ELS - Writing Lecture 5: Part 2 – Paraphrase and Summary writing (by means of different sentence types) 1

Schedule today Finish up last week’s exercises Paraphrase and Summary Writing: 1) Paraphrase 2) Summary 2

Paraphrase & Summary exercises Paraphrase a single paragraph from the ROSA PARKS essay. Summarize (with the basic triangle structure) the essay of ROSA PARKS Topic sentence Supporting details Concluding remark

Paraphrase Paraphrase: - own rendition of someone else’s words – you rewrite information from an outside source in your own words without changing the meaning. It should be shorter than the original. 4

Paraphrase exercise 1

Paraphrase exercise 1 Questions: How many sentences are there in the original passage? In the paraphrase? Compare the original passage and the paraphrase sentence by sentence. Analyze how the sentence structure and words differ by answering the following questions: A. What is the first word of the first sentence in the original passage? Where does this word appear in the first sentence of the paraphrase? B. What is the first word of the second sentence in the original passage? What word replaces it in the second sentence of the paraphrase?

Paraphrase exercise 1 What words replace “have dreamed of” in the third sentence? What word replaces “arguments in favor of” in the fourth sentence? Which sentence in the original becomes two sentences in the paraphrase? Can you identify different sentence types used in the paraphrase? 7

How to write a good paraphrase? There are three keys to writing a good paraphrase: Use your own words and your own sentence structure (short – long) Make your paraphrase a bit shorter than the original Do not change the meaning of the original 8

You can write a good paraphrase if you follow these steps: Step 1: read the original passage several times until you understand it fully. Look up unfamiliar words, and find synonyms for them. Step 2: set the original apart and write your own paraphrase Step 3: Write a key – word (like a title) that indicates the subject of your paraphrase Step 4: Check your wording with the original – make sure that your version accurately represents the meaning of the original. Step 4: Use quotation marks to indicate unique terms and phraseology used by the original author Step 5: Record the source 9

Paraphrase: Exercise 2 See handout WEEK 5

What do we need paraphrasing for? PARAGRAPH STRUCTURE The purpose is to be able to use Paraphrases as supporting material in your writing. Supporting details 11

Example original passage…

…as a paraphrase in the completed paragraph …reworded through a paraphrase in a completed paragraph. (OPINION)

Summary Only the main points are borrowed from the original author/text-producer SIGNIFICANTLY shorter Leave out the details (so not detail-oriented) 14

How to write a good summary? There are three keys to writing a good summary: Use your own words and own sentence structures (short – long) Include only the main points and leave out most of the details. Do not change the meaning of the original. 15

Summary: exercise 1 See handout: Read the original passage and the two summaries that follow it. Then answer the following questions: Which of the two is the better summary? Why? Can you identify different sentence types? Which summary contains an idea that was not in the original? Which sentence expresses that idea? 16

Summary: exercise 2 Write your own summary based on the example of the next slide 17

Summary: exercise 2

The differences The original passage: Students frequently overuse direct quotation in taking notes, and as a result they overuse quotations in the final [research] paper. Probably only about 10% of your final manuscript should appear as directly quoted matter. Therefore, you should strive to limit the amount of exact transcribing of source materials while taking notes. Lester, James D. Writing Research Papers. 2nd ed. (1976): 46-47. A legitimate paraphrase: In research papers students often quote excessively, failing to keep quoted material down to a desirable level. Since the problem usually originates during note taking, it is essential to minimize the material recorded verbatim (Lester 46-47). An acceptable summary: Students should take just a few notes in direct quotation from sources to help minimize the amount of quoted material in a research paper (Lester 46-47).