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Anatomy of a Notecard

At the top left of each card, indicate the source and page number where the information came from. Use the author's last name if there is one. If not, either the full or a shortened version of what appears first on the Works Cited card for that source. The information here will be used in your paper to make your citation, so getting it right now will save mistakes later.
Notecard

This is a heading to indicate what in general this note is about. Later on, you'll be dividing your note cards into piles, according to the subject area, to help organize your writing process. It's useful early in the note-taking process to come up with headings that will work for you. They form a kind of outline for your paper. You want your headings not so specific that there will only be one note card for each heading, but also not so general that there will be dozens for each heading.

The notes here are paraphrased--fully put into my own words. Most of your note cards should be paraphrased; this is the way to show that you truly understand the information and aren't just copying it down or perhaps changing a word here and there. Occasionally, you will want to quote directly from a source. When you do, make sure your note card indicates clearly that you are using a quotation and not a paraphrase. Even in a paraphrase, make sure you do put quotation marks around the directly quoted words of a "run-in quotation."