Summarizing is useful for many types of writing and at different stages of the writing process. It helps support arguments, provide context, write literature reviews, and annotate bibliographies. Summarizing shows the "big picture" for readers to better understand what is being said. As a writer, summarizing aids in understanding where the writing is going, what needs more details, and ensures comprehension of research collected.

1. SUMMARIZING

2. WHAT IS SUMMARIZING?
•According to Buckley (2004), in her
popular writing text Fit to Print,
summarizing is reducing text to
one-third or one-quarter its original
size, clearly articulating the author’s
meaning, and retaining main ideas.

3. WHAT IS SUMMARIZING?
•According to Diane Hacker
(2008), in A Canadian Writer’s
Reference, explains that
summarizing involves stating a
work’s thesis and main ideas
“simply, briefly, and accurately”.

4. VARIOUS TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING A
VARIETY OF ACADEMIC TEXTS
•Read the work first to
understand the author’s intent.
This is a crucial step because an
incomplete reading could lead
to an inaccurate summary. Note:
an inaccurate summary is
plagiarism!

5. VARIOUS TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING A
VARIETY OF ACADEMIC TEXTS
•One of the summarization
techniques you can do is to present
information through facts, skills and
concept in visual formats. You can
provide the cause and effects
charts, time lines, and Venn
diagrams, templates for outlines,

6. VARIOUS TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING A
VARIETY OF ACADEMIC TEXTS
•To avoid difficulty, you need
first to know the main points
and the supporting details.
You can exclude any
illustrations, examples or
explanations.

7. VARIOUS TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING A
VARIETY OF ACADEMIC TEXTS
•You need to analyze the
text to save time in
thinking what you will
do.

8. VARIOUS TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING A
VARIETY OF ACADEMIC TEXTS
•Think what information you
will put in your summary. Be
sure to cover the main points
and arguments of the
document.

9. VARIOUS TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING A
VARIETY OF ACADEMIC TEXTS
•One of the best things to do in auto
summarizing is restating the words
into different one. You should avoid
using the original words of the
author instead; use your own
vocabulary but be sure to retain the
information.

10. VARIOUS TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING A
VARIETY OF ACADEMIC TEXTS
•You will fully
understand what the
document is when you
organize all ideas.

11. VARIOUS TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING A
VARIETY OF ACADEMIC TEXTS
•One of the things you can do is
to write down all information in
a coherent and precise form.
Keep in mind that a summary is
a condensed version of the
original paper, so avoid making
it long.

12. VARIOUS TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING A
VARIETY OF ACADEMIC TEXTS
•You can also decide to
represent information
through using dimensional
constructions in representing
concepts, skills or facts.

13. VARIOUS TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING A
VARIETY OF ACADEMIC TEXTS
•Paraphrasing is one of the
skills you can do in writing a
summary. With it, do not use
the same words with the
author.

14. JAPANESE RAIL TUNNEL
Due to an increase in traffic between the various island which
make up Japan and predictions of a continuing growth in train travel, a
rail tunnel was built to connect the islands of Honshu and Hokkaido.
The Seikan Tunnel in Japan is today the longest tunnel in the world, with
a length of almost 54km. When the tunnel was opened in 1988, all
existing trains went through it. However, newer Japanese bullet trains
have never used the tunnel because of the cost of extending the high
speed line through it. Consequently, the train journey from Tokyo to
Sapporo still takes about ten hours. In contrast, the journey by air takes
only three and a half hours. This has combined with the fall in the cost
of flying, has meant that more people travel by plane than train and the
tunnel is not used as much as forecasters had predicted.

15. • Increase in traffic
• connect Islands (Honshu & Hokkaido )
• Predictions and continuing growth
• The longest rail tunnel
• opened 1988
• 54km
• Opened in 1988
• Bullet trains
• Never used tunnel
• Fall in the cost of flying
• Not used as much as forecasters predicted

16. SUMMARY
The longest railway tunnel in the world
links the islands of Honshu & Hokkaido.
This 54km tunnel was inaugurated in 1988
to deal with the predicted increase in rail
traffic. However, the fall in the cost of flying
and the fact that high speed trains cannot
use the tunnel have resulted in the tunnel
being less widely used than expected.

17. EASY TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING VARIOUS ACADEMIC
TEXTS
Technique 1: Somebody Wanted But So Then
“Somebody Wanted But So Then” is an excellent summarizing strategy for
stories. Each word represents a key question related to the story's essential
elements:
Somebody: Who is the story about?
Wanted: What does the main character want?
But: Identify a problem that the main character encountered.
So: How does the main character solve the problem?
Then: Tell how the story ends.

18. EASY TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING VARIOUS ACADEMIC
TEXTS
Technique 1: Somebody Wanted But So Then
“Somebody Wanted But So Then” is an excellent summarizing strategy
for stories. Each word represents a key question related to the story's
essential elements:
• Somebody: Little Red Riding Hood
• Wanted: She wanted to take cookies to her sick grandmother.
• But: She encountered a wolf pretending to be her grandmother.
• So: She ran away, crying for help.
• Then: A woodsman heard her and saved her from the wolf.

