Practical Tools and Strategies for Introducing Sources

Introducing and integrating sources in writing refers to the process of incorporating external information, such as quotations, paraphrases, or summaries from texts or other sources, into one's own writing effectively. It involves seamlessly blending these sources into your own arguments or analysis while providing proper attribution and context.

Introducing and Integrating Sources in Writing

Quoting

Including a direct excerpt from a source within your own text, enclosed within quotation marks and followed by a citation (when required).

According to the study "The Impact of Climate Change on Biodiversity," Smith and Jones--renowned environmental scientists--found that "The impact of climate change on biodiversity is becoming increasingly evident in various ecosystems."

Paraphrasing

Restating information from a source in your own words while retaining the original meaning. It's important to still provide a citation to acknowledge the source.

In the study "The Impact of Climate Change on Biodiversity," Smith and Jones, renowned environmental scientists, found that biodiversity is being affected by climate change across different environments.

Summarizing

Condensing the main points or findings of a source into a concise overview, again with proper attribution.

Smith and Jones highlighted the detrimental effects of climate change on various ecosystems, emphasizing the impact on biodiversity 

Introducing Sources is a College and Career Readiness Skill

Introducing sources is an essential skill for college and career readiness in reading and writing standards for several reasons:

1. Text-Dependent Tasks: Many academic assignments require students to engage deeply with texts, analyzing arguments, synthesizing information, and drawing evidence from multiple sources to support their own claims. Introducing sources effectively ensures that students can integrate these external texts seamlessly into their own arguments, enhancing the coherence and credibility of their writing. Mastering this skill ensures students will have success on state exams, AP exams, document-based questions in history, and on various writing tasks that require students to use sources as evidence to support thinking. 
2. Critical Thinking: Introducing sources involves not only incorporating information but also evaluating its relevance, credibility, and reliability. This process encourages critical thinking as students must assess the quality of sources and determine how best to incorporate them to strengthen their own arguments.
3. Academic Integrity: Properly introducing and integrating sources demonstrates respect for intellectual property and academic honesty. It shows that writers are acknowledging the contributions of others and providing readers with the necessary context to understand the broader conversation surrounding a topic.
4. College Readiness: In college, students are expected to engage with complex texts and participate in academic discourse by building on existing research and contributing original insights. Mastering the skill of introducing and integrating sources prepares students for the rigors of higher education, where they will be required to engage with a wide range of texts and incorporate diverse perspectives into their own writing.

From the Literacy Geeks' Show

During our last Literacy Geeks' show, Episode 3: The Art of Introducing Sources, we mentioned posting a few practical resources you can use to help students learn and master this essential skill. Below, you will find the links to two of our resources.

• Strong Verbs that Describe What an Author is Doing
• Templates for Introducing Sources

Interested in more writing resources? Do you want to assess and explicitly teach the College and Career Readiness Writing Standards? Check out our Ink Writing Universe. 

Educators should prioritize the explicit teaching of writing skills like introducing and integrating sources. Out simply, students need more opportunities to practice this skill regularly, ensuring they develop the proficiency necessary for college and career readiness. Let's empower our students to excel by integrating source integration into their learning experiences.