1. HOW TO FORMAT YOUR PAPER AND WRITE IN-TEXT CITATIONS
According to MLA Standards
Miss Mackowski Library Media Specialist Norwalk High School

2. MLA (Modern Language Association)
What is MLA?
MLA (Modern Language Association)
-Developed a universal way for scholars to research and write.
-MLA style formatting is often used in various Humanities disciplines
There are two main manuals for MLA formatting. MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 7th ed. and MLA Style Manual and Guide to Scholarly Publishing, 3rd ed. The Handbook is used mostly by undergraduate and graduate students when writing papers for class. The Style Manual is used by professionals who are formatting documents in preparation for publication (like journal articles, books, book chapters, etc.). Many formatting elements are the same between the two books. This presentation will mostly focus on MLA formatting and style concerns that affect writing research papers.
MLA style is often used in the following disciplines: Humanties, languages, Literature, Linguistics, Philosophy, Communication, Religion, and others.
MLA format provides writers with a uniform format for document layout and documenting sources. Proper MLA style shows that writers are conscientious of the standards of writing in their respective disciplines. Properly documenting sources also ensures that an author is not plagiarizing. 2

3. FORMATTING 101 BASICS
Welcome to “MLA Formatting and Style Guide”. This Power Point Presentation is designed to introduce your students to the basics of MLA Formatting and Style. You might want to supplement the presentation with more detailed information available on the OWL’s “MLA 2009 Formatting and Style Guide” at
Designer: Ethan Sproat
Based on slide designs from the OWL “APA Formatting and Style Guide “powerpoint by Jennifer Liethen Kunka and Elena Lawrick.
Contributors: Tony Russell, Alllen Brizee, Jennifer Liethen Kunka, Joe Barbato, Dave Neyhart, Erin E. Karper, Karl Stolley, Kristen Seas, Tony Russell, and Elizabeth Angeli. 3

4. Find out your instructor’s guidelines for your paper before you start!
#1 RULE ****** ALWAYS
Find out your instructor’s guidelines for your paper before you start!
Many instructors who require their students to use MLA formatting and citation style have small exceptions to different MLA rules. Every bit of instruction and direction given in this presentation comes with this recommendation: ALWAYS follow the specific instructions given by your instructor. 4

5. Formatting -Font size and type: 12 pt./Times New Roman
BASICS
-Font size and type: 12 pt./Times New Roman
-Paper size: 8.5” by 11” only (letter size) -Margins: 1” around paper; ½ inch indentation for 1st line of a paragraph -Spacing: Double-space all text
-Title page: None unless your instructor requires one
BEGINNING OF PAPER -Upper right hand corner of 1st page-type from ½” from top your last name and page number (continue this for every page) -Left hand corner of 1st page-type your name, your instructor's name, the course, and date -Center the paper title with standard capitalization-do not underline, bold, or quote
･Do not make a title page for your paper unless specifically requested
･In the upper left-hand corner of the first page, list your name, your instructor's name, the course, and the date. Again, be sure to use double-spaced text.
･Double space again and center the title.
Do not underline, italicize, or place your title in quotation marks; write the title in Title Case (standard capitalization), not in all capital letters.
･Use quotation marks and/or italics when referring to other works in your title, just as you would in your text: Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas as Morality Play; Human Weariness in "After Apple Picking”
･Double space between the title and the first line of the text.
･Create a header in the upper right-hand corner that includes your last name, followed by a space with a page number; number all pages consecutively with Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, 4, etc.), one-half inch from the top and flush with the right margin. (Note: Your instructor or other readers may ask that you omit last name/page number header on your first page. Always follow instructor guidelines.) 5

6. Sample 1st Page
･Do not make a title page for your paper unless specifically requested
･In the upper left-hand corner of the first page, list your name, your instructor's name, the course, and the date. Again, be sure to use double-spaced text.
･Double space again and center the title.
Do not underline, italicize, or place your title in quotation marks; write the title in Title Case (standard capitalization), not in all capital letters.
･Use quotation marks and/or italics when referring to other works in your title, just as you would in your text: Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas as Morality Play; Human Weariness in "After Apple Picking”
･Double space between the title and the first line of the text.
･Create a header in the upper right-hand corner that includes your last name, followed by a space with a page number; number all pages consecutively with Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, 4, etc.), one-half inch from the top and flush with the right margin. (Note: Your instructor or other readers may ask that you omit last name/page number header on your first page. Always follow instructor guidelines.) 6

7. FORMATTING SHORTCUTS IN WORD

8. Spacing
Font Size
Font Type

9. HEADER AND FOOTER

10. Formatting Section Headings
Headings are generally optional
Headings in essays should be numbered
Headings in paper should be consistent in grammar and formatting but are otherwise up to you
Ask your teacher if you are unsure if you need section headings
Section Headings
Writers sometimes use Section Headings to improve a document’s readability. These sections may include individual chapters or other named parts of a book or essay.
Essays
MLA recommends that when you divide an essay into sections that you number those sections with an Arabic number and a period followed by a space and the section name.
Books
MLA does not have a prescribed system of headings for books. If you are only using one level of headings, meaning that all of the sections are distinct and parallel and have no additional sections that fit within them, MLA recommends that these sections resemble one another grammatically. For instance, if your headings are typically short phrases, make all of the headings short phrases (and not, for example, full sentences). Otherwise, the formatting is up to you. It should, however, be consistent throughout the document.
If you employ multiple levels of headings (some of your sections have sections within sections), you may want to provide a key of your chosen level headings and their formatting to your instructor or editor. 10

