Plagiarism & Citations:
Plagiarism is BAD! Citations help you avoid plagiarism.

According to the video, “Plagiarism is when you take someone else’s information and try to pass it off as your own,” (EasyBib.com & NoRedInk.com)

A citation is a list of information about a source that helps the reader find the information you used for themselves.

Citations in bibliographies show your reader how to find the source you used.

In-text citations show them which source to look in and which page to look on.

1)Why is plagiarism bad, according to the videos?

2)What do you need to do to avoid plagiarism if you need or want to use information from a source in your project?

3)Where can you go to find out how to do your citations? (List 2 sites, places and/or people)

4)What information needs to be in an in-text or parenthetical citation?

5) How is a direct quote different from a paraphrase?

6)Paraphrase the definition of plagiarism (given at the top of this page) below. Remember that while the idea should be the same, very few if any words should be the same, and you still need to cite it.

7)Introduce the definition of plagiarism as a direct quotation below. Remember that the words should be exactly the same, but your should introduce it and include an in-text citation. Your citation should look like mine.

8)What will happen if you plagiarize in Mrs. Burley Hill’s class?

the site we looked at today and a great resource for you. has great tips on avoiding plagiarism. The OWL at Purdue is also helpful, as is EasyBib.com and the Citation Machine. I have also compiled a quick reference and am giving it to you. KEEP IT.

Formatting and Citation in MLA Format

Formatting Essays in MLA

  • Heading at left: Student Name, Teacher Name, Class, Due Date (each item on its own line)
  • Title: Centered, in bold font, same font as the paper
  • Times New Roman size 12 font
  • 1-inch Margins (default on most writing programs)
  • Entirely Double-spaced (using the command, never by using the return/enter key)
  • You last name and the page number in the header of your paper on the right side of the page.

Works Cited or Bibliography

Works cited pages keep the formatting of the rest of your paper: the one inch margins, Times New Roman, the page numbers, etc.

  • On a separate page from the rest of your paper
  • Center and bold the title, which should be Works Cited
  • Reverse indent all citations (aka bibliographic entries or citations) – this means that the first line of each entry is not indented and all following lines of that entry are (see examples)
  • Include an entry for each source you used- this includes books, website, videos, articles, songs, etc.
  • Put these entries in alphabetical order by the first word in each entry.

How to Write Works Cited Entries and In-Text Citations

Books and Novels (i.e.: The Outsiders)

For the Works Cited page provide in the following format:

Lastname, Firstname of Author. Book Title: Subtitle, if present. City of Publication: Publisher, Year Published. Medium of Publication (Print, Web, etc.).

Gaiman, Neil. The Graveyard Book. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2008. Print.

For the in-text citation, you use the author’s last name or the title if the author is anonymous. For example, for The Graveyard Book, the citation would be: (Gaiman 95).

Articles Posted Online and Pages on a Website

For the Works Cited page provide in the following format:

Lastname, Firstname of Author or Compiler. “Title of Article.” Website Title. Sponsoring Institution, Date article was published. Web. Date accessed.

n.a. “Teen Hero Given Full Scholarship to BGU after Saving the Lives of Two Young Men Wounded by a Grad Missile.” Media Center. American Associates Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, 1 September 2011. Web. 23 February 2012.

For the in-text citation, you use the last name of the author or the first few words of the title. For example, for the above article that would be: (“Teen Hero…”).

Chapters, Stories, Articles, or Other Entries in an Anthology (i.e.: English Textbook)

For the Works Cited page provide in the following format:

Lastname, Firstname of Author. “Title of Story or Article.” Anthology Title. Editor’s Names by last name or order listed on title page. City of Publication: Publisher, Year Published. Page range of entry.Medium of Publication (Print, Web, etc.).

Petry, Ann. “From Harriet Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad.” Holt Literature and Language Arts, Second Course. Ed. Kylene Beers, et al. Austin: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 2010. 196-213. Print.

For the in-text citation, you use the page number and author’s last name or the title if the author is anonymous. For example, for “From Harriet Tubman: Conductor on the Underground Railroad,” the citation would be: (Petry 197).

Movies

For the Works Cited page provide in the following format:

Title. Director’s Name. Performers. Distributor, release year. Medium of the movie (DVD, Netflix, Video).

Megamind. Tom McGrath. Perf. Will Ferrell, Brad Pitt, Tina Fey, Jonah Hill, David Cross. Dreamworks Animation, 2010. DVD.

For the in-text citation, you use the title of the movie. For example, for Megamind the citation would be: (Megamind).

Notes and Peculiar Cases

Italics and underlining are used in the same way for citations. Underline when you write and italicize when you type.

For books with 2 authors, list the first author in the bibliography in the manner described above (Lastname, Firstname). Then list the second one in the normal order (FirstnameLastname). For example, you might write: Gaiman, Neil and Ann Petry. Your in-text citation would say (GaimanPetry).

For books with 3 or more authors, list the first author’s name in the manner described above (Lastname, Firstname). Then follow it with a comma and the phrase “et al,” which means “and others.” For example, you might write: Gaiman, Neil, et al.

Common Works Cited Abbreviations:

et al. – Latin for “And Others”- Used in works cited to abbreviate a long list of authors or editors (3 or more)

n.a. – “No Author” – Used in works cited to indicate that no author was provided

n.d. – “No Date” – Used in works cited to indicate that there is no date of publication provided