writing nonfiction summaries

• Skip to main content

Stellar Teaching Co.

Engaging Resources for Teaching Literacy

By Sara Marye Leave a Comment

3 Reading Strategies to Help Students Summarize Nonfiction Text

Summarizing nonfiction.

This might be one of the most challenging reading skills/standards that we have to teach our students. I know when I was in the classroom I always dreaded the part of our nonfiction unit when it came time to learn how to summarize nonfiction texts.

My students loved reading nonfiction and for the most part we did great with identifying text features and figuring out the main idea and they were rockstars at asking questions and figuring out the text structure.

But summarizing nonfiction?

That was a challenge.

I never really LOVED teaching nonfiction.

And I think part of the reason why it was challenging for my students is because summarizing in general is a very higher level skill and it requires A LOT from students.

In order for students to successfully summarize, they need to be able to determine importance, synthesize ideas, understand the author’s purpose, Identify the main idea and key details … just to name a few.

But then they also have to be able to write a summary, which means they need to be able to write in complete sentences, they need to be able to paraphrase, they need be concise in their writing and they need to be able to write a summary in a way that makes sense with the text.

So if you have ever felt like teaching students to summarize nonfiction is challenging, you’re not alone. It definitely is.

But there are also things that we can do to help our students experience success when it comes to summarizing nonfiction and today I want to share with you 3 strategies that will help you teach nonfiction summary to your students.

Characteristics of a nonfiction summary:

Now before I actually teach my students strategies that will help them summarize nonfiction texts, I like to teach them what a summary is (and what it isn’t) and make sure they they understand the end goal when they are asked to summarize a nonfiction text.

One of the ways I do this is by teaching them the attributes or characteristics of a nonfiction summary. That way they know that no matter WHAT strategy they choose to use, they have a pretty solid understanding of what their summary should look like.

Here are the six things that I tell my students to keep in mind when writing a nonfiction summary.

• Keep it short (summaries should be around around 4-5 sentences). 
• Clearly state the main idea of the text.
• Only include a few of the most important details.
• Make sure you consider the author’s purpose.
• Your summary should mirror the structure (organization) of the text.
• Use your own words when writing a summary.

Sentence Writing Routine Free Sample

If your students struggle to write at the sentence level, this new literacy routine is going to be your new best friend. Each day of the week your students will engage in a quick (yet effective) sentence writing task that will help them become more confident and creative writers. Say goodbye to fragments and boring sentences, and say hello to complex sentences with lots of details!

Now, let’s talk strategies!

Strategy 1: tamko.

With this strategy, each letter stands for a different element of the summary. I kind of compare it to the nonfiction version of the SWBST strategy. In reality, it’s just a bunch of random letters, but when you teach it to students it gives them a specific formula that will help them summarize nonfiction.

I really like teaching this strategy to students because it helps them craft the first introductory sentence for their summary. And I have found that very first sentence can be one of the hardest ones to write. If students know how to start their summary, it will be a lot easier for them to finish.

So let’s breakdown what T-A-M-K-O stands for:

• The very first thing you want students to do is state the title of the text and explain the type of text it is.
• Example: In the book Kids vs. Plastic…
• In the example you can see that students write the title (Kids vs. Plastic) and they explain it’s an actual book.
• In the article ___________
• After reading the passage ____________
• In the magazine ___________
• On the website ____________
• The next thing students will do is name the author and the verb that describes the purpose for writing.
• Example: … Julie Beers explains…
• This is a continuation of the first sentence.
• Sometimes the author’s name isn’t always give so students can just say “the author”.
• The author describes
• Mr. Jackson shares his opinion
• Emily Clarkson informs her readers
• The last thing students will do to write their introductory sentence is state the main idea or the main topic of the text (whatever makes the most sense in their sentence).
• Example: …the negative impact plastic has on the environment.
• It’s important that students realize the TAM form a complete sentence so the topic needs to be written in a way that will make the sentence complete.
• Sometimes it will be one or two words and other times it will be a longer more descriptive phrase.

This is how their summary would begin using TAM.

In the book Kids vs. Plastic, Julie Beers explains the negative impact plastic has on the environment.

I have found that giving kids this formula to help them get started with their summary can be really helpful and effective.

The next two letters of the TAMKO strategy are a little less formulaic and provide general guidelines/reminders for students to keep in mind when summarizing.

• The next thing students need to do is include 2-3 key details that support their introductory sentence.
• If the author is describing, then they should find 2-3 details that help describe the topic.
• If the author is explaining, then they should find 2-3 details that explain the process or steps or problem and solution the author is highlighting.
• If the author is trying to persuade the reader, then they should find 2-3 of the most persuasive details the author included in the text.
• This step can be a little bit challenging for students, but I think it’s important to let students feel empowered in their ability to select relevant details to include in their summaries.
• Remind students to organize their summary in the same way as the author organized the text.
• This one is really helpful and can guide the rest of their summary.
• If students can identify the text structure the author used to write the text, then they can organize and set up their summary in the same way.

Summarizing can often feel feel really overwhelming for students, especially if they aren’t good writers or if they lack confidence in their reading comprehension, but with this strategy, you are making summarizing almost fool-proof. Students are given the exact words and framework to help them begin their summary.

And anytime we can help kids feel more confident in their reading the better.

Strategy #2: Asking the 5W and H Questions  

This strategy can be easy for students to use because it connects to something students already know how to do… and that is asking the 5W + H questions.

More than likely, if you are an upper elementary reading teacher, then your students at some point have been exposed to the idea of asking the questions who, what, when, where, why, and how for the text they are reading.

And there is so much benefit to being able to connect a reading strategy to something students already know how to do. Basically with this strategy you are teaching students to ask specific 5W + H questions for the nonfiction text and then using their answers to help them summarize a nonfiction text.

So you could teach this strategy at the most basic level and that would look something like this:

Give your students the following questions to ask and answer for the nonfiction text they are reading:

• Who is the text about?
• What events are happening (to the person) in the text?
• When did the events take place?
• Where does the event in the text take place?
• Why is this event important?
• How did this event happen?

But sometimes these typical who, what, when, where, why questions don’t match up with EVERY single text. For example, not every nonfiction text you give your students will have a WHO has the subject or they might not mention a specific location.

The good news is that these questions can still help students summarize nonfiction. But instead of teaching students specific questions, you just want to teach them the question stems and let them customize the questions based on the text they are reading.

So here some different questions your students could ask for each of the stems:

• Who wrote the text?
• Who is the intended audience for the text?
• Who is impacted by the problem in the text?
• What happens in the text?
• What topic is the author writing about?
• What details does the author include?
• What lesson is the author trying to teach?
• When was this text written?
• When did the problem become discovered?
• Where does this event take place?
• Where is the author from?
• Why is this event/person/topic signifiant?
• Why did the author write this text?
• Why is this topic important to read about?
• How did the author organize the information in the text?
• How do these details connect to my personal life?
• How did this event take place?
• How does the author suggest we solve the problem?

So remember that the goal is not just for students to ask and answer the basic or first who, what, when, where, why, and how question that comes to mind, but to critically think about the types of questions they are asking and then use their answers to help them craft a summary.

If students are actively asking and answering questions (and using these 5W +H stems) they will discover all the key details that will help them summarize the main points of the text.

Strategy #3 – Text Structure Summary

This one should be no surprise to y’all since you know I’m such a fan of teaching students how to identify and understand nonfiction text structure. 

Nonfiction text structure can give students a road map that will not only help students understand the text, but it can also give them a framework that will help them summarize the text.

Nonfiction summaries should mirror the structure of the text… and if we clearly explain that to our students, they have just one more strategy in their toolbox that will help them summarize nonfiction text.

When I’m teaching students to summarize nonfiction using the text structure, I have them think about their summary in three parts:

• In the beginning of their summary, they want to state the main topic of the text (which should also hint at the text structure)
• Example 1: In this text, the author shares the similarities and differences between crocodiles and alligators.
• Example 2: Pollution in the ocean is becoming a huge problem , but a group of students from New York have come up with a creative solution .
• As you can see in both of those examples, the organizational structure is mentioned.
• In the middle of their summary, students should include 2-3 details from the text. 
• And the important thing to keep in mind is that they should share them in the same way the author organized the text.
• So if you go back to Example 1 , if it is a compare and contrast text on crocodiles and alligators, then their summary might includes the most significant similarity and the most significant difference between the two animals.
• If you go back to Example 2 , if it is a problem and solution text on ocean pollution, then their summary might include 1-2 sentences that state the problem and 1-2 sentences that explain the solution presented in the text.
• And then finally, you want to teach students to end their summary with a concluding statement that will reiterate the main idea and text structure. It will be very similar to their introduction.
• Example 1: So while there are many similarities between alligators and crododiles, this text also highlights their differences.
• Example 2: The students from New York are making a big impact on a global problem with their creative solution to ocean pollution.

