Using Evidence and Citing

Sources
•What is evidence?
•• Evidence = information that helps explain
•and prove your ideas.

• Types of evidence include the following:

•• Specific Examples
•• Facts
•• Statistics
•• Opinions from experts
•• Maps, charts, graphs
•What are three ways to use evidence?
•• Quote it  place in quotation marks
•everything that comes
•directly from the text.
•• Paraphrase it restate the idea in
•your own words.
•• Cite it  give the source where you
•found your information
•http://www.grammar-quizzes.com/
writing_plagiarism.html
 •It’s important to tell where you found your
evidence.
Terms to •• Not citing your sources= plagiarism
•• Plagiarism is stealing because you are
know… •using another person's words, ideas, or
images without giving credit to that person.
•http://libguides.collegeofsanmateo.edu/
content.php?pid=112738&sid=1451036
•Citing your sources = telling where you
•found your evidence
•What is plagiarism?

•Deliberate Plagiarism
• 1. rewriting from books or articles.
• 2. copying and pasting from web pages
and online sources to create a patchwork
writing.
• 3. buying, downloading, or borrowing
a paper.
•Accidental Plagiarism

• 1. not knowing when and how to cite.

• 2. not knowing how to paraphrase or
summarize.
• 3. not knowing what “ common
knowledge” is.
• 4. recycling an old paper.
•What information needs to be cited?
•• OK to use common knowledge – facts that
can be found in many places and are likely to
be known by a lot of people.
•• Not OK to use another person's ideas,
•opinions, theories, statistics facts or
•spoken words which hare not common
knowledge.
•http://www.grammar-quizzes.com/
writing_plagiarism.html
•Source
•a term used to describe the place where
information is found such as in an article,
book, or website.
•• citation (noun) = information about a
•book or article such as the title, author, and date
which someone can use to find the same book or
article.
•• to cite, citing (verb) = to tell where you
•found your evidence and information.
•• MLA style = a specific way to format
•citations and bibliographies used in English
literature classes.
•• common knowledge - facts that can be found
•in many places and are likely to be known by a
•lot of people.
•What are In-Text Citations or Parenthetical Citations?

• An in-text citation identifies the source where

you
•took a specific quotation, fact, idea, or opinion.
•In-text citations are also called parenthetical
•citations because they appear in parentheses.

•For Example:
•One author claims that “no one is concerned with
•this issue” (Jones 45).
•In-Text Citation vs. Foot/Endnotes

• In-text citations lead readers to specific

•works listed on the Works Cited page.
• Footnotes and endnotes provide readers with
•the explanatory information:
• Content notes offer additional comments,
•information, insight, etc., not provided in the text
• Bibliographic notes provide information on
•additional sources or comments on other sources.
•When do I use an in-text citation?

•1. You directly quote a source.

•2. You paraphrase a source (even if you change the
word order and replace words with synonyms).
•3. You use an idea from a source. Because the idea is
•not originally yours, it belongs to the author(s) of the
•source and must be cited.
•4. You use information that is not common
knowledge.
• What are the features of an in-text
•citation/parenthetical citation?
•Example:
•She said, “This is a quote” (Burkhart 1) .
•• The citation includes the author’s name and page #.
•• The end punctuation mark goes AFTER the citation,
•not inside of the quotation marks.
•• In-text citations refer the reader to an entry on the
•Works Cited page
•Burkhart, Mary. Tips for Writing
•Consultants. Scranton: Scranton Books,
•2008. Print.
 Fairy Tales
by Hans Christian Anderson

Once upon a time there was a girl.

Here is a source.
To use a direct quote do this:
I just read a book that
begins “Once upon a
time there was a girl”
(Anderson 2).
This tells you the author.
“Once upon a time there was a girl”.
Fairy Tales
by Hans Christian Anderson
The quotation marks show you that these words are written the
exact same as the original source.
This tells you the page number.
•What is a Work Cited page?
•• Also called a bibliography.

•• Located at the end of your essay.

•• Contains enough information

•that the reader can find the
•source you are citing.
•Remember:
•• You can paraphrase your evidence or you can
directly quote your evidence, but you must
always tell where you found the information by
giving an in-text citation.

•• Remember, telling where you found your

•information is called citing your sources.
•How do I create a Works Cited page?
• Citations are listed alphabetically according to the
first word in the entry
• Citations are double-spaced
• Use hanging indentation; this is the opposite of how
you indent a paragraph. The first line takes up the
entire line and then every line after it is indented 5
spaces.
•For example:
•Truth, Sojourner. Narrative of Sojourner Truth. Ed.
•Margaret Washington. New York: Vintage, 1993.
Print.
•• Websites like www.easybib.com help you create
•an MLA works cited citation.
•How do I create in-text citations?

• Your citation goes at the END of

the SENTENCE, not directly after the
quote.

• Although “this is a quote,” it is not

very interesting (Galbraith).
•What if my quote is really long?

•• Any quote OVER 4 typed lines needs to be in

•the following format:
•You will leave off the quote marks. You
•will also indent the whole thing into a
•block like you see here. You will place the
•citation outside the punctuation
•mark, which is different from regular
•citations. (Galbraith 1)
•What if I am directly quoting a source,
•but need to change a word?
•• If you need to change a word inside of
•the quote, use [brackets]:
•• “We didn’t always live on Mango
•Street” (Cisneros 3).
•• “[Esperanza] didn’t always live on
•Mango Street” (Cisneros 3).
•How do I quote something that
•already uses quotation marks?
•• When quotation marks already appear
•around the text (such as in dialogue),
•you will punctuate it like this:
•“‘Stop,’ yelled Amanda” (Smith 27).
• ‘-- Single quotation marks surround the
dialogue.
•“---Double quotation marks surround the entire
quoted material .
•How do I integrate quotes into my writing?
•1) Introduce the information with a complete
sentence followed by a colon.
•2) Introduce the information with an
introductory statement, followed by a comma.
•3) Weave the information into a sentence.
•1 Integrating Quotes
•• Write a complete sentence followed by a colon.
•• If you make a statement using a complete
•sentence, you can support your statement with
•a quote in the following fashion:

•• Humans are a major cause of global

•warming: “Our dependency on petroleum
•based products is a major issue when it
•comes to global warming” (Adams 17) .
•2 Integrating Quotes
•• Write an introductory statement, followed by
•a comma.
•• If you want to introduce something that was
•said or thought, you would use the following
•integration technique:
•• According to Dr. Matthew Price, “AIDS
•rates are increasing among American
•teenagers" (12-13).
•3 Integrating Quotes
•• Make the quote part of the sentence
•itself.
•• You can weave your quotation into the
•sentence itself in the following
•manner:
•• Blood Diamonds are often “trafficked
•across the borders of politically
•unstable countries” in order to make a
•profit (Stevenson 13).
•Practice
•• Turn to page 4 and practice citing your
sources
•and embedding quotations into your writing.
•• When you finish, place this handout in the
•Notes section of your binder.