Summary Writing

You should write your summary

• in your own words with complete sentences

• in a secret language that you make up

• in one draft without revising

• in fragments without punctuation

Which of the following statements about SUMMARIZING is FALSE?

• The summary is what all or most of the sentences or paragraphs are about.

• The summary is what the passage is mostly about.

• The summary is usually found in more than just one sentence of the passage

• The summary is one isolated thought in a passage.

Summaries help me...

• understand what I'm reading

• write about what I read

• include the key points of a text

• all of the above

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 an 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.

The Summary of this passage is:

• Texas is known for cowboys.

• There are many different, varied parts of Texas.

• Texas is a concrete jungle.

• The highlight of Texas is its emerald waters.

San Francisco is located on the coast of California in an area often called the Bay Area. The weather is generally very mild, seldom getting really cold or really hot. Its mild climate is one reason many people live there. It seldom snows in San Francisco and generally does not get below freezing during the winter. Even in the middle of summer, temperatures may be in the mid-80s with a cool breeze from the bay keeping the weather very comfortable.

The Summary of this passage is:

• San Francisco freezes during winters.

• San Francisco experiences extreme weather conditions.

• People dislike living in San Francisco

• The weather in San Francisco is generally very mild.

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 Summary of this passage is:

• Ants carry many things.

• Ants only defend their territory.

• Ants are hard workers.

• Ants are lazy.

What does condense mean in Summary Writing?

• To make shorter.

• To make longer.

• To make more interesting.

• The conversion of vapour or gas to a liquid.

What is a summary?

• A shortened version of a longer passage.

• A more concise version of a longer passage.

• A shortened, more concise version of a longer passage in your own words.

• A juicy, lengthy recap of the details.

What is the purpose of a summary?

• To make life difficult for students.

• To facilitate people who are easily bored.

• To make everything easier to read.

• To provide the important details of a given piece.

What is the main purpose of summary writing?

• To provide a detailed account of the text

• To offer a personal opinion on the text

• To condense the main ideas of the text

• To rewrite the text in a different language