Now this strategy is a lot more open-ended then the TAMKO strategy, but I think it’s important to teach students a wide range of strategies. Some of your students will gravitate towards the structure of TAMKO and others will like the flexibility of a text structure summary.

I like teaching an open-ended approach like the text structure summary strategy because then your students can make it work for almost any text…. Sometimes when we teach a very scripted formula like TAMKO, it can be hard for students to apply that to a text that doesn’t meet all the criteria. 

For example, if you only teach the TAMKO strategy, but students are reading a text that doesn’t include the author’s name or maybe it doesn’t have a specific title, students might struggle to adapt that strategy to summarize the text…. But with a strategy that is a little more open-ended like teaching them how to summarize using text structure, they have options to use when it comes to their independent reading. 

Your Next Steps:

Ok, now that you have three strategies to help you teach nonfiction summary, I’m curious which one will you start with. Remember, with any strategy you teach your students, the goal isn’t for them to MASTER a specific strategy. The goal is for them to understand the text and feel confident in their ability to apply a specific reading skill – in this case summarizing the text.

Hopefully one (or more) of these strategies will help.

Before you go, be sure to grab your free Nonfiction Summary Checklist (below) and if you’re looking for more strategies and resources to help you teach nonfiction summary, check out this bundle of resources on TPT .

Happy Teaching!

Small Group Lesson – Inferring Character Traits

Are you ready to get started with small group lessons, but not exactly sure what to do with your students once you get them to your small group table? I’ve been there. One of the things that helped me with my small group lessons was having a super simple framework that I could use for my small group lessons no matter the level of my students or the focus for our lesson.

When it comes to teaching small groups, I like to use what I call the 4T Model: Target, Teach, Tackle, Transfer.

👇 Grab this free download to learn more about how you can use the 4T Model with your small groups.

In this free download, you’ll get: • A teacher guide to explain the 4T model • Lesson plan template + sentence starts • Sample lesson + materials for inferring character traits

Check out these products on TPT!

Want Even More?

You’ll love these related posts!

Reader Interactions

Leave a comment cancel reply.

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Grab Your FREE Gift!

Word Of The Day: Context Clue Routine

With this freebie, you'll get everything you need to get started with word of the day in your classroom. You'll get all the student and teacher materials for five days. Word of the day will help your students become experts at using context clues.

Stellar Teacher Podcast

SUBSCRIBE & LISTEN HERE

Beyond the Hand Raise: 5 Ways to Enhance Class Discussions

From Balanced Literacy to Structured Literacy With Anna Geiger

Don’t Let Grammar Be the Star of Your Writing Block! Do This Instead

It’s Test Prep Season: Here Are 4 Ways to Make It More FUN!

Free private podcast!

The Confident Writer System Series

In less than 90 minutes, you'll learn quick and easy ways that will transform your upper elementary student's writing.

Join our membership!

The Stellar Literacy Collective

You didn’t become a teacher to spend your rare free time scrolling Pinterest and searching on Google. Trust me friend, I have been there. That’s why this membership was created. When you join, you receive countless pre-planned resources without sacrificing engagement, rigor, and effectiveness. That means less planning and more teaching. Beyond the resources, you’ll gain a community of like-minded teachers. Are you ready to level up your instruction and maybe even find a new teacher bestie?

Follow Me Here

I’m Sara, your literacy lovin’ mentor and cheerleader.

With over a decade of experience working as a classroom teacher and school administrator, I understand the joys and challenges of teaching. That’s why I’m on a mission to make an impact by serving stellar upper elementary teachers just like you. Get ready, because I’m pulling out all the stops to ensure that you have the tools and confidence you need to build a literacy block that you’re proud of. One that excites you and your students while also meeting the standards. Oh yes, it’s totally possible to have both!

How to Write a Summary: Mastering the Art of Nonfiction Summarization

by Harry Wallett

If you’re reading this, chances are you’ve found yourself in situations where you’ve wanted to share the fascinating insights you’ve gained from a book or article, only to realize that you struggle to condense all that information into a clear, concise summary.

In this post, we’re going to solve this problem for you by taking a deep dive into the art of writing a nonfiction summary.

We’ll explore the essential steps and techniques you’ll need to effectively summarize a piece of nonfiction writing. Plus, we’ll discuss why it’s so important to develop this skill — both for personal growth and for connecting with others in meaningful conversations.

Let’s get started!

The Basics of Writing a Nonfiction Summary

Have you ever finished reading a phenomenal nonfiction book or article and felt an overwhelming desire to share its insights with others?

If so, you know how important it is to be able to condense all that information into a clear, concise summary.

In this section, we’ll dive deeper into the basics of writing a nonfiction summary by exploring a straightforward three-step process that’ll set you on the path to success:

Step 1. Identify the main ideas and supporting details

First and foremost, you need to pinpoint the main ideas and supporting details that serve as the backbone of your summary.

To do this, start by skimming through the work and taking note of the key points the author is trying to make.

Keep an eye out for any recurring themes, arguments, or concepts that stand out. As you go through this process, it’s crucial to stay objective — focus on what the author says, not what you think or feel about the subject matter.

By remaining impartial, you’ll ensure that your summary accurately reflects the author’s intent and ideas.

Step 2. Condense the information

Once you’ve identified the main ideas and supporting details, it’s time to distill the information down to its most critical elements. This is where you’ll need to employ your skills of concision and clarity.

To help with this, try imagining that you only have a minute to explain the work to someone. What would you say? What are the essential points that your listener must understand?

This thought exercise can guide you in trimming away any unnecessary information and zeroing in on what truly matters.

Step 3. Use your own words

Finally, it’s time to rephrase the main ideas and supporting details in your own words. Doing so not only demonstrates that you’ve truly grasped the material but also keeps things fresh and engaging for your readers.

Additionally, using your own words allows you to put your personal touch on the summary and flex those writing muscles.

When rephrasing, be mindful of maintaining the author’s original intent while adding your own flair to the summary. You want to strike a balance between accurately conveying the author’s ideas and creating an enjoyable, unique reading experience for your audience.

Tips for Crafting an Effective Summary

Now that you’ve got a solid grasp of the basics, let’s focus on making your summary truly useful.

To craft a summary that’s both engaging and informative, follow these tips and watch your writing shine:

Start with an engaging hook

First impressions matter. Begin your summary with a compelling hook that grabs your readers’ attention and piques their curiosity.

This can be a thought-provoking question, an interesting fact, or a powerful statement related to the work you’re summarizing. By starting strong, you’ll encourage your readers to stick around and delve into your summary.

Be concise and avoid repetition

Nobody enjoys reading a summary that seems never-ending or repetitive. Keep your writing tight and to the point, making sure you’re not rehashing the same ideas multiple times.

Remember, when it comes to summaries, less is often more. Strive to convey the essential points while keeping your word count in check.

Use transitional phrases to connect ideas

Transitional phrases, such as “in addition,” “on the other hand,” or “moreover,” are incredibly useful in guiding your readers through your summary and creating a coherent flow between your ideas.

Use these phrases strategically to ensure your summary is easy to follow and keeps your readers engaged from start to finish.

Maintain a conversational and personable tone

A summary that sounds robotic or overly formal can be off-putting to readers. Instead, aim for a conversational and personable tone to create a more engaging and enjoyable reading experience.

By writing in a way that feels natural and relatable, you’ll draw your readers in and make the content more accessible.

Avoid jargon, cliches, and passive voice

Clarity is essential when writing a summary, so make sure your readers can easily understand your main points. To achieve this, steer clear of jargon, cliches, and passive voice.

Instead, opt for straightforward language, active voice, and concrete examples to illustrate your points. This will ensure your summary is clear, concise, and reader-friendly.

The Importance of Developing Summarization Skills

So, now you know how to master the art of writing a nonfiction summary, but why is this skill so important?

There are several compelling reasons to develop and refine your summarization abilities. Let’s dive into some of the key benefits:

Enhancing comprehension and retention

When you summarize a work, you’re required to actively engage with the material, which deepens your understanding and helps you retain the information better.

As you process the author’s ideas and arguments, you’ll internalize them more effectively, making it easier to recall and apply that knowledge in the future. Summarizing is a powerful tool for learning and personal growth.

Improving communication and collaboration

Whether you find yourself in a professional setting or simply having a conversation with friends, being able to convey complex ideas in a clear, concise manner is invaluable.

Summarization skills help you distill information down to its essential elements, making it easier for others to grasp your points.

In turn, this makes you a more effective communicator and collaborator, as you’ll be able to share your insights and knowledge with others in a way that’s both engaging and easy to understand.

This skill can enhance your personal relationships, boost your career, and foster productive teamwork in various contexts.

Developing critical thinking and analysis

Writing a summary requires you to analyze and evaluate the author’s ideas, arguments, and evidence. This practice hones your critical thinking skills, enabling you to dissect complex concepts and form well-reasoned opinions.

As you become more adept at summarizing, you’ll develop a keen eye for spotting assumptions, biases, and logical inconsistencies.

