. Further investigations into the use of NPWT have promoted its applicability as a prophylactic measure to reduce the incidence of SWI [ 2 , 5 ]. Applying negative pressure to closed incisions promptly after surgery can prevent complications such as SWIs in high-risk individuals [ 2 , 11 ].

NPWT arose in 1997 and has significantly benefited the outcomes of sternal wound dehiscence (SWD). The suction of excess tissue fluid facilitates the prevention of haematoma or seroma formation [ 14 ]. Negative pressure stimulates perfusion, resulting in an accelerated healing process in addition to a reduction in ischaemic wound necrosis, thereby preventing wound breakdown (Fig. 1 ) and helping in primary wound healing, especially in watershed regions [ 15 ].

Illustration of mechanism through which NPWT prevent wound infection

If NPWT is proven effective, it can promote the practice of BIMA grafting, allowing long-term prognostic benefits [ 9 , 10 ]. Therefore, this systematic literature review aims to examine the literature on the efficiency of NPWT in reducing the risk of SWI following BIMA grafts.

A systematic literature review according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) was performed.

A comprehensive systematic search was performed to identify studies that evaluated the usefulness of NPWT in preventing the risk of SWI post cardiac surgery. Ovid MEDLINE (in-process and other nonindexed citations and Ovid MEDLINE 1990 to present), Ovid EMBASE (1990 to present), and The Cochrane Library (Wiley), PubMed, and Google Scholar databases were searched from their inception to May 2022 using key words and the MeSH terms ‘cardiac surgery’, ‘negative pressure wound therapy’, ‘closed incision management’, ‘prevention’, ‘bilateral internal mammary arteries’, ‘BIMA’, and ‘sternal wound infection’.

Study selection and inclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria were full text English studies where NPWT was used as prevention rather than as a treatment of postsurgical infections. Outcome measurements of sternal wound complications after application of the NPWT system in which BIMA had been used in coronary artery grafting. Studies that measure the outcome of NPWT in other cardiac surgeries have also been investigated. The reference lists were also searched for any relevant articles that met the criteria.

Data extraction

Two authors independently extracted data (Elhassan H, Amjad R). Quality assessment was carried out by Elhassan (H) using the Newcastle‒Ottawa Scale (NOS) to assess the quality of nonrandomized studies in the meta-analysis (attached in supplementary material) [ 16 ].

Statistical analysis

The primary endpoint was the incidence of sternal wound infection in NPWT compared to conventional therapy in patients who had bilateral mammary grafting. The secondary endpoint was the incidence of sternal wound infection in NPWT compared to conventional treatment in the general cardiac population. Categorical variables are expressed as percentages, and continuous variables are expressed as the mean and standard deviations. Random-effects models were used to consider pooled effects, heterogeneity and absolute values. The risk ratio (RR) with a 95% confidence interval (CI) was extracted from the incidence of SWIs. Data are summarized in tables and forest plots. Forest plots were used to determine the effect size. The I 2 test was used to evaluate heterogeneity (unimportant ( I 2 = 0–40%), moderate ( I 2 = 40–60%), substantial ( I 2 = 60–75%), or considerable ( I 2 > 75–100%). Statistical analysis was performed using RevMan (Review Manager (RevMan) [Computer program]. Version 5.4. The Cochrane Collaboration, 2020).

From 38 abstracts, 17 studies met the inclusion criteria for full-text review, out of which 15 studies were selected for systematic review and 10 studies for meta-analysis (Fig. 2 ).

Flow diagram showing literature search methods for the systematic review

Six out of the 15 studies addressed the outcome of NPWT in patients who underwent BIMA use for grafting. Nearly all the studies have reported favourable clinical outcomes apart from one that showed no difference in SWI incidence between NPWT and conventional therapy. We separated the studies’ results into two groups: studies addressing the outcome of NPWT following the use of BIMA for grafting and the remaining studies that investigated the outcome of NPWT in all other cardiac procedures without direct emphasis on BIMA in their analysis.

We identified a total of 7,996 patients, of whom 2,514 received NPWT post cardiac surgery on a closed incision; the included studies are summarized in Table 1 .

Only 285 patients who had BIMA received NPWT, and the included studies are summarized in Tables 1 and 2 .

Primary endpoint: outcome of NPWT following BIMA grafting

A total of six studies reported on the outcome of NPWT following BIMA grafting. Three studies investigated BIMA grafting as their primary endpoint, while the remaining studies had a subgroup analysis of patients with BIMA grafts from their study group. Three studies compared this outcome with the control group receiving conventional treatment. The quality of these studies was poor, and only one study used propensity-score matching. The pooled analysis did not show a significant difference between NPWT and standard dressing (RR 0.48 95% CI 0.17–1.37; P = 0.17), with substantial heterogeneity (I 2 65%) Fig. 3 .

Sternal wound infection following bilateral mammary artery grafting

Outcome of SWIs following NPWT in cardiac surgery

Seven further studies were found in the literature comparing the outcome of SWI incidence with negative pressure closed wound therapy with conventional wound therapy in patients undergoing adult cardiac surgery. We also examined these studies to explore the effect of NPWT in reducing the incidence of sternal wound infection in other high-risk cardiac patients.

Meta-analysis was conducted for all the studies with a comparison group (a total of 10 studies, including studies in the BIMA group). Two studies were randomized [ 19 , 25 ], and one used propensity-score matching [ 9 ]. The pooled analysis showed that NPWT was associated with a low risk of SWIs compared to conventional dressing (RR 0.47 95% CI = 0.36–0.59; P < 0.00001), with low heterogeneity (I 2 6%) (Fig. 4 ).

Sternal wound infection following general cardiac operations

We have run further subgroup analysis to investigate if NPWT have a preventive benefit on superficial and deep sternal wound infection (Figs. 5 , 6 ).

Superficial sternal wound infection (SSWI) post cardiac surgery

Deep sternal wound infection (DSWI) post cardiac surgery

Three studies were not included in the analysis of SSWI, as either did not report the number of SSWI separately in their studies [ 18 , 20 ] or the study only focus on DSWI [ 25 ]. NPWT remains to have law risk of SSWI in comparsion with conventional dressing (RR 0.56 95% CI 0.41, 0.77; P = 0.0004) with unimportant heterogenicity I 2 = 28%).

One study did not provide breakdown on number of patients with DSWI [ 18 ], and one study had no deep sternal wound infection in both arms of the study [ 19 ]. The RR 0.35 95% CI 0.23, 0.55; P < 0.00001 and no heterogenicity.

