Citing Text

Citing Sources in Your Writing

Multiple Choice

Recall: What does it mean to "cite" something?

• To put into your essay

• To tell where you got information

• To find information

Multiple Choice

Recall: Why is it important to cite?

• It makes your essay better

• It proves you know your stuff

• It helps you avoid plagiarism

Poll

Poll Question: Have you cited evidence in an essay before?

• Yes

• No

• Maybe

Citing Evidence in Your Essay: The Basics

There are two ways to citing evidence in your essay:

1. Use a signal phrase

2. Use an in-text citation

Citing Evidence in Your Essay: The Basics

There are two ways to citing evidence in your essay:

1. Use a signal phrase

2. Use an in-text citation

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Let's take a closer look at both of these!

In-text citations

• Shows the reader where you got your information from

• States the AUTHOR or ARTICLE TITLE

• Uses parenthesis​ ( )

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EXAMPLES:

(O'Brien)

("Does Free Community College Work?")

In-text citations

In-text citations are short and sweet!​

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Use them at the end of a sentence that provides evidence.

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For example: "16 and 17 year-olds voted at four times the rate than older people ("The case for lowering the voting age")."​

How do you create an in-text citation?

Steps

• Write your sentence with evidence (either directly quoted or paraphrased/summarized)

• Refer to the author's last name, or if there is no author, the article title (in quotation marks)

• Place this in parentheses ( )

• Put a period after the parentheses

Summary: In-text Citations

• place in parentheses ( )

• use the author's last name OR article title (if there is no listed author)

• For article titles, place them in quotations " "

• Put a period outside the parentheses ( ).

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In-text citations are short and sweet!​

Let's Practice!

Multiple Choice

Which option is a correct in-text citation?

• (Bob Smith)

• (Smith)

• (How to Argue)

Multiple Choice

Which option is a correct in-text citation?

• ("The Art of Arguing")

• (Izzy Smithston)

• (How to Catch Chickens)

Multiple Choice

Which option is a correct in-text citation?

• (Kemble)

• (Mr. Zeiset)

• (Why the A Team is Great)

Multiple Choice

Which sentence correctly uses an in-text citation?

• The average American "eats nearly 2,000 pounds of food a year" (Mowery).

• (Mowery) The average American eats nearly 2,000 pounds of food a year.

• The average American "eats nearly 2,000 pounds of food a year" Mowery.

Multiple Choice

Which sentence correctly uses an in-text citation?

• Though it has different colors, "fruit loops are all the same flavor" "30 Outrageous Facts About Food You’ll Think Are Made Up".

• ("30 Outrageous Facts About Food You’ll Think Are Made Up") Though it has different colors, "fruit loops are all the same flavor.

• Though it has different colors, "fruit loops are all the same flavor" ("30 Outrageous Facts About Food You’ll Think Are Made Up").

Signal Phrases

Signal Phrases

Signal Phrases signal where you got your information from by stating the AUTHOR or ARTICLE TITLE (if there is no listed author)

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EXAMPLES: ​

According to Jones, ​sleep is essential to the brain's development during the teen years.

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In "Why Representation Matters," ​the author states that having a teacher of color can help increase the number of minority students who graduate.

How do you create a signal phrase?

Steps

• Write a phrase that leads into your evidence

• Refer to the author's last name, or if there is no author, the article title (in quotation marks)

• Place your evidence

Let's Practice!

Multiple Choice

Which sentence correctly uses a signal phrase?

• According to some source, "sharks don't have bones."

• According to the article 12 Shark Facts that May Surprise You, "sharks don't have bones."

• According to the article "12 Shark Facts that May Surprise You," sharks don't have bones.

Multiple Choice

You read an article written by Anna Green and want to use evidence from it. Which option uses the SIGNAL PHRASE correctly?

• According to Green, "politicians have used pizza to spy on reporters."

• According to an article, "politicians have used pizza to spy on reporters" (Green).

• According to Anna, "politicians have used pizza to spy on reporters."

Recap: In-text Citations and Signal Phrases

review + practice

When do I need to cite in my essay?

You must CITE using a SIGNAL PHRASE or IN-TEXT CITATION whenever you refer to research and evidence ( ideas that are not your own).

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Also remember: copying and pasting a paragraph from a source and putting quotes around it is STILL plagiarism!​

In-text Citations

• place in parentheses ( )

• use the author's last name OR article title (if there is no listed author)

• For article titles, place them in quotations " "

• Put a period outside the parentheses ( ).

• EXAMPLES: (Walters) (Gehman) ("Pizza Facts You Never Knew")

Signal Phrases

• Write a phrase that introduces your evidence

• use the author's last name OR article title (if there is no listed author)

• For article titles, place them in quotations " "

• Then, place your evidence

• EXAMPLES: According to Lutz, According to "How to Eat Pizza Properly,"

Multiple Choice

True or False: You must use a signal phrases or in-text citation WHENEVER you refer to researched evidence.

• True

• False

• It depends

Multiple Choice

You don't have to use an in-text citation when you write the author's idea in your own words.

• true

• false

Multiple Choice

Why do we cite our sources?

• To get an A on our assignment

• To show our reader where we got our information

• To use quotation marks

• To write our topic sentence

Multiple Choice

You put your in-text citation inside of...

• "quotation marks"

• (parentheses)

• [brackets]

• $dollar signs$

Multiple Choice

If you don't have an author to cite, what do you do for an in-text citation or signal phrase?

• use the title of the article, and PUT IT IN ALL CAPS

• use the title of the article instead, and put it in quotes

• use the URL

• just skip it and do nothing

Multiple Choice

Pizza has been everywhere: "In 2001, pizza was delivered to the International Space Station" (Green).

• Correctly Cited

• Incorrectly Cited

Multiple Choice

According to Green, pizza has been everywhere: "In 2001, pizza was delivered to the International Space Station."

• Correctly Cited

• Incorrectly Cited