What’s the gist of your
favorite movie or TV show?
Summary
Notes
Summarizing is a powerful reading
strategy. It increases comprehension
and retention of information.
Summaries are about the
author s arguments and
details; they are not the
place for personal
opinions or judgments. -Rick Wormeli
summary (noun)- a brief and objective
statement or account of the main points
of something.
*Summaries must be significantly less than the
original text’s length.
**Unless you’re told to do so, your summary
should be objective and not include your
personal opinion.
Where have I seen this type
of writing?
In your groups, attempt to write down 5 different
examples of summary writing:
1. Movie Reviews
2.
3.
4.
5.
Summarizing is:
 Keeping Deleting Paraphrase-
Keeping
Keep only the central ideas and important
information. This includes citing/quoting
important lines.
Deleting
Do not include unimportant/minor
details in your summary. You want to
be concise (short and sweet) and not
redundant (too wordy)!
Paraphrase
Use your own words!!!
Directions
Read the passage on the next
slide. You will be asked to
paraphrase afterwards, so be
sure you are comprehending
as you read !
In partners, identify the 3 most important details:
People used to play football
bareheaded. After many injuries,
players began to use plain, leather
caps. Plastic helmets and masks
appeared later. Still, many players
were getting hurt. To make helmets
better, designers studied
--- woodpeckers! Their tough, spongy
skulls became the model for modern
football helmets.
Steck-Vaughn - Comprehension Skills - Main Idea - Level F. Pg. 34
Now, write a 2-sentence summary about this passage:
People used to play football
bareheaded. After many injuries,
players began to use plain, leather
caps. Plastic helmets and masks
appeared later. Still, many players
were getting hurt. To make helmets
better, designers studied
--- woodpeckers! Their tough, spongy
skulls became the model for modern
football helmets.
Steck-Vaughn - Comprehension Skills - Main Idea - Level F. Pg. 34
Possible Example:
During football’s early days,
many injuries occurred due to
little or no head protection.
Improved football helmets
were designed using
woodpecker skulls as a
model.
Your summary and paraphrase will not be exactly the
same as the example shown. However, it should include
the following important details.
  Football was originally played
with little or no head protection
 Injuries occurred
 Improved helmets/head
protection were modeled after
woodpecker skulls
Now, let’s independently practice on a more challenging
piece of literature.
HW:
Create a 4-sentence objective summary on any television
show, movie, or story
  Make sure it is objective and does not include your
personal opinion
  Follow the structures of a paragraph and color it!
 Topic Sentence
 Facts
 Elaboration?/“Tell Me More’s”
 Concluding Statement