Welcome to Summarising and Reporting Information
Have you ever watched an exciting two-hour football match or a fun movie and told your best friend about it in just two minutes? If you have, you already know how to summarise! You did not describe every single second of the match or repeat every word the actors said. Instead, you picked out the most important events and shared the main points. In this chapter, we will learn how to turn that natural skill into clear, effective English writing.
Writing summaries and reports helps us share news, school activities, sports events, and everyday facts in a short and easy-to-read way. Don't worry if this seems tricky at first—we will break the whole process down into simple, manageable steps that anyone can follow!
Note: If you want to review basic sentence structures or paragraph rules, take a look at our companion chapter, "Sentence and paragraph building."
Part 1: The Building Blocks of a Summary
Before we can write a good summary, we need to understand what a summary actually is. In Thai, summarising the gist is called การสรุปใจความสำคัญ. A summary is a short piece of writing that gives only the central message of a longer text or event. To build one, you must understand three key terms:
1. Topic (หัวข้อเรื่อง): This is the broad subject of the text. It answers the question: "What is the text about in one or two words?"
Examples: School recycling, Healthy food, or A football tournament.
2. Main Idea (ใจความสำคัญ): This is the single most important message that the writer wants you to remember. It answers the question: "What is the main point being made about the topic?"
Example: Our school has started a new recycling project to reduce plastic waste.
3. Supporting Details (รายละเอียดสนับสนุน): These are extra facts, numbers, dates, or small examples that explain the main idea. A summary keeps only the most necessary details and leaves out the rest.
Example: Students collected 500 plastic bottles on Monday morning.
A Helpful Picture: The Umbrella Analogy
Think of the main idea as a big umbrella. The supporting details are all the raindrops falling underneath it. The umbrella covers everything! When you write a summary, you describe the umbrella, not every single drop of rain.
Key Takeaway for Part 1: A summary focuses on the topic and the main idea. It leaves out tiny details, examples, and personal opinions.
Part 2: The 5W1H Question Guide
When you read a short news story, an announcement, or an article about science, health, or travel, how do you find the most important facts? The easiest way is to ask the 5W1H questions (ใคร ทำอะไร ที่ไหน เมื่อไร ทำไม อย่างไร):
• Who? (ใคร): Who is the person, team, or group in the story?
• What? (ทำอะไร): What happened? What action took place?
• Where? (ที่ไหน): Where did it happen?
• When? (เมื่อไร): When did it take place?
• Why? (ทำไม): Why did it happen? What was the reason or goal?
• How? (อย่างไร): How did it happen or how did people react?
Example in Action
Read this short generic notice:
"Yesterday afternoon, thirty students from the Science Club cleaned up the local park near our school. They collected five large bags of trash because they wanted to protect local birds and trees."
Now, let us answer the 5W1H questions:
Who: Thirty Science Club students.
What: Cleaned up trash.
Where: The local park near the school.
When: Yesterday afternoon.
Why: To protect local birds and trees.
How: By collecting five large bags of rubbish.
Key Takeaway for Part 2: Answering Who, What, Where, When, and Why gives you all the core ingredients you need to write a summary sentence.
Part 3: Four Simple Steps to Write a Summary
Follow these four simple steps whenever your teacher asks you to write a summary of a text, an event, or a news item:
Step 1: Read and Understand
Read the whole text once to get the general meaning. Do not stop at every difficult word! Look for repeated words to find the topic.
Step 2: Underline the Main Points (5W1H)
Read the text a second time. Underline the answers to Who, What, Where, When, and Why. Cross out unnecessary details, such as long lists of numbers, colours, minor quotes, or repeated explanations.
Step 3: Write in Your Own Words
Do not just copy long sentences straight from the original passage. Use your own simple English sentences to join the main facts together. You can combine two facts into one compound or complex sentence using words like and, but, so, or because.
Step 4: Check and Edit
Read your summary. Ask yourself two questions:
1. Is it shorter than the original text? (A summary should always be much shorter!)
2. Did I include any personal feelings like "I think this was fun"? If you did, take them out! A summary only reports the original facts, not your personal feelings.
Key Takeaway for Part 3: Read first, underline the main facts, write them in your own words, and check that you have left out extra details and personal opinions.
Part 4: Connectives for Sequencing and Explaining
When reporting information or summarising a series of events, you need connecting words. These words act like glue: they hold your ideas together in a clear order so that the reader can follow easily.
1. Sequencing Connectives (บอกลำดับขั้นตอนหรือเหตุการณ์)
Use these words to show what happened from beginning to end:
First (ประการแรก / ก่อนอื่น) — First, the teacher explained the rules.
Second / Third / Fourth (ประการที่สอง / สาม / สี่) — Second, we worked in small groups.
Next (ถัดไป) — Next, the teams designed their posters.
Then (จากนั้น) — Then, each group presented their work.
Finally (ในที่สุด / ท้ายที่สุด) — Finally, the class voted on the best poster.
