Quoting accurately from texts
Quote accurately from literary and informational texts when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences, using quotation marks and citations correctly
What a learner can do afterwards
- Select and copy exact words from a text to support an inference about character motivation
- Use quotation marks correctly when incorporating textual evidence into written responses
- Introduce quotes with signal phrases such as 'The author states' or 'According to the text'
1 · Read
Textual evidence can be quoted exactly or accurately reported in your own words. A direct quote lets a reader inspect the author's wording. A paraphrase reports the meaning in your words. Both must stay faithful to the source. Quotation marks identify copied words, not every report of an idea.
Source: "Maya's hands shook as she read the letter." A direct quote is: The text says, "Maya's hands shook as she read the letter." A paraphrase is: Maya trembled while reading. The quote copies the wording; the paraphrase reports the action.
A paraphrase may support a point without quotation marks. If you present words as a direct quotation, copy them exactly and mark them as copied. Do not label an accurate paraphrase a faulty quote just because it uses different words.
A signal phrase identifies the source of quoted or reported words. 'According to the text' points to the text. 'The author states' names the author as speaker. A phrase that only gives a time does a different job.
These exercises use American quotation punctuation. After 'The author states', use a comma before a quoted sentence and preserve its capitals. Without a following citation, the final period goes inside the closing quotation mark. With a parenthetical citation, put the period after the citation instead. An integrated quotation after 'that' normally needs no comma.
To select a quote, first name the claim you want to support. Find words showing an action, reaction, or detail relevant to that claim. A phrase naming an object or a time may provide context without showing the claimed feeling or motive. Compare the choices by how directly they support the exact claim.
Use this classroom parenthetical citation style: name the source and put its locator after the quote. Model: The author states, "The wind howled" (p. 8). Put the sentence period after the locator, not inside the quote. Use a page number when available, or a paragraph number for an unpaginated passage. Check words, capitals, marks and the locator. Your class may require another style.
You can integrate a short quote into your sentence: The "cold and endless" night troubled Eli. The copied phrase has quotation marks but no comma separating it from the sentence. It does not need a separate opening such as 'The author states'. Keep the copied words exact. British and American quotation conventions can differ.
Copy quoted words exactly, mark them clearly, connect them to your point, and help readers find the source.
Four original readings about accurate quotation, citation and relevant evidence, written for this learning dataset.
2 · Watch
Take it off screen
Where it sits
Where this leads
20 questions wait behind this lesson, each with its answer explained. Every answer feeds the sky: stars light as they are learned, and dim when it is time to come back.