I realised recently that as teachers, when we say "Write in your own words", what we really mean is "Write in your own sentences".
Writing in your own sentences means understanding the main points of the text, but being able to move the text away and then formulate your own sentences to explain what was said. If you keep the original text open in front of you and try to write it differently, it will be very difficult.
Try to follow these steps:
- Understand what is said in the source
- Make bullet point phrases about the main points (not full sentences)
- Move the original text away
- Use the bullet pointed phrases to formulate your own way of saying things
Another helpful tip - especially if you still have the text open in front of you, is to start the sentence from a different place than what the author started it. This is very possible for longer sentences, or for a a few sentences together or even a paragraph.
