When taking notes, you must be very careful to make it clear whether you are quoting or paraphrasing. Either paraphrase or quote, but do nothing in between. These are your only options . Anything between the quotes must appear exactly as it does in the original. Do not put paraphrased material in quote marks.
Primary sources are the best candidates for direct quotation.
Avoid quoting from secondary sources. You can summarize important points from a secondary source by paraphrasing, but be sure to provide a citation. It is difficult to integrate quoted material into a sentence and maintain a grammatically correct sentence. You should never quote material without integrating it into your own writing. A sentence can never consist entirely of a quote.