WT 166 Writing Summaries

Teacher Tips and Answers

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WT 166

Page 166

Writing Summaries

The same ideas can come in different sizes: an article, a paragraph, and even a topic sentence. You know that you understand ideas if you can summarize them.

Panning for Gold

A summary expresses ideas in a short form. You sift out the main ideas of a longer work and condense them into a clear paragraph. (You can practice summarizing with this activity.)

WT 167

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Original Reading Selection

Read this article, and then study the summary below. The summary includes only main ideas.

WT 168

Page 168

Writing a Summary

Prewriting

Read Actively 🟪 Pay close attention as you read the material that you will summarize.

🟪 Read once to get the general meaning.
🟪 Read again to focus on specific details.
🟪 Then jot down the main ideas from the reading. (See the steps below for help.)

© Thoughtful Learning 2025

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Page 169

Writing a Draft

Write Your Summary 🟪 Put ideas in your own words.
🟪 Express the most important idea in your topic sentence.
🟪 Write supporting sentences that express main ideas in the same order used in the original.

Revising

Read and Review 🟪 Revise to improve your summary:
🟪 Have you captured the main idea of the original?
🟪 Do other ideas appear in the best order?
🟪 Do your sentences make sense?
🟪 What should you add, remove, or rework in your summary?

Editing & Proofreading

Check for Errors 🟪 Check your spelling, capitalization, and punctuation. Then write a neat final copy to share.

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WT 166 Writing Summaries

Print

WT 166

Page 166

Writing Summaries

Panning for Gold

WT 167

Page 167

Original Reading Selection

WT 168

Page 168

Writing a Summary

Prewriting

Read Actively 🟪 Pay close attention as you read the material that you will summarize.

🟪 Read once to get the general meaning.
🟪 Read again to focus on specific details.
🟪 Then jot down the main ideas from the reading. (See the steps below for help.)

© Thoughtful Learning 2025

WT 169

Page 169

Writing a Draft

Write Your Summary 🟪 Put ideas in your own words.
🟪 Express the most important idea in your topic sentence.
🟪 Write supporting sentences that express main ideas in the same order used in the original.

Revising

Read and Review 🟪 Revise to improve your summary:
🟪 Have you captured the main idea of the original?
🟪 Do other ideas appear in the best order?
🟪 Do your sentences make sense?
🟪 What should you add, remove, or rework in your summary?

Editing & Proofreading

Check for Errors 🟪 Check your spelling, capitalization, and punctuation. Then write a neat final copy to share.

Teacher Support:

Standards Correlations:

Lesson Plan Resources:

WT 166 Writing Summaries

Page 166

Writing Summaries

Panning for Gold

Page 167

Original Reading Selection

Page 168

Writing a Summary

Prewriting

Read Actively 🟪 Pay close attention as you read the material that you will summarize. 🟪 Read once to get the general meaning. 🟪 Read again to focus on specific details. 🟪 Then jot down the main ideas from the reading. (See the steps below for help.) © Thoughtful Learning 2025

Page 169

Writing a Draft

Write Your Summary 🟪 Put ideas in your own words. 🟪 Express the most important idea in your topic sentence. 🟪 Write supporting sentences that express main ideas in the same order used in the original.

Revising

Read and Review 🟪 Revise to improve your summary: 🟪 Have you captured the main idea of the original? 🟪 Do other ideas appear in the best order? 🟪 Do your sentences make sense? 🟪 What should you add, remove, or rework in your summary?

Editing & Proofreading

Check for Errors 🟪 Check your spelling, capitalization, and punctuation. Then write a neat final copy to share.

Teacher Support:

Standards Correlations:

Lesson Plan Resources:

Read Actively 🟪 Pay close attention as you read the material that you will summarize.

🟪 Read once to get the general meaning.
🟪 Read again to focus on specific details.
🟪 Then jot down the main ideas from the reading. (See the steps below for help.)

© Thoughtful Learning 2025

Write Your Summary 🟪 Put ideas in your own words.
🟪 Express the most important idea in your topic sentence.
🟪 Write supporting sentences that express main ideas in the same order used in the original.

Read and Review 🟪 Revise to improve your summary:
🟪 Have you captured the main idea of the original?
🟪 Do other ideas appear in the best order?
🟪 Do your sentences make sense?
🟪 What should you add, remove, or rework in your summary?