Endnotes: As their name implies, endnotes appear after the text, starting on a new page numbered in sequence with the preceding page. Center the title Notes one inch from the top, double-space, indent one-half inch from the left margin, and add the note number, without punctuation, slightly above the line. Type a space and then the reference. If the note extends to two or more lines, begin subsequent lines at the left margin. Type the notes consecutively, double-spaced, and number all pages.

Footnotes: Footnotes appear at the bottoms of pages, beginning four lines (two double spaces) below the text. Single-space footnotes, but double-space between them.

Inline Citations (Parenthetical Documentation): Inline citations or parenthetical documentation is when you add brief parenthetical acknowledgment in your paper wherever you incorporate another's words, facts, or ideas. Usually the author's last name and a page reference are enough to identify the source and the specific location from which you borrowed material. More information about inline citations.

The information that you put into a footnote or endnote is the same information that you put into a bibliography entry, however the formatting is different. Note the following differences.

1. In a bibliography entry, you list the author's last name, then first name. In a footnote or endnote, you list the author's firstname, then last name.

2. In a bibliography entry, you use periods in several places. In a footnote or endnote, you only use one period at the end of the note.

3. In a footnote or endnote, add a comma after the author's name. Add a comma after the title of an article in a periodal, newspaper, etc. There is no punctuation after the name of the book, periodical, newspaper, etc. Place the publication information (city, company, year) within parentheses.

4. In a footnote or endnote, you list the page number(s) that you are citing.

5. You begin the first line of a bibliography entry at your left margin and indent subsequent lines one-half inch each. You indent the first line of a footnote or endnote one-half inch and subsequent lines begin at the left margin.

6. Bibliography entries are double-spaced. Endnotes are double-spaced. Footnotes are single-spaced within an entry, and double-spaced between entries.

7. If you have more than one footnote or endnote to the same source, use a shortened form on subsequent notes. Include enough information to identify the work. The author's last name alone, followed by the relevant page numbers, is usually adequate.

          ⁶ Maculay 64-67.

Note: The following example is single-spaced in an effort to conserve space.

Here is an example of how the same citation would be formatted as a bibliography entry and as a footnote or endnote:

Bibliography entry:
     Wilkinson, Philip and Michael Pollard.  The Master Builders. New York: Chelsea House, 1994.

Footnote/Endnote
          ² Philip Wilkinson and Michael Pollard, The Master Builders (New York: Chelsea House, 1994) 17-19.

If you need additional information, please ask your teacher or librarian, or visit the online resources on the Palo Alto Middle School Libraries Research Center – Bibliography Resources:
http://staff.pausd.org/~middlelibrary/biblioresources.html

Information is based on MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (1999) by Joseph Gibaldi.