HOW TO UNDERSTAND A SUMMARY PASSAGE

From Mr Adekunle Afolayan

HOW TO UNDERSTAND A SUMMARY PASSAGE

Summary simply means writing long prose in a way  that the important points in the original message will still be retained in your own short own short form.

Leaning' problems under summary passage have to do with how to understand the usually long and seemingly incomprehensible passages; picking the real points out from examples and illustrations and finding an acceptable method of writer out your answer.

Understanding a summary passage:
Look a lot of things have been brought together to form the summary passage giving you.once you recognize them, you will be able to know which is useful and which is not.

What   would you find in the passage ?

These are the three things that make up a summary passage.now are you with let move forward and i will give some EXAMPLE out 

1.         EXAMPLE  

In try to drive some a point, summary passage writer usually give examples. what is an example?

It only shows almost the same thing as a main point, but an example is not something real ;It is something only assumed, For instance, On week days,such as Tuesday or Thursday 

here, Tuesday or   Thursday is an example of week days 

are you getting me ?yes okay let move forward

2.        ILLUSTRATIONS  

 An illustration is stranger than an example,illustration is a point used in supporting what has been said.Unlike an example, It is something real and special practical,  For instance, i like the wet season much and i usually do a lot of farming then. Last   june, I planted some yams  

So last year i planted some yams is  an illustration of the liking i have for the wet season. I thing you understand and know the different now, We can move on To Main Point      

3.          MAIN POINT      

The main point of the passage are the ideas which example and illustration are only trying to  bring to reality. So in the illustration in 2 (above), "I like the wet season" is my main point, but the underlined part is the illustration, You may have many point support with numerous examples and illustration.   

Warning:

If you have not been asked to give the examples or illustration by the author   of the passage,you should supply only main point , If you have to give main point, but have given example or illustration, You have not summarized

Theme

You must identify the theme of any passage you read. Theme simply means the lesson you could learn from the passage --the real focus; What could be gained as fact from the passage for example:

'The Usefulness of science '  or The types of scientific endeavors  or The dangers of science etc. 

The main message / purpose of the passage is the theme  

Question methods under summary

Like under comprehension summary passage questions are asked following certain pattern or methods. They included:   

1,           Collection Summary Question 

In a particular year, the passage discussed the people that wear jeans -,carpenters, tailors lawyers, doctor, men,woman, boys girls students, old man and woman,teachers, manual workers toddlers etc.

The question came this way

Answer: Everybody out these people listed above ,since summary means shortening a long message.

Now, collectivization summary implies, bringing a lot of similar things under a word, for example ,cocoa drink, sugar, chocolate, etc.

All this could call provisions 

Father, Mother, Children = Family 

Spoon, Fork, Knife =Cutlery. 

Now even if you must find a collective name / word as your answer, you cannot write it in phrase form e.g 

Answer: "Everybody" No. put it in clause form:

                "Everybody wears the jeans now"