19. EASY TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING VARIOUS ACADEMIC
TEXTS
After answering the questions, combine the answers to
form a summary:
Little Red Riding Hood wanted to take cookies to
her sick grandmother, but she encountered a wolf. He
got to her grandmother’s house first and pretended to
be the old woman. He was going to eat Little Red Riding
Hood, but she realized what he was doing and ran away,
crying for help. A woodsman heard the girl’s cries and
saved her from the wolf.

20. EASY TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING VARIOUS ACADEMIC
TEXTS
• Technique 2: SAAC Method
The SAAC method is another useful technique for summarizing any kind of text
(story, article, speech, etc). SAAC is an acronym for "State, Assign, Action, Complete.“
Each word in the acronym refers to a specific element that should be included in the
summary.
• State: name of the article, book, or story
• Assign: the name of the author
• Action: what the author is doing (example: tells, explains)
• Complete: complete the sentence or summary with keywords and important

21. EASY TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING VARIOUS ACADEMIC
TEXTS
• Technique 2: SAAC Method
The SAAC method is another useful technique for summarizing any kind of text
(story, article, speech, etc). SAAC is an acronym for "State, Assign, Action, Complete.“
Each word in the acronym refers to a specific element that should be included in the
summary.
• State: name of the article, book, or story
• Assign: the name of the author
• Action: what the author is doing (example: tells, explains)
• Complete: complete the sentence or summary with keywords and important

22. EASY TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING VARIOUS ACADEMIC
TEXTS
•Technique 2: SAAC Method
Here is an example of SAAC in action:
• State: The Boy Who Cried Wolf
• Assign: Aesop (a Greek storyteller)
• Action: tells
• Complete: what happens when a shepherd boy repeatedly
lies to the villagers about seeing a wolf

23. EASY TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING VARIOUS ACADEMIC
TEXTS
Use the four SAAC cues to write out a summary of "The
Boy Who Cried Wolf“ in complete sentences:
The Boy Who Cried Wolf, by Aesop (a Greek
storyteller), tells what happens when a shepherd boy
repeatedly lies to the villagers about seeing a wolf. After
a while, they ignore his false cries. Then, when a wolf
really does attack, they don’t come to help him.

24. EASY TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING VARIOUS ACADEMIC
TEXTS
• Technique 3: 5 W's, 1 H
The 5 W's, 1 H strategy relies on six crucial questions: who, what, when, where,
why, and how. These questions make it easy to identify the main character, the
important details, and the main idea.
• Who is the story about?
• What did they do?
• When did the action take place?
• Where did the story happen?
• Why did the main character do what he/she did?
• How did the main character do what he/she did?

25. EASY TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING VARIOUS ACADEMIC
TEXTS
•Technique 3: 5 W's, 1 H
Try this technique with a familiar fable such as "The Tortoise and the
Hare."
• Who? The tortoise
• What? He raced a quick, boastful hare and won.
• When? When isn’t specified in this story, so it’s not important in this
case.
• Where? An old country road
• Why? The tortoise was tired of hearing the hare boast about his

26. EASY TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING VARIOUS ACADEMIC
TEXTS
Then, use the answers to the 5 W's and 1 H to
write a summary of in complete sentences.
Tortoise got tired of listening to Hare
boast about how fast he was, so he challenged
Hare to a race. Even though he was slower
than Hare, Tortoise won by keeping up his
slow and steady pace when Hare stopped to
take a nap.

27. EASY TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING VARIOUS ACADEMIC
TEXTS
Technique 4: First, Then, Finally
The "First Then Finally" technique helps students
summarize events in chronological order. The three words
represent the beginning, main action, and conclusion of a story,
respectively:
• First. What happened first? Include the main character and
main event/action.
• Then. What key details took place during the event/action?

28. EASY TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING VARIOUS ACADEMIC
TEXTS
Technique 4: First, Then, Finally
Here is an example using "Goldilocks and the Three
Bears.“
First, Goldilocks entered the bears' home while they
were gone. Then, she ate their food, sat in their chairs,
and slept in their beds. Finally, she woke up to find the
bears watching her, so she jumped up and ran away.

29. EASY TECHNIQUES IN SUMMARIZING VARIOUS ACADEMIC
TEXTS
• Technique 5: Give Me the Gist
When someone asks for "the gist" of a story, they want to
know what the story is about. In other words, they want a
summary—not a retelling of every detail. To introduce the gist
method, explain that summarizing is just like giving a friend the
gist of a story, and have your students tell each other about
their favorite books or movies in 15 seconds or less. You can
use the gist method as a fun, quick way to practice
summarizing on a regular basis.

30. WHEN
SUMMARIZING IS
USEFUL?

31. WHEN SUMMARIZING IS USEFUL?
Summarizing is useful in many types of writing and at different
points in the writing process. Summarizing is used to support an
argument, provide context for a paper’s thesis, write literature
reviews, and annotate a bibliography. The benefit of summarizing
lies in showing the "big picture," which allows the reader to
contextualize what you are saying. In addition to the advantages of
summarizing for the reader, as a writer you gain a better sense of
where you are going with your writing, which parts need
elaboration, and whether you have comprehended the information
you have collected.