Rationale: A student is not really reading if they do not actually comprehend the message of the text; they are simply decoding words. The goal is to teach readers how to read to learn, as this skill is essential throughout their lives. In this lesson, students will practice the strategy of summarization. Summarization can reveal whether a student has fully grasped the major points of the reading. The lesson will teach students to eliminate trivial and redundant information in order to identify the important points.

 

Materials:

Smartboard/projector

Markers

Copies of National Geographic Kids Article: Orcas (1 for each student)

Paper

Pencils

Summary checklist (1 for each student)

 

Procedures

1. Say: Have you ever read a book that was so good that you wanted to tell everyone about it? Do you read them the whole book, or just tell them about the most important parts? (Call on student). That’s right! We don’t need to tell them everything, we only tell them the essential elements. This process is called summarization. When you are able to give someone a summary, it shows that you know what you’ve read.

 

2. Say: There are some rules that we can follow to help us summarize most efficiently. First, we delete trivial information. This means we are going to get rid of stuff you know isn’t important. Second, we want to delete any information that is repeated. Lastly, we need to find or make a statement that covers everything that the writer is saying in the text. Sometimes this is called a topic sentence, as it encompasses all that the writer is saying about the topic. The challenge is that there is not always a topic sentence incorporated in the passage, so the reader has to create one. We are going to practice using our summarization rules together later.

 

3. Say: Before we practice our summarization strategy, we are going to review some vocabulary from the article that you are about to read. While reading the passage, you may come across some words that are confusing. For example, the word camouflaged is used. This word in this context means an animal’s natural coloring or appearance that allows it to blend in with its environment. So the beautiful bright blue frogs in the rain forest are not camouflaged, as their color stands out from the green leaves around them. However, the white fur of the polar bear provides it with camouflage. Which of these would be an example of camouflage- a stick bug that looks like the sticks and branches around it, or a peacock that has bright feathers that stand out? (Ask class) Yes, the stick bug uses camouflage! Everyone come up with a way to finish this sentence: The camouflage made the animal…    Possible completion: blend in with its environment, hard to find

 

4. Say: Alright, now that we have learned a new word, let’s start summarizing the article. We are going to read about the fiercest predator in the ocean. You may know this animal as Shamu. How did the seemingly sweet Shamu earn this title? Let’s read to learn more about this animal and what it eats. Watch me as I summarize the first paragraph. I am going to underline the main points, and cross out everything else. I read the first sentence and think to myself, is this detail important or can it be deleted? I don’t think it is important to know how much power is used to hit the ice, so this sentence isn’t important. I can draw a line through it. I then read the second sentence. I now know that a seal is being eaten. When I go on to the next sentence, this information is repeated, so I only need to underline it in the third sentence and can cross out the second sentence. The third sentence also talks about the orca being one of the ocean’s top predators. This is very important, as I now know the article is about orcas. I need this information to understand the rest of the paragraph. They were talking about the ice being hit and the seals because orcas hunt them. I can now come up with a topic sentence. I would write something like, “Orcas are one of the ocean’s top predators, killing seals easily.”

 

5. Say: Let’s try summarizing the second paragraph together. I will put the paragraph on the projector, and you tell me what to underline and what to cross out. (Put paragraph on the board) So can anyone tell me what this paragraph is about? What is important for me to underline? (Wait for answers) Good, I will underline “Orcas hunt everything from fish to walruses.” I will also underline the parts of text stating, “average-sized orcas may eat about 500 foods a day” and “orcas have many hunting techniques.” So what can we cross out? (Wait for answers) Good! We can eliminate the list of animals that orcas eat, as these details are not important. We can also cross out the part that says “depending on the season and where they are, their diet varies-some orcas eat more fishes and squid than seals and penguins.” This is repetitive, as the article already talked about how orcas eat a range of animals. Can we come up with a topic sentence? It should include what orcas eat and how. For example, it could be “Orcas hunt sea animals of all sizes using many different techniques in order to consume large amounts of food.”

 

6. Say: Now that you watched me and we worked together as class, it is time to demonstrate what you know. I want you to summarize the rest of the article, making sure to use the rules that we talked about. Underline what is important and cross out what is repetitive or trivial. Use the checklist to make sure your summary meets the necessary criteria. Have your neighbor fill out the checklist for yours and switch to fill one out for theirs. This gives the students an opportunity to improve their summary before they turn it in. Summarizing will help make sure that you understand the passage.

 

Assessment:

I will ask the students the following comprehension questions. I will also use the checklist to determine if the student mastered the strategy of summarization.

 

Comprehension Questions:

Why is the orca known as the killer whale?

What are some features of orcas that help them hunt?

Where do you think most orcas live?

 

Assessment checklist:

Student Name: ______________________________

1. Did the student underline important ideas?

__________ yes        __________no

2. Did the student cross out trivial ideas?

__________yes         __________no

3. Did the student cross out repeated ideas?

__________yes         _________no

4. Did the student come up with a topic sentence?

__________yes         _________no

5. Does the topic sentence capture the main idea of text?

__________yes         _________no

 

References:

Orcas by National Geographic Kids http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/animals/orca/#orca-jumping.jpg

“Leaping into Summarization” by Katherine Hope Youngblood

http://khyoungblood.wixsite.com/khyoungblood/reading-to-learn

“Sailing to Summarize!” By Layton Dyess

http://laytondyess.wixsite.com/lessondesign/reading-to-learn