RESTATING AND SUMMARIZING
When you use different words to express a fact or an idea, you are restating information. Restatements can be longer or shorter than the original sentence, but they always retain the same facts and details.
When you condense a reading in your own words, you are summarizing it. Summarizing is extracting key information and creating a shorter version of the original. When you create a summary, you present only the most important facts. You leave out less important details because your goal is to provide a brief account.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR
Restating what you read helps you check how well you understood your reading. It also makes it easier for you to remember the key facts and details in a passage. This skill is especially important when you read about biology because there are many important facts and details to grasp.
Compare the pairs of sentences below. The sentences on the left are from pages 394395 in Biology: The Web of Life. The sentences on the right are restatements. Which restatements are accurate?
Original Statement
Restatement
1. Plants can get sunburned.
1. Shrubs and bushes can get scorched by the sun.
2. Clothing can be made from trees.
2. Trees can be made from clothing.
Sentence 1 is an accurate restatement. That's because it uses different words to say the same thing as the original sentence.Sentences 2 is not an accurate restatement, however. It switches the order of the raw material and the product. The original statement claims that clothing can be made from trees; the restatement claims just the opposite.
STEPS TO FOLLOWSummarizing can help you increase reading comprehension. If you can condense a passage in your own words, the chances are very good that you have understood the writer's point. Follow these steps as you study:
- Read the passage completely and carefully. After you finish reading, ask yourself, "What is this passage about? What is the topic or main idea?"
- Look for the topic sentence in each paragraph. The topic sentence gives you the main idea of the paragraph. It is usually the first or last sentence. If you can't find the topic sentence or the paragraph doesn't have one, create your own. Base it on the overall subject of the passage.
- Using the topic sentence as a guide, summarize the paragraph. Then add any key details. Keep all the facts in the same order.
- As you complete your summary, think about the main ideas in the text. See if your summary is accurate by making sure the information you included matches what you already learned in the chapter or unit.
TRY IT!
Read "History Written in World's Largest Plants" on page 397. Which of the following sentences best summarizes the information in the paragraph?
a. Sequoias are among the world's largest trees: they can reach more than 90 meters in height and weigh almost a half a million kilograms.
b. Trees can be harmed by fire, drought, and insect infestation.
c. The giant coastal redwood trees are a major tourist attraction because of their size and importance.
d. By studying the rings in coastal redwoods, scientists, such as Professor Emanuel Fritz of the University of California, can learn more about plants and their history.
Check your work HERE.
To practice what you've just learned, go to Worksheet 5.1.
To learn about another reading strategy, go to Reading Strategy 5.2.
Reading Strategy 5.1 | Worksheet 5.1
Reading Strategy 5.2 | Worksheet 5.2
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