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How to Annotate Texts

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Annotation Fundamentals

How to start annotating , how to annotate digital texts, how to annotate a textbook, how to annotate a scholarly article or book, how to annotate literature, how to annotate images, videos, and performances, additional resources for teachers.

Writing in your books can make you smarter. Or, at least (according to education experts), annotation–an umbrella term for underlining, highlighting, circling, and, most importantly, leaving comments in the margins–helps students to remember and comprehend what they read. Annotation is like a conversation between reader and text. Proper annotation allows students to record their own opinions and reactions, which can serve as the inspiration for research questions and theses. So, whether you're reading a novel, poem, news article, or science textbook, taking notes along the way can give you an advantage in preparing for tests or writing essays. This guide contains resources that explain the benefits of annotating texts, provide annotation tools, and suggest approaches for diverse kinds of texts; the last section includes lesson plans and exercises for teachers.

Why annotate? As the resources below explain, annotation allows students to emphasize connections to material covered elsewhere in the text (or in other texts), material covered previously in the course, or material covered in lectures and discussion. In other words, proper annotation is an organizing tool and a time saver. The links in this section will introduce you to the theory, practice, and purpose of annotation. 

How to Mark a Book, by Mortimer Adler

This famous, charming essay lays out the case for marking up books, and provides practical suggestions at the end including underlining, highlighting, circling key words, using vertical lines to mark shifts in tone/subject, numbering points in an argument, and keeping track of questions that occur to you as you read. 

How Annotation Reshapes Student Thinking (TeacherHUB)

In this article, a high school teacher discusses the importance of annotation and how annotation encourages more effective critical thinking.

The Future of Annotation (Journal of Business and Technical Communication)

This scholarly article summarizes research on the benefits of annotation in the classroom and in business. It also discusses how technology and digital texts might affect the future of annotation. 

Annotating to Deepen Understanding (Texas Education Agency)

This website provides another introduction to annotation (designed for 11th graders). It includes a helpful section that teaches students how to annotate reading comprehension passages on tests.

Once you understand what annotation is, you're ready to begin. But what tools do you need? How do you prepare? The resources linked in this section list strategies and techniques you can use to start annotating. 

What is Annotating? (Charleston County School District)

This resource gives an overview of annotation styles, including useful shorthands and symbols. This is a good place for a student who has never annotated before to begin.

How to Annotate Text While Reading (YouTube)

This video tutorial (appropriate for grades 6–10) explains the basic ins and outs of annotation and gives examples of the type of information students should be looking for.

Annotation Practices: Reading a Play-text vs. Watching Film (U Calgary)

This blog post, written by a student, talks about how the goals and approaches of annotation might change depending on the type of text or performance being observed. 

Annotating Texts with Sticky Notes (Lyndhurst Schools)

Sometimes students are asked to annotate books they don't own or can't write in for other reasons. This resource provides some strategies for using sticky notes instead.

Teaching Students to Close Read...When You Can't Mark the Text (Performing in Education)

Here, a sixth grade teacher demonstrates the strategies she uses for getting her students to annotate with sticky notes. This resource includes a link to the teacher's free Annotation Bookmark (via Teachers Pay Teachers).

Digital texts can present a special challenge when it comes to annotation; emerging research suggests that many students struggle to critically read and retain information from digital texts. However, proper annotation can solve the problem. This section contains links to the most highly-utilized platforms for electronic annotation.

Evernote is one of the two big players in the "digital annotation apps" game. In addition to allowing users to annotate digital documents, the service (for a fee) allows users to group multiple formats (PDF, webpages, scanned hand-written notes) into separate notebooks, create voice recordings, and sync across all sorts of devices. 

OneNote is Evernote's main competitor. Reviews suggest that OneNote allows for more freedom for digital note-taking than Evernote, but that it is slightly more awkward to import and annotate a PDF, especially on certain platforms. However, OneNote's free version is slightly more feature-filled, and OneNote allows you to link your notes to time stamps on an audio recording.

Diigo is a basic browser extension that allows a user to annotate webpages. Diigo also offers a Screenshot app that allows for direct saving to Google Drive.

While the creators of Hypothesis like to focus on their app's social dimension, students are more likely to be interested in the private highlighting and annotating functions of this program.

Foxit PDF Reader

Foxit is one of the leading PDF readers. Though the full suite must be purchased, Foxit offers a number of annotation and highlighting tools for free.

Nitro PDF Reader

This is another well-reviewed, free PDF reader that includes annotation and highlighting. Annotation, text editing, and other tools are included in the free version.

Goodreader is a very popular Mac-only app that includes annotation and editing tools for PDFs, Word documents, Powerpoint, and other formats.

Although textbooks have vocabulary lists, summaries, and other features to emphasize important material, annotation can allow students to process information and discover their own connections. This section links to guides and video tutorials that introduce you to textbook annotation. 

Annotating Textbooks (Niagara University)

This PDF provides a basic introduction as well as strategies including focusing on main ideas, working by section or chapter, annotating in your own words, and turning section headings into questions.

A Simple Guide to Text Annotation (Catawba College)

The simple, practical strategies laid out in this step-by-step guide will help students learn how to break down chapters in their textbooks using main ideas, definitions, lists, summaries, and potential test questions.

Annotating (Mercer Community College)

This packet, an excerpt from a literature textbook, provides a short exercise and some examples of how to do textbook annotation, including using shorthand and symbols.

Reading Your Healthcare Textbook: Annotation (Saddleback College)

This powerpoint contains a number of helpful suggestions, especially for students who are new to annotation. It emphasizes limited highlighting, lots of student writing, and using key words to find the most important information in a textbook. Despite the title, it is useful to a student in any discipline.

Annotating a Textbook (Excelsior College OWL)

This video (with included transcript) discusses how to use textbook features like boxes and sidebars to help guide annotation. It's an extremely helpful, detailed discussion of how textbooks are organized.

Because scholarly articles and books have complex arguments and often depend on technical vocabulary, they present particular challenges for an annotating student. The resources in this section help students get to the heart of scholarly texts in order to annotate and, by extension, understand the reading.

Annotating a Text (Hunter College)

This resource is designed for college students and shows how to annotate a scholarly article using highlighting, paraphrase, a descriptive outline, and a two-margin approach. It ends with a sample passage marked up using the strategies provided. 

Guide to Annotating the Scholarly Article (ReadWriteThink.org)

This is an effective introduction to annotating scholarly articles across all disciplines. This resource encourages students to break down how the article uses primary and secondary sources and to annotate the types of arguments and persuasive strategies (synthesis, analysis, compare/contrast).

How to Highlight and Annotate Your Research Articles (CHHS Media Center)

This video, developed by a high school media specialist, provides an effective beginner-level introduction to annotating research articles. 

How to Read a Scholarly Book (AndrewJacobs.org)

In this essay, a college professor lets readers in on the secrets of scholarly monographs. Though he does not discuss annotation, he explains how to find a scholarly book's thesis, methodology, and often even a brief literature review in the introduction. This is a key place for students to focus when creating annotations. 

A 5-step Approach to Reading Scholarly Literature and Taking Notes (Heather Young Leslie)

This resource, written by a professor of anthropology, is an even more comprehensive and detailed guide to reading scholarly literature. Combining the annotation techniques above with the reading strategy here allows students to process scholarly book efficiently. 

Annotation is also an important part of close reading works of literature. Annotating helps students recognize symbolism, double meanings, and other literary devices. These resources provide additional guidelines on annotating literature.

AP English Language Annotation Guide (YouTube)

In this ~10 minute video, an AP Language teacher provides tips and suggestions for using annotations to point out rhetorical strategies and other important information.

Annotating Text Lesson (YouTube)

In this video tutorial, an English teacher shows how she uses the white board to guide students through annotation and close reading. This resource uses an in-depth example to model annotation step-by-step.

