ONE-SENTENCE SUMMARY

One-Sentence SummaryOne-Sentence Summary (.pdf)

"Good questions outrank easy answers."
Paul A. Samuelson

OVERVIEW

Students use tightly framed answers to a number of questions to summarize the big idea about a topic in a single sentence.

IMPLEMENTING THIS ACTIVITY
  1. Students will summarize knowledge of a topic by constructing a single sentence that answers the questions “Who does what to whom, when, where, how, and why?” This requires students to select only the defining features of an idea.
  2. Evaluate the quality of each summary quickly and holistically.
  3. Note whether students have identified the essential concepts of the class topic and the interrelationships among these ideas. 
  4. Share your observations with your students.

REFERENCES

► Angelo, T.A. & Cross, P.K. (1993). Classroom Assessment Techniques (2nd ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
► Boyd, Barry L. (2001). Formative Classroom Assessment: Learner Focused. The Agricultural Education Magazine, 73, 5.