Fifteen studies met the inclusion criteria and were included in this review. Nine studies were included in the meta-analysis. The majority of the studies (12 articles) demonstrated a reduction in sternal wound complications in high-risk cardiac surgery associated with the administration of negative pressure on sutured incisions. Two studies reported no significant difference in the rate of SWI between patients receiving NPWT and those receiving conventional treatment. Six studies highlighted the outcome of NPWT within BIMA patients, whether it was part of a subgroup analysis or the primary treatment. Four studies reported positive patient outcomes associated with NPWT, while two articles with control patient groups showed no significant difference. However, pooled analysis was nonsignificant (RR 0.48 95% CI 0.17–1.37; P = 0.17), with substantial heterogeneity (I 2 65%). However, the general trend was the beneficial effect of NPWT across the different studies.

Atkins, Colli, Gatti, Reddy and Philip [ 5 , 8 , 21 , 22 ] all demonstrated the potency of NPWT post-surgery, as patient reports were entirely clear of infection after prophylactic management. However, the absence of control groups and the small sample size makes it difficult to obtain significant results to draw a clear conclusion and limits the generalizability of these trials to the wider population. As these studies were not randomized controlled studies, it may be argued that the promising results discovered are not the sole by product of the negative pressure wound therapy system; other factors might be involved [ 11 , 17 ]. The literature has shown that female sex increases the risk of postoperative complications [ 5 ]. Despite this, Atkins and colleagues failed to include sufficient females in their selected participants, reinforcing the reduced infection rate [ 5 ]. Thus, trials that consider the relative contributions of other risk factors in postoperative infection, with sufficient patients, are needed to fully understand the protective effect of negative pressure wound therapy on closed chest incisions.

BIMA use has been associated with increased graft patency and positive long-term clinical outcomes in many studies and literature review [ 28 , 29 ]. Although this is the case, there has been some reluctance to use BIMA for coronary grafting, given the risk of sternal wound infection associated with its use. The Arterial Revascularisation Trial (ART), a multicentre, randomized controlled trial, did not show superiority of BIMA grafting compared to single internal mammary artery (SIMA) grafting with vein grafts after 10 years of follow-up [ 30 ]. However, this finding contradicted the largeevidence in the literature. Multiple factors may contribute to this finding: first, the study design was unblinded, surgeons’ experience was not taken into consideration, there was a lack of angiographic studies to assess graft patency, and there was nonadherence to randomization. The SIMA group received radial artery grafting as well, which is known to have a better outcome than vein graft [ 31 ]. Several studies reported higher survival rates and less reintervention compared to SIMA. Tatoulis et al. [ 29 ] conducted a large observational study evaluating the patency of the right internal mammary artery (RIMA) by performing coronary angiography for 991 patients out of 5,766 patients who underwent BIMA grafting in their institution. The ten-year overall patency was 90% for grafts to the left anterior descending artery (LAD) 95%, graft to the circumflex artery (Cx) 91%, graft to the right coronary artery (RCA) 84% and graft to the posterior descending artery (PDA) 86%. This was identical to the 10-year patency as LIMA to LAD and LIMA to Cx. They also demonstrate better RIMA patency than radial artery and vein grafts. There was an 89% survival rate for patients who had BIMA grafting. A meta-analysis of 8 propensity-matched studies by Gaudino et al. [ 28 ] showed that BIMA grafting is associated with superior long-term survival irrespective of sex and diabetes. Davierwala et al. [ 32 ] recently published their outcome of using BIMA in minimally invasive off-pump coronary artery grafts; early outcomes showed 96.8% graft patency on angiographic studies prior to discharge.

Research evidence has shown that using IMA grafts (or ITA grafts) correlates with an elevated risk of SWI, especially when using BIMA [ 6 ]. Research by Grossi et al. [ 33 ] demonstrated that having one or more IMA grafts increased the prevalence of sternal infection by 1.37% compared to patients who had no IMA graft in CABG surgery. A BIMA graft was associated with a 1.7% higher prevalence of SWI than a single IMA graft (SIMA), and the difference in prevalence increased to 8.8% when combined with diabetes. TheART-reported incidence of sternal wound complications was almost double in the BIMA group than in the SIMA group (54 cases vs. 30 cases) after a 10-year follow-up, and there was a significantly increased rate of sternal reconstruction in the BIMA group (31 cases vs. 10 cases) [ 30 ]. Ståhle et al. [ 34 ] investigated sternal wound problems after cardiac surgery in a large cohort of 13,285 patients over fifteen years. Of these, 155 patients had BIMA grafting, with a sternal wound infection rate of 3.9%; this was more than 2 times the rate in other cases (1.7%) [ 34 ]. The results from a prospective study using patients from ten surgical institutions in Paris (n = 1830) showed that the incidence of DSWI in BIMA grafting patients was 6% higher than that in SIMA patients (8.7% vs. 2.7%) [ 35 ]. The robust association between BIMA use and the incidence of SWIs has been determined by large randomized clinical trials, with infection rates ranging from 2.1 to 8.7% [ 8 , 10 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 ]. As a result, it is critical to acknowledge other risk factors (e.g., obesity, diabetes) when using bilateral internal mammary arteries so that strategies to adjust for these risk factors can be implemented in vulnerable patients before surgery [ 38 ]. The use of negative pressure wound therapy might be particularly beneficial in this patient category.

The NPWT system uses special dressings and a negative pressure-creating device to provide a proportional distribution of negative pressure over closed surgical sites [ 2 , 5 , 11 ]. The wound site and surrounding skin are coveredwith an adherent sterile cover, and a vacuum pump is joined to the dressing by a suction tube [ 11 ]. This gives negative pressures ranging from − 75 to − 125 mmHg, enabling wound fluid to be drained into an aseptic canister, as in the case of Prevena™ dressing [ 2 , 5 , 7 , 11 , 17 ]. There are several mechanisms through which NPWT devices exert their effects. It has been suggested that introducing a closed wound medium keeps the sealed incision margins composed, stimulates cells to proliferate and triggers angiogenesis [ 2 , 5 , 7 , 11 , 13 , 39 ]. The extracellular fluid is drained, allowing the removal of exudative content and tissue oedema. Blood flow to the wound area is increased, thus enhancing tissue perfusion and improving the circulation of immune cells and antibiotics [ 2 , 7 , 11 , 13 , 39 ]. These factors prevent the progression of infection and the incidence of sternal wound complications by deterring colony-forming bacteria and increasing the production of granulation tissue [ 2 , 7 , 11 , 13 , 39 ]. There have been few NPWT systems on the market, with Prevena™ currently being the most researched system [ 7 , 9 , 13 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 27 ]. Witt-Majchrzak et al. [ 19 ] reported in their study the NPWT has reduced the risk of overall sternal wound complications including sternal wound instabilities and abnormal healing.

