Where did you get your information for your research assignment? Citing Sources Where did you get your information for your research assignment? Shelf Mouse®

To Cite or Not to Cite Sometimes you will be asked to write about your own thoughts and opinions. You don’t need to list your sources of information in this case. Other times you will be asked to write about something you may not be too familiar with. That’s when you will need to do some research, and that’s when you need to document or cite your sources of information.

Cite Your Sources Cite means “mention” or “list” or “quote” For everything you use for your research report or project that hasn’t come out of your own head or from your own creative rendering, you need to make a record of that source

Always Cite a Source whether it’s: Information Photographs Illustrations Charts Music A video clip

Cite a Source that you’ve taken from a Book Magazine or newspaper Web site Online Database Or even a person

Before you leave that source… Stop and write down where you found that information. Don’t forget to record the page numbers with your research notes. (if the pages are numbered)

Remember: Websites like Google or Yahoo are not sources; they are search engines Wikipedia & Websites like Ask.com are not authoritative sources Use tools & links from your library Website for Web sources

Print [book, newspaper, Web [Website, database, Most of Your Sources which are referred to as “medium,” will either be: Print [book, newspaper, magazine, etc. ] or Web [Website, database, online encyclopedia, etc.]

Citing PRINT Sources Author (if it has one) Title (of book or article) You need to write down the following information so you will be able to create a citation for that source: Author (if it has one) Title (of book or article) Publisher (or periodical* title) Year of publication (or day Mon. year for periodical) Page(s) (where the info was taken from) Medium of Publication. (Print) *Periodical means something published periodically at regular intervals, like a monthly magazine or daily newspaper

Citing Online Article Sources Author. (if it has one) “Title.” (of article if it has one) Title of Web site. (in italics if you’re typing) Medium of Publication. (Web) Volume & Issue 6. (Year Published): Page(s) 7. Database Name. (for example: EBSCO) 8. Date of Access (the date you found the info)

Citing Sources Help Use the “Easy Bib Collector” form or the “My Research Sources” form to record the information you need to document your sources.

In-Text Citation Following the borrowed information, illustration, etc. within your research paper, enclose in parenthesis the author’s last name and page number(s) on which the information was found. If no author is listed, use the first main word in the title, ignoring “A,” “An,” or “The” if a title starts with one of them. If no page numbers are given, just use the author or main word alone. (Battle) From the Battle of the Alamo in 1836 where William Barrett Travis led a motley group of fighters to sacrifice their lives for Texas’ freedom (Murphy, 2-3) to the fearless Texas Rangers who maintained law and order in a wild and sometimes savage land (Texas), Texas has one of the most colorful and exciting histories in our country.

Sample Bibliography Bibliography   Anderson, Ken and Melissa . You Can’t Do that, Dan Moody! Austin: Eakin Press, 1998. Print. Battle of the Alamo. Illustration. <www.sonofthesouth.net>. Web. 15 Dec. 2012. LaBanca, Frank. “The 21st Century Oral Presentation Tool Bag.” Science Teacher. Vol. 78 Issue 7. (Oct. 2011): p. 51-55. EBSCO. Web. <webebscohost.com>. Murphy, Jim. Inside the Alamo. New York: Delacorte Press, 2003. Print. Ramsdell, Kristin. “A Texas Christmas.” Library Journal. Vol. 136 Issue 17. (2011): p. 69. EBSCO. Web. <webebscohost.com>. “Texas Rangers.” Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Web. 28 Sep. 2012. <http://school.eb.com/comptons>. Van Cleve, Donna. Feathers. Hutto, TX: Two Story Publishing House, 2012. Print. List your citations alphabetically by the authors’ last names; If no author is listed, use the first main word in the title or search term (not “A,” “An,” or “The”) Skip lines between each citation Indent the second line

Why do you have to cite your sources? If you don’t, you’re taking credit for someone else’s work.

That’s called Plagiarism Plagiarism occurs when someone fails to give credit or cite a source for something borrowed for a report or paper. Intentionally or not, it’s a form of stealing, saying: “I thought this up,” “I created this myself,” or “This was my idea.”

Consequences of Plagiarism In school, the consequences may mean a lower grade or even a failing grade if an assignment was simply copied and pasted off the Internet with no sources cited. Outside of public school, the consequences of plagiarism are much greater, including the possibility of getting kicked out of a class or even college, losing one’s degree, losing one’s job, losing one’s reputation, or even getting sued.

So Remember To: Write down the source when you use others’ information or work Designate the borrowed information in your research paper by putting the author’s name in parenthesis and page #, if given. Compile your list of sources on a “Bibliography” page. Other titles that can be used are “Works Cited,” “Reference List,” or “My Sources”

Learn Something from Your Research! If you simply copy and paste information and cite your sources correctly, you may get a grade, but have you learned anything? A research should make you think and question and investigate and draw conclusions. Did you learn something new?

And Remember: One must be careful to not miss the learning in the pursuit of the grade. It’s the learning that will go with you in life… not the grade. --Donna Van Cleve

Bibliography “Cite.” Merriam-Webster. Web. 15 Sep. 2011. <http://www.merriam-webster.com>. “Consequences of Plagiarism.” Baylor School. Web. 22 Jan. 2013. <http://mail.baylorschool.org>. “Six Consequences of Plagiarism.” iThenticate. Web. 20 Jan. 2013. <http://www.ithenticate.com>. Van Cleve, Donna. Shelf Mouse Illustrations. Jan. 2013.