1. PLAGIARISM AND CITATION
BASICS
A QUICK GUIDE ON WHY, WHERE
AND HOW TO PROPERLY
RESEARCH…without getting in
trouble!

2. WHY RESEARCH?
 We research because we want to explore
interesting topics by…
 Incorporating others’ ideas and information
 Exploring our own thoughts and opinions in relation to
other people’s
 Believe it or not, you were not born an expert on
your topic! Therefore, you must research and
cite your sources.

3. HOW GOOD ARE YOU AT
RESEARCH?
GO TO THIS LINK TO FIND OUT…
http://agoogleaday.com/#game=started
Click on the ―basic game‖
link – don’t log in to Google
+

4. BUT FIRST…WHERE CAN I FIND
INFORMATION FOR RESEARCH?
 Online Databases – contain digital copies of
many print resources
 GALILEO
 Encyclopedia Britannica
 Literary Reference Center
 Print Resources
 Scholarly journals, magazines,
newspaper articles
 Books
 Websites

5. WHAT’S THE DEAL
WITH…PLAGIARISM?
 To plagiarize means ―to commit literary theft.‖

―To present as new and original an idea or product derived from an
existing source.‖
 You must give credit to the ―owner‖ of the information
that you use in your paper, otherwise you are
STEALING!

6. WHAT IS PLAGIARISM?
 Anytime you use a direct quote, or even change an
author’s words, you are using somebody else’s
thoughts.
 Simply changing the wording (paraphrasing) is not
enough; you must cite your sources.
 When in doubt, CITE! It’s better to be safe than sorry.

7. WHAT IS PLAGIARISM?
 Certain well-known facts do not need to be cited.
 If your reader would probably already know the
information, you do not have to cite.
 Ex: Walt Disney founded the Disney company and created
one of the most well-known cartoon characters of all time,
Mickey Mouse. (NOT PLAGIARISM)
 Ex: Raised on a farm near Marceline, Missouri, Walt became
interested in drawing at an early age, selling his first sketches
to neighbors when he was only seven years old.
(PLAGIARISM—IF NOT CITED)
 Let’s see how you do on knowing when to cite by
playing…The Cite is Right!

8. CITATIONS
 As you know, in order to prevent plagiarism, we must
cite our sources.
 There is a specific method of citing sources, and
certain ―ingredients‖ are needed, in a specific order, for
the citation to be correct and in MLA format.

9. ANATOMY OF A CITATION
 Most citations include four main divisions:
 Author’s name. Title or source. Publication information.
Format.

10. LET’S PLAY A GAME!
See how much you know
about creating a citation!

11. HELP! I CAN’T REMEMBER HOW TO
FORMAT A CITATION!
 You don’t have to worry about the order that
information in a cite needs to go…there are several
tools that will create a cite for you!
 EasyBib
 Results from media center databases like
Encyclopedia Britannica
 Citation Machine

12. WHAT WE’VE LEARNED…
 All about plagiarism and why it’s wrong
 Exactly what a citation is and how to create one
 Ways to easily create a citation
 Any questions???