2. Conjunctions for Joining Ideas (คำสันธานเชื่อมใจความ)
Connect your thoughts smoothly using these standard conjunctions:
and (และ — adds similar information): The students planted trees and watered them.
but (แต่ — shows contrast or a change): It started to rain, but the team continued playing.
or (หรือ — shows a choice): Visitors can walk around the garden or ride a bicycle.
because (เพราะว่า — gives a reason): The match was stopped because the weather was stormy.
so (ดังนั้น — shows a result): The bus broke down, so the students arrived late.
before / after (ก่อน / หลังจาก — shows time relationships): Students washed their hands before they ate lunch. After the game finished, the coach congratulated the team.
Key Takeaway for Part 4: Words like First, Next, Then, Finally, because, and so organise your report into a clear, logical story.
Part 5: Grammar Tools for Reporting Information
When we report facts, news, and school activities, we use specific grammar tools to make our writing sound natural and correct.
1. Tenses for Reporting
• Past Simple Tense: Use this tense when reporting an event, an activity, or a news story that has already finished.
Example: Yesterday, our school held an annual sports day. Many parents attended the event.
• Present Simple Tense: Use this tense when summarising general facts, scientific topics, or regular routines.
Example: Regular exercise keeps our hearts healthy. Plants need sunlight and water to grow.
• Present Perfect Tense: Use this tense when reporting something that happened recently and still connects to the present.
Example: The community has collected three hundred books for the library.
2. Simple Passive Voice (is / are + past participle)
Sometimes, what happens is more important than who did it. In reports and summaries of facts, we often use the passive voice with is or are plus the past participle (Verb 3):
Glass bottles are recycled at the town centre.
English is spoken by millions of people worldwide.
Fresh vegetables are sold at the market every morning.
3. Using Indefinite Pronouns
When summarising events where the exact people are not named or are not important, use indefinite pronouns:
someone / anyone / everyone: Everyone enjoyed the music concert.
some / any / one / ones: Some students played badminton, while others played volleyball.
Key Takeaway for Part 5: Use the Past Simple for past events, the Present Simple for general facts, and is/are + past participle when the action is more important than the person doing it.
Part 6: Common Mistakes to Avoid
Learning what NOT to do is just as important as learning what to do! Keep these common traps in mind:
Mistake 1: Copying and pasting the whole text.
Why it is wrong: Copying word-for-word does not show that you understand the text. Always rewrite the key facts in your own simple English.
Mistake 2: Writing your own opinions instead of facts.
Why it is wrong: A summary must remain objective. Do not write: "The school festival was boring because I hate loud music." Instead, write: "The school festival took place on Friday with music performances and food stalls."
Mistake 3: Keeping every single number, example, and detail.
Why it is wrong: Including tiny details makes your summary too long. Skip minor details, like the price of every item or what colour shoes someone wore, and keep only the big picture.
Mistake 4: Forgetting time order.
Why it is wrong: If you jump from the end of the event back to the beginning, the reader will be confused. Always use sequence words (First, Next, Then, Finally) to keep the order clear.
Part 7: Guided Practice — From Story to Summary
Let us practice together! Read this short report about an environmental activity at school:
"Last Friday morning, the students of Grade 8 joined an environmental activity called 'Clean School, Green World'. At 8:30 a.m., they met in the main school yard. First, Mr. Somchai, the science teacher, gave everyone gloves and reusable bags. Then, the students divided into four groups. Two groups picked up plastic bottles and snack bags around the sports field, while the other two groups planted twenty small trees behind the library. Finally, at 11:30 a.m., all the students gathered in the cafeteria to drink cold water and eat lunch together. The headmaster thanked everyone for making the school cleaner."
Step 1: Identify 5W1H
Who: Grade 8 students and their science teacher, Mr. Somchai.
What: Joined an environmental activity to clean the school and plant trees.
When: Last Friday morning.
Where: Around the school (sports field and library).
Why: To make the school cleaner and greener.
How: By collecting plastic waste and planting twenty trees.
Step 2: Choose What to Leave Out
We do not need exact times like 8:30 a.m. or 11:30 a.m., and we do not need to mention that they drank cold water and ate lunch. Those are minor supporting details.
Step 3: Write the Final Summary
"Last Friday morning, Grade 8 students participated in a clean-up activity at school. First, they collected plastic rubbish around the sports field. Next, they planted twenty trees near the library. Finally, the headmaster thanked the students for their hard work in making the school cleaner."
Notice how short, clear, and complete that is! It contains all the essential facts without any unnecessary words.
Summary Review Checklist
Before you hand in your summary or report, check these four points:
1. Main Idea: Did I include the main point of the text?
2. 5W1H: Did I answer Who, What, Where, When, and Why?
3. Length: Is my summary significantly shorter than the original text?
4. Objective Language: Did I leave out my personal opinions and extra examples?
Keep practising with short passages from your English class, and soon summarising and reporting will feel natural and simple!