Summarizing, Paraphrasing, and Retelling: Skills for Better Reading, Writing, and Test Taking

By Emily Kissner

Book Overview

What's the big idea? That's a question students are asked all the time in papers, assessments, and standardized writing tests of every sort. Whether summarizing research sources or synopsizing the plot of a two-hundred page novel, the ability to cut through extraneous details and describe the major themes and highlights of a text is key to success in school and in life. Until now, however, summarization has been difficult to teach and learn, but with Summarizing, Paraphrasing, and Retelling , you'll discover a powerful and practical way to teach these vital skills. Summarizing, Paraphrasing, and Retelling is a slim, do-it-all guide that presents everything you need for teaching kids to separate out trivial items in their reading and then identify and communicate the main ideas and crucial details. Emily Kissner breaks summarization down into smaller, more manageable skills-such as paraphrasing, writing synopses, retelling, and restating the main-idea-illustrating what good summarization looks like and how to adjust your teaching to fit your students' needs. She offers not only methods for individual and group instruction, but also handy, reproducible resources, such as assessment checklists, forms for group work, peer-response sheets, and sample passages for students to practice with. Best of all, Kissner's approach is a student-centered alternative to more traditional skill-and-drill preparations. Supported by research and tested in classrooms, Summarizing, Paraphrasing, and Retelling gives you both big ideas for powerful teaching and important particulars to help you plan instruction and analyze your students' progress. What's the big idea behind teaching summarizing? Read Summarizing, Paraphrasing, and Retelling and find out.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0325007977
• ISBN13: 9780325007977
• Release Date: January 2006
• Publisher: Heinemann Educational Books
• Length: 160 Pages
• Weight: 0.67 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 7.2" x 9.2"
• Grade Range: Grades 5 to 8

Customer Reviews

A Must Have!

If you are teaching summarizing, this is the ONE book you MUST have on your shelf. I have read it several times, used it in my own teaching and as a reference for professional development offerings for other teachers, and am about to facilitate a book study with another group. This book breaks down the complexity of summarizing with step-by-step practical lessons and is so well-written I was able to consume it in just a few days. Buy it!

Wow! This is a great resource.

This is a wonderful book that just makes sense. It defines and elaborates on each of the topics and best of all, gives classroom activities that are easy to implement. I love her other book as well, The Forest AND the Trees: Helping Readers Identify Important Details in Texts and Tests. Both are very practical and realistic.

A must have book for any teacher or parent of kids with learning difficulties

I'm a parent of a 17 year old with Asperger's (homeschooling now) - Getting the big idea and generalizing is one of the skills which kids on the spectrum lack. This book is a godsend for me and my son. These kids need generalization skills, but actual strategies are lacking - this book really lays it out. Summarizing, Paraphasing and Retelling are essential skills for every single subject area and in life in general. Great classroom examples too. Thank you Emily Kissner!

A Great Resource for an Important Topic

Summarizing is an essential skill that students will use in content area classes and throughout their lives. This book makes teaching a difficult post reading activity much easier by deconstructing the requisite skills a student uses to create the summary. There are also class ready organizers and reference sheets which every busy teacher needs!