Session 1 – The Open Response Paragraph Questions
Be an Active Reader! ...Read for Meaning!
There is a formula for making conclusions/judgements about what you’re reading
Remember – you do it every day! ...apply those same strategies to reading!
1. What Do You See/Read?
 Look at the Text (pictures, shapes, details) & Gather Some Facts
2. What Do You Already Know About What You See/Read?
 What does it remind you of? What questions come to mind? What
assumptions do you make based on things you know?
3. What Can You Infer/Conclude?
 Use what you already know, ask yourself more questions, gather more
facts from the text and make a judgement... a logical conclusion. This is
how you figure out what’s going on in the text. This is how you read for
meaning.
Don’t Leave Any Blanks! If you get stuck – use the formula to
guide your writing!
Session 1 – The Summary
Understand the purpose of Summarizing!
Summarizing is how we take larger selections of text and reduce them to their bare essentials:
the gist, the key ideas, the main points that are worth noting and remembering.
A summary is a short statement that has the important points of a subject, event, text, etc.
In a summary, the main point is selected and supported with details.
The purpose of a summary is to pass a message across in a short period of time.
Bring it down to the basics!
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Strip away the extra words and unnecessary examples
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Focus on the heart of the matter
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Find the key words and phrases that capture the gist of the reading
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Capture the main ideas and the crucial details necessary for support
This is Not New
Have you ever gone on a holiday, went somewhere new, played a game, watched a movie, ate
dinner, gone on a date, read a book, gone to school, had an argument, went to a party, had a
crush on someone?
Now, if you’ve experienced one of the above and told someone about it, you have already used
the mystical skill of SUMMARIZING!
Let’s check.
 This is what you do when you tell a story, share something, write a tweet
 There’s no time to tell everything, so you focus on the important details
 We just need to tap into this skill and apply it to the literacy test
Be an Active Reader! ...Read for Meaning
Read ACTIVELY:
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Look to the beginning and end for the main idea
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Circle the main idea
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Underline supporting details
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Cross out unnecessary words and ideas
Use the Rough Space! ...they sometimes look to your rough
notes to give you points!
Ask yourself the following questions and answer them in the rough section provided:
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What happened?
Who was involved?
Why did this happen?
What is essential to tell?
What was the outcome?
What is unnecessary and what is essential?
Don’t Leave Any Blanks! If you get stuck – use the formula to
guide your writing!
The main idea of this selection is _____________________. One detail/reason/
effect/example that supports this is _______________. Another supporting detail/
reason/ effect/example is ________________. This is important because _____
________________________.
YOU GOT THIS!!
For more practice opportunities visit:
http://www.eqao.com/Parents/Secondary/10/10.aspx?Lang=E&gr=10
To review this PowerPoint, and general information about the test, visit:
http://stamford.dsbn.org/student-services/literacy-test
For eve more tips – check out this You Tube Video!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZliJBb8ba5Q
The Questions You Worked On Today
The Open Response Paragraphs & The Summary
Try this one on your own! Check your answer by visiting Stamford’s Literacy Webpage.