Doing some background research prior to actually searching for articles will help familiarize yourself with your topic and also help you come up with search terms.
Spending a few minutes up front doing background research will save you time in the long run! (Remember avoiding that frustration thing?!)
You will also do better searches which will help lead to better papers...and better grades!
Need some ideas for possible project topics? Check out these resources.
Students have found completing this Search Preparation Worksheet helpful for coming up with search terms and synonyms, making their searching process easier.