In this meta-analysis, NPWT was shown to have a preventive benefit for wound infection post BIMA use in patients who underwent coronary artery bypass graft and in all other adult cardiac surgeries.

The pooled analysis for studies in general adult cardiac surgery showed a significant reduction in wound infection in patients who received negative pressure wound therapy compared to those who received conventional wound dressing (RR 0.47 95% CI 0.36–0.59; P < 0.00001), with low heterogeneity (I 2 6).

Negative pressure-generating interventions usually involve greater costs than conventional treatment [ 9 ]. Research by Tabley et al. showed that the total cost of buying PICO™ systems and the reduced costs of treating complications approximately saved £1188.79 “per patient” [ 24 , 40 ]. Concerning the broader employment of NPWT in cardiac surgery, it is crucial to consider the economic effects of preventing SWIs versus treating the added complications [ 9 , 23 ]. If additional analyses of the saved expenses are produced in the literature, they can further support the worthiness of NPWT in surgery.

Study limitations

The majority of the studies were observational studies, apart from one randomized control trial and one propensity-score matching analysis to account for selection bias. The lack of robust studies affects the quality of the review due to literature biases. The small number of studies (n = 3) focusing specifically on the efficacy of prophylactic NPWT after BIMA grafting included in the final analyses (with high heterogeneity) makes it difficult to conclude the suitability of NPWT. We did not acknowledge the presence of treatment allocation bias. The use of NPWT is usually reserved for patients who are perceived to have a high surgical risk of developing SWI. Nonetheless, pooled analysis from studies covering all cardiac procedures showed a potential benefit of NPWT in preventing SWI. Finally, there was a language bias, as we only included studies in English.

Based on findings from this systematic literature review and meta-analysis, closed incision management after cardiac surgery can reduce the incidence of sternal wound infections in cardiac patients. However, the potential usefulness of NPWT after bilateral internal mammary artery grafting needs to be further investigated. The inconsistent study findings in these patients and the flawed study designs leave the question regarding the clinical efficacy of prophylactic use of closed incisional negative pressure therapy in BIMA grafting not conclusively answered. Large-scale, randomized controlled studies that specifically measure postsurgical outcomes in BIMA patients following negative pressure wound therapy are needed.

The datasets supporting the conclusions of this article are included within the article (and its Additional file 1 ).

Arterial revascularization trial

Bilateral internal mammary artery
Coronary artery bypass grafting

Circumflex artery

Deep Sternal Wound Infection

Internal mammary artery

Internal thoracic artery

Left anterior descending artery

Left internal mammary artery

Newcastle‒Ottawa Scale

Negative Pressure Wound Therapy

Posterior descending artery

Right coronary artery

Right internal mammary artery

Superficial sternal wound infection

Sternal Wound Infections

Sternal wound dehiscence

Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses

Single internal mammary artery

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Davierwala PM, Verevkin A, Sgouropoulou S, Hasheminejad E, von Aspern K, Misfeld M, et al. Minimally invasive coronary bypass surgery with bilateral internal thoracic arteries: early outcomes and angiographic patency. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2021;162(4):1109-1119.e4.

Grossi EA, Esposito R, Harris LJ, Crooke GA, Galloway AC, Colvin SB, et al. Sternal wound infections and use of internal mammary artery grafts. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 1991;102:342–7.

Ståhle E, Tammelin A, Bergström R, Hambreus A, Nyström SO, Hansson HE. Sternal wound complications–incidence, microbiology and risk factors. Eur J Cardiothorac Surg. 1997;11(6):1146–53.

Taggart DP, Altman DG, Gray AM, Lees B, Gerry S, Benedetto U, et al. Randomized trial of bilateral versus single internal-thoracic-artery grafts. N Engl J Med. 2016;375(26):2540–9.

Gatti G, Dell’Angela L, Barbati G, Benussi B, Forti G, Gabrielli M, et al. A predictive scoring system for deep sternal wound infection after bilateral internal thoracic artery grafting. Eur J Cardiothorac Surg. 2016;49(3):910–7.

Lemaignen A, Birgand G, Ghodhbane W, Alkhoder S, Lolom I, Belorgey S, et al. Sternal wound infection after cardiac surgery: incidence and risk factors according to clinical presentation. Clin Microbiol Infect. 2015;21(7):674.e11-674.e18.

Lu JCY, Grayson AD, Jha P, Srinivasan AK, Fabri BM. Risk factors for sternal wound infection and mid-term survival following coronary artery bypass surgery. Eur J Cardiothorac Surg. 2003;23(6):943–9.

Strugala V, Martin R. Meta-analysis of comparative trials evaluating a prophylactic single-use negative pressure wound therapy system for the prevention of surgical site complications. Surg Infect (Larchmt). 2017;18(7):810–9.

New study demonstrates PICO ◊ Single Use Negative Pressure Wound Therapy System (sNPWT) beats standard dressings in reducing surgical site complications resulting in fewer deep sternal wound infections (DSWI) following cardiac surgery | Smith & Nephew. Available from: https://www.smith-nephew.com/news-and-media/media-releases/news/new-study-demonstrates-pico-single-use-negative-pressure-wound-therapy-system-snpwt-beats-standard-dressings-in-reducing-surgical-site-complications-resulting-in-fewer-deep-sternal-wound-infections-dswi-following-cardiac-surgery

No funding was provided to produce this work.

Cardiothoracic Department, Hull University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Castle Rd, Cottingham, East Riding of Yorkshire, HU16 5JQ, UK

Hind Elhassan & Mahmoud Loubani

Lancaster Medical School, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK

Ridha Amjad & Unna Palaniappan

Cardiothoracic Department, Lancashire Cardiac Centre, Blackpool Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Blackpool, UK

You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

HE: design, data extraction, quality assessment, meta-analysis, interpretation of finding and drafting. RA: design, data extraction, interpretation of finding and drafting. UP: design graft. ML: revising and final approval. DR: conceptualization, revising and final approval.

