• Summary means giving the chief points of a passage
• This would be impossible without adequate knowledge of the text
• Summarizing involves identifying what is important in text and restating it in your own words

Basic Summary Writing

• Topic Sentence: This is a sentence in the paragraph which summarizes the main idea of that paragraph. It is usually the first sentence
• Thesis Statement: This is a sentence that states the argument of the author in a passage. This states what the writer is trying to prove
• Paraphrase: This is the ability of understanding the writer’s idea and writing it down in your own words
• Supporting Idea: These are the various sentences that make up the paragraph to aid with giving more information to the topic sentence

Summary Writing Format

• A summary is written in paragraphs
• Summary should be written in your words
• Summary begins with an introductory sentence that states the text title, author, and main point of the text
• Identify the supporting details used by the author to back up the main points