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Nitschmann Middle School: Introducing MLA

About This Guide

This guide was designed to introduce students to MLA Style. It will outline basic formatting rules, provide you with some basic examples and links to more detailed examples, and introduce you to RefWorks, a cloud-based citation management system.

The MLA Style Manuals

The MLA publishes two style manuals: one for student research papers, and another for professional researchers.

What is MLA Style?

MLA Style is a standardized format for writing that has been established by the Modern Language Association. It is generally used by students and scholars working within disciplines related to language and literature, but is also used in many other humanities disciplines.

Keep in mind that MLA Style refers to:

  • the format & structure of your paper.
  • how you cite other authors in text.
  • how you compile a Works Cited page at the end of your paper.

Online MLA Style Guides

We highly recommend that you bookmark these sites for quick reference while writing your paper.