Summarising requires readers to identify the main events (separating out the subsidiary information), understand the relationship between these events and then express this information in their own words. A reader who can accurately summarise a text is demonstrating a high level of understanding.
Being able to summarise a text in one sentence helps develop several skills because you need to:
- Determine the main idea.
- Identify the key subject or protagonist.
- Determine the key supporting detail.
- Write the above information concisely in your own words.