11. Sample Section Headings
Numbered (all flush left with no underlining, bold, or italics):
1. Soil Conservation
1.1 Erosion
1.2 Terracing
2. Water Conservation
3. Energy Conservation
Unnumbered (by level):
Level 1 Heading: bold, flush left
Level 2 Heading: italics, flush left
Level 3 Heading: centered, bold
Level 4 Heading: centered, italics
Level 5 Heading: underlined, flush left
Sample Section Headings
The sample headings on this slide are meant to be used only as a reference. You may employ whatever system of formatting that works best for you so long as it remains consistent throughout the document. 11

12. HOW TO WRITE IN-TEXT CITATIONS IN YOUR PAPER *******
Two acceptable ways to use information (and give credit) from another source in writing:
PARAPHRASE and QUOTE

13. SUMMARY VS. PARAPHRASE ---- What’s the difference?

14. Summary vs. Paraphrase
A summary is when you take someone else’s ideas and put them into your own words.
A paraphrase is when you take someone else’s ideas and put them into your own words BUT you ALWAYS GIVE CREDIT TO THE AUTHOR.

15. MLA in-text citations are made with a combination of SIGNAL PHRASES
and
PARENTHETICAL REFERENCES
-A signal phrase indicates that something taken from a source (a quotation, summary, paraphrase, or fact) is about to be used; usually the signal phrase includes the author's name.
-A parenthetical reference which comes after the cited material, normally includes at least a page number. It may also include the author’s last name.

16. AUTHOR NAMED IN A SIGNAL PHRASE Ordinarily, introduce the material being cited with a signal phrase that includes the author's name. In addition to preparing readers for the source, the signal phrase allows you to keep the parenthetical citation brief.
Christine Haughney reports that shortly after Japan made it illegal to use a handheld phone while driving, accidents from phone use decreased by 75% (8).
The signal phrase — Christine Haughney reports that — names the author; the parenthetical citation gives the page number where the information was found.
As Wendy Martin has suggested, Emily Dickinson firmly believed that we cannot fully comprehend life unless we also understand death (625).
In his Autobiography, Benjamin Franklin states that he prepared a list of thirteen virtues ( ).

17. AUTHOR NAMED IN PARENTHETICAL REFERENCE
If a signal phrase does not name the author, put the author's last name in parentheses along with the page number.
Most states do not keep adequate records on the number of times cell phones are a factor in accidents; as of December 2000, only ten states were trying to keep such records (Sundeen 2).
The aesthetic and ideological orientation of jazz underwent considerable scrutiny in the late 1950s and early 1960s (Anderson 7).
It may be true that “in the appreciation of medieval art the attitude of the observer is of primary importance…” (Robertson 136).

18. AUTHOR UNKNOWN
Either use the complete title in a signal phrase or use a short form of the title in parentheses. Titles of books are italicized; titles of articles are put in quotation marks.
As of 2001, at least three hundred towns and municipalities had considered legislation regulating use of cell phones while driving ("Lawmakers" 2).

19. PAGE NUMBER UNKNOWN You may omit the page number if a work lacks page numbers, as is the case with many Web sources. Although printouts from Web sites usually show page numbers, printers don't always provide the same page breaks; for this reason, MLA recommends treating such sources as unpaginated.
The California Highway Patrol opposes restrictions on the use of phones while driving, claiming that distracted drivers can already be prosecuted (Jacobs).
According to Jacobs, the California Highway Patrol opposes restrictions on the use of phones while driving, claiming that distracted drivers can already be prosecuted.

20. HOW TO WRITE
QUOTES IN YOUR PAPER

21. RULE 1: Introduce a quote with an introductory phrase and a comma
According to Mr. Jake Smith, A New York Times editor, “The economy is beginning to show signs of recovery” (3).
Joseph Conrad writes of the company manager in Heart of Darkness, “He was obeyed, yet he inspired neither love nor fear, nor even respect” (4).

22. RULE #2: Introduce a quote with a complete sentence followed by a colon
Barbara Brehm believes that Americans cannot live without coffee: “Coffee is a part of every day American culture…[and] it seems to have become an American obsession” (10).

23. RULE #3: Use block quotes with a complete sentence and a colon and ALWAYS double indent the entire block quote.
In a study published in Health Magazine, Nancy Clark summarizes the side effects of coffee:
A woman who wants to start a family should be aware that consuming over 300 milligrams of coffee per day may increase the time it takes to get pregnant. The USDA recommends that pregnant women avoid caffeine-containing foods (11).

24. Adding/Omitting Words
Adding words: [Brackets]
Jan Harold Brunvand, in an essay on urban legends, states: "some individuals [who retell urban legends] make a point of learning every rumor or tale” (78).
Omit words: Ellipses … or …. Ellipsis dots indicate the omission of unused parts of a quotation periods (. . .) indicate an omission within a sentence and
-4 periods ( ) indicate an omission at the end of a sentence
In an essay on urban legends, Jan Harold Brunvand notes that "some individuals make a point of learning every recent rumor or tale and in a short time a lively exchange of details occurs” (78). In surveying various responses to plagues in the Middle Ages, Barbara W. Tuchman writes, “Medical thinking, trapped in the theory of astral influences, stressed air as the communicator of disease….” (16).
Adding or Omitting Words In Quotations
If you add a word or words in a quotation, you should put brackets around the words to indicate that they are not part of the original text. This is illustrated in the first example on this slide.
If you omit a word or words from a quotation, you should indicate the deleted word or words by using ellipsis marks, which are three periods ( ) preceded and followed by a space. Please note that brackets are not needed around ellipses unless adding brackets would clarify your use of ellipses. This is illustrated in the second example on this slide. 24