Summarizing Literary Text

Sally was invited to her friend Jacey's birthday party. Sally was excited to go, and she even got a new outfit for the special occasion. The entire third grade was going to be there. This was one issue: Sally needed to get Jacey a birthday gift, and the vanilla perfume she had picked out, was already bought by Mary. What was Sally going to do? She decided to be creative and make Jacey a birthday card. She also bought Jacey a candle in her favorite scent: vanilla. What is the best summary of the passage?

• Sally was invited to Jacey's birthday party and needed a gift.

• Sally was going to bring Jacey a vanilla candle for her birthday, but it was already bought by Mary. Sally decided to bring Jacey a birthday card and vanilla canlde instead.

• Mary bought the vanilla perfume for Jacey.

• The birthday party was going to be huge because the entire third grade will be there.

When you write a summary, which details do you need to include?

• All of them

• Important Major Details

• Minor Details

• None

Should you ask yourself who, what, when, where, why, and how when you are searching for details for your summary?

• Yes

• No

What should a summary include?

• Important Details

• Main Characters

• Setting and Plot

• Problem and Solution

What does it mean to "summarize" a text or story?

• The mood implied by an author's word choice

• Recounting the main idea or most important details of a text or story

• The sequence of events in fiction or drama

• The words an author uses to support their purpose in a text

Which summary best summarizes the text?

• Brianna spends some vacation time with her family on an island. She learns interesting facts about the island. She hopes to return there again.

• At first Brianna is not sure about her vacation. After spending a little time with her cousin and uncle, she starts to enjoy herself more. Her aunt cooks lobster for dinner.

• Brianna walks around a small island. She does this many times because the island is small and she is bored. Brianna does not want to spend time with her cousin.

• At first Brianna doesn’t want to spend a month on an island. Soon she is surprised to find herself enjoying many things there with her cousin. Brianna hopes to return next summer.

To capture all of the most important parts of the original text (paragraph, story, poem), but express them in a much shorter space, and as much as possible in the reader’s own words.

• summarize

• annotate

• explanation

• note

A brief retelling of the major events, individuals, and ideas in a text or section of text.

• Summary

• excerpt

• Dialogue

• Claim

What is the purpose of "Summarize" in literature?

• To rewrite the entire text in a different language.

• To capture all of the most important parts of the original text and express them in a much shorter space.

• To analyze the grammatical structure of the text.

• To describe the characters in detail.

A significantly shortened version of source material that captures main ideas in your own words

• Allusion

• Simile

• Analyze

• Summarize