Beach Park
Summarizing
Name_____________________________
Circle the correct answer.
Question #1:
Choose the best summary of this paragraph.
"... my family is one of the most distinguished of that
republic... my father had filled several public situations
with honour and reputation. He was respected by all
who knew him for his integrity and indefatigable
attention to public business." - Frankenstein , Mary
Shelley
My family, especially my father, is wellrespected.
Everyone knows my father is trustworthy.
My father has held several important public
offices.
Question #2:
Choose the best summary of this paragraph.
"Then came the night of the first falling star. It was
seen early in the morning, rushing over Winchester
eastward, a line of flame high in the atmosphere.
Hundreds must have seen it, and taken it for an
ordinary falling star." -The War of the Worlds, H.G.
Wells
Early in the morning, many people saw a falling
star.
The sky appeared to be on fire.
Nobody had ever seen a falling star.
Question #3:
Choose the best summary of this paragraph.
"It was John, then, they were all after. And as it was
only through Bernard, his accredited guardian, that
John could be seen, Bernard now found himself, for
the first time in his life, treated not merely normally,
but as a person of outstanding importance." -Brave
New World, Aldous Huxley
John was being chased.
Bernard had never been treated normally.
Bernard began to feel important when he
realized he was protecting John.
Question #4:
Choose the best summary of this paragraph.
"Success went fizzily to Bernard's head, and in the
process completely reconciled him ... to a world which,
up till then, he had found very unsatisfactory... For the
act of criticizing heightened his sense of importance,
made him feel larger." - Brave New World, Aldous
Huxley
Bernard had come out of his shell.
Bernard's success caused him to develop a
critical attitude.
Bernard was successful.
Question #5:
Choose the best summary of this sentence.
"All night long the Martians were hammering and
stirring, sleepless, indefatigable, at work upon the
machines they were making ready, and ever and again
a puff of greenish-white smoke whirled up to the
starlit sky." -The War of the Worlds, H.G. Wells
Green-colored smoke filled the sky.
The Martians were endlessly working on new
machines.
The Martians were sleepy.
Question #6:
Choose the best summary of this paragraph.
"Over the rocks... there was thrust out an evil yellow
face, a terrible animal face, all seamed and scored with
vile passions. Foul with mire, with a bristling beard,
and hung with matted hair... like a crafty and savage
animal who has heard the steps of the hunters." -The
Hound of the Baskervilles, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
The face was terrifying.
The animal was hungry.
An evil, animal-like face emerged over the
rocks.
Question # 7:
Choose the best summary of this paragraph.
"Helmholtz and the Savage took to one another at
once. So cordially indeed that Bernard felt a sharp
pang of jealousy. In all these weeks he had never come
to so close an intimacy with the Savage as Helmholtz
immediately achieved." -Brave New World, Aldous
Huxley
The Savage and Helmholtz were friends
immediately.
Bernard had hoped that Helmholtz would like
him.
Bernard was jealous of Helmholtz and the
Savage.
Beach Park
Summarizing
Name_____________________________
Circle the correct answer.
Question #8:
Choose the best summary of this paragraph.
The bell rang, and Michael, who was impatiently
hoping that Darnell would come home with him that
afternoon (because Michael couldn't wait to beat him
at basketball) jumped and ran to his locker.
Michael couldn't wait to challenge Darnell to a
game of basketball.
Michael was eager to get out of school.
Darnell was coming home with Michael after
school.
Question #9:
Choose the best summary of this paragraph.
"Amy, though the youngest, was a most important
person, in her own opinion at least. A regular snow
maiden, with blue eyes, and yellow hair curling on her
shoulders, pale and slender, and always carrying
herself like a young lady mindful of her manners." Little Women, Louisa May Alcott
Amy was thin and fair-skinned.
Amy had golden hair.
Amy, the youngest, was very lady-like, pretty,
and conceited.
Question #10:
Choose the best summary of this paragraph.
Casey rolled over, opened his eyes for a moment,
looked around, and then once more fell asleep. Sitting
beside him, his mother worried and watched intently
as the sick child slept.
Casey's mother worried about his illness while
Casey slept.
Casey's mother was worried about him.
Casey was sick and was not sleeping well.
Question #11:
Choose the best summary of this paragraph.
"It was a cheerful, hopeful letter, full of lively
descriptions of camp life, marches, and military news,
and only at the end did the writer's heart over-flow
with fatherly love and longing for the little girls at
home." -Little Women , Louisa May Alcott
The letter was light-hearted until the writer
expressed his true emotions in the end.
The letter only told of the writer's many
adventures.
The letter was written carelessly.
Question #12:
Choose the best summary of this paragraph.
Standing in the center of a ring of surprised children,
the principal looked around. "Where did you children
find those firecrackers?" she bellowed.
The principal discovered the students with
firecrackers.
The children were trying to hide the firecrackers
from the principal.
The children were playing with firecrackers.
Question #13:
Which of these phrases should NOT be used in a
summary of this selection?
The drivers frantically raced their cars around the
track, each one hoping to win the ultimate prize.
their cars
to win the prize
frantically raced
Question #14:
Which of these phrases should NOT be used in a
summary of this selection?
