The NOW technique for summarising
time to complete: 10 minutes
Below is a more specific technique for summarising called the NOW technique.
Task: Read about the NOW technique and complete the gaps by dragging and dropping the keywords in the boxes.
Answer Key
- Identify your note-taking purpose i.e. what are you trying to find?
- Find relevant main ideas and underline them.
- Use what you’ve underlined to write notes in your own words.
- Check original text to be sure you didn’t miss anything.
- Study your notes and decide what order to put the information.
- Prioritise the information i.e. reorganise ideas, decide what is relevant and what is not.
- Organise notes according to purpose; rewrite or put them in the form of a mind-map.
- Produce summary text = change your notes from note form to complete sentences.
- Edit first draft (grammar, spelling, etc).
- Write out a second draft, if necessary.
- Finally, proofread, revise and edit your summary as necessary.
Adapted from McCormack & Slaght (2012)