This sharpened analytical ability can be applied to all aspects of your life, from making informed decisions to engaging in thought-provoking discussions on a wide range of topics.

Examples of High-Quality Nonfiction Summaries

Need some inspiration? Here are a couple of examples of websites that offer top-notch nonfiction summaries:

Book summaries

• Blinkist ( https://www.blinkist.com/ )
• getAbstract ( https://www.getabstract.com/ )

These platforms provide concise summaries of popular nonfiction books, allowing you to quickly digest the key points and ideas.

Article summaries

• Inshorts ( https://inshorts.com/ )
• TheSkimm ( https://www.theskimm.com/ )

These websites offer brief, digestible summaries of news articles and other nonfiction content, making it easier for you to stay informed and up-to-date.

In Conclusion

In today’s fast-paced world, the ability to distill and communicate essential information is a highly sought-after skill in many industries.

The process of summarizing requires you to carefully evaluate an author’s ideas and arguments, leading to a deeper understanding of the subject matter and fostering your ability to think critically about various topics.

Honing your summarization abilities will make you a more critical and analytical thinker, qualities that are transferable to countless aspects of your life.

All the best!

Harry Wallett is the Managing Director of Cascadia Author Services. He has a decade of experience as the Founder and Managing Director of Relay Publishing, which has sold over 3 million copies of books in all genres for its authors, and looks after a team of 50+ industry professionals working across the world.

Harry is inspired by the process of book creation and is passionate about the stories and characters behind the prose. He loves working with the writers and has shepherded 1000s of titles to publication over the years. He knows first-hand what it takes to not only create an unputdownable book, but also how to get it into the hands of the right readers for success.

Books are still one of the most powerful mediums to communicate ideas and establish indisputable authority in a field, boosting your reach and stature. But publishing isn’t a quick and easy process—nor should it be, or everyone would do it!

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Same Cascadia, New Management!

Protected: Publishing for Peace: Author Ben JS Maure Inspires Canadian Peacekeepers

Unleashing Literary Flames: Award-Winning Author TK Riggins Keeps Readers Coming Back for More with 7-Book Series

Author Ray McGinnis Reaches an International Audience with 100+ Interviews in 2 Years

Get our free definitive guide to creating a nonfiction bestseller here.

Writing a Summary or Rhetorical Précis to Analyze Nonfiction Texts

Download this Handout PDF

Academic writers across all disciplines analyze texts. They summarize and critique published articles, evaluate papers’ arguments, and reflect on essays. In order to do these things, they have to read complex texts carefully and understand them clearly.

This page is about how you can read and analyze nonfiction texts. When you’ve read a text well, you can then discuss it in class, think critically about it, incorporate it into your writing, consider it in light of other texts, and advance or push against its ideas. We believe two productive strategies for approaching this kind of reading and analysis are active reading and rhetorical précis writing. This page provides a guide to these strategies and practical ways to help you evaluate, compare, and reflect upon nonfiction texts.

Active Reading

Introduction to the rhetorical précis, parts of a rhetorical précis, using a rhetorical précis to guide analysis.

Active reading requires you to slow your reading down, engage more intentionally with the text, think about it, and focus your attention on its ideas. When you read actively, you can’t just flip pages and daydream about tomorrow’s plans. Much has been written about active reading, but generally we recommend that when you read you:

• Skim over the text before reading it. Look to see how long it is, where it’s published, how it may be divided into sections, what kind of works cited list it has, whether there are appendices, etc. Use the title to help you predict what the text is about and what it argues. This overview will help you to understand the context, genre, and purpose of this piece as well as help you gauge how long it will take you to read it and how it might be relevant to your class, paper, or project.
• Take notes about the text’s key ideas and your responses to those ideas. Depending on the text and your preferences, these notes could be made on your copy of the text or article or in a separate place. Notes will help you remember and process what the text is about and what you think about it.

In addition to these strategies, we firmly believe that one of the best ways to understand a book, article, essay, blog post, etc. is to write a summary of it. Specifically, we recommend that you use your reading to generate a rhetorical précis.

“Précis” is French for “specific” or “precise.” It’s also a particular kind of writing. When you write a précis you have to exactly and succinctly account for the most important parts of a text. If you write a successful précis, it is a good indication that you’ve read that text closely and that you understand its major moves and arguments. Writing a précis is an excellent way to show that you’ve closely read a text.

Disclaimer: There are different kinds of précis for different contexts. A legal précis is different from what we’re talking about here. Some précis are longer or shorter than others. If you are writing a précis as a course assignment, be sure to follow your instructor’s guidance on what this should consist of and how it should be formatted.

Sometimes rhetorical précis writing is a course requirement. However, even if you aren’t required to write a précis for a class, writing one can help you in a number of ways. Writing a précis guides your reading and directs your attention to the key aspects of a text. Précis writing prepares you to discuss a text and sets you up for that important next step: analysis. A rhetorical précis can even help you structure your annotated bibliography annotations or provide you with summary sentences to include in a paper as you account for your sources.

A rhetorical précis, as developed by Margaret K. Woodworth and described in her 1988 article “The Rhetorical Précis” (published by Rhetoric Review), consists of four dense but direct sentences.

• The first sentence identifies who wrote the text, where and when it was published, and what its topic and claim are.
• The second sentence explores how the text is developed and organized.
• The third sentence explains why the author wrote this, her purpose or intended effect.
• The fourth and final sentence describes the “for whom” of the text by clarifying who the intended or assumed audience of this text is.

Let’s look more closely at those four parts.

First Sentence: Who, Where, When, and What?

Start by identifying the author and offering any information that might help clarify who this person is in relation to this text. Is this a scholar? If so, what is her field? Is she a public official or a prominent blogger? Is he a public intellectual? A reporter? A spokesperson? Has he written other stuff? Locate a bio in the journal or the book cover. Do a quick internet search. Figuring out who the writer is will help you understand some of the texts’ context.

Next up, the publication. What is its title? Is it a book in a series or an article in a special collection? Does it appear in the leisure section of a local newspaper? Sometimes the title of the journal is self-explanatory, but at other times it’s unfamiliar or not clearly connected to a specific discipline. Explain it as necessary. Add the date in parentheses after the title of the text. Unless it’s a newspaper, magazine, or time-sensitive online article, usually just the year will suffice.

The rest of the sentence should be about the article’s topic—what it is about. In order to make this part particularly precise, use a rhetorically strong verb to describe the author’s claim. For example, the author may suggest, argue, analyze, imply, urge, contrast, or claim something.

Second Sentence: How?

In this sentence, provide a very condensed outline of how the author develops, structures, and supports the argument. What kind of evidence does the article draw upon? How is the case built? Perhaps by comparing and contrasting, illustrating, defining, or providing context? Perhaps the text starts out with a narrative and then moves into a description of several research studies? This sentence should account for all the most important moves made across this piece.

Third Sentence: Why?

What does the writer want the reader to do, believe, feel, or think about all this? What was the purpose of this text? In the first sentence, you told us what that author is arguing; now it is time to consider why the author has done all of this. Use an “in order to” phrase in this sentence to very clearly indicate the purpose.

Fourth Sentence: For Whom?

In the final sentence, identify the author’s intended audience and offer some rationale for how you know that to be the audience. Look back at the publication and think about who is likely to read this kind of magazine, journal, or book. Pay attention to the language used in this piece and how much background the writer provides. What does the writer assume readers believe, know, or value? Identifying the audience helps you consider how rhetorically effective this text is.

An Annotated Sample of a Rhetorical Précis

Take a look at this annotated précis of William Cronon’s 1995 article “The Trouble with Wilderness: Or, Getting Back to the Wrong Nature.” It closely follows the précis structure outlined above.

In “The Trouble With Wilderness: Or, Getting Back to the Wrong Nature” (1995), the opening essay of the edited collection Uncommon Ground: Rethinking the Human Place in Nature, renowned environmental historian William Cronon [Comment: The information about who Cronon is was very easily located at the end of the article and through a quick internet search.] critiques the romantic idolization of supposedly untouched, vast wilderness and argues that such a perspective of wilderness negatively affects humankind’s relationship with nature. Cronon builds a historical case for wilderness as a human construct, explores the cultural and literary foundations for the belief that wilderness is a sublime frontier, identifies the problematic paradoxes inherent in this belief, and outlines the detriments of and possible paradigm–shifting solutions to this environmental problem. [Comment: One of the challenges of the second sentence is to decide what not to include. In this case, more could be said about what those paradoxes and detriments are, but since the focus here is on the “how” instead of the “what,” they have been left out. If those kinds of unidentified details are important enough, there is room to mention them more thoroughly in the third sentence.] Cronon opposes the perspective of wilderness as an idealized, non–human space in order to persuade his readers to live rightly in relationship to nature and embrace the reality that “home” as a welcoming, responsibility–requiring place encompasses both “wilderness” and “civilization.” [Comment: Often there is more than one “why,” so be on the look out for this as you actively read.] According to his specific identification, scholarly presentation, and publication venue, Cronon’s primary audience includes American environmentalist academics. [Comment: In the later third of this essay, Cronon uses the pronoun “we” to identify himself and his assumed readership. Often authors aren’t this useful in helping to identify an audience.]

