READ 184 - Critical Reading - Hawes: Home

Begin your project by doing some background reading on your topic. Preliminary reading helps you:

• achieve a basic understanding of your issue
• begin to identify interesting specific questions that will form the backbone of your research; and
• start to acquire vital search terms you need in order to explore your subject more fully. 

Find sources on the topics that you identified in Step 1.

• Do a comprehensive search utilizing all the sources below; leave no stone unturned
• Print/save/email the sources you find as you go to avoid backtracking
• Read your sources several times, highlighting relevant information and making notes as you go.
• If you find sources that will help others in your team, SHARE THEM.
• If you have trouble finding the appropriate type or number of sources: MEET WITH A RESEARCH LIBRARIAN

• Make an appointment with writing center staff at least once. They will help you get started, proceed, and/or finish. This is a free service that you should always utilize to maximize your success.
• Utilize the MJC Library & Learning Center's FORMAT & CITE page to aid with MLA. A research librarian can provide face-to-face assistance with formatting and citing as well. 

Getting help has never been easier. Your MJC librarians are here to help.

MLA tells us that you should cite a source in an annotated bibliography just as you would cite it in a list of works cited and then append an annotation to the end of the entry. Annotations describe and/or evaluate sources. Further, annotations should not rehash minor details, cite evidence, quote the author, or recount steps in an argument. Writing an effective annotation requires reading the work, understanding its aims, and clearly summarizing them.

To learn more about annotated bibliographies click on the link below from Purdue OWL

Sample Annotated Bibliography Using MLA