3.2: Annotating to Summarize - Identifying Key Ideas
- Page ID
- 304709
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\(\newcommand{\avec}{\mathbf a}\) \(\newcommand{\bvec}{\mathbf b}\) \(\newcommand{\cvec}{\mathbf c}\) \(\newcommand{\dvec}{\mathbf d}\) \(\newcommand{\dtil}{\widetilde{\mathbf d}}\) \(\newcommand{\evec}{\mathbf e}\) \(\newcommand{\fvec}{\mathbf f}\) \(\newcommand{\nvec}{\mathbf n}\) \(\newcommand{\pvec}{\mathbf p}\) \(\newcommand{\qvec}{\mathbf q}\) \(\newcommand{\svec}{\mathbf s}\) \(\newcommand{\tvec}{\mathbf t}\) \(\newcommand{\uvec}{\mathbf u}\) \(\newcommand{\vvec}{\mathbf v}\) \(\newcommand{\wvec}{\mathbf w}\) \(\newcommand{\xvec}{\mathbf x}\) \(\newcommand{\yvec}{\mathbf y}\) \(\newcommand{\zvec}{\mathbf z}\) \(\newcommand{\rvec}{\mathbf r}\) \(\newcommand{\mvec}{\mathbf m}\) \(\newcommand{\zerovec}{\mathbf 0}\) \(\newcommand{\onevec}{\mathbf 1}\) \(\newcommand{\real}{\mathbb R}\) \(\newcommand{\twovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\ctwovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\threevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cthreevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\mattwo}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{rr}#1 \amp #2 \\ #3 \amp #4 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\laspan}[1]{\text{Span}\{#1\}}\) \(\newcommand{\bcal}{\cal B}\) \(\newcommand{\ccal}{\cal C}\) \(\newcommand{\scal}{\cal S}\) \(\newcommand{\wcal}{\cal W}\) \(\newcommand{\ecal}{\cal E}\) \(\newcommand{\coords}[2]{\left\{#1\right\}_{#2}}\) \(\newcommand{\gray}[1]{\color{gray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\lgray}[1]{\color{lightgray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\rank}{\operatorname{rank}}\) \(\newcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\col}{\text{Col}}\) \(\renewcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\nul}{\text{Nul}}\) \(\newcommand{\var}{\text{Var}}\) \(\newcommand{\corr}{\text{corr}}\) \(\newcommand{\len}[1]{\left|#1\right|}\) \(\newcommand{\bbar}{\overline{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bhat}{\widehat{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bperp}{\bvec^\perp}\) \(\newcommand{\xhat}{\widehat{\xvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\vhat}{\widehat{\vvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\uhat}{\widehat{\uvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\what}{\widehat{\wvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\Sighat}{\widehat{\Sigma}}\) \(\newcommand{\lt}{<}\) \(\newcommand{\gt}{>}\) \(\newcommand{\amp}{&}\) \(\definecolor{fillinmathshade}{gray}{0.9}\)Good writers read a text a few times and annotate - or mark up - the text as they read. This helps them to identify the parts of the text and how they fit together.
Annotating is a personal practice; as you make it a habit, you’ll discover the ways that work best for you. You may prefer to use different-colored highlighters or just a pen. The important thing is that you DO take notes while you read; this will make you a better reader and writer!
Below is one approach to annotating an article that will help you to identify the author’s argument and support for it.
STEP 1. Get a general idea of the article.
First, skim the article quickly, just to get the gist of it.
- Read the title and look at the first sentence of each paragraph. What overall topic is the article about?
- Do you get a sense of what the author is trying to convey about this topic?
- If the author is trying to convince the reader to believe an idea, what kinds of evidence are they using to support that argument?
- Underline any key words or phrases that seem to be central to the topic.
STEP 2. Read carefully for the main idea.
Now that you have a sense of what the article is about, read it through carefully, thinking about how the ideas are connected to each other.
- Look for words that indicate the organizational pattern of the article; underline or highlight these. For example, is the author comparing two things, making an argument for change, or describing the reasons that something happened?
- Try to find a statement that shows the main idea of the article. Put a star next to this and write it in your own words in the margin. If you can’t find this kind of statement; don’t panic! The main idea might be implied (not directly stated).
- Remember that the first paragraph(s) might be background information; be careful not to confuse this with the main idea.
STEP 3. Read again for the points that support the main idea.
- As you read this time, underline the supporting points for the main idea you’ve identified. These sentences may occur at the beginning of paragraphs (similar to topic sentences) or at the end. One way to find these is to ask yourself as you finish reading each paragraph if the idea in this paragraph was new or if it continued the idea from the previous paragraph.
- Underline and mark each point with a number or other symbol.
- After you have found the supporting points, make sure that they match the main idea you wrote in Step 2.
- If the points don’t seem to match the main idea you identified earlier, skim the article again and edit your annotations accordingly. You may need to change either the main idea or the supporting points. (For example, if you wrote that the author explained the causes of poverty, but each of the supporting points are about the effects of poverty, you would have to change your main idea statement.)
- Think about how you will explain each point; begin paraphrasing in your own words in the margin. You may want to use one or two details that you found most convincing to explain each supporting point in your summary.
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