1. Rough Draft Concerns MLA Format Parenthetical Citations Proofreading
Formal style

2. MLA Format Proper MLA format
Heading—Your name, Teacher’s name, Course name, and Date in military style
Header—Last name and number on page 2 to Works Cited page
Font and Size —Times New Roman, size 12
Spacing—be sure entire document is double spaced (no extra space between title and between paragraphs)

3. Parenthetical Citations
Must include your own explanation and elaboration after each cited bit of information.
(NO back to back citations.)
Be sure your citations match your Works Cited page and vice versa
Use author’s last name in parenthesis or if no author, put “quotation marks” around article title

4. Proofread! Proofread for spelling, grammar, and mechanics.
(Make sure you do not forget to use words or
use the wrong word.)
Check punctuation of parenthetical citations

5. Writing in a Formal Style

6. To write in a formal style you should…
Avoid using contractions
(use did not instead of didn’t)
Avoid using abbreviations
(use United States instead of U.S.)
Write out numbers 1-10 in letter form
(use one, two, three instead of 1, 2, 3)
Use more formal words
(use children instead of kids)

7. You should… Avoid using any type of slang expression
(relaxed instead of chilled)
Avoid the use of personal pronouns
(I, me, my, us, we, you, your, our)
Avoid using personal stories about relatives, friends, and acquaintances
(this applies to the research paper only)