Choose one article that qualifies as an academic source. Get approval from your instructor.
Carefully read the article and summarize the thesis and main points in an objective manner, attributing all ideas and opinions to the author. This will become the first paragraph of your essay.
In the next paragraph, respond to the article with a thesis statement, where you agree or disagree with points in the article.
Write body paragraphs and a conclusion based on your thesis, referring back frequently to the article. Your finished paper should be 1 1⁄2 to 2 pages long.
Annotating an Article:
The first step in writing a summary and response essay is to thoroughly and critically read the article you will be addressing. When you read an article critically, you are not just seeking to understand what the author is saying, but questioning the author’s points and analyzing why and how the ideas were presented. It is also important to consider how effectively the author presents the arguments. Annotating the article will help you with this process. Annotating is basically a note- taking system directly on the article. Read through the article once, then get a highlighter and pencil and follow the steps as you re-read the article:
Read the article’s title and first paragraph. Make a note in the margin about whatexpectations you might have for the article based on the introductory information. What isthe author’s topic? What is the tone? What might be the author’s main point?
Locate and highlight the thesis of the article. If there is no one sentence that contains the thesis statement (an implied thesis), mark the sections where the author’s main point is most evident. In the margin, write a “T” or an asterisk so you can quickly come back to the thesis.
Highlight any words that you don’t know, or sections that you don’t understand. Write a “?” in the margin so you can look up definitions later.
Highlight the main points in the article. These are often topic sentences. Write “MP” in the margin.
Make notes in the margin of any questions you might have. Why did the author use a certain example? What has the author left out?
Note any sections where the author has made an effective or ineffective point.
Summarizing an Article:
After you have annotated your article, it’s time to write a summary. Writing a summary is to give your reader an objective, condensed version of the article. Keep the following guidelines in mind as you write your summary:
Give the reader context – name the article and author in the first sentence.
Keep it objective. Give the author’s opinion only (no “I” statements, opinions, or analysis).
Give the thesis and main points only. Do not use examples and illustrations.
Attribute all ideas to the author. Use tags such as: According to the author...; The author states...; The author also believes....
Use your own words (paraphrase). Avoid direct quotes. For emphasis, you may want to include a word or two from the original passage. In this case, be sure to use quotation marks.
Most articles can be summarized in a few sentences or one short paragraph. If your summary goes longer than this, make sure you are not using details and examples from the article and are summarizing the main points only. You can address statistics, examples, and illustrations in the response section of the essay.
Writing a Response:
Once you have an objective summary, it’s time for your own opinion. Think about whether you agree or disagree with the author. It’s common to agree with some points and disagree with others, so you will want to decide which points you want to address. You do not have to take on the entire article. The first step is forming a working thesis, where you agree or disagree with the article, or points in the article. It’s best to then list a few reasons why to set up the organization of the rest of your response.
The response section is a lot like writing a regular essay in terms of organization, but there are some important tips to remember to write an effective response:
You can respond with your own experience and knowledge, but your response will be even more effective if youbring in evidence from outside sources to supportyour points.
Be sure to give evidence and a logical argument whether you agree or disagree with a point.
Stay close to the points in the article. It’s easy to veer off on your own tangent about the topic, but remember that you are responding to what is in the article. Use quotes and paraphrase from the article throughout the response.
Write a conclusion that is consistent with your thesis and comes back to the main point of the article.