Correspondence to Hind Elhassan .

Ethics approval and consent to participate.

Consent for publication

Competing interests.

HE: No competing interests to declare. RA: No competing interests to declare. UP: No competing interests to declare. ML: Educational and research honoraria from 3M. DR: No competing interests to declare.

Publisher's note.

Supplementary Information

Additional file 1. .

Newcastle‒Ottawa Scale Qauality Assessment for included articles.

Elhassan, H., Amjad, R., Palaniappan, U. et al. The negative pressure wound therapy for prevention of sternal wound infection: Can we reduce infection rate after the use of bilateral internal thoracic arteries? A systematic literature review and meta-analysis. J Cardiothorac Surg 19 , 87 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13019-024-02589-y

Received : 05 August 2023

Accepted : 30 January 2024

Published : 12 February 2024

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1186/s13019-024-02589-y

Negative pressure wound therapy
Sternal wound infections

Journal of Cardiothoracic Surgery

ISSN: 1749-8090

Identifying keywords It is important to find all the relevant keywords for the topic to ensure the search is comprehensive by identifying: different spellings, tenses and word variants of keywords synonyms related concepts names of people or authors associated with these ideas There are many ways to locate these terms, including

Step 1 - Search for relevant literature Step 2 - Evaluate and select sources Step 3 - Identify themes, debates, and gaps Step 4 - Outline your literature review's structure Step 5 - Write your literature review Free lecture slides Other interesting articles Frequently asked questions Introduction Quick Run-through Step 1 & 2 Step 3 Step 4 Step 5

Literature Reviews Suggested Tutorials Identifying Keywords Choosing and Using Keywords: Credo Tutorial Identifying Keywords & Search Terms Identify Keywords To identify keywords, first start by writing out your research statement or question. Then follow these steps: Start by writing your research question, or thesis statement.

Reviewing the literature requires the ability to juggle multiple tasks, from finding and evaluating relevant material to synthesising information from various sources, from critical thinking to paraphrasing, evaluating, and citation skills [7].

Aug 30, 2019 -- Photo by Hope House Press — Leather Diary Studio on Unsplash Introduction When you formulate your research question, you need to consider the range of keywords and subject...

Why Keywords Are Necessary to Build a Comprehensive Literature Review By Enago Academy May 3, 2022 3 mins read 🔊 Listen The Importance of Preparation The quotation, "Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend four sharpening my axe," has been attributed to Abraham Lincoln.

A search on EBSCOhost using keywords "review methodology," "literature review," and "research synthesis" returned 653 records of peer-reviewed articles. After initial title screening, we found twenty-two records related to the methodology of literature review.

Literature Review - Finding the Resources Keyword search During your literature search, especially when you search for articles in databases, you will rely very much on keyword searching. To conduct a keyword search, you need to formulate a search statement. Below are the basic steps to develop a search statement.

Literature reviews are conducted for the purpose of (a) locating information on a topic or identifying gaps in the literature for areas of future study, (b) synthesising conclusions in an area of ambiguity and (c) helping clinicians and researchers inform decision-making and practice guidelines.

KEYWORDS: Keywords need to be descriptive and capture the most important aspects of your paper. They are used for indexing in databases and as search terms for readers. Include three to five words, phrases, or acronyms as keywords. Keywords Content Keywords address essential paper elements, such as the following: research topic population method

Important aspects of a systematic literature review (SLR) include a structured method for conducting the study and significant transparency of the approaches used for summarizing the literature (Hiebl, 2023).The inspection of existing scientific literature is a valuable tool for (a) developing best practices and (b) resolving issues or controversies over a single study (Gupta et al., 2018).

Identifying effective keywords 2. Connect your search words Find results with one or more search words Use OR between words that mean the same thing. E.g. adolescent OR teenager This search will find results with either (or both) of the search words. Find results with two search words

Literature reviews play a critical role in scholarship because science remains, first and foremost, a cumulative endeavour (vom Brocke et al., 2009). As in any academic discipline, rigorous knowledge syntheses are becoming indispensable in keeping up with an exponentially growing eHealth literature, assisting practitioners, academics, and graduate students in finding, evaluating, and ...

A systematic approach to searching an efficient and complete method to develop literature searches is a crucial skill for researchers and practitioners. This article presents a comprehensive and practical guide to design and conduct effective searches in various databases, using techniques such as truncation, Boolean operators, and PICOT framework.

Literature reviews Keyword searching in Scopus Keyword searching tips: Keywords are simply the terms used within an article. A database will generally search for keywords in the title and abstract fields, and may also search other fields of the database record.

Step 1. Define your project. First, you must choose, explore and focus your topic. After some basic background research, you may discover that you need to tweak the scope of your question. If your topic is too broad, refine your research question so that it is specific enough to lead you to the relevant literature.

As mentioned previously, there are a number of existing guidelines for literature reviews. Depending on the methodology needed to achieve the purpose of the review, all types can be helpful and appropriate to reach a specific goal (for examples, please see Table 1).These approaches can be qualitative, quantitative, or have a mixed design depending on the phase of the review.

This article suggests 10 steps that will help readers complete this task, from identifying key concepts to choosing databases for the search and saving the results and search strategy. It discusses each of the steps in a little more detail, with examples and suggestions on where to get help. This structured approach will help readers obtain a ...

How to do a Literature Search: Choosing keywords Using keywords Managing your search/results Choosing keywords: things to think about It may be tempting to simply type the title of your project into the database search box, but this will not give you the best results!

Overview of Search Strategies. There are many ways to find literature for your review, and we recommend that you use a combination of strategies - keeping in mind that you're going to be searching multiple times in a variety of ways, using different databases and resources. Searching the literature is not a straightforward, linear process - it ...

In this blog, we discuss phrases related to literature review such as summary of previous literature, research gap and research questions. The literature review should clearly demonstrate that the author has a good knowledge of the research area. A well-written literature review should provide a critical appraisal of previous studies related to the current research area rather than a simple ...

briefly cited to provide a wider context. The keywords used to identify suitable studies include "infrastru ture", "digital", "energy", and "transport", ea h in om ination with "development" and/or "growth". An important starting point was to incorporate existing literature review and meta-analysis papers.

Keywords with higher search volumes have the potential to drive more traffic to your website. For example, our data shows that "sneakers" gets 201K searches per month in the U.S. And that "nike black and pink sneakers" gets 590. As part of your keyword analysis, you might also want to check whether volumes are on an upward or downward ...

