Two-Column Notes — Paraphrase vs. Direct Quote with Source Attribution

Teacher reads aloud one paragraph from Markle's Great Monkey Rescue. Children listen for one FACT to paraphrase and one PHRASE worth quoting directly.

• Read with informational-narrator voice
• Pause after the fact and ask 'what is the fact?'
• Pause at a vivid phrase and ask 'is this worth quoting?'

Today you meet TWO-COLUMN NOTE-TAKING — the researcher's tool for keeping notes organized and citable. The LEFT column is wider (~60% of the page) and holds the PARAPHRASE or the DIRECT QUOTE. The RIGHT column is narrower (~40%) and holds the SOURCE: author + title + page (or website + year). Each ROW is ONE FACT. PARAPHRASE = the source's idea in YOUR own words. Most facts get paraphrased — it shows you UNDERSTOOD the source. DIRECT QUOTE = the source's EXACT words, in quotation marks. Use direct quotes only when the exact words matter (a famous saying, a precise statement, a vivid phrase). Watch teacher take 4 notes from one Markle passage about golden lion tamarins: ROW 1 PARAPHRASE: 'Golden lion tamarins live in tropical forests in eastern Brazil.' SOURCE: 'Markle 2015, p. 4.' ROW 2 PARAPHRASE: 'They almost went extinct in the 1970s because of forest loss.' SOURCE: 'Markle 2015, p. 7.' ROW 3 DIRECT QUOTE: '"By 1971, fewer than 200 were left in the wild."' SOURCE: 'Markle 2015, p. 9.' ROW 4 PARAPHRASE: 'Captive breeding at zoos helped the population grow.' SOURCE: 'Markle 2015, p. 14.' Notice: 3 paraphrases (most facts) + 1 direct quote (the dramatic number 200). Each row has a source. WITHOUT the source, you can't cite later — the note is unusable.

• Notice the direct quote uses quotation marks and stays exactly as the source wrote it. The paraphrase changes the wording but keeps the meaning. Both still need the source column.

  model See narrative — 4 rows demonstrating paraphrase vs. direct quote with sources.

  prompt Teacher takes 4 notes from one Markle passage.

• What goes in the LEFT column? What goes in the RIGHT column?
• When should you use a DIRECT QUOTE instead of a paraphrase?

M-4-S-WR-03-A Chart

Reproduction of MG-7 at 11x17: vertical line dividing page into LEFT column (60%, labeled PARAPHRASE OR DIRECT QUOTE) and RIGHT column (40%, labeled SOURCE). 4 worked example rows shown beneath using the Markle Great Monkey Rescue passages. Paraphrases in yellow highlight; direct quote in orange highlight. Print-ready, dyslexic-friendly font.

MG-7 Chart

Two-column note-taking template: vertical line divides page into two columns. LEFT COLUMN (wider, ~60%): PARAPHRASE — the source's idea in YOUR words (or a direct quote in quotation marks). RIGHT COLUMN (narrower, ~40%): SOURCE — author + title + page (or website + section). Each row is one fact. Sample row: LEFT: 'Sojourner was sold 4 times before age 9.' RIGHT: 'McKissack 1992, p. 12.' Sample row 2: LEFT: '"And ain't I a woman?" (direct quote)' RIGHT: 'Painter 1996, p. 167.' Bottom rule: 'Paraphrase most facts; quote only when exact words matter. Always note the source — without it, you can't cite later.' Print-ready 8.5x11 (1 per child per source, target 6-9 sheets per term).

• Read your first source (one of your 3 from lesson 2). Take 4-6 notes on the MG-7 template — at least 3 paraphrases + 1 direct quote. Source the right column for every row.

  scaffold MG-7 template at desk; paraphrase highlighter yellow, direct-quote highlighter orange; source-tag stickers
• Share 2 notes with a partner. Partner asks: 'Is this a paraphrase or a quote? How can you tell? Is the source named?'

  scaffold Sentence frame: 'My note 1 is a ___. The source is ___.'

• Show your 4-6 notes. Partner counts: paraphrases, direct quotes, source-tags.
• Move status-tile to NOTES.

• Star your most useful note.
• Predict: tomorrow we organize notes by CATEGORY and meet Tier-2 Set 10.

• At home tonight, take 2 notes from your own home-source (a book or printed article). Bring the template tomorrow — we will check paraphrase vs. quote.