1. Summarizing & Paragraph Structure
Professor Danielsen

2. Warm Up Question:
Write a thesis statement and one topic sentence for your analysis paper. (topic + focus + opinion)
Turn in your hard copy of your final draft for Essay #1, including:
Final draft
Rough drafts
Peer Review comments
Any prewriting or brainstorming

3. Summarizing What is summarizing? Why is summarizing important?
Giving a brief overview of main points of something.
Why is summarizing important?
In order to explain briefly about something you wish to further discuss or analyze in detail.

4. Reading: The Art of Summarizing
In groups of 3 or 4, please discuss the following:
What is the “believing game” according to Peter Elbow?
Why would a writer not want to write a biased summary?
What are list summaries and why should we avoid them?
What is the exception to the bias rule according to the text?

5. Examples of Summary
Through suspenseful use of dialogue and descriptive details, Malala shows her struggle with relearning how to read and write.
Malcolm X’s “Learning to Read” narrative described what motivated him to read and copy the dictionary.

6. Practice with summarizing:
In pairs, please put these quotes into your own words:
"Imprisonment has become the response of first resort to far too many of our social problems.” – Angela Davis (Prison Abolitionist)
“It’s ironic that those who till the soil, cultivate and harvest the fruits, vegetables, and other foods that fill your tables with abundance have nothing left for themselves.” -Cesar Chavez (Farm Labor Organizer)
“If a bullet should enter my brain, let that bullet destroy every closet door.” – Harvey Milk (Gay Rights Activist)

7. Where does the summary go?
Introduction
Within body paragraphs
Conclusion

8. Paragraphs

9. What is a paragraph?
A paragraph is a collection of related sentences dealing with a single topic.
Learning to write good paragraphs will help you as a writer to stay on track.
Good paragraphing assists your readers in following a piece of writing.

10. The Basic Rule: Keep one idea to one paragraph
The basic rule of thumb with paragraphing is to keep one idea to one paragraph.
If there is a new idea, it belongs in a new paragraph.
You can have one idea and several bits of supporting evidence within a single paragraph.
You can also have several points in a single paragraph as long as they relate to the overall topic of the paragraph.
If single points start to get too long, then elaborating on each of them and placing them in their own paragraphs is the route to go.
The Basic Rule: Keep one idea to one paragraph

11. Paragraph Purpose
Individual paragraphs often have different purposes within the essay:
Description
Background information or pertinent facts
Definition of terms or concepts
Causes and reasons
Effects, outcomes, and/or consequences
Comparison
Contrast
Chronology of an event
Exemplification (to show through examples)
Use of an anecdote or story
Classifying and dividing information

12. Elements of a paragraph
A paragraph should contain each of the following:
A Topic Sentence
Adequate Explanation /Development
Unity
Coherence
All of these traits overlap. Using and adapting them to your individual purposes will help you construct effective paragraphs.

13. A topic sentence
A topic sentence indicates the main idea or topic the paragraph is going to deal with.
Topic sentences can occur anywhere in the paragraph - the first sentence, the last sentence, or somewhere in the middle.
An easy way to write a paragraph is to put your topic sentence near the beginning of the paragraph.
Narrative writing may not have an explicit topic sentence, but you should be able to summarize what the paragraph is about.

14. Adequate development
The idea or topic introduced by the topic sentence should be fully supported, explained and discussed.
Use examples to show the idea or topic.
Use quotes, facts, details to support the topic.

15. Adequate development
Some methods to make sure your paragraph is well- developed:
Use examples and illustrations
Cite data (facts, statistics, evidence, details, and others)
Examine testimony (what other people say such as quotes and paraphrases)
Use an anecdote or story
Define terms in the paragraph
Compare and contrast
Evaluate causes and reasons
Examine effects and consequences
Analyze the topic
Describe the topic
Offer a chronology of an event (time segments)

16. Unity
The entire paragraph should concern itself with a single focus, idea or topic. If it begins with one focus or major point of discussion, it should not end with another or wander into new ideas. New ideas need a new paragraph.

17. Coherence
Coherence means one sentence leads logically to the next, and the ideas fit together.
Coherence is the trait that makes the paragraph easily understandable to a reader.
You can help create coherence in your paragraphs by creating logical bridges and verbal bridges.

18. Coherence Logical bridges
The same idea of a topic is carried over from sentence to sentence.
Successive sentences can be constructed in parallel form.

19. Coherence Verbal bridges
Key words can be repeated in several sentences.
Synonymous words can be repeated in several sentences.
Pronouns can refer to nouns in previous sentences.
Transition words can be used to link ideas from different sentences.

20. How do I know when to start a new paragraph?
When you begin a new idea or point. New ideas should always start in new paragraphs.
To contrast information or ideas. Separate paragraphs can serve to contrast sides in a debate or different points in an argument.
When your readers need a pause. Breaks between paragraphs function as a short "break" for your readers—adding these in will help very long paragraphs be more readable
When you are ending your introduction or starting your conclusion.
How do I know when to start a new paragraph?

21. Good Paragraphs & Bad Paragraphs
Class Activity

22. Paragraph Evaluation In a group of 3-4 evaluate the paragraphs:
On a scale of 1 – 5 (1 being low, 5 being high), rate the paragraphs according to each criterion:
Single Purpose or Focus
Development/Explanation
Coherence

23. Workshop: Thesis, Topic Sentence, and Paragraphs
For the remainder of class, please work on Essay #2. I will be walking around if you have questions. Pay special attention to the paragraph evaluation criteria.
On a scale of 1 – 5 (1 being low, 5 being high), rate your own paragraphs according to each criterion:
Single Purpose or Focus
Development/Explanation
Coherence

24. Homework for Thursday Reflection #4 (5 points) Quiz #4 (5 points)
Readings due:
§  “Analyzing Causes and Effects” (NFG: p.318 – 322)
§   “Comparing and Contrasting” (NFG: p )
§  “Defining” (NFG: p )