Close Reading a Text and Avoiding Pitfalls (Purdue OWL)

This resources demonstrates how annotation is a central part of a solid close reading strategy; it also lists common mistakes to avoid in the annotation process.

AP Literature Assignment: Annotating Literature (Mount Notre Dame H.S.)

This brief assignment sheet contains suggestions for what to annotate in a novel, including building connections between parts of the book, among multiple books you are reading/have read, and between the book and your own experience. It also includes samples of quality annotations.

AP Handout: Annotation Guide (Covington Catholic H.S.)

This annotation guide shows how to keep track of symbolism, figurative language, and other devices in a novel using a highlighter, a pencil, and every part of a book (including the front and back covers).

In addition to written resources, it's possible to annotate visual "texts" like theatrical performances, movies, sculptures, and paintings. Taking notes on visual texts allows students to recall details after viewing a resource which, unlike a book, can't be re-read or re-visited ( for example, a play that has finished its run, or an art exhibition that is far away). These resources draw attention to the special questions and techniques that students should use when dealing with visual texts.

How to Take Notes on Videos (U of Southern California)

This resource is a good place to start for a student who has never had to take notes on film before. It briefly outlines three general approaches to note-taking on a film. 

How to Analyze a Movie, Step-by-Step (San Diego Film Festival)

This detailed guide provides lots of tips for film criticism and analysis. It contains a list of specific questions to ask with respect to plot, character development, direction, musical score, cinematography, special effects, and more. 

How to "Read" a Film (UPenn)

This resource provides an academic perspective on the art of annotating and analyzing a film. Like other resources, it provides students a checklist of things to watch out for as they watch the film.

Art Annotation Guide (Gosford Hill School)

This resource focuses on how to annotate a piece of art with respect to its formal elements like line, tone, mood, and composition. It contains a number of helpful questions and relevant examples. 

Photography Annotation (Arts at Trinity)

This resource is designed specifically for photography students. Like some of the other resources on this list, it primarily focuses on formal elements, but also shows students how to integrate the specific technical vocabulary of modern photography. This resource also contains a number of helpful sample annotations.

How to Review a Play (U of Wisconsin)

This resource from the University of Wisconsin Writing Center is designed to help students write a review of a play. It contains suggested questions for students to keep in mind as they watch a given production. This resource helps students think about staging, props, script alterations, and many other key elements of a performance.

This section contains links to lessons plans and exercises suitable for high school and college instructors.

Beyond the Yellow Highlighter: Teaching Annotation Skills to Improve Reading Comprehension (English Journal)

In this journal article, a high school teacher talks about her approach to teaching annotation. This article makes a clear distinction between annotation and mere highlighting.

Lesson Plan for Teaching Annotation, Grades 9–12 (readwritethink.org)

This lesson plan, published by the National Council of Teachers of English, contains four complete lessons that help introduce high school students to annotation.

Teaching Theme Using Close Reading (Performing in Education)

This lesson plan was developed by a middle school teacher, and is aligned to Common Core. The teacher presents her strategies and resources in comprehensive fashion.

Analyzing a Speech Using Annotation (UNC-TV/PBS Learning Media)

This complete lesson plan, which includes a guide for the teacher and relevant handouts for students, will prepare students to analyze both the written and presentation components of a speech. This lesson plan is best for students in 6th–10th grade.

Writing to Learn History: Annotation and Mini-Writes (teachinghistory.org)

This teaching guide, developed for high school History classes, provides handouts and suggested exercises that can help students become more comfortable with annotating historical sources.

Writing About Art (The College Board)

This Prezi presentation is useful to any teacher introducing students to the basics of annotating art. The presentation covers annotating for both formal elements and historical/cultural significance.

Film Study Worksheets (TeachWithMovies.org)

This resource contains links to a general film study worksheet, as well as specific worksheets for novel adaptations, historical films, documentaries, and more. These resources are appropriate for advanced middle school students and some high school students. 

Annotation Practice Worksheet (La Guardia Community College)

This worksheet has a sample text and instructions for students to annotate it. It is a useful resource for teachers who want to give their students a chance to practice, but don't have the time to select an appropriate piece of text. 

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• How to Write an Annotation

One of the greatest challenges students face is adjusting to college reading expectations.  Unlike high school, students in college are expected to read more “academic” type of materials in less time and usually recall the information as soon as the next class.

The problem is many students spend hours reading and have no idea what they just read.  Their eyes are moving across the page, but their mind is somewhere else. The end result is wasted time, energy, and frustration…and having to read the text again.

Although students are taught  how to read  at an early age, many are not taught  how to actively engage  with written text or other media. Annotation is a tool to help you learn how to actively engage with a text or other media.

View the following video about how to annotate a text.

Annotating a text or other media (e.g. a video, image, etc.) is as much about you as it is the text you are annotating. What are YOUR responses to the author’s writing, claims and ideas? What are YOU thinking as you consider the work? Ask questions, challenge, think!

When we annotate an author’s work, our minds should encounter the mind of the author, openly and freely. If you met the author at a party, what would you like to tell to them; what would you like to ask them? What do you think they would say in response to your comments? You can be critical of the text, but you do not have to be. If you are annotating properly, you often begin to get ideas that have little or even nothing to do with the topic you are annotating. That’s fine: it’s all about generating insights and ideas of your own. Any good insight is worth keeping because it may make for a good essay or research paper later on.

The Secret is in the Pen

One of the ways proficient readers read is with a pen in hand. They know their purpose is to keep their attention on the material by:

• Predicting  what the material will be about
• Questioning  the material to further understanding
• Determining  what’s important
• Identifying  key vocabulary
• Summarizing  the material in their own words, and
• Monitoring  their comprehension (understanding) during and after engaging with the material

The same applies for mindfully viewing a film, video, image or other media.

Annotating a Text

Review the video, “How to Annotate a Text.”  Pay attention to both how to make annotations and what types of thoughts and ideas may be part of your annotations as you actively read a written text.

Example Assignment Format: Annotating a Written Text

For the annotation of reading assignments in this class, you will cite and comment on a minimum of FIVE (5) phrases, sentences or passages from notes you take on the selected readings.

Here is an example format for an assignment to annotate a written text:

Example Assignment Format: Annotating Media

In addition to annotating written text, at times you will have assignments to annotate media (e.g., videos, images or other media). For the annotation of media assignments in this class, you will cite and comment on a minimum of THREE (3) statements, facts, examples, research or any combination of those from the notes you take about selected media.

Here is an example format for an assignment to annotate media:

• Provided by : Lumen Learning. Located at : http://www.lumenlearning.com/ . License : CC BY: Attribution
• Authored by : Paul Powell . Provided by : Central Community College. Project : Kaleidoscope Open Course Initiative. License : CC BY: Attribution
• Authored by : Elisabeth Ellington and Ronda Dorsey Neugebauer . Provided by : Chadron State College. Project : Kaleidoscope Open Course Initiative. License : CC BY: Attribution
• Annotating a Text. Authored by : HaynesEnglish. Located at : http://youtu.be/pf9CTJj9dCM . License : All Rights Reserved . License Terms : Standard YouTube license
• How to Annotate a Text. Authored by : Kthiebau90. Located at : http://youtu.be/IzrWOj0gWHU . License : All Rights Reserved . License Terms : Standard YouTube License
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Annotating a text, or marking the pages with notes, is an excellent, if not essential, way to make the most out of the reading you do for college courses. Annotations make it easy to find important information quickly when you look back and review a text. They help you familiarize yourself with both the content and organization of what you read. They provide a way to begin engaging with ideas and issues directly through comments, questions, associations, or other reactions that occur to you as you read. In all these ways, annotating a text makes the reading process an active one, not just background for writing assignments, but an integral first step in the writing process.

