Ms. D'Amata's HHS 4U0 Class
Citations in APA and Researching Using the Databases
The Task
Today you are going to learn how to properly cite your work in the Library Learning Commons at Louise Arbour Secondary School! This is an very important skill to have as you prepare to go to university. Errors in citations can lead to plagiarism, and at the university level, this can have dire consequences! We want to make sure you are ready for what lies ahead so let's get ready to graduate!
Be wise....don't plagiarize!!
When to Cite - A Checklist
I now know when to cite my work.....but how do I do it?
APA Citations - The Seventh Edition
Embedded Citations - APA Format
Creating a References Page in APA Format
One of the easiest tools to use when creating a references page is Citation Machine. If you go to www.citationmachine.net , you can input your book, magazine, website, film or other resource and the citation will be created for you! Please keep in mind that if some parts of the citation are missing, you can easily fill them in using Citation Machine. You can also do the same by going to www.mybib.com.
Finally, many of the databases create the citation for you! When you are in a database and you are looking at an article, look to the top or the left of the article to find a citation tools like (in some databases it will look like a check mark). If you click on that link and select APA formatting, the citation will be created for you and then you can copy and paste it into your references page.
Research - Books in the Library Learning Commons
Method #1
- Go to www.peelschools.org.
- Click on the orange BYOD link (the one with the apple)
- Click on the teal library circular icon.
- The library catalogue icon will be at the top of the page on the left and it will be green.
Method #2
- Click on the applications icon (the pencil and ruler)
- Click on the library catalogue icon.
Once you are at the main page, enter the subject/keywords of the topic that you are searching for. Keep in mind that spelling is really important! If you spell the word that you are looking for incorrectly, the system will assume we do not have it. Book resources can be limited as they can only be accessed by a few students at a time so I always recommend that you look for books first when doing your research.
Doing Your Research - The Databases
Sometimes books on your topic can be hard to find because your subject area might be really new or really specific. This is where databases will become your best friend! There are two ways to get to the databases:
- Go to www.peelschools.org.
- Click on the orange BYOD link (with the apple on it).
- Click on the teal library circular icon.
- The intermediate/secondary library databases will be listed below.
Boolean Search Operators
The Databases - Finding the Information You Need!
- Britannica Online School Edition - this database is great for getting background information about many topics.
- The Canadian Encyclopedia - also a great source for background information but from a Canadian perspective
- Canadian Points of View - this is an excellent database for finding relevant, Canadian content
- Global Issues in Context - although this course will focus mainly on Canadian families you might want to look at other databases that focus on a world perspective.
- Canada in Context - another great database that is a primarily Canadian database
- Points of View - excellent database(s) for getting different perspectives on a variety of topics
- LegalTrac - This will be one of your best sources for information about law and the legal system in Canada.
All of the databases are great sources of information. Although these have been recommended as places to start, you can try other databases if you are not finding the information you need. They are better than a random search on a website because you can find a lot of information here that has been written by experts in the field. Many of the databases are specific to certain topics! Below are some examples of what the database icons look like. You cannot access the databases from here! But you can access the databases from the Secondary eResources link just below!
Note Taking and the Databases
Practice Time!
1. a non-fiction book
2. a fiction book
3. a database
4. a website
Your references should be about a topic that is of interest to you. Please use the skills that you have learned to put together a perfect references page!