Inclusion and exclusion criteria. The full texts of all potential studies were assessed for their eligibility to be included in this review if they (1) were school-based interventions conducted in any of the GCC countries; (2) targeted school-aged students (5-18 years old) during school hours; (3) included at least one weight-related lifestyle intervention (physical activity, sedentary ...

ICSE Class 10 English Literature Paper Analysis 2024 - Experts Review The reviews of ICSE Class 10 English Literature subject experts on today's question paper have been provided below for students.

A systematic literature review according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) was performed. ... PubMed, and Google Scholar databases were searched from their inception to May 2022 using key words and the MeSH terms 'cardiac surgery', 'negative pressure wound therapy', 'closed incision ...

Essay on My Summer Holiday

Students are often asked to write an essay on My Summer Holiday in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on My Summer Holiday

Introduction to my summer holiday.

My summer holiday was a time of joy and fun. I spent two whole months away from school, enjoying the warm weather and free time. This essay will share the best parts of my vacation.

Playing with Friends

During the holiday, I played a lot with my friends. We rode bikes, played soccer, and had picnics in the park. It was great to spend so much time outside.

Family Trip

My family went on a trip to the beach. The sand was hot, and the ocean was cool. We built sandcastles, swam, and ate ice cream. It was a happy time with my family.

Learning Something New

I also learned to fish. My grandpa taught me, and I caught my first fish! It was exciting and something I’ll always remember from this summer.

In conclusion, my summer holiday was full of adventure, family, and new experiences. It was a break I cherished and will look back on with a smile.

250 Words Essay on My Summer Holiday

My summer holiday was a time filled with joy and new experiences. As the school year ended, I felt a wave of excitement thinking about the days ahead without homework or tests.

Visiting My Grandparents

The first part of my vacation was spent at my grandparents’ house in the countryside. Their home is surrounded by green fields and tall trees. Every morning, I would wake up to the sound of birds chirping and the smell of fresh pancakes made by my grandma. I helped my grandpa in the garden, and we would pick ripe fruits and vegetables.

Learning to Swim

During my stay, I also learned to swim. My uncle took me to a nearby lake where the water was clear and cool. At first, I was scared, but with practice, I started to enjoy moving through the water. By the end of my visit, I could swim across the lake without stopping.

Fun with Friends

When I returned home, I spent lots of time with my friends. We rode our bikes, played soccer in the park, and had picnics with sandwiches and lemonade. Laughing and running around made the days fly by.

Reading Adventures

I also read many books, which took me on adventures without leaving my room. I discovered magical lands, solved mysteries, and met interesting characters. Reading before bed became my favorite part of the day.

My summer holiday was a mix of outdoor fun, learning new things, and enjoying quiet moments. It was a break from school that gave me happy memories to keep me smiling through the year.

500 Words Essay on My Summer Holiday

Summer holidays are the best part of the year for every student. It is a time when school is out, the sun is shining, and there are no homework or tests to worry about. I always look forward to summer because it means I can relax and do all the fun things I’ve been dreaming about during the school year.

Planning for the Vacation

Before the summer began, my family and I sat down to plan what we would do. We decided to visit my grandparents who live in a small village by the sea. I was excited because I love the beach and I don’t get to see my grandparents very often. We packed our bags with summer clothes, swimming suits, and games to play with my cousins.

Traveling to the Village

The journey to the village was long, but it was worth it. We traveled by car, and I could see the landscape changing as we moved from the busy city to the quiet countryside. The fields were green and full of flowers, and I could feel the fresh air through the car window.

Days at the Beach

Most of my summer days were spent at the beach. The sand was hot under my feet, and the sea was cool and refreshing. I built sandcastles, collected shells, and learned to swim better. My family would often have picnics on the beach, and I loved eating sandwiches and fruit while listening to the sound of the waves.

Time with Grandparents

Staying with my grandparents was special. They have a small farm with animals that I don’t usually see in the city. I helped them collect eggs from the chickens and feed the goats. My grandmother taught me how to bake bread, and my grandfather told me stories from when he was a boy. These are memories I will always cherish.

Learning New Things

Summer is not just for play; I also used the time to learn new things. I read books that I had no time to read during school days. I also started learning how to play the guitar. It was hard at first, but I practiced every day, and by the end of the summer, I could play a few songs.

Friendship and Fun

I made new friends during the holiday. Some were from the village, and others were visiting like me. We played soccer, went fishing, and explored the woods near the beach. We shared stories and laughed a lot. These friendships made my summer even more enjoyable.

Conclusion: The End of Summer

As the summer ended, I felt both happy and sad. I was excited to go back to school and see my friends, but I knew I would miss the beach, my grandparents, and the carefree days of summer. However, I returned home with a heart full of joy, a mind full of new knowledge, and a promise to myself to make the next summer holiday just as amazing. Summer holidays are a magical time, and I can’t wait for the next one!

That’s it! I hope the essay helped you.

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School Education /

Essay on Summer Vacation: Samples for Students

Updated on
Jan 8, 2024

Summer vacation offers a cherished break from routine. It’s a time to unwind, explore, and create lasting memories. Whether relaxing on sandy shores or venturing into new cities, the freedom of summer allows for rejuvenation. Activities like swimming, hiking, or simply reading a book by the pool offer a sense of bliss.

It’s a chance to bond with family and friends, sharing laughter and experiences. As the warm sunsets, the moments lived during this break become stories that enrich our lives and fuel our dreams until the next summer adventure arrives.

This Blog Includes:

Introduction, activities and destinations, quality time with family and friends, reflection on memories, returning to school, things to include in essay on summer vacation, essay on summer vacation in 100 words, essays on summer vacation: 200 words sample, essays on summer vacation: 400 words sample, a journey of self-introspection, in conclusion.

Summer Vacation Essay for Students: How to Write

When writing a summer vacation essay for students, it’s important to include a variety of points to provide a well-rounded perspective of the experiences and emotions associated with the break.