A well-annotated text will accomplish all of the following:

• clearly identify where in the text important ideas and information are located
• express the main ideas of a text
• trace the development of ideas/arguments throughout a text
• introduce a few of the reader’s thoughts and reactions

Ideally, you should read a text through once before making major annotations. You may just want to circle unfamiliar vocabulary or concepts. This way, you will have a clearer idea about where major ideas and important information are in the text, and your annotating will be more efficient.

A brief description and discussion of four ways of annotating a text— highlighting/underlining, paraphrase/summary of main ideas, descriptive outline, and comments/responses —and a sample annotated text follow:

HIGHLIGHTING/UNDERLINING

Highlighting or underlining key words and phrases or major ideas is the most common form of annotating texts. Many people use this method to make it easier to review material, especially for exams. Highlighting is also a good way of picking out specific language within a text that you may want to cite or quote in a piece of writing. However, over-reliance on highlighting is unwise for two reasons. First, there is a tendency to highlight more information than necessary, especially when done on a first reading. Second, highlighting is the least active form of annotating. Instead of being a way to begin thinking and interacting with ideas in texts, highlighting can become a postponement of that process.

On the other hand, highlighting is a useful way of marking parts of a text that you want to make notes about. And it’s a good idea to highlight the words or phrases of a text that are referred to by your other annotations.

PARAPHRASE/SUMMARY OF MAIN IDEAS

Going beyond locating important ideas to being able to capture their meaning through paraphrase is a way of solidifying your understanding of these ideas. It’s also excellent preparation for any writing you may have to do based on your reading. A series of brief notes in the margins beside important ideas gives you a handy summary right on the pages of the text itself, and if you can take the substance of a sentence or paragraph and condense it into a few words, you should have little trouble clearly demonstrating your understanding of the ideas in question in your own writing.

DESCRIPTIVE OUTLINE

A descriptive outline shows the organization of a piece of writing, breaking it down to show where ideas are introduced and where they are developed. A descriptive outline allows you to see not only where the main ideas are but also where the details, facts, explanations, and other kinds of support for those ideas are located.

A descriptive outline will focus on the function of individual paragraphs or sections within a text. These functions might include any of the following:

• summarizing a topic/argument/etc.
• introducing an idea
• adding explanation
• giving examples
• providing factual evidence
• expanding or limiting the idea
• considering an opposing view
• dismissing a contrary view
• creating a transition
• stating a conclusion

This list is hardly exhaustive and it’s important to recognize that several of these functions may be repeated within a text, particularly ones that contain more than one major idea.

Making a descriptive outline allows you to follow the construction of the writer’s argument and/or the process of his/her thinking. It helps identify which parts of the text work together and how they do so.

COMMENTS/RESPONSES

You can use annotation to go beyond understanding a text’s meaning and organization by noting your reactions—agreement/disagreement, questions, related personal experience, connection to ideas from other texts, class discussions, etc. This is an excellent way to begin formulating your own ideas for writing assignments based on the text or on any of the ideas it contains.

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Annotation Tips

Annotation, which means “to add notes,” is one of the key skills of active reading. By reading with a pen, pencil, or highlighter in hand, the reader can pause to mark important information, reflect on ideas, and monitor his or her understanding. This unit covers how to annotate different types of texts. It also covers how to make sense of visual aids, a common feature of many texts. Click on one of the areas below to learn more.

• Creating an Annotation System: Annotating while you read is the most fundamental technique of active reading. Learn how to annotate a text by watching this video.
• Annotating an Essay or Book: Learn what to look for when annotating an essay or book.
• Annotating a Textbook: Learn how to identify and annotate the key parts of a textbook.
• Annotating a Journal Article: Learn about the different types of academic journal articles and how to annotate them.
• Annotating a Work of Fiction: Learn about how to read and annotate a work of fiction, such as a short story or novel.
• How to Read Visual Aids: Learn how to read visual aids.

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How to Annotate

Last Updated: October 31, 2023 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Alexander Peterman, MA and by wikiHow staff writer, Hannah Madden . Alexander Peterman is a Private Tutor in Florida. He received his MA in Education from the University of Florida in 2017. There are 9 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 338,431 times.

Slogging through a tough text is hard, and it can be even harder if you aren’t retaining the information. Annotating text is a purposeful note taking system that encourages close reading and literary analysis. When you go back to review a book or article, your annotations should help you find important information and jog your memory about relevant information. Your annotation system can be highly personalized, but you should establish your method before you start to read to make it easier on yourself.

Sample Annotations

Highlighting Important Information

• Clearly annotate the thesis and key parts of the argument in an essay. Underline evidence that you find questionable. This will be useful if you want to argue that the author’s thesis is wrong.
• Annotations on works of literature usually identify plot, character, and theme. However, they can also include setting, vocabulary and figurative language.
• If you are reading for pleasure, highlight points that you found very interesting and that you might want to go back to. Consider, for example, annotating quotes that you really like and might want to use later. In addition, if you run across a big idea that changes the way you think, highlight it so that you can return to it.

• Slow down. Read aloud verbally or in your mind. Don't skim through the text.
• You can also underline key terms or put brackets around longer phrases.

• In an essay, the thesis is typically in the first paragraph, but not always. It summarizes the main point or idea of the essay.
• The theme won't be a sentence. Instead, look for the repetition of certain ideas or significant passages (usually during the climax of the story).

• Pens aren’t great since you can't erase it if you make a mistake. It may also take away from the sell-back value if this is a textbook.
• If you choose to use a pen, consider blue. It will stand out from the black text of the book, but it won't detract from it, like hot pink or purple might.
• If you can’t stand to write directly into your book, use Post-It notes instead.

• Most e-book readers will allow you to highlight passages. Some will even allow you to use multiple colors when highlighting the text.
• If you don't have a highlighter, put brackets around the passage instead. You can do this with a pencil or a colored ballpoint pen (i.e.: pink, purple, blue, red, etc).
• If you're a visual learner, you can also artistically annotate important passages by drawing them and then writing an explanation of what your drawing is.
• Stick to highlighting super important information. If your entire text is covered in highlighter, you won’t be able to figure out what’s actually important.

• For example, you may want to circle new vocabulary, box figurative language, underline thematic statements, and place parentheses around descriptions of settings.
• You can use different color highlighters to identify text relevant to character, theme, or setting. You can also use different color highlighters to identify important statements about different characters.
• You can create different symbols to make it easier to identify relevant pages. For example, an asterisk in the margins or top of the page could identify pages with major parts of the argument. You can use arrows to point to quotes that you know you will use during the essay.

• For an e-reader, write a note at the beginning of the text.
• Be as consistent as you can with your symbols so you understand what you were trying to say.

Taking Notes

• A common mistake with annotations is to underline too much and take too few notes. Your notes will help you to make important connections that you can refer to later. Otherwise, you might forget what it was that you found to be important about the underlined section.

• You won't always have to do this, especially if it is an essay.
• Consider making your predictions on Post-it notes or on a separate sheet of paper. This will free up your margins for more important information.

• Keep a list of themes and important figurative elements. This is especially important if you are going to be asked to do a literary analysis or write an essay. You can write these on a separate piece of paper, or on a blank page in the front of the book.
• While you're reading the text, keep track of moments when major characters change or evolve.
• List comments and page numbers under each theme. The more detailed you are, the easier it will be to write a paper and provide evidence.

• In a book, you can write this in the space between chapters. For e-books, write notes at the end of the text in the chapter. You can also write comments on a separate piece of paper or in a word file.
• You can also make a list of reflective questions to ask yourself at the end of every chapter so it's easier to summarize them.

Using Annotations to Understand a Tough Text

• Write these in the margins in pencil or on a separate sheet of paper.
• When you get the answer, go back and write it under the question. If it's too long, write the page or paragraph number that the answer can be found on.

• If there is enough space, you can write the definition under the passage. For example, text books often have several line breaks between paragraphs. Take advantage of these.
• Take note of any key terms as well. Mark these in the passage so that you can see how they are used.

