Summarizing
Getting to the Point
What is a summary?
• A summary is a shortened passage, which
retains the important and necessary
information of the original. It is a fairly brief
restatement --- in your own words ---of the
contents of a passage.
• Note: you simply report back what the
writer has said, without making value
judgments (giving your opinion).
What is a Summary?
A summary is a shortened version
of an original text. It includes the
main idea and major supporting
points, and should reveal the
relationship between the major
points and the main idea.
Summarizing is a powerful
reading
strategy. It increases
comprehension and
retention of information.
When you summarize, you
restate the most important
information of a text, using
your own words.
Summary
Short account of the central ideas of a text
Summaries are not a place for…
 Opinions
 Background knowledge
 Personal information
How To Summarize
1. Read the text.
2. Don’t let big words scare you.
3. Ask, “What was this text about?”
Your Answer…
 Should cover main point and key ideas
 Should be in your own words
 Shouldn’t just be a word or two
Good readers summarize. As they
read, they pause to sum up the important
ideas or events.
This helps them remember the information.
As you read a story, note the main
events.
After you read, ask yourself what the main
events were and in what order they
occurred.
Steps in writing a summary
 Read the article
To understand the article and find
the general theme.
 Reread the article
Divide into sections and label each
section.
Understand the important parts.
 Write one-sentence summaries
Summarize each section of thought.
Should It Go in My Summary?
Only major ideas and necessary
information should go into a summary.
Ask yourself:
“Do you need this information to
understand the text?”
If the answer is yes, put it into your own
words in your summary.
Main Idea and Key Points
The main idea is what the text is about.
Key points are arguments or information
that is used to support the main idea.
Key points may be developed or elaborated
with supporting details.
Your summary should only include main
ideas and key points, not supporting details.
Summarizing is:
• Keeping
• Deleting
• Paraphrasing
Keeping
Keep only the
important information and
main ideas.
Deleting
Do not include supporting
details in your summary.
Paraphrasing
Use your own words!!!
Organizers
The following 2 slides show
examples of organizers that
will assist you with
summarizing.
- Topic:
Main Idea:
exam
To summarize a
story, you need to
include the
narrative elements.
You should include
the setting, the
main characters,
the problem and
the resolution.
Important details
that take you from
the problem to the
resolution should
be included in the
summary.
Summary
Your Turn!
Example Text
A penny for your thoughts? If it’s a 1943
copper penny, it could be worth as much as
fifty thousand dollars. In 1943, most pennies
were made out of steel since copper was
needed for World War II, so, the 1943 copper
penny is ultra-rare. Another rarity is the 1955
double die penny. These pennies were
mistakenly double stamped, so they have
overlapping dates and letters. If it’s
uncirculated, it’d easily fetch $25,000 at an
auction. Now that’s a pretty penny.
.
.
T
.
.
Incorrect Example Response 1
This text is about pennies.
 This response is too short.
 It does not include key ideas.
Incorrect Example Response 2
The 1943 copper penny is worth a lot of
money. Copper was hard to get during the
war so there aren’t many of them. The 1955
double die penny is worth a lot too. These
pennies were stamped twice on accident.
 Too much unnecessary stuff.
 Main idea is not clear.
Correct Example Response
This text is about two very rare and
valuable pennies: the 1943 copper penny
and the 1955 double die penny.
 Includes key information.
 Doesn’t include unnecessary information
 Is a complete sentence.
Practice
Summarizing nursery rhymes.
Directions
1. We will read each nursery rhyme.
2. Summarize the nursery rhyme in as few
words as possible.
3. Include key information.
4. We will discuss our answers.
1
The itsy bitsy spider
Climbed up the water spout
Down came the rain and
Washed the spider out
Up came the sun and
Dried up all the rain
And the itsy bitsy spider
Climbed up the spout again.
2
Humpty Dumpty
Sat on a wall.
Humpty Dumpty
Had a great fall.
All the King's horses
And all the King's men
Couldn't put Humpty
Together again.
3
Old Mother Hubbard
Went to the cupboard
To give her poor dog a bone.
But when she got there
The cupboard was bare,
And so the poor dog had none.
4
Jack and Jill went up the hill,
To fetch a pail of water.
Jack fell down and broke his crown,
And Jill came tumbling after.
Up Jack got and home did trot,
As fast as he could caper,
And went to bed to mend his head
With vinegar and brown paper.
5
Little Miss Muffet
Sat on a tuffet,
Eating some curds and whey.
Along came a spider
Who sat down beside her
And frightened Miss Muffet away.
Example Answers
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
A spider fell but got up again.
An egg fell and was irreparably broke.
An woman had no food to feed her dog.
A boy fell, hurt his head, and bandaged it.
A spider scared away a girl.
Summarizing
Let’s practice
One paragraph at a time…
Example paragraphs…
A tornado is a powerful, twisting windstorm.
It begins high in the air, among the winds of
a giant storm cloud. People who have
watched a tornado’s howling winds reach
down from the sky have said it’s the most
frightening thing they have ever seen. In
some parts of the United States, these
windstorms are called twisters or cyclones.
Main Idea
Supporting
Detail
Supporting
Detail
Supporting
Detail
Main idea and supporting details
Tornado is
powerful, twisting
windstorm
Part of giant
storm cloud
Frightening
Also called
twister
or cyclone
Sentence Summary…
Tornadoes are frightening,
powerful, twisting windstorms
sometimes called twisters or
cyclones that start in giant
storm clouds.
Tornadoes cont…
Tornadoes are not the only whirling
windstorms that move through the earth’s
air. Dust devils, hurricanes and typhoons
all have twisting winds. But these
windstorms differ from tornadoes in
important ways.
Main idea and supporting
details
Dust devils, hurricanes,
and typhoons have
twisting winds
Whirling windstorms
Differ from tornadoes
Sentence Summary…
Dust devils, hurricanes and typhoons
also have twisting winds, but they are
different from tornadoes.
People used to play football bareheaded.
After many injuries, players began to use
plain, leather caps. Plastic helmets and
masks appeared later. Still, many players
were getting hurt. To make helmets better,
designers studied
--- woodpeckers! Their tough, spongy skulls
became the model for modern football
helmets.
Steck-Vaughn - Comprehension Skills - Main Idea - Level F.
Pg. 34
Now, summarize the text
from the previous slide.
Remember to paraphrase.
Your summary should only
be a few sentences.
Here is an example of a summary
for the passage you read.
During football’s early days, many
injuries occurred due to little or no
head protection. Improved football
helmets were designed using
woodpecker skulls as a model.
Your summary and
paraphrase will not be
exactly the same as the
example shown.
However, it should
include the following
important details.
• Football was originally
played with little or no head
protection
• Injuries occurred
• Improved helmets/head
protection were modeled
after woodpecker skulls
Summarizing, Paraphrasing, and
Quoting
• You can borrow from the works of other
writers as you research.
• As a good writer, you should
summarize, paraphrase and quote to
blend source materials in with your
own.
• But you should make sure your own
voice is heard!
REMEMBER
• Summaries are short restatements of a work's main
points.
• When writing a summary, be sure to record the
work's major ideas.
• Summaries condense a text's main ideas into a few
concise sentences.
• A summarized work is always much shorter than the
original.
• A summary should be written in your own words.
Remember to
summarize as
you read. It will
help you remember
the information.