Outlining What it is Why it is important

Outlining What it is, Why it is important, and How to do it

Objectives: At the end of the lesson, you should be able to: 1) 2) 3) 4) Explain why outlining is an important academic tool; Classify major and minor ideas; Describe the format of an outline; and Enumerate the steps in making an outline.

Values of Outlining Doing an outline requires you to: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Read analyze the ideas expressed; Classify them into major and minor ideas; Determine which minor ideas belong to each major idea; Restate the ideas for consistency; Arrange the ideas in outline form.

Activity. Group the words according to a shared characteristic. Then, identify the group which best defines the word “outline. ” silhouette, synopsis, figure, cut-out, condensation, sketch, framework, summary, structure, schema, shadow, diagram Group A ______ shadow ______ Group B condensation ______ synopsis Group C ___________ sketch Group D framework ___________

Activity. Group the words according to a shared characteristic. Then, identify the group which best defines the word “outline”. Group A Group B Group C Group D cut-out shadow Silhouette condensation summary synopsis diagram figure sketch framework schema structure Group D best defines the word “outline. ”

Outline defined u. Lays out the relationships among ideas in a piece of writing u. Reveals how all these main and subordinate parts contribute final relevance to the central idea of a composition u. Can be formal or informal

Outlining enables us to: distinguish between the “heart of the matter” and its minor issues

Let’s organize and classify ideas: Provide each group with a main idea (a more general term or name or topic) that is precise and particular, yet broad enough to include all terms in the set as subtopics.

1) Parliamentary Oligarchy Presidential Dictatorial

2) Influenza Tuberculosis Bronchitis Pneumonia

3) Increased hunger for salty, fatty foods Slower thought processes Difficulty learning new tasks Lack of imagination or originality Blurred vision and hallucinations Slurred speech

This time, you will give the subtopics: The following could serve as main ideas. Provide at least three possible subtopics which relate to the main idea either as examples, illustrations, stages or steps, or elements or parts.

Levels of communication 1. Intrapersonal 2. Interpersonal 3. Mass communication

Qualities of an effective paragraph 1. Unity 2. Coherence 3. Emphasis

Kinds of UP students 1. 2. 3.

We will now sort out the items, and come up with an outline. Below is a group of jumbled topics that are parts of an outline, including (1) a title, (2) main ideas, and (3) subordinate ideas. Make sure you classify all pertinent subtopics under their proper main headings and arrange the entire outline in the best order.

Transporting by truck Selling eggs Packaging eggs for retail sale Grading eggs for weight The egg industry Transporting by rail Producing high quality eggs Grading eggs for quality Packaging eggs for shipment Transporting by parcel post

The egg industry I. Producing high quality eggs A. Grading eggs for quality B. Grading eggs for weight II. Selling eggs A. Packaging eggs for retail sale B. Packaging eggs for shipment C. Transporting by truck D. Transporting by rail E. Transporting by parcel post

Format of an Outline

“Levels” in outlining the degrees or planes of subordination or ranking through which the various relationships among the facts and concepts, particulars and generalizations which make up an expository piece of writing are immediately reflected u Or simply… arrangement of the topics to show the main and subordinate ideas u

One-level Outline - enumerates only the main divisions I II IV First main idea Second main idea Third main idea Fourth main idea

Two-level Outline - enumerates the main divisions together with the subtopics that compose each main division I II etc… First main idea A. First subtopic B. Second subtopic C. Third subtopic Second main idea A. First subtopic B. Second subtopic C. Third subtopic

Three-level Outline - enumerates the main divisions and their subtopics, together with the supporting details of these subtopics I. First main idea A. First subtopic 1. First supporting detail 2. Second supporting detail 3. Third supporting detail B. Second subtopic 1. First supporting detail 2. Second supporting detail 3. Third supporting detail II. Second main idea A. First subtopic 1. First supporting detail, etc…

Two Types of Outline

Topic Outline Thesis statement: Anime has traditions and features that distinguish it from American cartoons and make it sophisticated enough to appeal to adults. I. Anime qualities A. B. C. D. Quick images Jazz and rock soundtracks Character eyes and features Colorful, complicated art 1. Samurai X as example 2. Samurai X about nineteenth-century warrior 3. Samurai X art like old Japanese prints

Sentence Outline Thesis statement: Anime has traditions and features that distinguish it from American cartoons and make it sophisticated enough to appeal to adults. I. Complex plots are but one of the distinctive features of anime. A. Anime images move quickly, with a style often more frantic than in American cartoons. B. Their soundtracks frequently use jazz and rock music rather than symphonic music.

