MLA Notes

Mitchell, Gibson, DavisoOdyssey: Cultural Connections

Andover High School

Header vs. Heading

Header• Very top of the page• Repeats on every page• Right hand side• Last name, followed by

page number– Ex) Simpson 1

Heading• Underneath the header• Only on first page• Left hand side• Your name, followed by

teacher’s name, followed by course name, followed by date– Ex) Jessica Simspon

Ms. Smith Freshman Composition 1/30/14

Header How To (Step 1)

• Open a blank word document.• At the top of the screen go to “View” and

then select “Header and Footer”

Header How To (Step 2)

• Justify your alignment to the right• Click in the header• Type your last name• Hit “Close”

Right alignment

Last nameClose

Header How To (Step 3)

• At the top of the screen, click “Insert” then select “Page Number”

Header How To (Step 4)• Once you’ve selected “Page Number” a box will appear. • Using the options, select that you want your page numbers

at the TOP of the page and on the RIGHT hand side.

Header How To (Step 5)

• Clicking “Okay” on the previous box will insert the page numbers. Your header will now look like this:

• It will automatically repeat on all subsequent pages

Heading How To (Step 1)

• After you’ve completed the header, click anywhere in the body of the paper.

• Change your text alignment to “align left”

Heading How To (Step 2)

• Change your spacing to 2.0 (double)

Heading How To (Step 3)

• Begin typing the heading.

• Only hit the “return” or “enter” key ONCE between each line

• Format is as follows:– Your Name– Your Teacher’s

Name– Class/Course Name– Date

Creating a Title

• Every paper needs a creative and unique title• After writing the heading, hit the “return” or “enter” key

ONCE• Center align your text • DO NOT use bold, underline, or italics, or “quotes” for

your own title• You must use proper formatting when referencing

another work in your title:– Ex) A Tale of Two Citites: Best of Times or Worst of Times?– In this case the title of the published text would be italicized

and the rest of your title would not be

Proper heading with no extra space beneath

Title

Spacing and Misc.• Remember: Spacing should be double spaced ALWAYS. No exceptions. • You only need ONE space after a period or other piece of punctuation.• You only need to hit “return” or “enter” ONCE between paragraphs or

lines as long as you are formatted with double spacing.• Margins on the tops and sides of the page should be 1inch. I will know if

they’re not.• Your font should only be size 12• Your paper should only be in one of the following fonts:

– Times New Roman– Arial– Cambria– Calibri

Formatting Titles: When do I…?• Use the “shelf-rule” or “Barnes and Noble rule”: If you can walk

into Barnes and Noble and pick it up off the shelf in its full form, it gets either underlined or italicized– Rule of Thumb: Pick one and stick with it for the duration of your paper.

For typed works italics are required, but when you write by hand you can underline.

• If you cannot pick it up off the shelf, it goes in “quotes.”

Examples

Formatting Titles: When do I…?

Underline or Italicize• Books

– To Kill a Mockingbird

• CDs, Albums– ARTPop

• Movies– Pulp Fiction

• Television Shows– Modern Family

• Newspaper titles– The New York Times

• Magazine titles– Seventeen

Use Quotation Marks• Poems

– “Annabelle Lee”

• Song titles– “Applause”

• Episode titles of a TV show– “Three Dinners”

• Article, chapter, or essay titles– “How to get flawless skin”