Practicing Paraphrasing An Introduction

What does paraphrasing mean? Paraphrasing means putting what you have read into your own words. You paraphrase by reading something, thinking about what it means, and then restating it in your own words. Paraphrasing is a useful strategy to check to be sure that you have understood when reading something difficult or something that is important to remember. If you cannot paraphrase after reading, it is important to go back and reread to clarify information.

Formula for Paraphrasing: Read it! Think about it. Read it again! Think about it some more. Read it a third time! Think about it even more! At this point, see if you understand the facts well enough to restate it in your own words. If not, reread it again.

Today, we will Practice Paraphrasing by Learning about a new and unusual animal, the OKAPI.

Direct Quotes: “Although the okapi resembles a zebra, it is actually a close cousin to the giraffe” (“Mammals: Okapi”). “Discovered in 1900, it inhabits the rainforests of the Congo area in Africa” (“Mammals: Okapi”). “Okapis tend to be solitary animals, secretive in their habits” (“Mammals: Okapi”).

My Paraphrase: The okapi looks like a zebra, but it is kin to the giraffe. They first found it in Africa in 1900, but it must have been hard because it lives alone and is hard to find (“Mammals: Okapi”).

Let’s Compare! Direct Quotes: My Paraphrase: “Although the okapi resembles a zebra, it is actually a close cousin to the giraffe” (“Mammals: Okapi”). “Discovered in 1900, it inhabits the rainforests of the Congo area in Africa” (“Mammals: Okapi”). “Okapis tend to be solitary animals, secretive in their habits” (“Mammals: Okapi”). The okapi looks like a zebra, but it is kin to the giraffe. They first found it in Africa in 1900, but it must have been hard because it lives alone and is hard to find (“Mammals: Okapi”).

Direct Quotes “Okapis eat mostly leaves, twigs, and fruit which they reach with their long tongues” (“Mammals: Okapi”). “They may eat as much as 65 pounds of food in one day, mostly during the afternoon and evening when they are most active” (“Mammals: Okapi”).

My Paraphrase: Okapis have long tongues so they can reach leaves and fruit on trees. They eat a lot each day, usually in the afternoons and evenings (“Mammals: Okapi”).

Let’s Compare! Direct Quotes: My Paraphrase: “Okapis eat mostly leaves, twigs, and fruit which they reach with their long tongues” (“Mammals: Okapi”). “They may eat as much as sixty-five pounds of food in one day, mostly during the afternoon and evening when they are most active” (“Mammals: Okapi”). Okapis have long tongues so they can reach leaves and fruit on trees. They eat a lot each day, usually in the afternoons and evenings (“Mammals: Okapi”).

Passage #1 “While okapis travel for the most part by themselves within their home ranges, they still have ways of communicating with others whose ranges overlap. A scent gland on each foot leaves behind a sticky, tar-like substance wherever they have walked, marking their territory. By checking the ground, an okapi can tell if another okapi has been there” (“Mammals: Okapi”).

Passage #2: “Why does the okapi have zebra-like stripes? These markings, which seem very bold to us, give the animal great camouflage when hiding in the partial sunlight that filters through the dense rain forest. The stripes may also help young okapis follow their mothers through the dark forest, and they may help adult okapis find each other, too” (“Mammals: Okapi”).

Passage #3: “Okapis are very wary, and their highly developed hearing alerts them to run when they hear humans in the distance. In fact, while natives of the Ituri Forest knew of okapis and would occasionally catch one in their pit traps, scientists did not know of the animal until 1900. The secretive nature of okapis and the difficulty most humans have of traveling in their habitat have made okapis hard to observe in the wild. Therefore, researchers can only estimate how many okapis live there. It is believed that there are currently about 25,000 okapis in the wild” (“Mammals: Okapi”).

Rate the Paraphrase! Direct Quote: Paraphrase: “Quokkas, like kangaroos, are marsupials, which means they are mammals that carry and nurse their babies – called joeys – in pouches in their stomachs” (“Fun Facts…”). Quokkas, like kangaroos, are marsupials, which means that they carry their babies in pouches that are located on their stomachs (“Fun Facts…”).

Rate the Paraphrase! Direct Quote: Paraphrase: “Like the kangaroo, quokkas also have strong back legs to hop around in vegetation and thick grass” (“Fun Facts…”). Quokkas also have strong back legs to hop around in thick vegetation and thick grass, like the kangaroo (“Fun Facts…”).

Rate the Paraphrase! Direct Quote: Paraphrase: “Quokkas, especially the ones on Rottnest Island, aren’t afraid of people. In fact they often come right up to people or visit cafes and campsites looking for free meals. Unfortunately human food doesn’t agree with quokkas so there are rules against feeding them” (“Fun Facts…”). Quokkas are not afraid of humans, and they will get close to people when looking for a handout. There are rules against feeding them because uman food doesn’t settle well with quokkas (“Fun Facts…”).