• You can write these directly next to the words as they appear, or you can keep a list on a separate piece of paper to look back on later.

• If, for example, you are reading a book on chemistry, you could number each step necessary to produce a chemical reaction.

Annotating Digital Text

• If you’re using a tablet, you can write on the margins of the PDF with a stylus to take notes.

• Diigo, A.nnotate, and Kindle for PC are a few popular browser extensions for annotation.
• You should note that these browser extensions will often not let you annotate PDFs or word files—they’re for web pages only.

• Once your annotations are turned on, you can use a pen tool, highlight tool, and even share your screen with others so they can see your notes.
• You can also annotate on the Zoom app if you’re using a mobile device.

Community Q&A

• When annotating a book, add your opinion and what you feel about a particular sentence. Thanks Helpful 3 Not Helpful 0
• Remember to erase pencil notations before returning the book to a library or school classroom. Thanks Helpful 3 Not Helpful 2

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://www.kellogg.edu/upload/eng151text/chapter/text-how-to-annotate/index.html
• ↑ https://www.covcath.org/uploaded/06_Students/Annotation_Guide_AP_Language.pdf
• ↑ https://www.hunter.cuny.edu/rwc/handouts/the-writing-process-1/invention/Annotating-a-Text/
• ↑ https://learningcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/annotating-texts/
• ↑ http://www.hunter.cuny.edu/rwc/handouts/the-writing-process-1/invention/Annotating-a-Text/
• ↑ https://research.ewu.edu/writers_c_read_study_strategies
• ↑ https://www.chino.k12.ca.us/site/handlers/filedownload.ashx?moduleinstanceid=34965&dataid=72719&FileName=Annotation%20Guidelines.pdf
• ↑ https://techstyle.lmc.gatech.edu/how-to-annotate-digital-texts/
• ↑ https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/115005706806-Using-annotation-tools-on-a-shared-screen-or-whiteboard

About This Article

Before you annotate a text, read it thoroughly so you can identify the main points or themes that you want to focus on. Next, highlight important passages and use different markings to identify things you want to make note of. For example, you can circle the names of any new characters as they appear, or underline statements relating to the theme. Then, create a legend by listing what each type of annotation means so that you can quickly find it again later. Finally, write an index of your notes on the text by writing down the page numbers and a short description of your observation on a separate paper. For tips from our Education reviewer on how to summarize each chapter in a text, read on! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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Reading and Study Strategies

What is annotating and why do it, annotation explained, steps to annotating a source, annotating strategies.

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What is Annotating?

Annotating is any action that deliberately interacts with a text to enhance the reader's understanding of, recall of, and reaction to the text. Sometimes called "close reading," annotating usually involves highlighting or underlining key pieces of text and making notes in the margins of the text. This page will introduce you to several effective strategies for annotating a text that will help you get the most out of your reading.

Why Annotate?

By annotating a text, you will ensure that you understand what is happening in a text after you've read it. As you annotate, you should note the author's main points, shifts in the message or perspective of the text, key areas of focus, and your own thoughts as you read. However, annotating isn't just for people who feel challenged when reading academic texts. Even if you regularly understand and remember what you read, annotating will help you summarize a text, highlight important pieces of information, and ultimately prepare yourself for discussion and writing prompts that your instructor may give you. Annotating means you are doing the hard work while you read, allowing you to reference your previous work and have a clear jumping-off point for future work.

1. Survey : This is your first time through the reading

You can annotate by hand or by using document software. You can also annotate on post-its if you have a text you do not want to mark up. As you annotate, use these strategies to make the most of your efforts:

• Include a key or legend on your paper that indicates what each marking is for, and use a different marking for each type of information. Example: Underline for key points, highlight for vocabulary, and circle for transition points.
• If you use highlighters, consider using different colors for different types of reactions to the text. Example: Yellow for definitions, orange for questions, and blue for disagreement/confusion.
• Dedicate different tasks to each margin: Use one margin to make an outline of the text (thesis statement, description, definition #1, counter argument, etc.) and summarize main ideas, and use the other margin to note your thoughts, questions, and reactions to the text.

Lastly, as you annotate, make sure you are including descriptions of the text as well as your own reactions to the text. This will allow you to skim your notations at a later date to locate key information and quotations, and to recall your thought processes more easily and quickly.

• Next: Using a Dictionary >>
• Last Updated: Apr 25, 2024 2:50 PM
• URL: https://research.ewu.edu/writers_c_read_study_strategies

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How Students and Teachers Benefit From Students Annotating Their Own Writing

Three ways to integrate annotation into the writing process that are inspired by our Annotated by the Author series.

By Matthew Johnson

A couple of years ago, we began a new series called Annotated by the Author, part of our Mentor Texts collection , in which we invite New York Times journalists, and winners of our student contests, to annotate their work, revealing the writing choices they made and explaining why they made them.

That series inspired Matthew Johnson, a writing teacher at Community High School in Ann Arbor, Mich. , to have his students try annotating their own writing. Below, he tells us how this kind of self-annotation can benefit both students and teachers. He also shares three simple, yet impactful, ways students can “talk” to their own work.

If you’d like to learn more about teaching with Annotated by the Author, and our other Times mentor texts, join us at our live webinar on Thursday, Oct. 21, at 4 p.m. Eastern .

And if you have an idea for teaching with The Times, tell us about it here or browse our full collection of Reader Ideas .

— The Learning Network

The first installment of The Learning Network’s Annotated by the Author series, where the science writer Nicholas St. Fleur dissects his article “ Tiny Tyrannosaur Hints at How T. Rex Became King ,” was an instant hit in my classes, and not just because it had a tiny dinosaur. For many students, the window into the motivations, methods and moves of a seasoned writer opened their eyes to what goes into professional writing and what their own writing can be.

Last year, The Learning Network began to have the winners of their student contests annotate their work, and, like the series, my instruction using these annotated pieces grew as well. We used Abel John’s discussion of citing evidence in his editorial “Collar the Cat” to help us define what makes a source useful and reputable. Varya Kluev’s and Elizabeth Phelps’s insights into descriptive writing were just right to seed a conversation about how to artfully extend metaphors. And just this fall, I shared Ananya Udaygiri’s explanation of why she picked Animal Crossing as the topic for her editorial to help some of my seniors pick the right college essay topics for them.

Choosing a Topic to Write About With Ananya Udaygiri

My name is Ananya Udaygiri And I am the author of ‘How Animal Crossing Will Save Gen Z.’ “Generation Z was born in the aftermath of 9/11, molded by the economic recession of 2008 and polished off by the coronavirus, the worst pandemic in a century, and that doesn’t even include the mounting crisis of climate change or the growing nationalism. Or the gun violence epidemic. Gen Z’s childhood is rooted in issues that would be unrecognizable only a decade prior. We are no strangers to a fight. So what drew us to a Japanese video game about living in a village with anthropomorphic animal neighbors? Like moths to a flame, or perhaps more appropriately, like children to their first love, Animal Crossing has captured the young teenage heart.” How did you choose this topic? So I wrote my essay in April, which obviously, the world was ending in April. So you began looking for those little pockets of calm. And within that I found Animal Crossing, which is this game that my friends and I love. I really wanted to talk about that feeling of peace that is so hard to find. And I was scared going in that I was writing about a video game. But ultimately, it was it was passion. It was something that I was passionate about. So I stuck on with it. “In a New York Times article focusing on Animal Crossing in the age of coronavirus, the author described how Animal Crossing was a miniature escape for those isolated by the pandemic. He labeled it as a bomb for the rushing tonnage of real world news. While that is certainly true, for Generation Z it encompasses all that and more.” I was a little relieved and surprised to find something about Animal Crossing, but actually that article really inspired more of my work because as I was reading through it, I noticed that I was thinking, oh, if only they had talked about how this relates to kids, if only they had talked more about Gen Z. And then I realized that, oh, I can do that. So going into my essay, it was inspired by other things I saw and other things that, more importantly, I wanted to see. “Our generation’s troubles are valid and growing. Buzzfeed News so aptly describes it as a ‘generation free-fall.’ So pick up your video game console. Load in Animal Crossing. Play the game. For Generation Z, Animal Crossing is hope, and it will save us all.” So my advice to any young writers wanting to participate in the contest is don’t feel pressured to choose a topic that doesn’t feel like you. You don’t have to write about political events that you don’t care about. You don’t have to write about economic trends in the stock market. Talk about things that matter to you. I wrote about video games. And I use simple language, but I’m more proud of writing this than any academic paper I’ve written for school.