Writing a good précis is a lot of work. It takes dedicated time and consideration. But, it can be useful in and of itself and productive in the development of additional academic writing. Of course, the most obvious application of a précis is connected to its function as a summary. In academic writing, we summarize sources all the time. Once you have written a précis, you can incorporate some of its sentences or ideas into your writing when you need to quickly account for a text’s argument, content, or purpose.

But a rhetorical précis is even more powerfully useful for writing analysis.

Etymologically, “analysis” comes from the Ancient Greek terms for “throughout” and “loosening.” When you analyze something, you deconstruct it, extract its parts, peer inside to see how everything fits together. You thoroughly loosen it in order to understand it better. When you’ve used a précis to lay out the primary elements of this text (the author; the argument’s what, how, and why; and the audience) in front of you, you’re ready to move on with your analysis. Analysis of nonfiction texts can take several forms, but three common ones are: evaluation and critique, comparison, and reflection.

Evaluation and Critique

Evaluating a text requires you to use your analysis to consider and critique the strengths and weaknesses of that piece of writing. Look back at the argument and audience and ask yourself some of these questions:

• Is this a persuasive argument for this group of readers?
• How well is the author’s argument developed and clarified through the structure of the text?
• Where does the logic of the argument and its supporting evidence cohere or fall apart?
• Do the author’s background, tone, evidence, and assumptions foster credibility?
• Does the piece achieve what the author intended?

Detailed answers—with examples—to any of these or similar questions could generate enough material for a close, analytical evaluation. Make sure that you are connecting your assertions about what works and doesn’t work in this text to the author, the argument’s development and purpose, and the audience. Make sure that you are looking deeply at how and why various elements of the text and its argument succeed or falter.

Through comparison, you bring together an analysis of more than one text. Start by writing a précis for each piece you have to compare. Then look at each précis side–by–side and ask yourself about how a sentence in one précis relates to the corresponding sentence in the other précis. Here are some questions to guide your thinking:

• Are all texts addressing a parallel idea?
• Are they making similar or different arguments?
• Have they employed similar methods to arrive at their arguments?
• Are they using the same kind of structure to develop those arguments?
• What is different about their intended audiences?
• Is one more or less successful or persuasive than the other?

Let what you identify as being similar and different about these texts guide your comparative analysis.

Reflection provides you with space to analyze a text in light of your experiences, perspectives, and ideas. In this kind of writing, you get to talk about yourself. In a way, a reflective analysis is kind of like a comparative analysis where the second text is you. Look back at that rhetorical précis and ask yourself questions like these, or other questions that connect what you know and have experienced with the text you have read:

• What else have you read or experienced that furthers or complicates the argument made by this text?
• How do you see that these ideas fit into the larger context of what you’ve been studying in this course?
• Why do you have a particular opinion or response towards this piece of writing?
• Moving forward, how can this text, its argument, or its presentation be influential in shaping your thinking or research?

In order to analyze a text, you need to understand key elements of it. Closely reading that text and summarizing it through a rhetorical précis can help you understand it better. In large part, the quality of your analysis will be dependent on the quality of your comprehension. So, give yourself the time you need to read carefully, think deeply, and analyze effectively.

Works Cited

Cronon, William. “The Trouble with Wilderness: Or, Getting Back to the Wrong Nature.” Environmental History , vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 7–28.

Woodworth, Margaret K. “The Rhetorical Précis.” Rhetoric Review , vol. 7, no. 1, pp. 156–64.

Academic and Professional Writing

This is an accordion element with a series of buttons that open and close related content panels.

Analysis Papers

Reading Poetry

A Short Guide to Close Reading for Literary Analysis

Using Literary Quotations

Play Reviews

Writing a Rhetorical Précis to Analyze Nonfiction Texts

Incorporating Interview Data

Grant Proposals

Planning and Writing a Grant Proposal: The Basics

Additional Resources for Grants and Proposal Writing

Job Materials and Application Essays

Writing Personal Statements for Ph.D. Programs

• Before you begin: useful tips for writing your essay
• Guided brainstorming exercises
• Get more help with your essay
• Frequently Asked Questions

Resume Writing Tips

CV Writing Tips

Cover Letters

Business Letters

Proposals and Dissertations

Resources for Proposal Writers

Resources for Dissertators

Research Papers

Planning and Writing Research Papers

Quoting and Paraphrasing

Writing Annotated Bibliographies

Creating Poster Presentations

Writing an Abstract for Your Research Paper

Thank-You Notes

Advice for Students Writing Thank-You Notes to Donors

Reading for a Review

Critical Reviews

Writing a Review of Literature

Scientific Reports

Scientific Report Format

Sample Lab Assignment

Writing for the Web

Writing an Effective Blog Post

Writing for Social Media: A Guide for Academics

Trending Post : 12 Powerful Discussion Strategies to Engage Students

How to Summarize Nonfiction Texts: A Lesson Plan

Looking for a memorable way to teach students to summarize nonfiction texts? Try this alternative strategy in your middle or high school classroom as a means of differentiation or scaffolding for struggling readers.

Have you ever noticed how easy it is to teach students to summarize fictional texts? They seem to catch on so quickly! Maybe it’s because the plot guides the summary, and all of the parts of the story work together sensibly. Exposition. Rising Action. Climax. Falling Action. Resolution . Streamlined, right?

If only nonfiction was equally as straightforward! Unfortunately, I’m not going to tell you there’s a secret formula that will magically transform nonfiction summarizing skills, but I do have some concrete, useful ideas and strategies to help reduce both student and teacher frustration.

One of the reasons I love teaching summarizing is because I know how important it is for skillful comprehension…not only in English class but in all subject areas. If your students can give you the main ideas and most important supporting details of a text in an accurate and objective manner, they are well on their way to being masters of cognition.

So, how can we do that? Here are a few tips to simplify your instruction and help students summarize nonfiction , non-narrative texts:

Start by picking high-interest texts.

Believe me,   I know how tempting it is to select a text about the deliciousness of coffee because of your love affair with it (…or maybe that’s mine), but resist the urge! Research says that if kids don’t care about the text, they will most likely not invest themselves in it. One of my go-to sources is Common Lit because it offers a variety of reading levels and provides other useful teacher resources. My students also really enjoy Scholastic Scope  and  Upfront magazines.

Lead with direct instruction. 

While people possess differing opinions on the value of direct instruction, I have seen its benefit when introducing new information. Keep it short, but give an overview of the down and dirty tips you expect your peeps to remember. Of course, include students in conversation during the mini lesson. Make them take notes. They’ll thank you later!

Model, model, and then model again.

Students need to see you working your mojo. Select a short text. Read it or watch it together (students love visual texts). Then, do a think-aloud while you model some brainstorming and writing up on the board. Students generally want to get involved in this process. Let them! If you are uncomfortable with writing on your feet, prepare something in advance and act like you are doing it on the spot. Don’t worry; they’ll never know the difference. What’s important is that they see the internal thought process played out aloud.

Scaffold. I do, we do, you do.

My goal is always to scaffold from direct instruction to guided practice to independent work. After you model, practice as many times as you deem necessary with the class. Modeling with a memorable strategy (I use Be a reporter! ) helps students understand what they need to do.

Write a summary together, put them in small groups, let them complete a think-pair-share summary for a different text, and then finally, throw those baby birds out of the nest and see if they fly or splat on the ground. If they come up looking at a “Snort” and think it’s their mother, it’s time to put them back in the nest for more guided practice.

Chunk your instruction. 

As with any effectively taught lesson, students need breaks. I try to chunk my instruction into three different parts in a forty-five minute period. If I have an activity that takes longer than 20 minutes, I use brain breaks periodically throughout the lesson. Even having students get up and grab a piece of paper from across the room helps get their blood flowing, increases their energy levels, and improves their focus.

What does this look like with summarizing? Maybe read a text, then have them discuss it with a partner or small group. Manipulatives and sorts provide brain-based approaches to learning how to write nonfiction summaries objectively as well. Following, they could share ideas with the whole class or via musical discussions. 

Obviously, you’re assessing how students summarize nonfiction throughout the entire process by asking questions, checking their written ideas, and listening to their conversations. Still, I like to do a formal assessment at the end of the unit, in which I include two things: 1) questions about the process of summarizing nonfiction (like, List three different elements to include in a nonfiction summary.) , and 2) a written portion where students read a nonfiction text and write a summary on their own – sans help! At this point, I would expect them to demonstrate proficiency.

And, voila! As they say, keep it simple.

When teaching students to summarize nonfiction, remember that answers will vary. What you’re really looking for is whether or not students can read a nonfiction text and then provide you with the main ideas and most important supporting details in a clear, objective, intelligent manner. Give students praise for everything they do well, and they’ll have more fun along the way.

