Citation Guides
The Purdue University Online Writing Lab (OWL) is the authority on citing your sources owl.purdue.edu/owl/purdue_owl.html
There are many citation style formats (such as APA and Chicago) but for most Language Arts and Social Studies papers, we use MLA (Modern Language Association) https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/
There are two components to do citations in MLA.
1. The Works Cited Page (at the end of your paper). The works cited page lists all of the sources that you used. (see the MLA works cited page link for directions.)
2. In-Text or Parenthetical Citations (within the paper) indicate which specific source you used for the statement you made
In-Text Citations
Citing your source gives authors credit for their ideas, lets teachers know where to find more information and adds credibility to your paper. In-Text Citations are a brief reference immediately after something that was quoted or paraphrased in your paper. It directs the reader to the more detailed description of your source on the Works Cited Page.
The way you refer to your source information in- text must match exactly to the way the information is listed on the works cited page. In other words, on the works cited page at the end, the first word listed for a certain entry is the exact same word you should use for the in-text citation. The in-text citation serves as the signal phrase that leads the reader directly to the more detailed source on the works cited page.
In text (or parenthetical) citations are placed at the end of the sentence where you have paraphrased or quoted information and it should be put into parenthesis.
In-text citations for sources with an author:
After a quote or paraphrased text, put the Author’s Last name and a page number.
In Text: Chimps have been described as “symbol-using animals” (Burke 3)
Works Cited Page: Burke, Ken. Language as Action. Berkeley: U of California, 2008.
In-text citations for sources with NO author:
If no author is given, use a shortened title of the work (or the organization name) in quotation marks and a page number.
In text: America has plans to monitor environmental change (“Global Warming” 6)
Works Cited Page: “Global Warming in North America.” Environmental News. Earth Watch. 12, Jan. 2016. www.climatehotmap.org. Accessed 23 Mar. 2016.
1. The Works Cited Page (at the end of your paper). The works cited page lists all of the sources that you used. (see the MLA works cited page link for directions.)
2. In-Text or Parenthetical Citations (within the paper) indicate which specific source you used for the statement you made
In-Text Citations
Citing your source gives authors credit for their ideas, lets teachers know where to find more information and adds credibility to your paper. In-Text Citations are a brief reference immediately after something that was quoted or paraphrased in your paper. It directs the reader to the more detailed description of your source on the Works Cited Page.
The way you refer to your source information in- text must match exactly to the way the information is listed on the works cited page. In other words, on the works cited page at the end, the first word listed for a certain entry is the exact same word you should use for the in-text citation. The in-text citation serves as the signal phrase that leads the reader directly to the more detailed source on the works cited page.
In text (or parenthetical) citations are placed at the end of the sentence where you have paraphrased or quoted information and it should be put into parenthesis.
In-text citations for sources with an author:
After a quote or paraphrased text, put the Author’s Last name and a page number.
In Text: Chimps have been described as “symbol-using animals” (Burke 3)
Works Cited Page: Burke, Ken. Language as Action. Berkeley: U of California, 2008.
In-text citations for sources with NO author:
If no author is given, use a shortened title of the work (or the organization name) in quotation marks and a page number.
In text: America has plans to monitor environmental change (“Global Warming” 6)
Works Cited Page: “Global Warming in North America.” Environmental News. Earth Watch. 12, Jan. 2016. www.climatehotmap.org. Accessed 23 Mar. 2016.