As I watched these students in the series so thoughtfully dissect their pieces time and again, I also began to wonder why we don’t regularly have students annotate their own work in the classroom. Suggesting that students annotate, or talk to, texts as they read is commonplace, but before the Annotated by the Author series, I’d never seen someone ask students to annotate their own writing. Then, last winter, after reading Maria Fernanda Benavides’s particularly insightful explanation of how she shifted her sentence structure to match her emotions in her narrative “Speechless,” I decided to try having my students annotate their own writing, and I haven’t looked back since.

The Benefits of Annotation for Students and for Teachers

For students, the potential positives of unpacking and explaining their own writing were instantly apparent and significant. These are some of the common advantages I found:

Annotation develops metacognition . The act of annotation is the very definition of metacognition , which is when students think about their own thinking and processes. Engaging in this sort of metacognition has been shown to significantly improve student learning outcomes , in part because it requires students to actively engage in monitoring their own growth instead of relying on the teacher to do it for them.

It positions students as active, serious participants in their own writing growth . Regular annotation of their work also recognizes students as purposeful writers and decision makers who have something to say about their craft, which is very different from how student writers are often approached. This recognition can be both empowering and motivating, especially for students who have often felt that their voices weren’t heard by those around them.

And it makes students better readers. Annotating and unpacking their work can act as a safe training ground for students to learn to better dissect and discuss the work of others in workshops and peer review.

For teachers, student annotation can be equally useful, as it opens up the following opportunities:

It helps us to see students’ thinking. Annotation allows teachers a glimpse into the students’ inner monologues about writing. These monologues can help teachers better plan and calibrate lessons so they meet the needs of students.

It allows us to give more targeted feedback. Teachers can be more precise and responsive when providing feedback to and conferencing with students when that writing has annotations because they allow the teacher to see the student’s mind-set, process, understanding and motivations, and allow the teacher to respond accordingly.

And it reduces our workload. Annotation helps students to more accurately self-assess their work, which can save teachers significant amounts of time when it comes to assessment, even as it helps students better understand and chart their own learning journey.

Three Ways to Have Students Annotate Their Work

Once one starts to look for them, there are numerous places where student annotations of their writing might yield such positive results — so many that I feel I am just scratching the surface. Still, over the last year, I’ve found some particular areas where they’ve made the biggest difference in my classes:

Short, Skills-Focused Assignments

Much of my grammar and rhetoric instruction involves students writing shorter papers where they use a certain grammatical and rhetorical skill in the context of their own writing. I’ve found this type of grammar instruction to be far more effective than the grammar worksheets I used to do, but for many years I also found it more time-consuming to read and assess those extra papers.

This all changed, though, when students started annotating the choices they made. For example, in my class, we do a short unit on the grammatical tools writers can use to add emphasis (colons, dashes, appositives, parallel structure, purposeful fragments and so on). To assess their understanding of these “emphasizers,” I have my students write a rant on any topic that they want and then use the comments feature on Google Docs to explain how, when and why they used the tools we discussed in class.

By using the highlighted comments as a guide, I can now assess these pieces faster because I know exactly where to look. I can also assess them better because I can see in students’ own words how well they understand the concept.

Pre-feedback Moments

Feedback, whether it is from teachers or peers, tends to be a one-way street where the reader responds to the writer and then the conversation largely stops. I have found that while that approach can yield some growth, both peer and teacher responses often have a far larger impact when they are true conversations, especially when they are initiated by the author.

This is why I now have my students write annotations before getting peer and teacher responses to let the reader know what they are thinking, questioning and needing. Here is how I prompt them to do that:

These annotations don’t take long, but they often add a great deal — acting as icebreakers for conversation, ensuring that students get the help they need, and establishing a clear foundation from which both parties can work as collaborators toward improving the student’s piece.

Final Draft Self-Evaluations

More and more educators are growing interested in the idea of having students do meaningful self-assessment of their work in class. Self-assessment adds an additional layer of reflection and metacognition, and it can free up teachers to give feedback in the formative, or early, stages of student work, where it is most effective. Further, students assessing their work first can act as a bulwark against the possibility that students will feel blindsided or injured by grades and assessments because the teacher can see how they feel about their work first.

The trouble with self-assessment is that many students are unaccustomed to doing it, which can lead to problems with accuracy and students feeling unsure about how to evaluate themselves. Requiring students to use annotations to support their specific assessments can help with both of these issues: The act of finding and explaining the scores means that they need to be grounded in evidence, and the very act of looking for that evidence can help to train students in how to better assess themselves.

Here is the slide I use to prompt these kinds of self-assessments:

____________

Annotation can be a potent tool for helping students become better and more savvy readers, so it makes sense that it would also be a potent tool for helping students to become better and more savvy writers. The secret I’ve found to using it, though, is that the annotation needs to be meaningful. As soon as it feels more like a hoop to be jumped through, as can sometimes happen with misapplied classroom-required annotations during reading, all of the advantages of annotating their own work vanish in an instant.

This is why I explain much of what I share above with my students as a way to make a case for the value of annotating one’s own writing. It is also why I now use the essays from The Learning Network’s Annotated by the Author series both as mentor texts for the craft of writing and for the craft of learning how to dissect one’s own work.

Because when it serves a thoughtful purpose, student annotation is one of the most exciting pedagogical tools I’ve found in a long time — one that opens students up to what revision and writing can be, opens up the teacher to providing better and faster feedback and assessment, and generally opens up powerful lines of communication between both parties that often lie dormant.

Annotating Texts

What is annotation.

Annotation can be:

• A systematic summary of the text that you create within the document
• A key tool for close reading that helps you uncover patterns, notice important words, and identify main points
• An active learning strategy that improves comprehension and retention of information

Why annotate?

• Isolate and organize important material
• Identify key concepts
• Monitor your learning as you read
• Make exam prep effective and streamlined
• Can be more efficient than creating a separate set of reading notes

How do you annotate?

Summarize key points in your own words .

• Use headers and words in bold to guide you
• Look for main ideas, arguments, and points of evidence
• Notice how the text organizes itself. Chronological order? Idea trees? Etc.

Circle key concepts and phrases

• What words would it be helpful to look-up at the end?
• What terms show up in lecture? When are different words used for similar concepts? Why?

Write brief comments and questions in the margins

• Be as specific or broad as you would like—use these questions to activate your thinking about the content
• See our handout on reading comprehension tips for some examples

Use abbreviations and symbols

• Try ? when you have a question or something you need to explore further
• Try ! When something is interesting, a connection, or otherwise worthy of note
• Try * For anything that you might use as an example or evidence when you use this information.
• Ask yourself what other system of symbols would make sense to you.

Highlight/underline

• Highlight or underline, but mindfully. Check out our resource on strategic highlighting for tips on when and how to highlight.

Use comment and highlight features built into pdfs, online/digital textbooks, or other apps and browser add-ons

• Are you using a pdf? Explore its highlight, edit, and comment functions to support your annotations
• Some browsers have add-ons or extensions that allow you to annotate web pages or web-based documents
• Does your digital or online textbook come with an annotation feature?
• Can your digital text be imported into a note-taking tool like OneNote, EverNote, or Google Keep? If so, you might be able to annotate texts in those apps

What are the most important takeaways?

