Paraphrasing

What is Paraphrase?

To paraphrase a statement is to restate it using different words and/or grammar while keeping the same meaning. You can paraphrase a statement at the same level of language or at a different level, e.g. make the sentence harder or easier than the original. This requires a solid understanding of the concepts and a good range of vocabulary. Being able to express difficult concepts more simply can help your listener. It can also help you to discuss subjects that you understand but cannot yet talk about at a high level of language.

Exercise 1

Paraprhase each sentence.

1. Despite their mamassive size elephants are known for bien agile.

Even though elephants are really big they are really fast and skilled.

2. Because elephants consume up to 500 pounds of food a day, they are able to strip a forest bare in no time.

Elephants can make a forest desappear since they eat more than 200 kgs of food a day.

3. Over the centuries, lions have been used in art to represent power and magnificence.

Lions have been examples of  domain and grandeur during a long period of time.

4. Lions are social animals with one dominant male in each pride.

An oppressive male exist in every herd of lions.

5. George Washington Carver was a dedicated teacher, in addition, he was known as a talented artist, musician, and researcher who made valuable contributions to his people and  his country.

Having made considerable contributions to his nation and its inhabitants, George Washingtong Carver was an extraordinary artist,musician and researcher, but he was mostly known because of  his dedication to teach.

6. Archibald Mcleish, known for his poetry, was appointed head of the Library of Congress by President Rooselvelt in 1939.

President Rooselvelt declared Archilbald Mcleish to be the principal of the Library of Congress in 1939.

What do you perceive from the picture?

The following photo, beyond the clouds and the sea,  makes the viewer to feel some kind of peace and tranquility. Particularly, in my personal opinion, the shadows of the clouds seem to be a type of herd, where everyone is following some unknown or known destiny, where the finishing line is the reason to keep fighting to survive the adversities of life.

Main Ideas in written texts!

Identifying the main idea

What is the main idea?

It may be helpful to first explain what the main idea is not. It is not the information obtained during the introduction to the text when the title, headings, illustrations etc. are briefly considered, and linked to background knowledge, prior to reading. Although these text features are often useful in scaffolding readers towards finding the main idea, on their own, they are not enough. Readers need to explore the text at a deeper level in order to confirm or put aside any tentative thoughts about the main idea that the text introduction may prompt.

It is also important to note that the main idea is not simply what the text is about. To paraphrase Gerald Duffy (2003), "Charlotte's Web" is a story about a spider called Charlotte and a pig called Wilbur, but the main idea is more to do with the things that give life meaning: friendship, love, birth and death. The main idea then, is what the author wants readers to understand is important and valued in the text, i.e., across the whole text, not just within sections of it.

If you intend to use one of the Main Idea assessment resources available in the English bank and are not familiar with teaching the main idea comprehension strategy, it would be useful to read the "Teaching and learning" section of the resource prior to administering the task. The more you understand about the concept of main idea, the clearer you will be when you introduce the task to your students.

Finally, because the main idea is hardly ever explicitly stated by the author, and because readers can't get inside the author's head to find out exactly what they want readers to understand is important and valued in the text, readers can only ever make an informed guess about what the main idea is. Consequently, readers often disagree about the main idea. Any disagreement is best seen as a valuable opportunity for discussion.

How do you find the main idea?

When determining the main idea the reader uses text details, in conjunction with their prior knowledge, to think about what the main message of the text might be. As they read, they begin to tentatively group related details, constantly asking themselves where the author is placing emphasis or value. At various stages throughout the reading the reader may decide to reject very small groups of related details as not being particularly valued by the author. However, as they read on, gathering and grouping more details, they may reverse such a decision. Finally, the reader combines all the evidence, including their prior knowledge, and decides what is most important and valued in the text. http://arb.nzcer.org.nz/comprehension/ideas.php

1 Identify the important information.

2 Group the important information.

3 Combine the groups to get the main idea.