RELATED RESOURCE:

These summarizing nonfiction text  teaching materials will provide you with everything you need to tackle the tips above. I use them at the ninth grade level with all levels: co-taught through enriched, but they would be appropriate for middle school or older high school students who struggle with reading comprehension.

15 Comments

Oh, I haven’t heard of Curriculet! I will check that out for sure! I LOVE reading and teaching nonfiction, so thank you for this post!

Yes, do! It has great teacher resources and levels texts for students’ reading abilities.

Hah! I could read your writing all day long – “Model like Cindy Crawford,” “throw those baby birds out of the nest” etc. LOVE IT!

Thanks so much for sharing these amazing tips.

Very kind of you…thanks so much for reading!

Thank you for sharing your steps for teaching summarizing in non-fiction texts. I follow a very similar method in my own classroom and have seen tremendous results from it as well. You hit the nail on the head when you said that this is a skill that is critical because it transfers to all other subject areas. I definitely think that this is blog post that all ELA teachers need to see!

Thanks for the validation!

Great tips! I especially support use of high interest non-fiction texts. I’ll have to look at your links. One topic that has never failed to interest my students is Criminals (think Al Capone, Bonnie and Clyde). The old articles and sources I’ve used are often challenging because of the old writing, but they dive in because the subject catches their attention!

Thanks for the idea for criminal topics…I haven’t tried that, but I’m sure my students would also find it fascinating.

Such a well written explanation of GOOD teaching. Your student are lucky to have you. I too am a reading recovery teacher and summarizing is paramount. Thank you for sharing.

Thanks for your kind words!

I agree with Kim! Looks like a lot of good teaching is happening in your classroom.

You’re hilarious – model like Cindy Crawford. I might say that to my students. Thanks for all the ideas – and I agree – providing examples reduces frustration all around.

You’ve got some great tips compiled here! Thank you for sharing.

This is so thorough! Thanks for the great ideas. As simple as it seems to us, summarizing nonfiction can be challenging for many students. I loved the comment about coffee texts…”Believe me, I know how tempting it is to select a text about the deliciousness of coffee because of your love affair with it (…or maybe that’s mine), but resist the urge!” I can identify with your love for coffee, and I wholeheartedly agree that interest is oftentimes the #1 factor in texting nonfiction texts!

I love the structure for your lessons! I can imagine the fun if you actually put up a picture of Cindy Crawford while you were “modeling”! 🙂

Comments are closed.

Get the latest in your inbox!

• Strategies for Teaching Nonfiction Summary Writing

Before jumping into  summarizing nonfiction  there are a few lessons that I teach prior to writing nonfiction summaries . Read on to see how I teach nonfiction summarizing in my classroom, breaking it down into different lessons that help students understand how to summarize informational text.

1. distinguish interesting vs. important.

My students always benefit from lessons on distinguishing the difference between interesting and important information. This is critical when they are writing nonfiction summaries . 

Begin by simply discussing the difference between what makes something interesting in the books that they read and what makes something important.

Here is how I explain the difference:

Interesting: Something new that I did not know that piqued my curiosity. 

Important: Something that I read that supports the main idea of the reading.

I go one step further to call students' attention to the N in interesting. That helps us remember that interesting is usually something New to us.  Looking at the word important, I call attention to the M. That reminds us that it supports the Main idea. This simple trick makes a huge impact on students' understanding of interesting and important.

A great book to use for a lesson on determining importance is  Henry’s Freedom Box by Ellen Levine .  As we read, we chart information into an Interesting vs Important Tchart. This book and activity helps students distinguish the difference, and improve their summary writing as they focus on only the important information.

2. Connect Summarizing with Main Idea...Start with Oral Summaries

TSMIDS simply stands for  topic sentence, main idea, and details that support.

I use this frame to show students how to write a quick summary. This is a good format to use when students are discussing sections of a nonfiction book or article. This is also perfect for students to summarize  what is going on within their book when you meet with them for reader’s workshop group time and conferencing. Once students master this format, I expect them to add more to their summaries.

3. Model Summary Writing with Mentor Texts

When introducing summaries, I like to use informational books or articles that we previously read . I model summary writing with a book that we have already read in class or even informational magazines like Time for Kids . Since we read the Moon Book during our science unit it is a great one for us to revisit as readers who are writing summaries.

Teacher tip: Be sure to grab the free resources above to grab the modeled example for a nonfiction summary using the Moon Book.

Once I have modeled my expectations, we write a few nonfiction summaries together, again using books that we have already read as a class. I like to use books and articles that we have already read because I know students already understand the main idea in the books that we have read and discussed as a class. This allows them to focus on writing a summary with important information, rather than reading the book for understanding.

Informational texts and authors that I like to use that have been previously read include:

• Time For Kids magazine (also online articles from TFK)
• Anything written by Gail Gibbons or Seymour Simon
• National Geographic Book Series
• Rookie Readers
• I Can Read (highest level readers)
• Let’s Read and Find Out Series

4. Practice, Practice, Practice

You might be interested in reading:

4 ways to help students successfully summarize 4 quick tips for differentiating summarizing instruction nonfiction teaching ideas and activities to hook readers what are effective reading strategies, looking for more reading activities that will make a big impact in your classroom click the  here ..

Social Media Icons

Welcome subscribers, popular posts.

• Classroom Management

Blog Archive

• ►  April (1)
• ►  March (3)
• ►  January (3)
• ►  November (2)
• ►  October (1)
• ►  September (2)
• ►  August (1)
• ►  July (1)
• ►  June (2)
• ►  May (2)
• ►  April (2)
• ►  March (1)
• ►  February (3)
• ►  January (1)
• ►  December (2)
• ►  November (3)
• ►  October (2)
• ►  August (2)
• ►  July (3)
• ►  June (3)
• ►  March (2)
• ►  February (2)
• 3 Ideas for Student Biography Research Projects Up...
• 4 Groundhog Activities for Upper Elementary
• ►  December (3)
• ►  September (1)
• ►  August (3)
• ►  July (6)
• ►  May (3)
• ►  April (4)
• ►  March (6)
• ►  December (1)
• ►  July (8)
• ►  June (5)
• ►  March (5)
• ►  January (2)
• ►  July (2)
• ►  August (4)
• ►  February (1)

Follow Along On Instagram

Copyright Think Grow Giggle . Sophie Template customized by A Bird in Hand Designs

If you're seeing this message, it means we're having trouble loading external resources on our website.

If you're behind a web filter, please make sure that the domains *.kastatic.org and *.kasandbox.org are unblocked.

To log in and use all the features of Khan Academy, please enable JavaScript in your browser.

3rd grade reading & vocabulary

Course: 3rd grade reading & vocabulary   >   unit 1, summarizing nonfiction | reading.

• What is a main idea? | Reading
• Finding connections between ideas within a passage | Reading
• Using text features to locate information | Reading
• Pets: reading informational text; Which Pet Is Right for You? 3

Want to join the conversation?

• Upvote Button navigates to signup page
• Downvote Button navigates to signup page
• Flag Button navigates to signup page

Video transcript

Navigation menu

Summarizing Nonfiction Text During a Social Studies Lesson (with a free graphic organizer!)

6 comments:

I just LOVE the way your brain works. I'm going to give this a try this week with our health curriculum and get some info on their non-fiction skills before we launch that unit the following week! This is going to be amazing for my ELs (and non ELs for that matter). They will sound so confident in their answers- which they always love to do. Thanks Deb!!!

Tremendous anchor chart - very clear and easy to understand. Thanks for the organizer, too!

You've done it again! Thanks!!!

Deb, this is terrific!! I hate teaching non-fiction summaries, too & this will make it so much easier! Thank you, thank you!

Amazing post.

Wow, great post.

• Anchor Chart

Popular Posts

Text Structures: A Lesson for Upper Elementary Students

Writing Poetry: A FREE lesson for writing odes!

Blog Archive

4 Steps to Teach Students When Summarizing Nonfiction Text

When you try to teach your students how to summarize a text, do you suddenly feel like you are speaking a foreign language and they just have no clue what you are telling them to do?

You aren’t alone-summarizing is actually one of the most difficult concepts to teach in writing, especially in 3rd, 4th and 5th grade.

Now make it a nonfiction text instead of fiction and it can feel like it’s our end game (Taylor Swift pun intended) .

Don’t worry! We’ve got your back and are going to share 4 simple steps to teach students when summarizing nonfiction text.

Let’s dive right in!

Characteristics of a Nonfiction or Informational Summary

A summary is a simple overview or outline of what the text is about.

As we said, summarizing an informational or nonfiction text can be really difficult for students.

Why is that exactly?

Let’s think about all of the steps for writing a summary:

• Students need to be able to identify important ideas in the text including the author’s purpose.
• They also need to identify the main idea and supporting details .
• In order to write a summary, they actually have to be able to write complete sentences and have their ideas make sense.
• Finally, they are supposed to paraphrase what they learned in their own words and not copy the ideas verbatim from the text.

