Characteristics of a Good Summary

1
Characteristics of a Good Summary

• Brief
• Complete
• Paraphrased
• Objective

2
Steps in Writing a Summary Prewriting

• Read the article carefully, making sure you
  understand the contents.
• Annotate the article, noting the thesis statement
  and the major supporting details
• Using your annotations, create an outline that
  shows the main organization of the article.

3
Steps in Writing a Summary Writing

• Begin with a sentence that includes
• authors name
• title of the article
• thesis of the article
• According to Joe Smith in Healthy Eating for
  Life, the foods we choose to eat influence the
  length and quality of our lives.
• Joe Smith states in Healthy Eating for Life
  that the foods we choose to eat influence the
  length and quality of our lives.

4
Steps in Writing a Summary Writing

• Follow with sentences that paraphrase major
  supporting points
• Paraphrase state in your own words
• Enclose any directly quoted material in quotation
  marks
• After the first sentence, refer to the author by
  last name or as the author
• Smith states a diet high in animal fats and
  sugars can lead to obesity and cardiovascular
  problems.

5
How to Condense a Summary

• Omit examples
• Omit restatements
• Create lists to combine key points from multiple
  sentences or paragraphs

6
Steps in Writing a SummaryRevising

• Compare the summary to the original article to
  make sure you have included all the important
  points.
• Double check to make sure you have paraphrased
  the material accurately.
• Proofread for complete sentences, correct
  grammar, punctuation, and spelling.