• Annotation is about increasing your engagement with a text
• Increased engagement, where you think about and process the material then expand on your learning, is how you achieve mastery in a subject
• As you annotate a text, ask yourself: how would I explain this to a friend?
• Put things in your own words and draw connections to what you know and wonder

The table below demonstrates this process using a geography textbook excerpt (Press 2004):

A common concern about annotating texts: It takes time!

Yes, it can, but that time isn’t lost—it’s invested.

Spending the time to annotate on the front end does two important things:

• It saves you time later when you’re studying. Your annotated notes will help speed up exam prep, because you can review critical concepts quickly and efficiently.
• It increases the likelihood that you will retain the information after the course is completed. This is especially important when you are supplying the building blocks of your mind and future career.

One last tip: Try separating the reading and annotating processes! Quickly read through a section of the text first, then go back and annotate.

Works consulted:

Nist, S., & Holschuh, J. (2000). Active learning: strategies for college success. Boston: Allyn and Bacon. 202-218.

Simpson, M., & Nist, S. (1990). Textbook annotation: An effective and efficient study strategy for college students. Journal of Reading, 34: 122-129.

Press, F. (2004). Understanding earth (4th ed). New York: W.H. Freeman. 208-210.

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How to Annotate an Essay

Kimberley mcgee, 25 jun 2018.

Letting your views and opinions about a topic flow is the point of an annotated essay. It may make some people a little nervous, but it is actually a place where ideas can be explored and communicated. It can be an invitation to let your thoughts on a subject fly.

Explore this article

• Definition of Annotating
• First Steps to Annotate
• Following Through to a Great Ending

1 Definition of Annotating

The key is to highlight major points in the piece and note your thoughts in the margins of the piece that specifically make connections that refer back to the key points. This can assist in preparing for written or verbal exams, studying for potential pop quizzes or cramming for a final exam in an organized way. Annotating a text can also help you to compose a well-crafted written response in your own words for an essay or debate rebuttal.

2 First Steps to Annotate

After reading the piece through, go back with a highlighter in the color of your choice. Do not be hasty in taking the highlighter to the copied piece. Be frugal in what you underline, and only underscore the passages that truly speak to your opinion and support your ideas. Highlight, circle or underline the main points as you go through the piece. If certain words or phrases speak to you, make a point to highlight those. Pay attention to the vocabulary used in the piece. If a word or phrase pops up in more than one place, it can give more support to your piece. Circle important dates, names and other data that is significant to the narrative, history or tone of the piece.

3 Following Through to a Great Ending

Your margin comments serve a few purposes. They label the type of material, either chronologically or in phases that build to the conclusion. Take notes about the paragraph’s topic. Be specific, so you know if it is worth your time to return to that paragraph in pursuit of proving your idea for the full essay or piece that you write. Jot down your reactions.

If a piece moves you in a certain spot, note that for future use as a quote or how it made you feel and supports your thesis. If a piece speaks to you and your past experiences, note that connection in the margins to assist you when you scan the piece for future reference. Consider how the issues brought up in the piece raised questions with your previous notions about the subject. The margins are also a good place to ask questions of the author of the piece if you do not agree with its direction or argument.

• 1 Mineral Area College: Annotating Essay and Text
• 2 University of Central Arkansas: Annotated Essay
• 3 City University of New York: Critically Reading and Annotating a Text

About the Author

Kimberley McGee is an award-winning journalist with 20+ years of experience writing about education, jobs, business and more for The New York Times, Las Vegas Review-Journal, Today’s Parent and other publications. She graduated with a B.A. in Journalism from UNLV. Her full bio and clips can be seen at www.vegaswriter.com.

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Narrative Essay

1.4 annotating a narrative essay.

Instructions:  Read the student essay, “Melon Harvest,” by J. Workman below.  First read the NON-ANNOTATED version, and then compare it to the ANNOTATED version of the same essay. The purpose of annotation is to help you think deeply about a text as you read it. Notice how the annotated comments analyze and respond to the essay.

This is a model for how to engage with and annotate the writing you will encounter in this course.

As you read, be sure to pay attention to the components of a narrative essay and be able to identify them in class discussion.

Melon Harvest (Non-Annotated Version)

By J. Workman

At two in the afternoon I drove the five miles from our apartment complex into downtown Texarkana to drop off voter registration forms and mail paperwork about my recent change in residency to my employer. My husband’s job had brought me to this small city straddling the border of Texas and Arkansas, where everything still felt quaint and unfamiliar.

Driving home down Jefferson Avenue on the Arkansas side of town I passed a grocery store parking lot where a farmer had parked his beat-up truck and shoddy trailer under a faded awning. The trailer was loaded up with the last of his watermelon harvest—late season, probably sweet as they come. The truck bed held early season sweet potatoes. End of the summer fare and beginning of the winter stores, all in one load. The farmer’s back was facing me as he helped a woman buying watermelons. His arms were huge and his shoulders wider than a yardstick. He was tall, big, sunburned on his neck and upper arms.

Without warning, tears filled my eyes. Although this farmer was a stranger to me, I recognized his profile. I knew his stories, including the toil, drudgery and poverty that too often mark a hard-working farmer’s life. That life was just two generations back for me: my Grandma Wanda grew up a farmer’s daughter. Great Grandpa George was a farmer and cowhand and blacksmith and sheep shearer and whatever else he could do to put food on the table.

Although rural communities surrounded Texarkana, somehow I was surprised to see this hardscrabble farmer here, now today. He was the real thing. This man wasn’t like the hippie organic growers at the Santa Monica farmer’s market I visited every Saturday before I moved from L.A. He wasn’t a part-timer coming to town only seasonally with a load of grapes or melons. This man was no immigrant laborer from Mexico or El Salvador or Guatemala who came in the 1990s to work the farms on behalf of the white owners. He was not the descendent of Latin American or Asian laborers who came three generations ago and now own farms themselves.

This was a homegrown, Caucasian, American farmer, but the not-quite-Norman Rockwell kind. He was a “dirt farmer,” as my new neighbor Billy described the type, himself the son of a sharecropper. He grew whatever he could coax out of the land, working those acres generation after generation to hold onto the family homestead. This farmer was young, early thirties perhaps, close to my own age (although you can’t really tell after awhile because farmers take on the age of the earth). Seeing him hit close to home for me, too much a reminder of the hardship and poverty of my own family’s roots, uncomfortably manifest today in another family’s ongoing hardship.

Wiping my eyes, I realized I was projecting all this onto some random roadside farmer, and I didn’t even stop to buy a melon. I thought about it, but I didn’t really want to have to eat a whole watermelon on my own. More than that, I didn’t know how I would explain to him the tears I knew would stream from my eyes as I hefted the melon and counted out the bills.

Turning the corner into our apartment complex I passed the Greyhound station just in time to be a voyeur viewing a private moment between a mother and son. She was sending him off, probably to a city somewhere. He was a big, overweight, sloppy but good-natured looking boy. For the second time tears sprang to my eyes, and I couldn’t say quite say why. After all, my parents put me on a Greyhound bus to go back to college after the holidays one winter. My father said it was a mandatory life experience, taking the bus to school. When I complained, he told me it was good motivation to finish college and get a good job. I can’t say he was wrong about that.

But here in Texarkana my tears flowed again for that mother and son and the harshness of the big city world out beyond this place. I cried for the harshness of my citified eyes judging these homespun people in their quaint small place with its oddities and familiarities, its first names and slow-moving afternoons and churches bigger than stadiums.

I cried for how God must love the humility of a place like this, a town that unobtrusively preserves a Bible in the courthouse and trusts this nation could never do wrong. Perhaps in some ways this is a better place—better than me and the world I’m from. But in some ways it’s also a dying place, dying like a field of vines after the melons are harvested, wilting in the sunlight of America’s finest hour.

