SIM Learning Strategies:

The Paraphrasing Strategy

University of Kansas Center for Research on Learning

www.kucrl.org

The Paraphrasing Strategy Steps

R ead a paragraph (Section)

A sk what are the main ideas and details

P ut the main idea and at least two details into your own words

Wandering in the Wilds1

Backpacking offers freedom found in no other type of wilderness travel. However, you must know what to expect when you hike off into the wilderness. There will be no piped water or shelters to use. There will be no tables to eat from and no grills to hold your pots and pans. There will be few trail signs to guide you. You must know how to follow a map. You will be on your own.● Still, there are countless places you can go. Try an overnight trip to a mountain or stream. Follow an unmarked trail that seems inviting. A trial run will help to tone up muscles and show up mistakes in plans. During a short trip, you will not suffer too badly if something has been left at home.● Experienced backpackers pride themselves on being able to travel light. With many, weight saving is a game. Some cut towels in half and saw the handles off toothbrushes to save ounces. They measure out just the right amount of food needed and put it in plastic bags. Plastic bags are lighter than cardboard. There are dozens of tricks to save ounces that add up to pounds.● Footwear is an important thing to keep in mind. Sneakers are cool and cheap. For youngsters who are growing, the heavy-soled, ankle-high sneaker is best. Rubber is good where the going is wet. Hikers in swamps and bogs prefer the shoepac above anything else. However, leather is the most popular shoe material for all-around hiking. It wears well and is soft. It can be waterproofed to shed snow and rain.● Leather soles on boots are slippery. Most hikers use rubber or cord soles. When the soles wear out, thick rubber lug soles can be put on. These grip the rocks well.● Hiking boots should fit comfortably over two pairs of socks, one thin and one thick. They should protect the ankles and support the foot. They have to withstand long mileage on rocks and roots. Be sure that boots are well broken in before the trip. A mountain trail is no place to break in a new pair of boots. Ski boots are for skiing and cowboy boots are for horseback riding. Footwear with eyelets and lacing has proved best for hiking. A wise hiker always brings an extra pair of laces.● 1This passage which is shown in its entirety came from Spargo, E. & Williston, G. R. (1980). Timed Readings Book 1. Providence, RI: Jamestown Publishers.

PARAPHRASING

TRANSCRIPT FOR “WANDERING IN THE WILDS” Workshop Scoring Activity

Paragraph 1: This is about what to expect when you’re backpacking. This is about things to expect while hiking. You won’t have running water when you hike. They have no tables. You’ll be on your own. Paragraph 2: This paragraph is about places to hike to. You can hike to see a mountain… …and you can hike to see a stream. You can hike to see a sunset. Paragraph 3: This paragraph talks about how to travel light. Like you can cut off your toothbrush handle. Or put in plastic. Paragraph 4: Sneakers are the very best shoes to wear when you are hiking. Shoes made out of leather are soft. Leather can be waterproofed. When shoes are waterproof, snow and rain can’t sink in. Paragraph 5: STUDENT SKIPPED THIS PARAGRAPH Paragraph 6: This is about hiking boots and how they need to fit your feet comfortably. I have cowboy boots. Hiking boots need to be broken in. Hiking boots are important.

PARAPHRASE SCORE SHEET

Student’s Name: __________________________________________ Date: ______________________

Pretest: _____ Posttest: _____ Practice #: _____ Maintenance Probe #: _____

Passage: _____________________________________

M.I.

D

Not

C

ompl

ete

Not

A

ccu

rate

Not

from

P

ara

gra

ph

Rep

etiti

ve

Not

M

ea

nin

gfu

l

Not

Use

ful

To

o G

en

era

l

Not

a

Pa

rap

hra

se

Paragraph 1

Paragraph 2

Paragraph 3

Paragraph 4

Paragraph 5

Calculating the Score: Score Toward Mastery Total Score

Main Idea (M.I.) Points (maximum 1

per paragraph)

Detail (D) Points (maximum 2 per paragraph)

Total Score Toward Mastery

Total Score Toward Mastery

% No. Paragraphs x 3

1_____ 2_____ 3_____ 4_____ 5_____ 6_____ 7_____ 8_____ 9_____ 10_____

%

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS:

PARAPHRASE SCORE SHEET

Student’s Name: __________________________________________ Date: ______________________

Pretest: _____ Posttest: _____ Practice #: _____ Maintenance Probe #: _____

Passage: _____________________________________

M.I.

