"Tagging" and Summarizing the Main Idea

Readers,

One way we gain information about our world is through reading news articles. Examples of good news articles are on the Scholastic News website.

We have been working on summarizing the main idea when we read - or as I call it, "getting the gist." To help us with this, I want us to look at a digital tool called "tagging". When bloggers and other writers submit online articles, they can "tag", or label, the most important words and phrases. This allows people who are searching for specific information to locate their articles easily online. When writers "tag" words in their article, they think of the most important words and phrases, ones that stand out the most, and the words that show what the article is really about. In other words, online writers "tag" their Main Idea words.

Read one of the articles. Write about the words you would "tag" as the main idea, explaining why you would choose those words. Then write a one-sentence summary about the article, pulling out the gist. I have given you an example.

It's All So Tense!

For a moment, reflect back to all of the books we have read together this year. Fireflies, Hurricane, The Snowy Day, Smoky Night - just to name a few. In each of these books, the best moments are those full of tension. We hold our breath hoping and expecting each characters' problem will be resolved, but we know the problems are complicated and difficult. We wait for the resolution, knowing problems are never resolved easily. These tense moments are the reason we love reading, and why Reading Alive is so easy and powerful.

Remember that rubber band I showed you? It was stretched out tight; as tight as it could go before snapping. You all had your eyes locked on that rubber band, anticipating and wondering what will happen next. Will she let it go? Will it snap? Will it fly across the room wildly, breaking something? Will it hurt someone? You waited patiently, knowing something would happen, and that consequences would likely follow.

When we are in the tensest moments in our books, we know something big will happen. The main character will make big choices. A big surprise will occur. Or the main character will behave in the most surprising and unexpected way. Like that rubber band, we wait, knowing something big is coming, and will be followed by big consequences.

Think about your independent reading book. What tensions exist in your book? Most likely they involve your main character. Briefly write about one or two tensions in your book. Then, write about what you infer from these tensions. I posted an example response using Buffalo Knife.