Main Idea, Details, and Summarizing

What is a summary?

• a short explanation of a text
• a persuasive argument about a text
• a movie based off a book
• a theme or universal lesson

Tags

CCSS.RI.4.9

CCSS.RI.5.9

CCSS.RL.4.2

CCSS.RL.5.2

CCSS.RL.6.2

When would you most likely summarize a book? 

• when you want to forget a book you've read
• when you want to tell a friend your opinion of a book but not what it was about
• when you want to tell a friend the gist or the main idea of a book
• when you don't understand a vocabulary word you read in a book

Tags

CCSS.RI.4.9

CCSS.RI.5.9

CCSS.RL.4.2

CCSS.RL.5.2

CCSS.RL.6.2

A summary should

• answer the 5 W's: who, what, when, where, and why.
• describe the details but not the main ideas.
• never mention the plot of the text.
• always mention the age of the author.

Tags

CCSS.RI.4.9

CCSS.RI.5.9

CCSS.RL.4.2

CCSS.RL.5.2

CCSS.RL.6.2

Which of the following questions should you definitely answer in a summary of the novel My Funny Friend Fiona?

• What's Fiona's neighbor'd favorite color?
• What happens to Fiona?
• Is My Funny Friend Fiona a boring book?
• How long did it take you to read My Funny Friend Fiona?

Tags

CCSS.RI.4.9

CCSS.RI.5.9

CCSS.RL.4.2

CCSS.RL.5.2

CCSS.RL.6.2

You should write your summary

• in your own words with complete sentences
• in a secret language that your make up
• in one draft without revising
• in fragments without punctuation

Tags

CCSS.RI.4.9

CCSS.RI.5.9

CCSS.RI.6.2

CCSS.RL.4.2

CCSS.RL.5.2

What can you summarize?

• only novels
• only nonfiction
• only movies
• anything you read or watch

Tags

CCSS.RI.4.9

CCSS.RI.5.9

CCSS.RL.4.2

CCSS.RL.5.2

CCSS.RL.6.2

For the walls, Jenny thought she would use a bright yellow paint. She would pick a border that had mostly bright red and green colors, and maybe a little bit of blue. She already had found some curtains that were sky blue with streaks of red, blue and yellow that she thought would go great with the walls. And finally, she had picked a carpet that was mostly blue with specks of red and yellow. Jenny couldn't wait till she was done decorating her room. It was really going to look awesome.

The best summary of this passage is:

• Jenny likes bright colors.

• Jenny was going to paint her room.

• Jenny was picking out colors and materials to decorate her room.

• Yellow is a good color to paint your walls.

Tags

CCSS.RI.5.9

CCSS.RI.6.2

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RL.6.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

Julie watched the ants as they carried small crumbs down the trail to the anthill. She thinks ants are very hard working and industrious little creatures. They always seemed busy, and you never saw an ant just laying around doing nothing. They were carrying food, building tunnels, or defending the anthill. One thing you could say about ants is that they sure aren't lazy.

The best summary of this passage is:

• Ants carry many things.

• Some ants may bite you.

• Ants are hard workers.

• Some ants help take care of the queen.

Tags

CCSS.RI.5.9

CCSS.RI.6.2

CCSS.RL.5.2

CCSS.RL.6.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

When some people think about Texas, they think of cowboys on the open range-herding cattle up a dusty trail. However, Texas has much more than open prairie with large herds of cows. There are the mountains of West Texas, the piney hills of east Texas, and the emerald waters off the coast of Padre Island. Texas also has large coastal harbors with numerous sailboats, powerboats, inland lakes, rivers, swamps of southeast Texas with alligators and other exotic wildlife.

What is the main thing the author is trying to tell us?

• There are many different, varied parts of Texas.

• There are a lot of cows in Texas.

• There are alligators in the swampland of southeast Texas.

• Texas is one of the biggest states in the United States.

Tags

CCSS.RI.6.2

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RL.5.2

CCSS.RL.6.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

A key detail is...

• A life lesson that the author is trying to communicate to us.

• An important point in the text that might be used in the summary.

• Reveals the main characters in the story.

• Is the main point the author is trying to make about the topic.

Tags

CCSS.RI.3.2

CCSS.RI.4.2

CCSS.RL.3.1

CCSS.RL.3.2

CCSS.RL.4.1