Annotated Version

Click on the link to view the annotated version of the essay:   “Melon Harvest,” by J. Workman

• Provided by : Lumen Learning. Located at : http://lumenlearning.com/ . License : CC BY: Attribution
• Melon Harvest. Authored by : J. Workman. License : CC BY: Attribution

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An Easy Guide to Writing an Annotated Essay Structure

Table of Contents

Essays can be long and complicated. That’s because they can go on and, sometimes seem impossible to write.

The following guide helps make them manageable. It will show you when to break down each essay section and which parts can stand on their own as a stand-alone paragraph. It will also help you determine how much of the essay to share as freely as possible and which parts of the article you need to edit.

Creating an Annotated Essay Structure

Before starting your research assignment, your teacher could request you to write an annotated outline. An outline will help you organize your paper’s main ideas and ensure it is supported by research .

Asides the fact that you have to save a lot of time by creating an annotated outline, you can also save time by writing the paper in its entirety. 

1. Start With an Introduction.

The introduction section of your outline should include a thesis statement.

2.The Main Body of Your Paper Should Contain Headings.

While you may make them more or less specific, the main point is to make sure they are related to your thesis statement since they must support it. Your heading should reflect different aspects of your topic. 

3. Make Sure Your Outline Is Straight to the Point.

Only try to make the sections you need because the outline must be concise. Annotated systems usually are at most 2-2. Double spaces appear on five pages. 

4. Include Two or More Supporting Paragraph Headings Under Every Section.

You should write another paragraph if you don’t have at least two paragraph headings in each section. 

5. Subsequent Paragraphs Should Contain Topic Sentences.

You must begin your paragraph with a topic sentence that describes what the section will be about and reflects the arguments that you make in it. When you start a paragraph about rising sea levels near California, you can write a simple sentence like this: Global warming is responsible for rising sea levels near California. 

6. It Is Essential to Provide at Least Two Supporting Examples in Every Paragraph so That Readers Can Understand Why Your Points Are Valid.

It would help if you also mentioned how each paragraph relates to your thesis statement. You may also provide paraphrases and direct references to support your arguments.

7. Provide Data From Interviews and Opinions From Reliable Experts.

Briefly explain the connection between the topic sentence and the evidence from each paragraph in the outline.

8. Let Your Closing Sentence Allow You to Make the Transition From One to the Next

Your content will flow logically from one section to another . As a result, Write a conclusion. You need to rephrase your thesis statement, wrap up the entire paper, summarize the key points, and express some meaningful ideas that will reinforce the thesis and leave your readers with something to think about. 

Your writing should follow the following pattern: Introduction – argument – data (statistics) – your analysis. By doing so, you can always argue with evidence while keeping things clear. Keep your readers focused by following the same structure. 

Abir Ghenaiet

Abir is a data analyst and researcher. Among her interests are artificial intelligence, machine learning, and natural language processing. As a humanitarian and educator, she actively supports women in tech and promotes diversity.

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APA 7th Edition Style Guide

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Annotation Examples Simply Explained

• DESCRIPTION Book with pen and underlined text
• SOURCE Marco Rosario Venturini Autieri / iStock / Getty Images Plus
• PERMISSION Used under Getty Images license

You’ve likely encountered notes in the margins of a book or paper, but you may skip over them or not quite understand why they’re there. Annotations ensure that you understand what is happening in a text when you come back to it, or provide others with valuable information about the text.

Why Use Annotations?

Annotations are used in order to add notes or more information about a topic as well as to explain content listed on a page or at the end of a publication. These notes can be added by the reader or printed by the author or publisher.

Another common use of annotations is in an annotated bibliography which details the information about sources used to back up research. Ultimately, annotations help readers to understand the main text and ensure the reader has all the information they need.

Annotations in Content

Highlighting or underlining key words or major ideas is the most common way of annotating and makes it easy to find those important passages again. You may also find annotations in some texts written by the authors themselves, regarding related topics or expanding on an idea.

Annotations can be used to:

provide reminders

help a reader engage with the text

add context

offer further clarification

How to Annotate

Take notes for a class, prepare for a presentation, book club or any other occasion: You can make your annotations as simple or elaborate as you want. For instance, you can use different color highlighters or sticky notes to color code the text for different things such as:

comments and questions

observations

text you want to quote

use of themes

vocabulary words to look up

Reader Annotations

You can go beyond marking up text and write notes on your reaction to the content or on its connection with other works or ideas. A reader might annotate a book, paper, pamphlet. or other texts for the following reasons:

a student noting important ideas from the content by highlighting or underlining passages in their textbook

a student noting examples or quotes in the margins of a textbook

a reader noting content to be revisited at a later time

a Bible reader noting sources in their Bible of relevant verses for study

an academic noting similar or contradictory studies related to their article or book

Examples of Reader Annotations

In this example, the reader makes notes about the article including their understanding of the material and how they can apply it. Here, the reader asks questions about the text that they want to see answered in the following sections or questions they themselves will address in their own paper.

• DESCRIPTION Notebook With Notes On Margins
• SOURCE ueapun / iStock / Getty Images Plus

Author or Publisher Annotations

Sometimes annotations can be found in the margins of a book, paper, article or other text for various purposes, including:

pronunciation explanations

explanation about a word or information in a sentence

notes from a scholar about the historical context of an event described in the main text

notes from a scientist about the study discussed in the main text

notes made by a realtor on a housing listing

notes from the coroner on an autopsy report

notes in a law book showing related court cases

Example of Author Annotations

Authors, editors, publishers, or others may use annotations to give historical context, explain the meaning of a word, offer insights or highlight information. In this edition of The Art of War by Sun Tzu, annotations are provided to explain the text.

• DESCRIPTION Book with Chapter I. The Art of War, by Sun Tzŭ
• SOURCE Book: artisteer / iStock / Getty Images Plus. / Screenshot: The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Art of War, by Sun Tzŭ
• PERMISSION Under fair use - Screenshot of The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Art of War, by Sun Tzŭ

Annotated Bibliography

Annotated bibliographies should include a brief summary about the source , the value of the source, and an evaluation of the reliability.

The list should be titled Annotated Bibliography or Annotated List of Works Cited. The bibliography should be listed alphabetically by author or title, by date of publication or by subject according to MLA and APA formatting styles .

Examples of Annotations in an Annotated Bibliography

The purpose of an annotated bibliography is to explain how you will use a source and your understanding of the information.

Anxiety Disorder. (2013). NIMH Website. Retrieved from: http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health... This is a comprehensive listing of anxiety-related disorders with descriptions of each disorder and narratives from those who have coped with the symptoms. The site discusses how sufferers can get help and what resources are available. There is information about research currently underway to help with these disorders.The National Institute of Mental Health is a renowned organization committed to the education of individuals on mental health issues as well as research and dissemination of information pertaining to all aspects of mental health. This site is a useful tool to understand anxiety disorders and how they affect those suffering from them. Dimeff, Linda, Koerner, Kelly, and Linehand, Marsha. Dialectical Behavior Therapy in Clinical Practice: Applications across Disorders and Settings. Guilford Press. 2007. Dialectical Behavior Therapy, initially created as a means of treatment for those with bipolar disorder who showed suicidal tendencies, is now a more generalized method of treatment, established as effective for many psychological disorders. This book outlines the method and its increased usage. Guilford Press is a publisher of many reputable books, both scholarly and in the self-help genre, that relate to psychology and psychiatry. The authors are highly knowledgeable in their field of practice making the source highly reliable Magnitude of placebo response and drug-placebo differences across psychiatric disorders. (2004). Psychological Medicine. Retrieved from http://journals.cambridge.org/... This article discusses the usage and effectiveness of various drugs in treatment for myriad psychiatric disorders, including anxiety. Six different disorders were studied using placebos to study the effects Published by Cambridge Press, a respected and renowned publication, this scholarly article is highly informative, and the data considered reliable Self Help Publications. (2013). Anxiety and Depression Association of America. Retrieved from http://www.adaa.org/finding-he... This site is a useful tool to find resources to help those dealing with anxiety-related issues, no matter what the disorder. It is useful for various age ranges, giving information for adults as well as how to help teens or young children. Furthermore, the list offers some informative texts that would be helpful to those whose family members, friends, or other loved ones are trying to cope with anxiety-related disorders. Composed by a reputable organization, the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, this list is a useful means of locating print resources to learn more about anxiety and how to help oneself, or others. Some treatment methods are discussed in detail in some publications, as well, helping researchers and others to better understand some of the specifics of treatment options.

