From notes to summary

Notes are written for yourself. A summary reports the main points of a passage to other people, so it is written in full sentences, joined smoothly by connectors (and, but, so, because, however).

How to write a summary:

• Underline the important ideas.
• Write them down briefly.
• Leave out examples, explanations and repetition: keep only the main points.

Use one word in place of many wherever you can. 'Children who show intelligence far beyond their age' becomes 'precocious children'.

A summary is usually about one third of the length of the original. In the book's example, the notes on soybeans came to 111 words, about half of the passage, so they had to be cut further.

Some tricks for cutting:

• A phrase in apposition (placed beside a noun to explain it): 'Soybean, a legume, …' instead of 'Soybean is a legume. It …'.
• A present participle: '…, growing in many countries' instead of '… which grows in many countries'.
• Begin with the description: 'Rich in protein, soybean …' instead of 'Soybean is rich in protein. It …'.