The woman stood alone in the pouring rain, wondering
if her tragically horrible day would get any better.
tragically
woman
rain
Question #15:
Which of these phrases should NOT be used in a
summary of this selection?
The close-knit staff of the hospital consisted of 162
nurses, 14 technicians, and 70 doctors.
hospital
doctors
close-knit
Beach Park
Summarizing
Name_____________________________
Circle the correct answer.
Question #16:
Choose the best paraphrase of this paragraph.
Michael had carefully concocted a wild story to explain
why he didn't meet Dwight after school to study. At
the last minute, however, he was plagued with guilt
and resolved to tell his friend his truth.
Michael was planning what he would do next.
Michael told the truth.
Michael had planned to lie, but felt guilty and
decided to tell the truth.
Question #17:
Choose the best paraphrase of this paragraph.
"John Reed was a schoolboy of fourteen years old...
large and stout for his age, with a dingy and
unwholesome skin... heavy limbs and large
extremities. He gorged himself habitually at table,
which made him bilious, and gave him a dim and
bleared eye and flabby cheeks." - Jane Eyre, Charlotte
Brontë
John Reed was a teenager who liked to eat a
lot. He was heavy and had dingy skin.
John Reed was a large fourteen-year-old with
bad skin. Because he overindulged at
dinnertime, he was overweight.
John Reed was a schoolboy who had bleary eyes
and big limbs.
Question #18:
Choose the best summary of this paragraph.
Carlos sat alone on the bench as his best friend Jason
scored the winning goal. Carlos knew that all the
practice in the world could never make him as talented
as Jason, but he hoped and wished every day that
somehow he would magically be transformed into the
greatest soccer player of all time.
Carlos wanted to play goalie at soccer.
Carlos's coach was cruel because he never let
him play.
Carlos was unhappy because was not a great
soccer player.
Question #19:
Choose the best summary of this paragraph.
David glanced up at the clock, hoping it was almost
time to go home. He had a date with Darla and was
counting the minutes until he could see her beautiful
face. To his disappointment, he still had forty-five
minutes of work left. His heart sank, knowing that
those minutes would seem more like hours. Time was
dragging because…
David couldn't wait to see Darla.
David hated his job and was bored.
David always knew the time when he was at
work.
Question #20:
Choose the best summary of this paragraph.
"The first place that I can well remember was a large
pleasant meadow with a pond of clear water in it.
Some shady trees leaned over it, and rushes and
water-lilies grew at the deep end." - Black Beauty ,
Anna Sewell
The first place in my memory is a meadow with
a pond.
The pond was deep.
There were shade trees and water-lilies near
the pond.
Question #21:
Choose the best summary of this paragraph.
"And soon the dogs were all tearing down the field of
young wheat next to ours. I never heard such a noise
as they made. They did not bark, nor howl, nor whine,
but kept on a 'yo! yo, o, o! yo! yo, o, o!' at the top of
their voices." - Black Beauty, Anna Sewell
The dogs were running in a field next to us.
The dogs made strange noises as they ran
through the field.
The full moon made the coyotes howl.
Question #22:
Choose the term that indicates a generalization.
Six angry people talked about the verdict using loud
voices and absurd statements. They all were a little
crazy.
six
all
angry
Beach Park
Summarizing
Name_____________________________
Circle the correct answer.
Question #23:
Choose the term that indicates a generalization.
Zach and Scott were always together. They attended
all the baseball games together, and shared a locker at
school.
shared
baseball
always
Question #24:
Choose the term that indicates a generalization.
Every night was the same. Mom cooked dinner while
Rosie did her homework. When Dad came home, he
changed clothes and the family dined together.
dinner
clothes
every
Question #25:
Choose the term that indicates a generalization.
Mrs. Bailey knew that her class had not studied for the
test because they all entered her classroom nervously.
studied
nervously
all
Beach Park
Summarizing
Answer Key
1. My family, especially my father, is well-respected.
2. Early in the morning, many people saw a falling star.
3. Bernard began to feel important when he realized he
was protecting John.
4. Bernard's success caused him to develop a critical
attitude.
5. The Martians were endlessly working on new
machines.
6. An evil, animal-like face emerged over the rocks.
7. Bernard was jealous of Helmholtz and the Savage.
8. Michael couldn't wait to challenge Darnell to a game
of basketball.
9. Amy, the youngest, was very lady-like, pretty, and
conceited.
10. Casey's mother worried about his illness while Casey
slept.
11. The letter was light-hearted until the writer
expressed his true emotions in the end
12. The principal discovered the students with
firecrackers.
13. frantically raced
14. tragically
15. close-knit
16. Michael had planned to lie, but felt guilty and
decided to tell the truth.
17. John Reed was a large fourteen-year-old with bad
skin. Because he overindulge
18. Carlos was unhappy because was not a great soccer
player.
19. Time was dragging because David couldn't wait to
see Darla.
20. The first place in my memory is a meadow with a
pond.
21. The dogs made strange noises as they ran through
the field.
22. all
23. always
24. every
25. all