Look at all of the intense writing skills that make up the art of summarizing! It’s probably a good thing that we don’t teach this skill until upper elementary!

If your students are already struggling to write complete sentences or just find the main idea of a passage, they are absolutely going to need some major hand-holding when writing a summary for a nonfiction text.

How to Teach Summarizing a Nonfiction Text in 4 Simple Steps

Now that we have looked at all of the characteristics and skills that writers need to have to be able to summarize, let’s start summarizing!

Here are 4 simple steps for how to teach your students to summarize:

Step 1: Read the Text

Obviously this seems simple but it’s more than that. Teach students to slowly read each paragraph. In addition, have them look at all of the text features including the title, pictures and captions.

Step 2: Underline Keywords

After reading the nonfiction text carefully, have students take a highliter or colored pencil and underline the most important words. Explain the importance of picking information that supports the main idea.

Step 3: Figure Out the Main Idea

Now, have students use these keywords that they just underlined to help them understand the author’s purpose and the point they are trying to make. They should be able to understand the main idea of the text this way. We encourage students to do this for each part of the text.

Step 4: Write the Summary (Use the TAMS Method)

Finally, teach students to use their own words when summarizing and not directly copy from the text. It is also important to remind them that when they summarize they are not stating their opinion. They have to use real facts from the text.

Use the TAMS method when teaching students to summarize. Once you teach students this method, you will not continue to get summaries turned in that are simply words just copied straight out of the text or full of students’ opinions. We teach students that summaries should be short and be about 4 to 5 sentences total.

Here’s the TAMS method and how we teach students to write a well-written summary of a nonfiction text:

Start by stating what type of text it is in the summary.

For example: is it a passage, article, recipe, etc?

A- Action & About

Then teach students to add purpose into the summary to state what the nonfiction text is about.

For example: This recipe (text) describes ( action) how to make blueberry pancakes ( about) .

M- Main Idea

Next, have students state one main that they learned from the nonfiction text.

S- Supporting Detail

Teach them to back up their main idea as we always do with a supporting detail from the text in their summary. We teach them to write 2-3 supporting detail sentences in there summary, keeping the summary no more than 5 sentence total.

Using this simple strategy for writing a summary of a nonfiction text is a total game changer! Use the Summarizing Nonfiction Text Worksheets Graphic Organizers Practice Activities with your students and we can pretty much promise they will become total experts at summarizing!

This resource explains the TAMS strategy in much more detail and contains tons of practice activities with easy to follow steps to hep students write a summary.

Summarizing Nonfiction Text Graphic Organizer & Anchor Charts

You can find everything that you need to teach students how to summarize informational or nonfiction texts in the Summarizing Nonfiction Text Activities.

It includes:

• Anchor charts
• Graphic organizers
• 1 entire month of summarizing low-prep activities
• Differentiated options for ESL learners or students in special education
• High-interest text that is engaging for students

and so much MORE!

What other tips do you have for teaching your students strategies for summarizing a nonfiction text?

Excuse our digital dust! We’re busy renovating this website to make it even more fabulous. Stay tuned!

• Read more about: Paragraph Writing , Reading , Writing

You might also like...

Teaching Cause and Effect Text Structure Meaning in 3rd, 4th, 5th

What is the RACE Writing Strategy?

5 Types of Nonfiction Text Structures to Teach for Test Prep

The Best Paragraph Writing Worksheets for 5th Grade

Teach smarter, not harder join the newsletter.

Transform your teaching with our teaching tips, resources, and freebies delivered straight to your inbox!

The Goodies

© GRASPhopper Learning • Website by KristenDoyle.co

9 Tips for Teaching Summarizing Nonfiction Text

• December 27, 2022

Teaching summarizing nonfiction text is an important skill that can help them in a variety of contexts, both inside and outside of the classroom. Summaries allow students to identify the main ideas and key details of a nonfiction text and to communicate that information in a concise and organized way. Here are some tips for teaching summarizing nonfiction text:

Summary Introduction

Start by introducing the concept of summarizing and its importance. Explain to students that summaries are a way to condense a large amount of information into a shorter, more manageable form. Emphasize that summaries are useful for a variety of purposes, such as taking notes, preparing for a test, or sharing information with others.

Model the process of summarizing for students. Choose a nonfiction text and read it aloud to the class. Then, identify the main ideas and key details of the text and create a summary using those elements. Be sure to keep the summary concise and focus on the most important information.

Independent Practice

Have students practice summarizing independently. Provide students with a selection of nonfiction texts and have them summarize the texts in their own words. Encourage them to use their own voice and to focus on the main ideas and key details.

Teaching Summarizing Nonfiction Text with a Class Review

Review the summaries with the class and discuss any common mistakes or areas for improvement. Offer feedback and suggestions for improvement, and encourage students to revise their summaries as needed.

Teaching Summarizing Nonfiction Text with Different Contexts

In addition to summarizing written texts, have students practice summarizing spoken presentations, lectures, or other audio or video sources. This will help students develop the skills they need to summarize information from a variety of sources.

Graphic Organizers for Teaching Summarizing Nonfiction Text

Encourage students to use graphic organizers to help them organize their summaries. There are many different types of graphic organizers that can be used for summarizing, such as concept maps, Venn diagrams, and flow charts. These tools can help students identify the main ideas and key details of a text and organize that information in a clear and logical way.

Specific Guidelines

Provide students with specific guidelines for writing summaries. Depending on the purpose and audience for their summaries, students may need to follow different guidelines. For example, a summary for a test might be more concise and focused on key details, while a summary for a presentation might be more conversational and include more context and background information. Make sure students understand the purpose and audience for their summaries, and provide them with specific guidelines to follow.

Revising and Editing

Encourage students to revise and edit their summaries. Summarizing is a complex process that requires students to think critically and make decisions about what information is most important. Encourage students to review and revise their summaries to make sure they are clear, concise, and accurately represent the content of the original text.

Apply to the Real World

Help students apply their summarizing skills in real-world situations. Encourage students to use their summarizing skills in a variety of contexts, such as writing book reports, giving presentations, or preparing for class discussions. This will help students see the value of summarizing and give them the opportunity to practice and improve their skills.

Overall, teaching upper elementary students to write nonfiction summaries is an important skill that can help them in a variety of contexts. By modeling the summarizing process, providing opportunities for practice, and encouraging revision and editing, teachers can help students develop the skills they need to effectively summarize nonfiction texts.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Check Out the New Website Shop!

Novels & Picture Books

Anchor Charts

• Informational Texts
• Literacy Anchor Charts

Nonfiction Summaries

By Mary Montero

Share This Post:

• Facebook Share
• Twitter Share
• Pinterest Share
• Email Share

I’m popping in to share an activity I did to get kids thinking about summarizing nonfiction texts.  I got this idea from the fantastic Kristine Nannini at Young Teacher Love.  She blogged about their classroom anchor chart where they discussed the difference between nonfiction and fiction summaries.   You can check out her blog post HERE.

It has been quite a while since we explicitly worked on summaries, so I added a few more elements to Kristine’s chart.  I also wanted to use the activity as a pre-assessment, so I gave the students the questions and off they went!  Some had GREAT answers, and others made it clear that they still needed some review.

This was a great springboard activity for us, and I’m excited (as excited as one can be about teaching nonfiction summary writing) to dive into our unit.  Little do the students know that these same questions will be part of their summative assessment, too!

Mary Montero

I’m so glad you are here. I’m a current gifted and talented teacher in a small town in Colorado, and I’ve been in education since 2009. My passion (other than my family and cookies) is for making teachers’ lives easier and classrooms more engaging.

You might also like…

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

How did I not see this until now? I suppose it's been a busy week! Thank you so much for that sweet shout out! I LOVE LOVE your spin on this by asking your students those super important questions. It's such a powerful, yet super easy pre-assessment tool for what can be a tough concept for our kids. Thank you for the great idea!

