| When to do it |
| After reading the text |
| Reading intention |
| Condense information |
| Organize information |
| Outcome |
| Makes review easier |
| Gives a good general understanding of the text |
How to Do It
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Look for main ideas
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List relevant supporting elements
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Rephrase in your own words
Summarizing is restating the important points from a text in a shorter, more concise version.
- Look for Main Ideas
Read the text and ask yourself the question: what is it really about?
Identify the main points or ideas and condense them as a series of short sentences.
- List Relevant Supporting Elements
Ask yourself if the supporting elements are necessary to convey the main ideas. If you are unsure of the relevance of a text element, note it down for now and discard it if it turns out to be non-essential later on.
- Rephrase in Your Own Words
Do not quote the text directly: use your own words. Being able to rephrase with your own words means you have understood what you read.
Example 1: Frankenstein (Shelley, 1818)
| Main ideas |
| A scientist brings a creature to life |
| The scientist rejects his creation |
| The creature demands a companion |
| The scientist agrees but destroys the companion |
| The creature causes death and destruction |
| The scientist vows to destroy his creation and chases it to the Arctic |
| Relevant supporting elements |
| Scientist named Victor Frankenstein |
| The creature is referred to as a monster |
| The story is told as a flashback by Captain Robert Walton who found the dying Frankenstein in the Arctic |
| The creature kills people close to Frankenstein (wife and best friend) |
| Rephrase |
| Driven by his obsession with giving life, a scientist manages to create a living being. Disgusted with what he has done, he rejects the monstrosity, pushing the lonely creature to demand the making of a companion. The scientist agrees, but then changes his mind, leading the monster to bring death and destruction to the scientist’s world. Realizing he is responsible for his own troubles, the scientist vows to destroy his creation. |
Example 2: On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life (Darwin, 1859)
| Main ideas |
| Proposes the theory of natural selection → evolution |
| Variation in living things |
| are passed down through generations (heredity) |
| Adaptability of the living |
| Relationship between species |
| Relationship between species and their environment |
| Relevant supporting elements |
| Commonly referred to as The Origin of Species |
| Written by the naturalist Charles Darwin in 1859 |
| Data was observed and recorded by Darwin |
| Rephrase |
| The book puts forward the theory of natural selection in the living world. Through observations and use of scientific methodology, Darwin proposes that living things are connected to their environment and other living things. These connections force a competition for survival prompting adaptability and variations in living things. |
To learn more about a strategy, click its name.
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Get an overview of the text. |
Quickly search & find information |
Ask yourself questions |
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Create mental pictures |
Relate to the text |
Read between the lines |
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Summarizing |
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Write down notes & comments |
Understand challenging words |
Sum up main idea & key elements |
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Explore sources to come up with new perspectives |
Form an opinion on the quality of the text |
Look at the structure and techniques used |