How to Do Note Cards and Source Cards

Note Cards

• 1

  Stack your index cards near you while you conduct your research.

• 2

  Number several of the index cards with the source number in the upper right hand corner. The source number is the order of the source as you find it, so your first source is source 1, your second source is source 2 and so forth.

• 3

  Start with one index card and write the topic of the note. Use one card for each topic.

• 4

  Write your notes in bullet points, covering the pertinent information on the topic at hand.

• 5

  Write the page number on the bottom right corner so you know where to find the information again if needed.

Source Cards

• 6

  Write the source number in the upper right hand corner. Use one card per source and each source number only one time. For example, the first source you use is #1, the second source is a different index card and is #2 and so on.

• 7

  Write the name of the author, the name of the book, where the book was published, who published it and the year it was published. Center this information in the middle of the index source card.

• 8

  List where you found the source in the bottom left corner of the index card, so that you can locate it again, if needed. If you found the book at the library, list in the bottom right corner of the index card the call number that is shown on the book's spine to indicate where the library shelves the book.