Write a citation plus a concise annotation -- summary, credibility note, and relevance note -- for each of at least four sources.
An annotated bibliography is a citation for each source plus a short paragraph, the annotation, doing three jobs: summarizing what the source says, evaluating its credibility, and explaining its relevance to your specific research question. This is different from a plain Works Cited list, which is only citations with no evaluation.
The annotation is where a writer proves genuine understanding, not just collection. Done well, it becomes a real tool: a mini version of each source, ready to reference while drafting, instead of having to reread everything from scratch next week.
Mastery looks like: They write a complete citation-plus-annotation, in their own words, covering summary, credibility, and relevance, for at least four sources.
Common stumbles: Copying a summary from the source itself instead of restating it, or skipping the credibility and limitation evaluation.
See it visually
Interactive, spoken-aloud tools that show this idea in motion.