Annotations are one of the best ways to make easy-to-follow notes. Explore other ways you can create notes for a paper or other document.

Annotated Bibliography Examples in APA and MLA Style

Footnote Examples and Format Tips

Ibid: Examples of Usage

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How to Write an Annotated Bibliography Quickly and Easily

Crafting a bibliography for papers is often a challenge for college students and everyone working with academic texts. They try citation generators, refer to style manuals to re-check every comma, or outsource bibliography writing to professional academic writers.

The task becomes even more challenging if the case is an annotated bibliography. What is it, and how can you write an annotated bibliography fast?

Read this detailed guide today to ensure that you’ll professionally craft annotated bibliographies for academic papers tomorrow.

What Is an Annotated Bibliography?

So, what does an annotated bibliography entail?

To “annotate” means to “make notes”, and a “bibliography” is a “reference list” that comes at the end of your academic paper. And here we have it:

An annotated bibliography means adding notes to your references. It’s an overview of the research sources you used in your paper, and it comes in the form of a citation followed by an annotation — a paragraph summarizing and evaluating the source.

It begs the question:

What exactly are you supposed to include in that annotation?

Structure of an annotated bibliography

For every annotation in your reference list, you should provide the following:

• A summary of the reference
• An evaluation of the reference
• The reference’s relevance to your research

In the summary , introduce the purpose of the research, describe how they performed it, and provide their conclusion. This is an easy summary formula you can always apply in your work. In the evaluation , assess the source. Start with what it contains:

• Is it credible?
• Is this research of quality material?
• What is the size of the study? (The scope, the time frame used to conduct the research, etc.)

Once you have it, continue with what it doesn’t contain:

• Is it biased?
• Is it limited in any way due to their perspective ?

As for its relevance , specify how the source is connected to your research. How is its information crucial to your big picture?

Why people write annotated bibliographies

What is the purpose of an annotated bibliography? Depending on your assignment, it might :

• Explore and organize the sources for your further research
• Review the existing literature on your topic
• Examine the scope of the sources available on the subject of your research
• Demonstrate the quality of the sources you’ve revised for your paper ❗ Important : Please distinguish annotated bibliographies from abstracts. While an abstract merely summarizes a source, an annotated bibliography describes and evaluates it.

Four Steps to Writing an Annotated Bibliography

As with a standard list of references, an annotated bibliography is arranged alphabetically by the author’s last name. Annotations should have 100-200 words per citation—check with your teacher, as the word count may vary depending on your assignment.

Below are your four steps to follow:

Step 1: Choose sources

First, you need to choose sources to place in your annotated bibliography. Consider those that are reliable, relevant to your topic, and valuable to your research. What can be a source for your work?

• Scholarly journals
• Academic articles at Google Scholar
• Reputable online resources: New Scientist, Office of National Statistics, The Economist, TED talks, BBC News, etc.

Step 2: Review the chosen items

Organize your sources by content:

• Those setting the foundation for the problem you’re researching
• Those providing evidence to back it up
• Those suggesting a potential solution

(When writing a paper, you will also decide how to integrate all the sources into it. The ways to do that are quoting, paraphrasing, summarizing, and synthesizing.)

Step 3: Write a citation

Now, it’s time to write a citation for every source in your annotated bibliography. Follow the prescribed style — APA, MLA, Chicago, Turabian, IEEE — and format your citations accordingly.

When doubting where to place commas or what words to italicize, address the style’s manual. This is a set of rules for correctly formatting a bibliography and citing sources in the text of your paper.

Each citation style has a detailed manual to follow.

Step 4: Write an annotation

Finally, write an annotated paragraph for every citation in your list:

Briefly summarize the source, evaluate it, and explain why (or how) it’s important for your topic.

You can choose from among four writing styles for your annotation:

• Informative , with a focus on summarizing the source. (Here, you identify the source’s hypothesis, results, and conclusions.)
• Evaluative , focusing on a critical analysis of the source. (Here, you comment on the source’s strengths, weaknesses, and overall relation to your topic.)
• Combined informative/evaluative (the most preferred), providing a more comprehensive view of the source.
• Indicative , focusing on identifying the source’s central theme and included topics.

How to Write an Annotated Bibliography Fast

This section is your step-by-step guide on examining sources for annotated bibliographies. The following strategies will assist you in crafting annotations faster and structuring them so they are more valuable and engaging for readers.

Here are the steps:

1 — Summarize in your own words. Use the source’s headers and subheads to guide you; look for arguments and evidence in bold or italics (as a rule, authors use such formatting to highlight the core information in their work). Paraphrase.

2 — Circle core phrases. When reading and analyzing the source, circle words and phrases that can help you describe and evaluate its content in your annotation.

3 — Write comments in the margins. While reading, leave comments and questions about the source’s statements in the margins. These will activate your analytical skills and help you understand what information to include in the evaluative part of your annotation.

4 — Use abbreviations and symbols. Consider using any system of symbols that makes sense to you. Use “?” for something you need to explore further, try “!” for anything insightful or worthy of noting, place “*” for evidence or counterarguments, etc.

5 — Highlight. When working with PDFs or digital resources, use their built-in comment or highlight features to support your annotations. Consider using your browser’s extensions or add-ons to make notes on web pages.

Also, check if you can import your digital source into a note-taking tool like Evernote or another one of your choice. This can help you annotate texts faster.

Below are several sample annotations, each with a different writing style and research project. How do you understand which style best suits your paper? Consider the purpose of your bibliography and the guidelines of your assignment.

Some annotations merely summarize a source. If that’s your case, consider writing your annotation in an informative style. For example :

Other annotations may focus on evaluating a source and reflecting on its possible uses for your project. If so, try structuring your annotation in an evaluative style. Here’s what it looks like:

The most preferred writing style for annotations is informative and evaluative combined. It provides a source’s summary and evaluation and explains its value for the overall research topic. Such annotations are more comprehensive and may consist of several paragraphs. Like this:

💡 The samples source: How to Write an Annotated Bibliography

✅ More samples to check: Annotated Bibliography Samples in MLA, APA, Chicago

Practical Tips on Writing Annotated Bibliographies

Below, you’ll find a few practical tips to help you write an annotated bibliography faster and make it more engaging and professional.

• Keep each annotation in your bibliography concise. Remember that it shouldn’t extend to one paragraph unless otherwise prescribed in your assignment’s guidelines.
• Don’t include the information a reader can get from the source’s title.
• Use formal language (academic vocabulary) when writing annotated bibliographies.
• Don’t write annotations for in-text citations you use for quotes to draw attention to a specific statement from the source.
• Make the summary part of your annotation brief. Only mention arguments that are significant to your research.
• There’s no need to include the author’s background materials and other works in your annotation. You’re addressing one text at a time, so focus on it and don’t cross reference.
• Remember the referencing style you should use for the citations (APA, MLA, etc.). Praise consistency.

Phew! That’s all, folks. Writing annotated bibliographies doesn’t look terrifying if you read a source carefully and follow the annotation structure:

• Cite a source according to your required referencing style.
• Summarize and evaluate the source.
• Specify its relevance to your research.

Annotations engage readers with the source you describe. So, be brief yet informative, draw connections, and add value.

Do you have any doubts or questions? Remember that you can ask our annotated bibliography writing service with professional writers to quickly help you with your paper.

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