Citing Sources

Citing Sources at Dedham High School

Always give credit to the work that has gone before you!

Dedham High School uses the M.L.A. format to cite sources. Student papers are vetted at Turnitin.com .

As soon as you determine that a source will be useful, format it in M.L.A. style, and save the citation to a "Works Cited" folder.

The official guide to citing sources in the M.L.A. format is the MLA Handbook , 7th edition, 2009, by Joseph Garibaldi. It is at the main desk in the DHS Library. It remains the definitive word on M.L.A. style.

For most material, the website " Citation Machine " at http://citationmachine.net provides an online form to cite sources. When you visit Citation Machine , follow a few basic steps:
- First, be sure you are on the correct website. It is very important to note that http://citationmachine.net is NOT a ".com" site. It is a " .net" site. It should not be confused with a similarly titled ".com " site. The recommended site is http://citationmachine.net
- Choose M.L.A. style in the top left corner of Citation Machine .
- Be sure to click "More Resources" next to "M.L.A." to select exactly the type of resource with which you are working.
- Under "Non-Print," there are many specific choices, including Internet journal, web page, online encyclopedia (such as Wikipedia ), TV program, interview, etc.
- If you are citing material from one of the Library's databases, select "Work from a subscription service accessed through a Library."
- Enter all relevant information on the form for the type of resource you are citing, and Citation Machine will format the citation for your "Works Cited" page and provide an "in-text" citation.
- With some sources, you may not always be able to fill in the form completely: look carefully at your source to be sure missing elements are not there, and if so, leave them blank.
- Citation Machine's results sometimes need to be tweaked for spacing, etc. Always consult your teacher if you have questions about formatting. You can also check with Mrs. Davies in the DHS Library.
- If you are citing material found through a Library database (for instance, Boston Globe or Biography Resource Center or World Book or Student Edition or Literary Reference Center ), the database itself will often format the citation for you.
- M.L.A. citations are found at the end of many results in the Library's databases. In the case of the Literary Reference Center , and Boston Globe databases, you must select "M.L.A." style as you view or print results.
- In general, to cite electronic versions of print material found through a database, cite the source as you normally would cite a print version, and then follow with the name of the database, the name of the library through which you accessed the information, the city and state of the library, and the U.R.L, if you have it, of the home page of the database.

These websites offer detailed explanations and instruction on M.L.A. format:
- http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/557/01 . This site has basic information on overall paper format, along with the basics of in-text citations, and how to format specific types of sources. It provides an example of a final " M.L.A. Works Cited " page.
- http://my.simmons.edu/libraries/bibliography/mla_style.shtml . This site provides detailed information on citing sources, with an overview of the general citation structure of specific kinds of sources, and examples.

Always give credit to the work that has gone before you!

Last Updated 10/9/07/L.Davies