D

Not

C

ompl

ete

Not

A

ccu

rate

Not

from

P

ara

gra

ph

Rep

etiti

ve

Not

M

ea

nin

gfu

l

Not

Use

ful

To

o G

en

era

l

Not

a

Pa

rap

hra

se

Paragraph 1

Paragraph 2

Paragraph 3

Paragraph 4

Paragraph 5

Calculating the Score: Score Toward Mastery Total Score

Main Idea (M.I.) Points (maximum 1

per paragraph)

Detail (D) Points (maximum 2 per paragraph)

Total Score Toward Mastery

Satisfaction Guaranteed1

It may take some time and effort to find the lawyer who will be right for you. It is wise to search for a family lawyer who can advise you about things before they happen. This way you can take your time. If you wait until you are in a jam, you may have to make a mad dash to find someone to represent you. You may not make the best choice if you are under pressure. Time spent selecting a lawyer is time well spent. The satisfaction you get from having made the right choice will make the search time all worthwhile.● One way to find a lawyer is to look for a satisfied client. Talk to your family and friends. See if they have used a lawyer whose services pleased them. Find out, too, what sort of matter the lawyer handled for them. Lawyers tend to specialize in a certain branch of the law. A lawyer may not want to handle a matter outside of his specialty.● Check to see if there is a lawyer referral service where you live. Such a service is often sponsored by the local bar association. If there is one, you will find it listed in the phone book. When you call, the service will give you the name of an attorney. Have a first interview with him for a stated fee. It should be a modest fee. At that meeting you will find out if you need further legal aid.● There may not be a referral service where you live. But there should be a local bar association. If so, you should find it listed in the phone book. Or you can ask at the country courthouse. Someone there will know the name of the president of the bar association and his address. You can then ask him for the name of a good lawyer. Make it clear that you are asking him as president of the bar association for his opinion. Tell him the kind of service you are seeking.● If you are poor and can’t afford to pay a fee, you can get help. There may be a legal aid society where you live. Or there may be a group of lawyers who give free legal advice in certain cases. You can find out by looking in the phone book or by asking at the courthouse.● 1This passage which is shown in its entirety came from Spargo, E. & Williston, G. R. (1980). Timed Readings Book 1. Providence, RI: Jamestown Publishers.

PARAPHRASING

Paraphrasing (RAP) Activities

Word Crafting

This activity focuses on paraphrasing – finding words that can replace other words in order to translate text to make it ours. This branching activity can help students generate word lists of commonly overused terms. It can also be used to help students think about words. The target word is placed in the box. Students generate known words which can paraphrase the new word. Fine differences in word meanings are analyzed. Students also then generate a list of opposite words. This same activity can be used when presenting a new word to students. Finding the link to what they know is critically important in aiding the student’s comprehension.

happy

syno

nym

s op

posi

te w

ords

ecstatic overjoyed geeked mellow

sad upset depressed morose

tired

syno

nym

s op

posi

te w

ords

exhausted sleepy worn out

wide awake perky hyper active

Word Crafting

dozing

syno

nym

s op

posi

te w

ords

decayed sy

nony

ms

oppo

site

wor

ds

The dozing alligators rested peacefully in the sun.

Decayed plant matter, called peat, sometimes rises from the bottom of the swamp called a blow-up.

Paraphrasing (RAP) Activities

Word Storming This activity focuses in on main idea. Find a short selection, such as “Swamp Safari.” Students should read the article paragraph by paragraph. Have students highlight what they think is the most important word in each paragraph. Students then write each word with an arrow between each word. Students retell the article or story based on their highlighted words. shining explorers swamp blow-ups experience Have students read the selection a second time. This time they may then underline an additional word or two which are important details in the paragraph and important to the retelling. The detail word(s) is placed underneath the main idea word for the paragraph. Students can then share their retelling with a partner based on their selected words. This is an excellent way to support main idea in controlled practice activities, as well as a way to help students generalize. This technique could be used in content classes as well for short reading assignments.

Text in the Middle

All of us are really on a spaceship – Earth. At this moment, earth is moving around the sun at more than 18 miles per second. On board are over five billion people and a limited supply of air, water, and land. These supplies, just like the air in the astronauts’ spaceship must be constantly used, purified, and reused. In proportion to Earth’s size, the layer of air that surrounds our globe is no thicker than the skin on an apple. A shallow crust on the earth’s surface has all the soil and water that will ever be available to Earth’s people. This tiny envelope of air and this crust of earth and water are called the biosphere. This is the environment that our lives depend on. The biosphere is a closed system because nothing new is ever added. Nature recycles all things. Water, for example, evaporates and floats in invisible droplets into the air to make clouds. This same water comes back to Earth as rain, snow, hail, or sleet. It nourishes the plants and trees. It trickles over rocks and into the rivers where oxygen in the air helps to remove impurities that it may have picked up. The rivers flow into the oceans, and the great water cycle begins again. The rain that falls is actually the same water that fell on dinosaurs 70 million years ago. Today, Earth is in danger of losing some resources because of the careless way we have used our limited supplies. Thousands of years ago there were few people on Earth and they lived simple lives of hunting and fishing. As the number of people increased, and as the years passed, people learned to make greater use of the Earth’s resources. We must change our habits of polluting and destroying the Earth. Of course, we must use the air, water, and other resources, but we must learn to use these without destroying them. We have to stop dumping our wastes into the air and water. Many things we now throw away are made from resources that can be reused, but can never be replaced. Even the smoke coming out of stacks often contains chemical substances that can be recaptured and used instead of being expelled into the air. If we want to save the Spaceship Earth, we have to learn to cooperate with nature by using, not abusing, the environment on which our lives depend.

Ask Questions Put It In Your Own Words