Summary/Response Assignment
Due Date: September 15
Overview:
For this assignment, you should read the articles from one of the reading clusters available on the
class website and choose one to respond to in a formal essay. The summary/response assignment
asks you first to summarize the main points of the article you’ve chosen and then respond to one
or several of those points by agreeing or disagreeing with them. You should include evidence to
support your response.
Instructions:
The purpose of writing a response paper is to encourage you to read actively and to examine the
selected article critically. As you write, you should practice making clear claims and should
practice supporting those claims with evidence from the text and from your own reasoning about
the subject.
To begin, you should choose an article from one of the reading clusters and read it carefully
twice. In the first reading, you should develop a general understanding of what the article is
about. In the second reading, you should attempt to identify the thesis, the supporting claims, the
main pieces of evidence, the audience, and so on.
After you’ve read the article several times, you might ask yourself these questions: 1) Do I agree
or disagree with a point being made? 2) Can I think of additional examples or evidence that
refute or support the author’s claims? 3) What do I know others have said about the subject? 4)
Does my personal experience support or refute any point in the article?
Once you’ve answered the above questions, you are perhaps ready to begin drafting. Your paper
should have an introduction where you describe the article generally, letting us know the title and
author, and provide your thesis where you express agreement or disagreement with the article.
The next paragraph should be a detailed summary of the article, describing its thesis, its main
points and the evidence provided. The next paragraph or two should be your response section
where you go over your reasons for agreeing or disagreeing with the article, providing evidence
and analysis where appropriate. The last section of the paper should be your conclusion where
you reiterate your main points for why you agree or disagree with the article.
Requirements Checklist:
Your paper must be 2-3 pages
Your paper must follow MLA format according to the 9th edition of the MLA Handbook.
o Your paper must be double-spaced.
o Your paper must have one-inch margins on all four sides.
o Your paper must use 12-point Times New Roman font.
o Your paper must not include extra spaces between lines.
Your paper must have a Works Cited page with MLA appropriate citations of your
article.
Your paper must have an identifiable thesis somewhere in the first paragraph.
Due Date: September 15
Overview:
For this assignment, you should read the articles from one of the reading clusters available on the
class website and choose one to respond to in a formal essay. The summary/response assignment
asks you first to summarize the main points of the article you’ve chosen and then respond to one
or several of those points by agreeing or disagreeing with them. You should include evidence to
support your response.
Instructions:
The purpose of writing a response paper is to encourage you to read actively and to examine the
selected article critically. As you write, you should practice making clear claims and should
practice supporting those claims with evidence from the text and from your own reasoning about
the subject.
To begin, you should choose an article from one of the reading clusters and read it carefully
twice. In the first reading, you should develop a general understanding of what the article is
about. In the second reading, you should attempt to identify the thesis, the supporting claims, the
main pieces of evidence, the audience, and so on.
After you’ve read the article several times, you might ask yourself these questions: 1) Do I agree
or disagree with a point being made? 2) Can I think of additional examples or evidence that
refute or support the author’s claims? 3) What do I know others have said about the subject? 4)
Does my personal experience support or refute any point in the article?
Once you’ve answered the above questions, you are perhaps ready to begin drafting. Your paper
should have an introduction where you describe the article generally, letting us know the title and
author, and provide your thesis where you express agreement or disagreement with the article.
The next paragraph should be a detailed summary of the article, describing its thesis, its main
points and the evidence provided. The next paragraph or two should be your response section
where you go over your reasons for agreeing or disagreeing with the article, providing evidence
and analysis where appropriate. The last section of the paper should be your conclusion where
you reiterate your main points for why you agree or disagree with the article.
Requirements Checklist:
Your paper must be 2-3 pages
Your paper must follow MLA format according to the 9th edition of the MLA Handbook.
o Your paper must be double-spaced.
o Your paper must have one-inch margins on all four sides.
o Your paper must use 12-point Times New Roman font.
o Your paper must not include extra spaces between lines.
Your paper must have a Works Cited page with MLA appropriate citations of your
article.
Your paper must have an identifiable thesis somewhere in the first paragraph.