Here are some key points to consider including in your essay:

Introduce the concept of summer vacation and its significance for students.
Set the tone for the essay by expressing the anticipation and excitement of the break.
Describe the different activities you engaged in during your summer vacation.
Discuss any trips you took, whether it was a family vacation, a road trip, or a visit to a new place.
Mention specific destinations, such as beaches, mountains, cities, or cultural sites.
Emphasize the importance of spending time with loved ones.
Share anecdotes and experiences of bonding with family and friends during the vacation.
Reflect on memorable experiences and moments that stood out during the vacation.
Share stories or incidents that left a lasting impression on you.
Transition to the end of the vacation and the feelings associated with going back to school.
Express a mix of nostalgia and renewed energy for the upcoming academic year.
Summarize the various aspects of your summer vacation and its impact on you.
Conclude by highlighting the value of breaks like these in shaping holistic growth.
During my summer vacation, I do a lot of new things and have fun.
Doing artwork and playing with my friends are two of favourite things to do in summer vacation.
During my summer vacations, I usually visit my grandparents and spend some days with them.
Me and my sister help our grandfather to water plants. His hobby is gardening.
At bedtime, I love to hear stories from my grandmother.
One of the favourite thing of mine is the delicious food that my grandmother makes during summer vacation.
During my summer vacation, I love to spend time with my family and watch movies with them.

Use descriptive language to make your experiences come to life for the reader. Additionally, aim for a balanced mix of personal reflection and broader insights into the significance of summer vacation for students.

Aditi Gupta

A bachelors in Journalism and Mass Communication graduate, I am an enthusiastic writer. I love to write about impactful content which can help others. I love to binge watch and listen to music during my free time.

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Essay on Holiday for Students and Children

500+ words essay on holiday.

Holidays are very important parts of everyone’s life, be it a student or a working person. Everyone deserves to take a break from the monotony to rejuvenate and maintain their health. Holidays help us do exactly that.

Other than that, a holiday allows us to complete all our pending work. Nowhere will you find a person who dislikes holidays. From a school going toddler to your house help, everyone looks forward to holidays and see them as a great opportunity to relax and enjoy .

Importance of Holidays for Students

When one thinks about what a holiday means for students, we notice how important it is for the kids. It is a time when they finally get the chance to take a break from studies and pursue their hobbies.

They can join courses which give them special training to specialize in it. They can get expert in arts, craft, pottery, candle making and more. Furthermore, they also make new friends there who have the same interests.

In addition, students get to visit new places on holiday. Like during summer or winter holidays , they go with their families to different cities and countries. Through holidays, they get new experiences and memories which they remember for a lifetime.

Furthermore, it also gives them time to relax with their families. Other cousins also visit each other’s places and spend time there. They play games and go out with each other. Moreover, students also get plenty of time to complete their homework and revise the syllabus.

Get the huge list of more than 500 Essay Topics and Ideas

Importance of Holidays for Working People

Holidays for working people are somewhat similar to what they mean for students. In fact, they carry more importance to them than students. Though they are adults, they also yearn for the holidays. Why so? They do not get as many holidays as students do.

Most importantly, the holiday no matter how little it gives them a great chance to relax. More so because they work tirelessly for so many hours a day without a break. Some even work when they get home. This makes their schedule very hectic and gives them little time to rest. A holiday fills the gap for this rest.

Read 500 Words Essay on Summer Vacation

Similarly, due to such a hectic schedule working people get less time to spend with their family. They get distanced from them. Holidays are the perfect chance to strengthen their bonds and make amends.

In other words, a working person needs holidays for the smooth functioning of life. Without holidays they will face pressure and won’t be able to be productive when they work non-stop. After all, when a person earns, they must spend it on something recreational from time to time so they also remain happy and work happily.

Thus, we see how holidays play an important role in maintaining a great balance between our work and play. We must try to make the most of the holidays and spend them wisely so we do not waste time. Never waste a holiday as they are very few in number where you can actually, rest or utilize it properly.

Q.1 What importance does a holiday hold?

A.2 A holiday is one of the most important parts of anyone’s life. It brings joy and comfort to everyone. Everyone loves holidays as they give them time to relax and enjoy themselves with their families.

Q.2 How can one spend their holidays?

A.2 There are many ways to spend a holiday. You can pursue your hobby and take professional classes to master the art. Furthermore, you may also travel the world and discover new places and experiences to get more exposure.

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My last holiday

Learn how to write about your last holiday.

Do the preparation task first. Then read the text and tips and do the exercises.

Preparation

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My last holiday was a five-day trip to Prague in the Czech Republic. I know Prague well because I lived there when I was at university, more than ten years ago.

Instead of staying in a hotel, I stayed with one of my old friends. It was so much fun, and a little bit like my old life. I wanted to do all the same things I did in my university days, so I visited the university. It has changed a lot and looks more modern. I also went to the supermarket near my old house. I loved seeing all the different foods. I was really happy to find my favourite cheese and chocolate biscuits but they were a bit more expensive than I remember!

We did some touristy things too. We walked up beautiful Petrin Hill and around the castle. The views of the city are amazing up there. We walked across the historic Charles Bridge. My friend's flat is very near the TV Tower so we saw the famous baby statues climbing up it. Those things haven't changed, of course.

1. Try to make your writing interesting for the reader. To do this, you can make it personal with your own memories and experiences.

2. Use adjectives to add detail to your descriptions.

3. Write clear and simple sentences and organise your ideas in short paragraphs. Give each paragraph a different topic.

4. Use so, but, and, because and other linking words.

Where was your last holiday?

Language level

I want you to know that I am very happy and enjoying my vacation quite a bit. The destination on this vacation has been the Colombian Caribbean coast, We arrived two days ago, this is a very nice experience. Yesterday I discovered the window to the world that is located in Barranquilla, as well as the boardwalk, they are very warm places but above all very visited, as the afternoon fell I went to visit some of my husband's brothers. Tomorrow we will get up very early to travel a few kilometers and be able to visit Cabo de la Vela, in La Guajira, we will leave at 6 am, because we must be in Uribia Guajira at 3 pm, there the tour guide will be waiting for us, who will be the one in charge of directing this adventure. I also had the opportunity to visit Cartagena de Indias and its beautiful beaches, I really liked getting to know the beach, the sea and the people who live there, But what I liked most was being able to visit Cabo de la Vela and learn a little about the reality of the Wayuu culture, being able to enjoy the beautiful landscapes and sunsets that this beautiful place offers.

My last was holiday three-week trip to Fez in Morocco. Fez it’s my hometown so I know it well because I lived there for 26 years. I went to visit my family there and I stayed at home, every day I was invited by my sisters and brothers, they made me delicious dishes and we had a good time together. I’ve been seeing my friends every day in the café, we’ve been seeing football matches and we’ve been talking about different topics. In this holiday I made many things important for me, I had driving courses to be confident when I’m going to buy a car, in the same time I had English courses.

