3 Types of Note Cards SUMMARY NOTE CARDS Use a SUMMARY NOTE to record in your own words the essence /main idea of a passage without examples and explanations. Summary notes are usually for less important or repetitive information. STEPS TO FOLLOW: 1. Include a signal phrase (either Author or “Title”.) 2. Ask yourself the author's purpose and/or main idea. 3. Summarize the article and write that idea in a few words. SAMPLE SUMMARY NOTE CARD Topic of card History of drug use Source Number (optional) The newspaper article “History of Addiction” traces drug use from the early 20th century to the social upheaval of the 1960s. MLA Citation ( Source ). PARAPHRASE NOTE CARDS Use a PARAPHRASE NOTE when you want to preserve an idea or record a fact, statistic, or examples. STEPS TO FOLLOW: 1. Include a signal phrase (either “Author” or “Title”.) 2. Ask yourself the author's purpose and/or main idea. 3. Put the idea into your own words. 4. Read what you have written to be sure that it reflects the author's idea. SAMPLE PARAPHRASE NOTE CARD Topic of card The right to die According to the National Health Report Card Survey, 68% of health costs occur during the last few weeks of Americans’ lives. MLA Citation ( Source ). ( “Health Costs” ). Source Number (optional) DIRECT QUOTATION NOTE CARDSUse Quotations sparingly. Only 20% of your research paper should be quoted material! Use a DIRECT QUOTATION note when the author has phrased something particularly well, when the words express a meaning as no other words could, or when an authority has concisely stated an opinion that will strongly support your thesis. STEPS TO FOLLOW: 1. Include a signal phrase (either Author or “Title”.) 2. Copy the quotation exactly. 3. Check to make sure you have copied all spelling and punctuation exactly. 4. Make sure that the section of the work you quote does not need the surrounding material to keep the same meaning. SAMPLE DIRECT QUOTATION NOTE CARD – FULL QUOTATION (one sentence long) Topic of card MLA Citation ( Source ). Air quality Source Number (optional) According to Hillary French, Energy Analyst for the Worldwatch Institute, “The odd notion that pollution is the price of progress seems finally to be becoming a relic of the past” ( “Polution Solutions” 31). SAMPLE DIRECT QUOTATION/PARAPHRASE COMBINATION NOTE CARD – PARTIAL QUOTATION (“phrases” or “words”) Topic of card MLA Citation ( Source ). Air quality According to Hillary French, Energy Analyst for the Worldwatch Institute, contrary to past beliefs, many experts now feel that pollution is not the “price of progress” ( “Polution Solutions” 31). Source Number (optional) DIRECT QUOTATION CARD ADVICE: 0
