Teaching Students to Summarize Quote Based on ideas

Teaching Students to Summarize & Quote Based on ideas from: • They Say, I Say (Graff & Birkenstein) • Reading Rhetorically (Bean, Chappell, Gillam) • Teaching Students to Use Quotations (PPT presentation by Kathleen Rowlands) Robin Share, Literacy Coach Birmingham High School • October, 2007

To launch an effective argument, you need to write the arguments of others into your text by: n Summarizing n Paraphrasing n Direct quotation

SUMMARIZING: Presenting a condensation of another writer’s main point(s) in your own words

GIST Activity Sentence Shrinking n Small groups reduce a text into a twenty word sentence. Then reduce to fifteen, then ten. n Optional: groups challenge one another to reduce to smallest number without losing the essence. n Share out GIST sentences and post.

When summarizing a text in order to comment on it, Bean, Chappell, & Gillam in Reading Rhetorically offer students two caveats : n Summarize only what’s relevant to your particular discussion. n Guard against distorting the original author’s text to fit your argument.

Quickwrite: When summarizing, why is it important to portray the original author’s argument without distortion?

PARAPHRASING: Restating in your own words all the points of the original passage. A good paraphrase: n Retains all the details of the original; n Helps clarify complex ideas and dense or technical language; and n Is as long, or even longer, than the original text.

Discussion: When would it be desirable to paraphrase rather than summarize?

Paraphrasing activity: Paraphrase a short piece of complex text about which you are an “expert. ”

The art of using DIRECT QUOTATIONS in your writing

“SHOW, DON’T TELL” Direct quotations help show readers the point the author is making n TELLING - Summarizing: Feminist author bell hooks believes our society disciplines children inappropriately. n SHOWING - Quoting: According to author Bell Hooks, “Every day thousands of children in our culture are verbally and physically abused, starved, tortured, and murdered. ”

Direct Quotations A mini-lesson: From Diana Hacker’s A Writer’s Reference. 6 th edition

Direct Quotations n Enclose another person’s words— spoken or written in quotation marks. n Place periods or commas within quotation marks. – “This is a stick-up, ” said the well-dressed young woman. “I want all your money. ” – EXCEPTION: with a parenthetical in-text citation,

Direct Quotations n Place periods or commas within quotation marks. – EXCEPTION: with a parenthetical in-text citation, the period follows the citation in parentheses. – James M. Mc. Pherson comments, approvingly, that the Whigs “were not adverse to extending the blessings of American liberty, even to Mexicans and Indians” (48).

Direct Quotations n Put colons and semicolons outside quotation marks. – Harold wrote, “I regret that I am unable to attend the fundraiser for AIDS research”; his letter, however, contained a substantial contribution.

Direct Quotations n Put question marks and exclamation points inside quotation marks unless they apply to the sentence as a whole. – Contrary to tradition, bedtime at my house is marked by “mommy, can I tell you a story now? ” – Have you heard the old proverb, “Do not climb the hill until you reach it”?

General guidelines for selecting direct quotations to use: n Short quotations are preferable. n Instead of whole sentences, choose key phrases. n Fairly represent the original writer’s point. n Directly and clearly connect to the point(s) you are making.

FRAME EVERY QUOTATION n Introduce the quotation. n Include the quotation. n Comment on the quotation and its significance, making sure the reader understands what you are using the quotation to show.

QUOTATION SANDWICH Introductory statement Quotation Explanation

Templates for Introducing Quotations (from They Say, I Say, pg. 43) n n n n X states, “______. ” As the prominent philosopher X puts it, “_____. ” According to X, “_____. ” X himself writes, “ _____. ” In her book, _______, X maintains that “_____. ” In X’s view, “_______. ” X disagrees when he writes, “____. ” X complicates matters further when she writes, “______. ”

When explaining or commenting on quotations, think the phrase: “In other words. . . ”

“In other words” activity: Each person writes an “in other words” statement to explain a quotation they’re given on a slip of paper -- the more ridiculous or obtuse the quotations the better! Read some out loud.

Try the “in other words” activity with these quotations : “Normally in an ollie, your stance would be regular or goofy, but for a backside pop-shuvit, you need to push mongo. ” Steve Cave, About. com: Skateboarding n “Set up a few blessed objects or a small altar when moving into a new space. Making an area with a spiritual focus is like carrying an ember to start a new fire. Verbally say hello to the new space and offer peaceful greetings to the energies that are present. ” Rae Schwarz, Pagan Magazine n

Templates for Explaining Quotations n n n Basically, X is saying _______. In other words, X believes _____. In making this comment, X argues that ______. X is insisting that ______. X’s point is that ________. The essence of X’s argument is _____.

The goal: n In framing quotations, the writer “creates a kind of hybrid text, ” a mix of the original author’s words with his or her words.

The “meat” of the sandwich: THE QUOTATION n Uses vivid, interesting language n Represents accurately the original writer’s point n Clearly relates to the new writer’s point n Is cited appropriately

CITING QUOTATIONS: A Mini Lesson From Diana Hacker’s A Writer’s Reference. 6 th edition

Citing Quotations n Introduce the source by a signal phrase that names the author. n The material cited is followed by a page number in parentheses. n At the end of the paper, a list of works cited (listed alphabetically by author’s last name) provides complete publication information.

Use Fragments Pull the precise language fragments from a text that most clearly and effectively represent the writer’s point.

Using Fragments: An Example The author argues that children are “victims of intimate terrorism” with “no collective voice and no rights. ” As “the property of parenting adults” they are without “legal recourse” (2).

Use Ellipses… Ellipses allows writers to focus tightly on the language from the quoted text that will help them make their points.

EXAMPLE: In her story of the party, Bell Hooks admits that she wanted the others to understand that “being physically hurt or abused…has harmful consequences in our adult life” (2).

Using Brackets Writers use brackets [ ] in quoted material to fit the grammar of the original into a new sentence.

Using Brackets Original n “They will cling to the misguided assumption that their parents love them…” With brackets n A child “cling[s] to the misguided assumption that [her] parents love [her]” (4).

“They Say”: Putting It All Together n n n Summarize basic argument or points in a text Paraphrase as necessary to clarify dense, detail-important text Identify best representative quote(s) Use quotation strategies (fragments, ellipses, brackets) to shorten quotes Frame quotes with introduction & commentary (“in other words”)

In her essay, Justice: Childhood Love Lessons, writer Bell Hooks asserts that it is in childhood where we learn our lifelong lessons about what it means to give and receive love. Regardless of the type of family, she argues, “happy or troubled. . . functional or dysfunctional, [the family is] the original school of love. ” In other words, our operational definition of love is modeled, taught and reinforced in our childhood homes.