An annotated bibliography is an organized list of books, articles, reports, films, websites or any other source you have found on your topic. Each source is listed in the citation format that your class is using (ie, MLA, APA, Chicago, etc.). The citations are listed in alphabetic order, just as you would list them in a bibliography or works cited list at the end of a paper.

Under each citation is the annotation. This is a brief description of your source, and summary of its contents. This should not be exhaustive, but just help you remember what the source is about, and give your instructor an idea of the types of research you have found. This will probably be a paragraph with 3-5 sentences.

At the end of the paragraph, write 2-3 sentences about how this source will help with the argument of your paper.  Is it relevant to your topic or argument? Is there anything notable about the author?  Does it provide specific examples or have images or graphics you will use in your paper? It is OK to conclude in your annotation that this source is not useful.