My last holiday was a three-day trip to Thua Thien Hue in Vietnam. I always want to go there, so in the summer of last year, I decided to take a trip to Hue with my family.

We booked a small hostel near Hue Walking Road. We stayed in a twin room, which was clean and had full amenities. The owner was very friendly; he showed us good restaurants, attractions, and how to deal with sellers in the market. We tried local foods such as Bun Bo Hue, Banh Xeo, Banh Bot Loc, etc. The food in Hue is cheap and amazing; I thought that I could eat it all day!

We did some touristy things too. We visited Hue Capital and had a chance to learn more about Vietnam's history. The architecture is very majestic and beautiful. We also went to Thien Mu Pagoda. It is one of the most sacred temples in Vietnam, so we prayed for health and happiness and wished everyone good luck. In the evening, we walked across the historic Trang Tien Bridge. It was so beautiful at night; there were a lot of people walking there.

It was three amazing days. I felt so relaxed and hope to visit more places in Vietnam.

My last holiday was a two-day trip to Baguio in the Philippines. I had lived there before for five months. So I decided to go back for just a visit on my holiday. Unfortunately, there was heavily raining as we got off the bus. Otherwise, getting a taxi was super hard, and we were waiting for around an hour. Fortunately, I got home safely and I made so much fun with my friends. I visited the old places that I often did because it made me happy and refresh. In conclusion, I had so much fun spending my last holiday in Baguio.

I remember last year when I went with friend to the beach in summer. My Lastsummer holidays was 2days and 3 nights trip to Ngwe Saung Beach in Myanamr . Ngwe Saung, is a beach resort located 48 km west of Pathein, Ayeyarwady Region, Myanmar. In 2014, the town of Ngwesaung had 10,732 people.The beach is 5hours drive with no traffic away from the principal city of Yangon. Ngwe Saung is well know for An unspoilt 15 kilometres stretch of silvery sand and modern amenities have made Ngwe Saung a popular destination for less budget conscious tourists from Lower Myanmar. I booked for our stay at a hotel near the beach, name was "Grand Paradise Hotel ". My friend and i prepared everything we needed on our trip as light food and soft drinks to have on the way to the hotel. And also we prepared necessary clothing for the sea, sun cream and some essential medicines. After 5hours of driving we arrived the hotel at 12PM afternoon and went to our rooms to rest change clothes and take all what we need to go to the beach. This Hotel is near the beach,all services was good and room are cleaned, wide and nice. We put our bags on the table and went to swim in the sea and then went out for lunch that my friend ordered from a fish restaurant . The Crab ,Lobster and fish was fresh and tasty and we enjoyed our meal very much. After lunch we sat under the canopy enjoying the sea view, refreshing breaths ,listening to music and playing fun games. OH really nice Ngwe Saung beach Myanamr.

My last holiday was far away in time in different reasons. We were at black sea coast on September so there where not so much other people. We was drinking a wine that was cheap there and going some excursions

My last holiday. Last summer, in particular on the last weekend of June, I decided to visit Granada, an amazing city in Spain. I visited Granada for the second time with my family, my wife, and two daughters. I was so happy because I visited Granada sights, especially Alhambra Palace, and Civilization Museum. We arrived at the hotel by bus at 11 a.m. The hotel was wonderful and clean, and the food they offer was delicious. My family really liked the traditional typical dishes of Granada, in particular the dish named Baella. During the holiday, I met some of my Spanish colleagues and they invited us to visit their house which is located in a nice village in the city suburb. Really, I liked this place for the large landscape, calmness, and the kind people who live in. On the fifth day of our holiday, we walked around the city and saw the old city which has been built above the mountain. So, you can see the whole city from above it. Despite the enjoyment that we have got, the negative thing about that holiday was that we spent so much money and also many friends need to buy some things from there, so I bought some souvenirs and I hope that I can keep one for myself to remind of that divine place. By and large, this holiday was great and unforgettable thanks to my Spanish friend, Gaspar, who provided me with a Guidebook which makes my trip easy and coy.

My last holiday was four days on São Miguel dos Milagres with my family. We stay on the beach house of my grandpa. There is a pool, and four rooms in that. There we go to the beach, to some interesting restaurants, to a beach clube and to an ice cream shop. I love that travel and i'd love go back to São Miguel dos Milagres.

On the first weekend in March, we took an amazing trip to Barcelona. We went by train from Atocha station and the journey lasted two and a half hours.

When we arrived at the historic Barcelona Sants station, we took the metro to Plaza de Tetuan, which is where we had the apartment. We left our baggage and went to visit the city centre, Las Ramblas, Plaza Catalunya, La Boqueria Market, Paseo de Gracia, etc. On Sunday, we saw the beautiful Sagrada Familia which is my favourite landmark. Later, we went to the incredible Nou Camp stadium to see the Barça game against Valencia. After the game we visited the official store and did some shopping but everything was very expensive. On Monday, before returning to Madrid we went back to the Nou Camp to take a guided tour of the trophy room, changing rooms, benches, and the VIP box.

At the end, we went to the apartment to take the suitcases and so, we took the metro to the Sants station where we boarded the high speed train back to Madrid.

I go to Thailand for a camping holiday, It was fun I go caving on the first day, I see many bets are sleeping on top of the cave.(no time to finish)

