Embedded Files
Annotation: An Overview
Annotation: An Overview
To annotate a text means to add critical commentary or explanatory notes within the text, or to provide explanations for words and phrases. Generally, annotating takes place in the margins, on a separate piece of paper, or on the text itself. You will be annotating on the text itself and in the margins.
Why is it important to annotate?
Annotating is an important academic skill. Annotating allows you to actively engage with a text. This means that you are not just a passive consumer of the text, but you are more able to make the text your own, and more able to speak about it intelligently and meaningfully. To read actively you have to really become involved in responding to the text, and annotation is one way of actively responding to the text as you read it.
Annotation: Strategies
Annotation: Strategies
Practical Tip: Highlighting is a good start but on its own it is passive. Write notes, so you are actively engaging with the materials.
Resources
Resources
The SQU Writing & Tutorial Center has workshops for improving note-taking and annotation Skills,
Annotation with Note-taking Example
Annotation with Note-taking Example
Look at the annotated text and short notes below and answer the following questions:
1. Can you number the strategies that are used in the annotated text ?
2. How do you think that annotations help you better understand the text?
3. How do you think taking notes can help you in your writing?
Original Text: Disaster Management
Disaster management aims to reduce, or avoid, the potential losses from hazards, assure prompt and appropriate assistance to victims of disaster, and achieve rapid and effective recovery. The Disaster management cycle illustrates the ongoing process by which governments, businesses, and civil society plan for and reduce the impact of disasters, react during and immediately following a disaster, and take steps to recover after a disaster has occurred. Appropriate actions at all points in the cycle lead to greater preparedness, better warnings, reduced vulnerability or the prevention of disasters during the next iteration of the cycle. The complete disaster management cycle includes the shaping of public policies and plans that either modify the causes of disasters or mitigate their effects on people, property, and infrastructure.
The mitigation and preparedness phases occur as disaster management improvements are made in anticipation of a disaster event. Developmental considerations play a key role in contributing to the mitigation and preparation of a community to effectively confront a disaster. As a disaster occurs, disaster management actors, in particular humanitarian organizations, become involved in the immediate response and long-term recovery phases. The four disaster management phases illustrated here do not always, or even generally, occur in isolation or in this precise order. Often phases of the cycle overlap and the length of each phase greatly depends on the severity of the disaster. (225 words)
Source
Which annotation strategies are used in the above paragraph?
Strategy 1. Underline/highlight/make notes about main ideas
Strategy 8. Make notes about the reliability or trustworthiness of the source
Which annotation strategies are used in the above paragraph?
Strategy 1. Underline/highlight/make notes about main ideas (effects)
Strategy 4. Highlight and define new key vocabulary
Which annotation strategies are used in the above paragraph?
Strategy 7. Summarize/evaluate conclusions
Note-taking Example: Disaster Management
Note-taking Example: Disaster Management
Here we have taken the main points with some paraphrased details from the annotation and added these notes to a table.
Annotation and Note-taking: Practice Activity
Annotation and Note-taking: Practice Activity
Work in groups. First read and annotate text 2 “Cyclone Gonu” together. Then use your annotated text to complete the notes table below. Try to use all the annotation strategies above.
When you have finished, discuss your annotations for each paragraph with your group and check the following:
Did you agree on the main ideas? Yes/No If you answered yes, discuss why. If not discuss your differences.
Did you highlight the same examples or statistics? Yes/No If you answered yes, discuss why. If not discuss your differences.
Remember to submit your annotation to your Google folder for feedback from your teacher.
Original Text: Text 2 Cyclone Gonu Read and annotate text 2 “Cyclone Gonu”.
1 Cyclone Gonu, also known as Super Cyclonic Storm Gonu, is the strongest tropical cyclone on record in the Arabian Sea, and is also the strongest named cyclone in the northern Indian Ocean. Gonu developed in the eastern Arabian Sea on June 1, 2007. With a favorable upper-level environment and warm sea surface temperatures, it rapidly intensified to attain peak winds of 240 km/h (150 mph) on June 3. Gonu weakened after encountering dry air and cooler waters, and early on June 6, it made landfall on the eastern-most tip of Oman, becoming the strongest tropical cyclone to hit the Arabian Peninsula. It then turned northward into the Gulf of Oman, and dissipated on June 7 after making landfall in southern Iran.
2 Oman had already made some preparations, which included the deployment of army and police personnel after the storm's passage. Significant damage was expected, especially in northeastern areas, along with up to 150 mm of rainfall and very strong winds. Officials recommended citizens evacuate from potentially affected areas, and about 7,000 people were forced to leave Masirah Island due to the threat of high surf and strong winds. Overall, more than 20,000 people were evacuated to emergency shelters. A state of emergency was declared for the nation. The Mina al Fahal oil terminal closed for over three days due to the threat of the storm. Omani officials closed government offices for two days and declared a five-day long break. Most businesses near the coastline were closed prior to the announcement. Authorities at the Seeb International Airport (now Muscat International Airport) delayed all flights due to the cyclone.
3 Across its path, Cyclone Gonu caused heavy damage and many fatalities. About seven hours before passing near the northeastern Oman coastline, Cyclone Gonu began affecting the country with rough winds and heavy precipitation; rainfall totals reached 610 mm near the coast. Gonu produced strong waves along much of the coastline, leaving many coastal roads flooded. There was a 5.1 meter (17 foot) storm surge and a 200 m (660 ft.) incursion of seawater inland at Ras al-Hadd; other areas along the coast had similar levels.
4 Strong winds knocked out power and telephone lines across the eastern region of the country, leaving thousands isolated until the lines were repaired hours later. The cyclone caused extensive damage along the coastline, including in the city of Sur and the village of Ras al Hadd at the easternmost point of the Omani mainland. In Muscat, winds reached 100 km/h (62 mph), leaving the capital city without power. Strong waves and heavy rainfall flooded streets and some buildings. Police workers in the city sent text messages to keep people away from flooded streets to prevent electrocutions. Little damage was reported to the oil fields of the nation. The liquefied natural gas terminal in Sur, which handles 10 million tonnes of gas each year, was badly hit by the storm and could not be operated. Overall, the cyclone killed at least 50 people in the country; by the fourth day after it struck the country, 27 people had been reported missing. Around 20,000 people were affected, and damage in the country was estimated at around $4.2 billion (2007 USD).
5 In Oman, production of desalinated water was interrupted, as both of Oman's desalination plants failed. The first, Ghubrah, lost supplies of natural gas, halting production; while the second, Barka, sustained a damaged switchgear due to flooding. These plants provided water to Muscat's 631,000 residents and surrounding areas, triggering severe water shortages across eastern Oman. To rectify the situation, officials used water tanks. The water returned to near normal in five days, as the two plants returned to service. Additionally, electricians worked quickly to repair the power outages across the region. Five days after Gonu hit, utilities were restored to most of Muscat and the coastal provinces. The Omani army assisted residents in returning to their houses. The country lost an estimated $200 million (2007 USD) in oil exports. In the months after the storm, the government allocated funds for the removal of debris and trees, as well as restoration of roads in tourist areas. Additionally, the National Committee for Civil Defence set up 139 buildings to provide temporary housing for 8,192 people.
(706 words)
Submit your annotation to your Google folder for feedback from your teacher.
Notes: Cyclone Gonu
Notes: Cyclone Gonu
Use your annotated main points and your important paraphrased details and add them to a table like the one below. Submit your table of notes to your Google folder for feedback from your teacher.
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