Writing a Critique

Objectives
Students will be able to
a) summarize the most important ideas from the assigned article.
b) identify the required elements of a summary.

I. Now that you have read the article Would Soda Taxes really Yield Health Benefits, it's time to work on summarizing the most important ideas presented in the article.

1. Choose a partner to work with and try to answer the following questions without looking at the article:

a) What is the article about?
b) What is the author(s)' main argument?
c) What evidence do the authors use to support this argument?

2. Based on what you discussed with your partner, write a summary of the article. Again, do not look at the article; write based on what your remember from your reading.

3. Now that you have a short summary, go back to the article and check on the information you have forgotten or were confused about.

4. Finally, we'll go through the Do's and Dont's of a summary together. Check your work and make corrections as needed.

The Dos of Summary Writing

• the first sentence contains the title, the name of the author and sometimes, background information about the author and/or source.
•  A summary should begin with a thesis statement (usually one sentence)that sums up the main point of the source.
• A summary should include the main ideas of the text and one or more examples to illustrate the author's points.
• It should be written in your OWN words. 

The Don'ts of Summary Writing

• The summary should not include your own ideas or opinions of the text.
• It should NOT summarize minor details.

Sources
Original ideas and format for this class were taken and adapted from Stacy's Defibaugh's Lesson on Summary Writing and Introduction to Critique. Retrieved from:  
http://esl505n2012.blogspot.com/2012/10/summary-writing-and-critique.html