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How I Spent My Summer Vacation Essay for Class 4
Short Essay on How I Spent My Summer Vacation Of 100 Words. Vacations are the best and ideal opportunity to have a good time. Moreover, it is simply the best and ideal opportunity to engage in new things and grow new aptitudes. Throughout my summer vacation, I joined the summer camp. It was the day camp directed by my school.
How I Spent My Summer Vacation Essay for Students and Children
500+ Words Essay on How I Spent My Summer Vacation. Summertime is the most awaited time of any student's life. It gives them a break from the scorching sun and blazing heat. The summer months are quite hot, however, students love them because they bring a sense of calmness due to the vacations. It frees them from the monotonous and dull ...
How I Spent My Summer Vacation Essay For Kids
How I Spent My Summer Vacation Essay 100 Words. Holidays are an incredible time for us to visit hilly destinations with the family. The summer season is an excellent time for us to take stress-free excursions and get close to nature, which we are unable to do in our busy schedules for the entire year. Last year I visited my grandparents and ...
Summer Vacation Essay for Students in English
Summer vacation is a time when students can relax and enjoy their free time. It is a time to catch up on rest, spend time with family and friends, and explore new hobbies or interests. For many students, summer vacation is also a time to continue learning and improving their English skills. This article will provide information about Essay on ...
Paragraph On How I Spent My Summer Vacation
I watched some series with my friends and enjoyed it a lot. It was one of the most replacing and memorable summer vacations. My uncle and his family went as my cousin had to attend his school. Paragraph On How I Spent My Summer Vacation - 200 Words for Classes 6, 7, 8 Children. Summer vacations are the best time in a year for every student.
How I Spend My Summer Vacation Essay for Kids
A Long Essay on "How I Spend My Summer Vacation". Summer vacation is one of my favorite times of the year as almost every year me and my family make plans for long vacations. Summer is an ideal time for us to go on stress-free trips and get closer to nature, something we are unable to do throughout the rest of the year due to our hectic ...
How I Spent My Summer Vacation Essay for Children and Students
Essay on How I Spent My Summer Vacation in Hill Station - Essay 4 (500 words) Introduction. The summer season is mainly known for the heat waves and holidays we students get. It's a great time for students to go for a stress-relieving trip and to be closer to nature, for which they don't get time during their hectic schedule throughout ...
my summer holidays essay for class 4
Paragraph On How I Spent My Summer Vacation - 150 Words for Classes 4, 5 Children. Summer Vacations are a long-awaited vacation for every... I have a lot of fun during my summer vacation. · I love doing art work and playing with my friends. · During my summer vacation, I visited my grandparents. · My...
How to Write an Essay on How You Spent Your Summer Vacation
2. Use your body paragraphs to talk about your moment. Your body paragraphs, whether you write 1, 2, or 3, should be used to talk about your chosen summer event or moment. This is where you go into detail and explain what happened so that the reader can visualize your summer vacation. [11] 3.
Summer Vacation Essay in English for Class 1, 2 & 3 Kids: 10 Lines
Here is an example of a few simple lines for an essay on summer vacation for class 1 and class 2 kids: Summer vacations are my favourite time of the year as I can do all the things I enjoy during these days. During these holidays, I get a chance to learn new hobbies like painting, dancing or gardening and spend more time with my friends.
Essay on Summer Vacation for Students and Children
500+ Words Essay on Summer Vacation. During the middle of the summer season, a holiday period is called summer vacations.Also, all the colleges and schools become closed due to high temperature during the summer months (Half may and complete June and sometimes first one or two weeks of July). Also, the kids relax and enjoy this time of the years as they do not have to go to school or colleges.
Essay On Summer Vacation For Class 4 Students
Conclusion: Summer break is necessary for everyone, particularly students. It energised pupils and prepared them for their future academic endeavors. You may post any additional questions regarding Essay On Summer Vacation For Class 4 in the comment box below. The summer vacation essay 10 lines is an essay that has been written by a teacher.
my summer holidays essay for class 4
We are providing two essay samples for students of class 4 on the topic 'How I Spent My Summer Vacation for reference. Short Essay on How I Spent My Summer Vacation Of 100 Words. Vacations are the best and ideal opportunity to have a good time. Moreover, it is simply the best and ideal opportunity to engage in new things and grow new aptitudes.
Essay on Summer Vacation For Students in English: Samples Class 3 to 5
Essay on Summer Vacation for Class 4 'Summer vacation is one of my favourite times of the year. There are so many things we can do during summer vacation without worrying about school and homework. We can play outside all day, eat pizza, ice cream and mangoes, watch cartoons and movies, learn new hobbies and go on vacation.'
Essay on My Plans for Summer Vacation for Students and Children
500 Words Essay on My Plans for Summer Vacation. Summer vacations are one of the most awaited times of the year. The school-going children especially look forward to it so they can get a break from their studies and monotonous routine. Mostly, a beach comes to one's mind when we think of summer vacations. You go out on the beach to have fun ...
10 Lines, Short & Long Essay On 'Holiday' For Children
Short Essay On 'Holiday' In English For Children. Kids love to talk about their holidays. Therefore, writing a holiday essay for classes 1, 2 and 3 kids is a joy. Here is a short essay on holidays for children: Routine life is boring, especially for kids. Holiday is the magic word that gives them a break from their school routine.
my summer holidays essay for class 4
· It offers me... 2) I spent a few days of my vacation at home with my family. ... 3) I woke up early in the morning and helped my mother with her daily stuff. 4) I... Сочинение My summer holidays для учеников младшей школы ( 2-4 класс) с переводом. During my summer holidays, I did many fun things ...
My Plans for Summer Vacation Essay
ICSE Solutions for Class 10; ICSE Solutions for Class 9; ICSE Solutions for Class 8; ... Long Essay on My Plans for Summer Vacation is usually given to classes 7, 8, 9, and 10. Introduction. ... and I am free to plan my most awaited holiday during this period. I am excited about this year's summer vacation and more than glad to make my plans.
Essay on My Summer Holiday
In conclusion, my summer holiday was full of adventure, family, and new experiences. It was a break I cherished and will look back on with a smile. 250 Words Essay on My Summer Holiday Introduction to My Summer Holiday. My summer holiday was a time filled with joy and new experiences.
Essay on Summer Vacation: Samples for Students
Essays on Summer Vacation: 400 Words Sample. Summer vacation, that much-awaited break from the mundane routines of school and study, is a time of rejuvenation, exploration, and personal growth. It offers the perfect opportunity to unwind, reflect, and create lasting memories.
Essay on Holiday for Students and Children
Q.1 What importance does a holiday hold? A.2 A holiday is one of the most important parts of anyone's life. It brings joy and comfort to everyone. Everyone loves holidays as they give them time to relax and enjoy themselves with their families. Q.2 How can one spend their holidays?
My last holiday
I remember last year when I went with friend to the beach in summer. My Lastsummer holidays was 2days and 3 nights trip to Ngwe Saung Beach in Myanamr . Ngwe Saung, is a beach resort located 48 km west of Pathein, Ayeyarwady Region, Myanmar. In 2014, the town of Ngwesaung had 10,732 people.The beach is 5hours drive with no traffic away from the ...
Paragraph on My Plans for Summer Vacation 100, 150, 200, 250 to 300
Read More: My Aim In Life Essay 150 Words. Paragraph On My Plans for Summer Vacation - 200 Words for Classes 6, 7, 8 Students. Summer Vacation is quite a refreshing time for me. This summer get-away will be unique for me, as my parents have arranged an outing to Manali. It will be seven days trip.

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