Citing Your Sources

Whenever you use somebody else's ideas in your research paper you must cite your sources by:

Acknowledging the source in the text of your paper (in-text documentation).
Giving the complete source citation in your works cited list.

You Must Cite Your Sources When...

Quoting any words that are not your own.
Quoting means to repeat another source word for word, using quotation marks "".
Summarizing facts and ideas from a source.
Summarizing means to take the key ideas from another source and shorten them, using your own words. For more about summarizing, visit http://www.class.uidaho.edu/adv_tech_wrt/resources/general/how_to_summarize.htm.
Paraphrasing a source.
Paraphrasing means to put somebody else's ideas into your own words. For more about how to paraphrase a source visit http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_paraphr.html.
When using factual information that is not common knowledge.

Common Knowledge

Common knowledge is information that appears in more than 5 sources.

Examples of information that is "common knowledge":

General Custer lost the battle at Little Big Horn.

Franklin Pierce, 14th President of the United States, was born in 1804 and died in 1869.

If in doubt, cite your source!

Labeling Activity

Click "Labeling Activity" to complete the activity.

Labeling Activity indicator

Self Check

True or False: You must give credit to a source you used by either acknowledging the source in your paper OR by providing the complete citation in a Works Cited page.

True

False

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Research 3 Online

MLA: Avoiding Plagiarism and Documenting Sources

Citing Your Sources

Common Knowledge

Labeling Activity

Self Check