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Using Sources in a Paper: How to Summarize

The Two Types of Summary

Sometimes a summary is a stand-alone essay or a significant, independent passage of an essay analyzing one particular piece of writing. In research papers, however, summaries usually appear as short passages integrated with the writer's own thoughts or material from other sources. Approaches to writing both types of summaries are described below.

Writing a Summary Essay

  1. Read Carefully
    • First skim the article. Pay attention to the title and sub-headings.
    • Then read the article more closely and identify the main point or thesis. Put the thesis in your own words.
    • Finally, read and annotate each paragraph separately.
      •  In the margin or on a separate piece of paper, jot down the main point of each paragraph.
      •  Highlight, underline or make a note of the most important supporting facts from each paragraph (e.g., statistics, examples, expert opinions, studies, etc.).

  1. Draft the Summary
  • Write a thesis statement for your summary, including the author’s name, the title of the article, the name of the source (periodical, website, book), the publication date, and the main point of the article.
  • Go through your margin notes and pick out the main supporting points. Put them in your own words to use as topic sentences for the body paragraphs of your summary.
  • Use the information you highlighted, underlined or jotted down to develop the body paragraphs. Put the information in your own words.
  • Add a few quotations from the article, choosing the most effective or most concisely worded passages to quote.
  • Add in-text citations throughout. Every paragraph (with the possible exception of the introduction and conclusion) should have at least one in-text citation.
  • Add a bibliography.

  1. Review
  • Make sure the summary is accurate. Double check the spelling of names and places, dates, statistics, etc.
  • Make sure the summary is objective. Eliminate your own reactions/opinions and replace slanted words with neutral ones (e.g., The author states rather than The author claims).
  • Make sure the summary is limited to the information in the original article. Don’t add information from other sources or your own background knowledge.
  • Make sure the citations and bibliography use the assigned research format.

Writing a Summary Passage in a Research Paper

  1. Read Carefully
    • Make sure you fully understand the material
      • Review the material preceding the passage (if any) to make sure you understand the context
      • Read the passage carefully
        • Look up any words you don’t know
        • Check any references to people, places, events, etc. that you are not familiar with
      • Identify the most important pieces of information in the passage
        • Make a note of the main point
        • Highlight, underline, or make a note of the most important facts (e.g., statistics, dates, names, etc.)

  1. Draft the Summary
  • Draft your summary without looking at the original passage
  • After you have finished the draft, refer to the original material to:
    • Make sure you have included the essential facts
    • Confirm the accuracy of the information
    • Make sure you have not duplicated any of the author’s wording without using quotation marks
    • Select one or two brief quotations to add if they will enhance the accuracy or effectiveness of your summary
    • Check the spelling of names, technical terms, etc.
  • Include an in-text citation in the assigned research format
  • Create a bibliographic entry in the assigned format