Summarizing

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Summarizing

• Non-Fiction Texts

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Steps in Writing A Summary

• A summary consists of four or five sentences
  which focus a readers attention on the main
  ideas of a piece of writing. Each sentence
  centers on a strong action verb. It also focuses
  the readers attention to the authors main idea,
  the authors development, the authors purpose,
  and the intended audience.

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Steps in Writing A Summary

• Step 1
• Name of author, genre and title of work, and a
  accurate verb such as argues, claims,
  suggests, or describes, and a THAT clause
  containing the major assertion (thesis statement)
  of the work.
• Author argues that . . .

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Steps in Writing A Summary

• Step 2
• An explanation of how the author develops and/or
  supports the thesis, usually provided in the same
  order as the work itself.
• Author supports with ______ , ______, and
  _______.

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Steps in Writing A Summary

• Step 3
• A statement of the authors apparent purpose,
  followed by an in order phrase.
• Author purpose is to ________ in order to
  ________.

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Steps in Writing A Summary

• Step 4
• A description of the intended audience or the
  relationship the author establishes with the
  audience.
• Author reaches the audience by . . . .

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Steps in Writing A Summary

• Example
• (1) Jon Katz, in his essay How Boys Become
  Men, claims that men are insensitive because
  they have had to learn to hide their feelings
  during all the macho marathon (Katz 277) of
  growing up with other boys, who show one another
  little mercy. (2) Katz describes the code of
  conduct imposed upon boys, for example, never
  admitting fear, and gives an example from his own
  experience in which he broke the code by
  ratting on a friend, as well as two instances
  in which he has seen boys showing stoicism as
  they are hit or pushed by others. (3) Katz
  intends to explain why men seem so insensitive in
  order to help women understand why men sometimes
  seem remote or uncommunicative (Katz 275).
  (4) Katz uses many details to appeal to womens
  sympathy for the tormented little boys who become
  uncommunicative men.
•  
• numbers are included in the example to illustrate
  how the steps are used. Students may use numbers
  in early summaries to make them aware of the
  steps but then drop them as they become more
  proficient.