Summarize Text

8. A nonfiction summary should usually be about how long?

• about one half of the original

• about one tenth of the original

• about the same length as the original

• just one good sentence

A summary does what?

• nothing

• tells an opinion

• makes an educated guess

• is a shorter way to explain a text with important information or key points

Read the following fairy tale. A young boy named Jack trades his only cow for beans that he’s told are magic. When he brings the beans home, his mother doesn’t believe that they are magic and becomes angry with Jack. Against his mother’s advice, Jack plants the beans. A huge beanstalk grows. Jack climbs it and finds a giant’s house full of treasure. He takes the treasure from the house and runs away as the giant chases him down the beanstalk. Jack reaches the ground and is able to chop down the beanstalk. He keeps the treasure. Choose the best summary of this fairy tale’s plot.

• After climbing a magic beanstalk, Jack takes treasure from a giant’s house, is chased down a beanstalk and chops it down before the giant can catch him.

• Jack trades his only cow for magic beans and plants them. They grow into a beanstalk.

• Jack’s mother sends him out to sell their only cow, becomes angry that her son trades the cow for beans and scolds him.

• Jack loves his only cow but chooses to believe that the beans he trades her for are magic.

In a summary, how should the events of the story be presented?

• In the order they happened.

• In reverse order.

• In any order.

• In alphabetical order.

Which summaries fit the story? Choose ALL that apply

• Quinn went her friend's sleepover and had fun. But, she then wanted to leave, so she went home.

• Quinn went to a sleepover and ate popcorn and played, but she left during it.

• Quinn went to her dumb friend's sleepover and did nothing.

• Quinn wet to a sleepover

Read the passage and choose the best summary.

• A

• B

• C

Rosa Parks has been called the "mother of the civil rights movement." She is one of the most important people of the 20th century. In December of 1955, she refused to give up her seat on a city bus to a white passenger. The bus driver had her arrested. She was sent to court. She was found guilty of breaking the law. Her act sparked a boycott of the bus system by blacks. Blacks refused to use the buses for more than a year. The boycott introduced the country to a man named Martin Luther King, Jr. People all over the country came to know King. Soon, the U.S. Supreme Court made segregation on city buses against the law. Over the next forty years, Rosa Parks helped make Americans aware of the history of the civil rights struggle. She earned many honors, including the Martin Luther King Jr. Nonviolent Peace Prize. She is an example of courage and strength. She inspires all Americans to live free. The summary of this passage is:

• Rosa Parks was arrested for not giving up her seat on a bus to a white passenger. Then, the buses were boycotted, and Martin Luther King, Jr., became very well known. He had a prize named after him.

• Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to a white passenger on a bus. The bus driver had her arrested, and then she was found guilty of breaking the law. She was important to American history.

• Rosa Parks boycotted the bus system. This boycott brought Martin Luther King, Jr., to the front of the civil rights movement. People all over the country got to know Martin Luther King, Jr.

• Rosa Parks was an important person of the 20th century. She refused to give up her seat on a bus, which led to a boycott of the bus system. She earned many honors for her work in the civil rights movement.

You should be able to understand what a story is about when you read the summary.

• True

• False

Which sentence should be included in an objective summary of "Out of the Death Zone"?

• The author should not have included the information about the corpses along the trail.

• I was scared when Poorna was low on oxygen.

• The article is mainly about Poorna Malavath and her quest to climb Mount Everest.

• Poorna played volleyball.

What is the primary purpose of summarizing a text?

• To provide a detailed analysis of the text

• To offer a shorter version with key points

• To rewrite the text in a different style

• To critique the author's writing