Sentence Outline, cont’d C. Most striking are the large eyes and sharp features of the characters. D. The drawing is more colorful, more complicated, and often more abstract than that in most American cartoons. 1. A TV series called Samurai X is one of the most popular anime series with both American and Japanese audiences. 2. Samurai X is set in the nineteenth century and tells the story of one warrior’s life. 3. Samurai X art is drawn beautifully to look both like older Japanese art prints and like contemporary movies such as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

Making an Outline

1 -2 Get the central idea. Pick out key words in each paragraph 3 -4 Isolate the topic sentence, and note its mode of development Group topic sentences according to their “family resemblances” 5 -6 Provide a “class name” and these will serve as main divisions of the outline Further break down the subtopics into supporting details

“Frozen Sleep”: New Frontier in Surgery by J. D. Ratcliff Not long ago, French physicians reported a case of a woman, seven months with child, struck with eclampsia, the dread convulsions of pregnancy. The one slender hope of saving her life was surgical delivery of her infant, and in such cases the chances of saving the baby’s life are virtually nil. To calm the convulsions and to increase her chances of surviving surgery, the doctor used hypothermia, “frozen sleep. ” Unavoidably, the infant was also cooled. Not only did the mother recover; the baby lived, too.

How does hypothermia work? Patients are first put to sleep by conventional methods and then cooled. When body temperature is dropped from a normal 98. 60, oxygen requirements are cut approximately in half, and all bodily activity jogs along at well below its normal rate. Normally, brain cells, the most sensitive in the body, cannot get along without oxygen for more than three or four minutes without damage. With mild hypothermia, the time can be doubled or tripled – thus giving, in operations where the heart is stopped, for instance, more time for major repair work.

Suggestions that hypothermia might be of value in the operating room first came from observations in the animal world. Faced with stress situations such as wintertime food shortages, many animals hibernate, reducing the flame of life to a flicker. Their body temperatures may drop at times to a few degrees above freezing; their heart action may slow down to two or three beats per minute; metabolism may be reduced to on fiftieth of normal. A ground squirrel during a week of hibernation may use no more than three calories – about the number contained in one-fourth teaspoon of sugar! Yet, after months of hibernation, animals awake vigorous and unharmed.

Key words per paragraph 1. eclampsia calm convulsions hope of saving life hypothermia: frozen sleep mother, baby lived 2. how hypothermia works patients sleep, cooled body temperature dropped bodily activity below normal more time for major repair 3. idea of hypothermia use in surgery animal hibernation temperature dropped, heart action slow animals awake unharmed

Topic per paragraph Par 1. A report of a successful surgical use of hypothermia Par 2. How hypothermia works Par 3. Origin of the idea of hypothermia

Thesis statement: Hypothermia, first suggested by observations on animal behaviour, has been successfully used in surgery to slow down the human body’s normal activities by lowering bodily temperature.

Sentence outline I. Tried out on a mother suffering from eclampsia, hypothermia saved her and her baby through the operation. II. Hypothermia is a means by which body temperature of a patient who is first put to sleep is lowered in order to slow down his bodily activities and allow time for major surgical repair work on the patient. III. Suggestions that hypothermia might be of value in the operating room first came from observations in the animal world.

Remember! u. Never mix the two styles (topic and sentence) in one outline. u. Ensure parallelism. u. Observe consistency. u. Observe the mechanics and format of a clear and orderly outline.

References Dadufalza, C. D. (1996). Reading into Writing I. Makati Bookmark Inc. Troyka, L. Q. & Hesse, D. (2009). Simon & Schuster Handbook for Writers. New Jersey: Pearson Education, Inc. Communication Skills 1. UP Open University. Taking Effective Notes. (2013, August). Retrieved August 2, 2013, from http: www. austincc. edu/support/advising/workshops/notetaking/Notes. On. Noteta kingprint. html.