Summaries in Daily Life Unit 1, page 1

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Definit ion

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Definit ion

• A condensed version of text that only includes the main ideas.

• It may consist of :

1. A single word

2. A single phrase

3. Several sentences or paragraphs

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Why Summaries ?

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• The best way to understand any text is to

condense it into its main points.

• Before you can summarize, you must

understand the information that you are

condensing.

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• Summarizing is important when you need to condense ideas from sources like:

Books

Articles

Websites for a research paper.

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Research Paper

Summary & Analysis

• Summary and analysis assignments

require you to express and analyze the

main ideas of a text.

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Points to Be Remembered

• Summaries should be written in your own words

• Should match the tone of the original text

• Should make specific reference to the:Author Title Page(s) of the text

• Should not include any of your opinions

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Steps to Summarizing

Preview

• Title:

A title usually condenses the main idea of the article.

• Subtitle:

The subtitle, caption, or any other words in large print under or next to the title may highlight important ideas

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Preview

• Headings and Subheadings:

They break down the article into sections that relate to the author’s main idea.

• First and last several paragraphs:

The first and last several paragraphs often introduce and conclude the author’s argument or main point

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Preview

• Other Items:

Bold-faced words, pictures, charts, or diagrams can “illustrate” main ideas.

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Read

• Read once through

without stopping.

• Do not focus on the

details during your

first reading.

• Just try to understand

the main idea.

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Evaluate

• Carefully read the text a second time.

• Use the surrounding context to

understand words that are unfamiliar.

Use dictionary!

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Evaluate1. Look for definitions,

examples, lists, tables, graphs, which indicate key terms.

2. Underline important ideas & circle key terms.

3. Note the main idea of each paragraph.

4. Find the author’s main point or argument of the whole entire text.

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Organize1. Start the summary with the title and author of the work.

2. Write the author’s main point or argument in your own words.

3. Write the remaining important ideas in your own words.

• Do not include examples, statistics, specific details, and quotations, if possible.

1. Write the article’s conclusion in your own words.

2. Organize the summary similar to the original text’s organization

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Check List• Make sure that the summary is no more than 20% of the

original.

• Do not use technical words from the original; use your own words as much as possible.

• Do not include too many details from the original.

• Do not plagiarize.

Cite author and page numbers

• Proofread.

• Meet with a tutor at the Writing Center to receive feedback on your summary. 17