I love this lesson, thanks so much for sharing it. I somehow missed it too, but saw it below another post from the 17th, I believe. I understand your frustration with the grammar on the chart; I do the same thing to myself sometimes. What if you changed the wording (for future reference) from the first and the second one so that you still have synergy but get the same result: What does a summary show? What doesn't a summary show? As an entertaining fyi, I also struggled by starting with using "do" instead of "show" and I still don't think I'm satisfied with my interpretation. 😉 I love your work and appreciate your posts and resources so much. My students do as well. Thank you!

gucci bags louis vuitton handbags gucci outlet online oakley outlet polo ralph lauren louis vuitton jordan retro 8 coach outlet kate spade outlet michael kors outlet jordan retro 3 ray ban wayfarer coach outlet stores online mont blanc legend cheap jerseys gucci outlet online hollister kids coach factory outlet louis vuitton outlet abercrombie store michael kors outlet ray ban glasses michael kors purse ray ban outlet store michael kors outlet fitflop christian louboutin outlet soccer jerseys louis vuitton outlet coach outlet store online jordan 13s coach outlet coach outlet online coach outlet retro jordan prada sunglasses 20150626xiong

fitflop tods shoes ray ban sunglasses hollister , http://www.hollistercanada.com nike roshe ysl outlet ed hardy clothing michael kors handbags cheap nba jerseys , http://www.nbajerseys.us.com oakley sunglasses louis vuitton outlet jordan shoes , http://www.jordan-shoes.us.com chicago blackhawks jersey cartier watches nike free uk bottega veneta outlet air jordan 13 true religion outlet , http://www.truereligionoutletstore.us.com cheap nike shoes lebron shoes nba jerseys , http://www.nbajerseys.us.com seattle seahawks jerseys tory burch outlet iphone 6 cases longchamp outlet adidas outlet cheap jordans air max 90 celine outlet online miami dolphins jerseys hollister pas cher ghd hair straighteners barcelona jersey tory burch sandals soccer jerseys kate spade handbags michael kors outlet store , http://www.michaelkorsoutletonlinstore.us.com tory burch outlet online 0811maoqiuyun

©2023 Teaching With a Mountain View . All Rights Reserved | Designed by Ashley Hughes

Username or Email Address

Remember Me

Lost your password?

Review Cart

No products in the cart.

Theme Editor

Book summaries of the top nonfiction books., free book summaries.

Learn the main ideas of influential books in minutes with the most concise yet comprehensive book summaries anywhere . Our free to read digestible bullet point book summaries will help you actually retain what you read.

Weekly new summaries written by humans

Our book summaries are written and edited by humans , so you can trust their quality and be free of AI hallucinations. New summaries are published every week.

We have no advertisements . We value privacy and a distraction-free reading experience. By subscribing , you can support us and gain access to our Master Collection (all 117+ summaries in one book) , download summaries in various formats (PDF, eBook, DOCx) that are not restricted to a proprietary app like other book summary services, and more.

Insights of 117 + books in one collection

List of Book Summaries

How to Change Your Mind

Michael Pollan

Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind

Yuval Noah Harari

How to Win Friends and Influence People

Dale Carnegie

Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones

James Clear

Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything

Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life

Mark Manson

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

Stephen R. Covey

The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference

Malcolm Gladwell

Outliers: The Story of Success

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

Rebecca Skloot

Educated: A Memoir

Tara Westover

When Breath Becomes Air

Paul Kalanithi

Man's Search for Meaning

Viktor E. Frankl

Walter Isaacson

Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking

Rich Dad Poor Dad: What the Rich Teach Their Kids About Money That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not

Robert Kiyosaki and Sharon L. Lechter

The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time

Rolling Stone

The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business

Charles Duhigg

Who Moved My Cheese? An Amazing Way to Deal with Change in Your Work and in Your Life

Spencer Johnson

Thinking, Fast and Slow

Daniel Kahneman

Rhonda Byrne

The Art of War

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking

Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis

A Brief History of Time: From the Big Bang to Black Holes

Stephen Hawking

The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love that Lasts

Gary Chapman

Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies

Jared Diamond

A Short History of Nearly Everything

Bill Bryson

Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future

Ashlee Vance

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing

Marie Kondō

The Last Lecture

Randy Pausch and Jeffrey Zaslow

Killers of the Flower Moon

David Grann

Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future

Peter Thiel with Blake Masters

The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment

Eckhart Tolle

The Lean Startup

Think and Grow Rich

Napoleon Hill

Maybe You Should Talk to Someone

Lori Gottlieb

The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich

Tim Ferriss

Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative

Austin Kleon

We Should All Be Feminists

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity

Peter Attia and Bill Gifford

Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know about the People We Don't Know

Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead

Sheryl Sandberg

Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike

Phil Knight

Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup

John Carreyrou

A People's History of the United States

Howard Zinn

Girl, Wash Your Face: Stop Believing the Lies About Who You Are So You Can Become Who You Were Meant to Be

Rachel Hollis

You Are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life

Jen Sincero

Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal

Eric Schlosser

The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals

Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen

Christopher McDougall

Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear

Elizabeth Gilbert

The Republic

Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action

Simon Sinek

Daring Greatly

Brené Brown

12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos

Jordan Peterson

Walden; or, Life in the Woods

Henry David Thoreau

Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap and Others Don't

Jim Collins

The Selfish Gene

Richard Dawkins

Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End

Atul Gawande

Factfulness: Ten Reasons We're Wrong About the World

Hans and Ola Rosling, and Anna Rosling Rönnlund

The Happiness Project

Gretchen Rubin

Can't Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds

David Goggins

Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams

Matthew Walker

Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity

David Allen

The Communist Manifesto

Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels

Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion

Robert B. Cialdini

Mindset: The New Psychology of Success

Carol S. Dweck

Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World

Cal Newport

Never Split the Difference: Negotiating as if Your Life Depended on It

Chris Voss and Tahl Raz

Psycho-Cybernetics: A New Way to Get More Living Out of Life

Maxwell Maltz

The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma

Bessel van der Kolk

Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents

Isabel Wilkerson

Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions

The 48 Laws of Power

Robert Greene

The Intelligent Investor

Benjamin Graham

In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto

Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us

Daniel H. Pink

The Art of Happiness

Dalai Lama XIV

Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ

Daniel Goleman

Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance

Angela Duckworth

The Power of Positive Thinking

Norman Vincent Peale

How to Stop Worrying and Start Living

The Millionaire Next Door: The Surprising Secrets of America's Wealthy

Thomas J. Stanley and William D. Danko

10% Happier

The Psychology of Money

Morgan Housel

The War of Art: Winning the Inner Creative Battle

Steven Pressfield

Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men

Caroline Criado Pérez

The Magic of Thinking Big

David J. Schwartz

Beyond Good and Evil

Friedrich Nietzsche

Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don't Know

The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers

Ben Horowitz

Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art

James Nestor

The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon

Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes are High

Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan, Al Switzler

The 5 AM Club: Own Your Morning. Elevate Your Life

Robin S. Sharma

This Is Your Brain on Music: The Science of a Human Obsession

Daniel J. Levitin

Atlas of the Heart: Mapping Meaningful Connection and the Language of Human Experience

The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom

Don Miguel Ruiz

I Will Teach You to Be Rich

Ramit Sethi

The Personal MBA: Master the Art of Business

Josh Kaufman

How Not to Die

Michael Greger and Gene Stone

Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents

Lindsay C. Gibson

Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life: Life-Changing Tools for Healthy Relationships

Marshall B. Rosenberg

How to Talk to Anyone

Leil Lowndes

How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk

Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish

Algorithms to Live By: The Computer Science of Human Decisions

Brian Christian and Tom Griffiths

On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction

William Zinsser

The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing: Violate Them at Your Own Risk

Al Ries and Jack Trout

The Mountain Is You: Transforming Self-Sabotage Into Self-Mastery

Brianna Wiest

The Charisma Myth: How Anyone Can Master the Art and Science of Personal Magnetism

Olivia Fox Cabane

Models: Attract Women Through Honesty

Master Your Emotions

Thibaut Meurisse

How to Be an Adult in Relationships: The Five Keys to Mindful Loving

David Richo

ADHD 2.0: New Science and Essential Strategies for Thriving with Distraction

Edward M. Hallowell and John J. Ratey

Eat to Beat Disease: The New Science of How Your Body Can Heal Itself

William W. Li

The Relationship Cure

John M. Gottman and Joan DeClaire

The Good Life: Lessons from the World's Longest Scientific Study of Happiness

Robert Waldinger and Marc Schulz

The Hundred Years' War on Palestine

Rashid Khalidi

Israel: A Concise History of a Nation Reborn

Daniel Gordis

Drink?: The New Science of Alcohol and Your Health

David J. Nutt

Upcoming books

MUST-HAVE SPRING RESOURCES

English Language Arts

Classroom Management

Building Community

Freebie Vault

Free Vocabulary Activities!

Reading and summarizing nonfiction: coding the text.

The lesson I am sharing with you all today is one small lesson in a GIANT Reading and Summarizing Nonfiction unit. You can click HERE to read about our fiction summaries.

First and foremost, my students struggle with summarizing nonfiction.  The problem is that nonfiction passages are usually JAM-PACKED with information (some of which is not that important) .  I realized that my students were struggling with this when we immediately jumped into coding the text. I handed out highlighters and asked students to highlight important information in a short paragraph and cross off interesting or irrelevant information (code the text). I received the short paragraphs back with every word highlighted. OY!  Time to go back to the drawing board, switch up my entire lesson, and have myself a good ‘ol teachable moment!

After my revelations, I asked my students:

You can now get all of the above Close Reading resources at a discount in this bundle. Click the button below to check it out!

New! Plants Close Reading :

17 Comments

I love this way of narrowing the reading down to the important parts!! And your anchor charts are so neat and pretty! Do you do them ahead of time, or is this the chart made with the students?

