Summarizing

needed; necessary; extremely important.

• essential

• plot

• oipinion

• explanation

the events in a novel, movie, etc.

• essential

• opinion

• fact

• plot

a belief, judgment or thought about something or someone.

• essential

• explanation

• opinion

• detail

a statement, piece of writing, etc. that tells how something happens, works or is made.

• explanation

• main idea

• relevant

• detail

something real or true.

• plot

• relevant

• fact

• detail

a particular; a small part of something.

• relevant

• main idea

• explanation

• detail

appropriate and related to the subject

• detail

• relevant

• plot

• essential

the central idea in a story or text; what a text is mostly about.

• main idea

• explanation

• detail

• fact

When you summarize a book, you find its essentials. You think about what you’ve read and decide what matters most. That’s why summarizing builds critical-thinking skills. Summarizing can help you focus on the most important parts of a text and keep them organized in your head. It makes it easier to understand and remember what you’re reading.

According to this passage, why are you building critical-thinking skills when you summarize?

• because you’re evaluating the text to decide what’s most important

• because you’re critiquing the text to determine if it was interesting or boring

• because you’re using your imagination to write a new ending

• because you’re combining what you’ve learned in one text with your background knowledge

Cynthia and the Spaceship is a novel by Evelyn Redding. In the book, Cynthia, the main character, overcomes a challenge to accomplish her dream of owning a spaceship. The novel is set in Chicago in the year 2150.

Which of the following would improve this summary?

• cutting the final sentence

• adding details about the challenge Cynthia faces in the novel

• adding details about what the spaceship looks like

• cutting the title and the author of the book