Adverbs to Use With Author Tags

Conclusively	Expressively	Realistically
Tightly	Angrily	Radically
Clearly	Dutifuly	Evenly
Occasionally	Quickly	Ironically
Honestly	Eagerly	Elegantly
Sharply	Rarely	Loosely
Exactly	Happily	Hastily
Perfectly	Sternly	Unexpectedly
Sometimes	Never	Justly
Devotedly	Finally	Warily
Wearily	Completely	Fully
Doggedly	Iconically	Sarcastically
Seriously	Carefully	Politely

How Long Is a Summary of an Article?

The length of an article summary will depend on the length of the article you are writing about.

If the article is long (say, 10-12 pages) then your summary should be about four pages. If the article is shorter, your summary should be about one to two pages. Sometimes, an article summary can be less than one page.

The length of a summary will also depend on the instructions you have been given. If you are writing a summary for yourself, it's up to you how long or short it will be (but remember, a summary is supposed to be a short regurgitation of the information outline in an article). If you are writing a summary for a class assignment, the length should be specified.

Example Summary Paragraph

The following paragraph is an example of a one-paragraph summary of an article.

In "My Favorite Shoe," Treyvon Jones explains that Nike shoes are the best brand of running shoe for serious track athletes. Jones supports this view by pointing out that Nike shoes are more comfortable, last longer, and provide more cushioning for the feet. He notes that the statistics from sales and scientific evidence of how Nike shoes are better for the feet support his claim. In addition, Jones points out that most professional runners use Nike and he tells his own story of how he won the 100-meter men's competition after switching to Nike shoes.

Below is a template showing the components of a great summary.

Summary Template

Part of Summary	Contents
Introduction Sentence	In "My Favorite Shoe," Treyvon Jones explains (insert main idea).
Supporting Arguments	Jones supports this view by pointing out (insert author's supporting arguments).
Final Point	In addition, (insert author's overarching argument and point).

How to Edit and Revise Your Summary

Before you are officially done, it is important to edit your work. The steps below explain the process of editing and revision.

1. Re-read the summary and edit out any obvious mistakes.

2. Read your summary aloud. If anything sounds off, fix it.

3. Let one of your peers read your summary. Make changes according to their feedback.

With that, your summary should be complete.

How to Summarize (Video)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=391&v=jLdvEFtUuMM&feature=emb_logo

Questions & Answers

Question: How can I summarize a research article?

Answer: An abstract is basically a summary of a research article. To write a good summary in your field of science, it would help to look up several research articles and look at their abstracts. Use that as a model for your own summary.

Question: How should I end my summary?

Answer: The summary should end with the author's conclusion or last main point.

Question: How do I conclude the summary of an article?

Answer: Conclude your summary with a statement about what the author is trying to convince you to believe, do, or think.

Question: How should you begin a summary?

Answer: A summary should begin by stating the name of the author (first and last) and the title of the article, along with a single sentence describing the main idea of the whole article. Here are some examples:

1. According to Tom Castaway in "Taking Your Management to the Next Level," effective management means clearly articulating your goals, supporting your employees and keeping the team on track.

2. "Supporting Your Cat's Needs" by Jane Yogurt is a humorous article that describes how a can manipulates their owner into providing them everything they want.

3. In her usual humorous style, Sanda Cunningham offers support and advice to dog owners who feel out of control in "Taking Back the Leash: A Dog Owner's Guide to Freedom from Panic Attacks."

Question: What is "skimming?"

Answer: "Skimming" means that you don't read every word. You look at the bold print in a chapter, the first sentences of each paragraph and look over a page to see if there are important points. Skimming is like doing an overview. Skimming is easy if you are reading in your own language and often we do skimming when we are looking at a newspaper, or scrolling down our social media posts. Basically, when you skim read, you are looking for the most interesting or most important things. When you find it, you might read a whole section, but you might also skip a lot that doesn't seem important.

Question: How do I write a summary? Should I use my own words?

Answer: Your summary should reinforce the main point of the article, and should always be in your own words, just like the rest of your essay. However, a summary should not add your own opinion. The response is your opinion, and the summary is just a repetition of what is in the article.

Question: How should I end a summary?

Answer: You end a summary with the conclusion of the article or a comment about the reason the author has written this piece. Here are some examples:

1. In conclusion, the article clearly articulates all of the reasons a person needs to be careful not to let their car battery freeze in winter.

2. To make sure the reader gets the point, the author concludes with a funny story of why she will never wave to a policemen at the side of the road again.

3. Although she may belabor the point too much, Johnson does clearly and effectively explain many reasons why college students should take the time to recycle as much as they can.

Question: Is skimming bad when you're summarizing an article?

Answer: I would always suggest that you start by skimming the article to get the main ideas; however, you probably need to read the article closely at least once in order to make sure you haven't missed a major point.