My Journey to 5th Grade

Thanks for your comments Julie! This lesson was big for my kids. I make my anchor charts with them always. I never think they’re cute enough, so thank you!! ;)

Where did you get your passages?

Hi Theresa- I believe it’s k-12 reader. Thanks!

It’s often difficult for students to differentiate between important and unimportant part of NF text.

One thing that has helped students is to have them look for “chunks”. Find paragraphs that seem to go together and decide HOW they are alike. Also, notice that the paragraphs within sections are chunks.

When students can name the chunks, they are able to more easily find main ideas and important information.

What a great idea, Janet! Thank you for this. We are still working on this concept. It most definitely is not an easy concept for students to master, no matter what grade.

I’m a student and I was wondering if you have anymore helpful tips to summarize a nonfiction writing piece…

Hi did you ever make the second part of this lesson?

Hi Kristine! Wondering about the next part in the lesson- how did it go?? Any posts on it?

DO YOU HAVE A TEMPLATE SIMILAR TO THE SWBST TEMPLATE, THAT YOU USE FOR NONFICTION TEXT SUMMARY WRITING?

DO YOU HAVE A TEMPATE SIMILAR TO THE “SWBST TEMPLATE, THAT YOU USE FOR NONFICTION WRITING?

At this time I don’t. Sorry!

This post was incredibly helpful! My partner teacher and I just taught coding & summarizing and the students loved the challenge of finding the main idea and deciding their topic for coding. Great resource!

Is there somewhere on your site that you have the anchor chart “Stop and Jot” without all of the sticky notes on it?

@ Stephanie-Here is the link to my stop and jot post: http://youngteacherlove.blogspot.com/2012/10/writing-long-off-post-its-and.html . Thanks!

Hi, It was an awesome blog.I like it very much… Thanks for sharing..

These exercises are wonderful! I’m sure students will love it. Summarizing fiction is definitely a difficult task because fiction contains a lot of information, like A LOT. SO this was extremely helpful!

Harris | http://www.rewordingtool.net/rewording-generator/

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Review Cart

No products in the cart.

• Skip to main content

Not So Wimpy Teacher

The Not So WImpy Teacher creates resources for busy teachers in grades 2-5 who are looking to deliver engaging and meaningful lessons without overwhelm and chaos.

Nonfiction Summary Reading Response Writing Unit

Grade Level: 3rd Grade , 4th Grade , 5th Grade

In this unit, students will learn all of the skills necessary for writing a strong nonfiction summary. These skills are broken down into small bite-size pieces that make it easier for our students to be successful.

Also available in the following bundles

More about this resource

You know how it is. You ask your students to write a summary of their weekend.

One student writes, “I was sick in bed. The end.”

The other 25 fill 3 sheets of notebook paper. “First, I woke up. Then I played Fortnight while mom made breakfast. We had Funfetti pancakes. With whipped cream. Saturdays are my favorite! Then we watched Hotel Transylvania. Then we got dressed. I wore my favorite shorts and the alien top; the one mom won’t let me wear to school . . .” And on and on, until they’ve recounted every last detail of their weekend.

Summarizing is a tough skill for kids to master. Students need to be able to recap a book or reading passage without retelling the entire story. But often, when you try to explain this to students, their eyes glaze over and the tell-tale “I’m not listening anymore” pencil-tapping begins.

Like any tough skill, the best way for students to get better at writing summaries is practice. And more practice. But don’t despair. Any time spent teaching kids how to summarize is time well-spent. Not only is summarizing frequently tested on standardized assessments, but writing good summaries also increases reading comprehension.

f you’re ready to silence, or at least soften, the pencil-tapping tune, you will love this  Nonfiction Summary Writing Unit . It includes  10-days  of materials to help your students practice writing summaries of nonfiction passages.

The “At a Glance”  calendar  lays out your daily lessons and  detailed lesson plans  making teaching those lessons a piece of cake. It also includes  reading passages, anchor charts,  and  student printables  so you have everything you need to jump right in.

This  no-prep  unit is intended to be used over a  two-week  time frame, but this can easily be adjusted to meet your needs.

It was written with  3rd-5th-grade  students in mind. I suggest looking over the preview to determine if it is a good fit for your specific class.

What’s Included:

● “At a Glance” lesson schedule

● 10 days of lesson plans

● 3 nonfiction reading passages (2 used during whole group instruction plus one extra)

● Anchor charts (Powerpoint anchor charts include both blank and filled-in versions to save you time)

● Student printables

● A scoring rubric

● Publishing paper

● Detailed teacher directions with tips and suggestions for simple implementation

How to Use in the Classroom:

There are many ways to use this  Nonfiction Summary Writing Unit  in the classroom. Here’s one example of what a typical day might look like with whole group instruction:

Mini Lesson:

The unit includes  10 lesson plans  with a suggested mini lesson. The lessons include the use of  mentor text passages  (that are included in the unit) and  anchor charts.  Teacher versions of the anchor chart are included in the unit so that the teacher can project them and fill them out with the class, or print them and display them in the classroom. Small versions are included for the students to fill out and keep in their writing notebooks as a reference and to help draft their essays. The mini lesson should take about 10-15 minutes.

Independent Work Time:

Students will implement the strategy used during the whole group mini lesson as they write their summaries. Independent writing activities are included in the lesson plans. Students will need about 15-20 minutes to complete these activities.

Share Time:

Lesson plans include a specific task for students each day that allows them to share some piece of their writing with a partner or with the class. This will only take about 2-5 minutes.

You can also use this unit during:

● Reading small group lessons – is a perfect way to  differentiate learning . Read the passage together and help students complete their printables correctly so they have a good resource for writing their summaries.

● Use the extra reading passage to provide additional support to students who need extra practice.

● Use the extra reading passage during reading centers and allow students to complete the activities independently.

● Use this unit during writing workshop. This writing unit is a great way to work on writing summaries during  group conferences .

● Use the extra reading passage as an assessment. A scoring rubric is included to make grading easy.

● This unit also makes an excellent  test prep activity .

More writing units:

Text Dependent Test Prep Writing Units Bundle

Reading Response Essay Writing Unit

Compare and Contrast Nonfiction Reading Response Essay Writing Unit

Compare and Contrast Fiction Reading Response Essay Writing Unit

Text Dependent Opinion Writing Essay Unit

Fiction Summary Reading Response Writing Unit

Additional Resources You Might Like:

Second Grade (Narrative, Opinion, & Informational)

Third Grade (Narrative, Opinion & Informational)

Fourth Grade (Narrative, Opinion & Informational)

Fifth Grade (Narrative, Opinion & Informational)

A: This unit is designed to be taught over ten days, with about 30-40 minutes of instructional time each day.

A: Both resources teach students strategies for writing summaries. But the mentor texts and specific activities are different.

A: There are no recorded mini lessons for this unit.

A: You can use the third passage as extra practice, in small groups, during test prep, or for assessment.

You May Also Enjoy These Resources

• Mission, Vision, and Values
• Affiliate Area
• Your Cart - $ 0.00

A Curriculum Publisher

Writing a Nonfiction Summary

One of the most important skills to teach your child when it comes to reading and writing is summarizing. This will help not only with writing skills but monitoring understanding of a text. Being able to summarize what they’ve read in their own words can show that your child comprehends what they read. Writing a nonfiction summary can be challenging for some children at first. Many tend to retell the entirety of what they have read. Regurgitating information is not summarizing, however. This method for writing a nonfiction summary will help your child improve their reading and writing skills.

Start with a topic sentence.

Topic sentences should give the overall idea of what the passage, chapter, article, or book is about. Generating a topic sentence is very simple if you introduce a few easy steps. First, have your child identify the content (i.e. Chapter 1, The article, “Birds of Prey”, or Who Was Harriet Tubman?). Next, have them use an action verb in the sentence that focuses on explanation of the text (i.e. shows, explains, tells). Finally, state the main idea by finishing up the sentence with an overall thought (i.e. the history of Mesopotamia, different birds and their food sources, or a Civil War hero’s mission to help slaves escape to freedom.

A topic sentence should look like this:

Who Was Harriet Tubman? explains a Civil War hero’s mission to help slaves escape to freedom.

Add some details.

All of the detail sentences in the summary paragraph should support the main idea. The reader should be able to identify the main idea of the paragraph if they read the supporting detail sentences independent of the topic sentence. In the topic sentence mentioned above, the details may look like this.

• Harriet Tubman escaped from slavery on her own.
• She earned the nickname Moses because she led people to freedom.
• Tubman helped slaves escape through the Underground Railroad.

Put it all together.

Have your child put all the steps together to write a formal, well-written paragraph. Eventually, steps 1-3 will become automatic, and they will write the sentences into a well-structured paragraph as they go.

Writing a nonfiction summary can be a simple task for your child with these three easy steps. Start with a topic sentence, follow with 4-5 detail sentences, and wrap up the paragraph with a closing sentence.

Join the newsletter

Success! Now check your email to confirm your subscription.

There was an error submitting your subscription. Please try again.