See how to work in Outline mode

	Working in Outline Mode in Word

	Technique	How...
1	Go into 'outline' mode if you are in 'normal' mode or 'print layout' mode.	To do this, click on 'view' then select the mode 'outline',
2	Start by using a text that is already written. Cut and paste a paragraph from some text already written (an online article or one from Encarta for example). It should be something that is already read and well understood.	(Select the text you want with the mouse, hold down the control key while you type the letter 'c' then move to the Word window and click where you want the text to appear and then hold down the control key while typing the letter 'v'. (You can think of the letter 'c' for 'copy' and think of the letter 'v' as being in a conVenient location next to the 'c'...)
3	Read the first paragraph and decide what it's main point is in the context	Start a new paragraph and write that point. Sometimes, but not always, the first sentence is the topic sentence. The outline need not consist of complete sentences
4	Write the title of the section and make that 'heading1' level, or the top level in the outline. Hit the 'enter' key at the end of the title and then the tab and write the topic of the first paragraph.	You can do this easily by making sure that the cursor is anywhere in the line you want to be the heading and then clicking on the left facing arrow button that appeared when you moved into 'outline' mode. (You can also do it by selecting 'heading1' 'heading2' etc. in the style text box that has 'normal' in it...)
5	Repeat the above step (after the title entry) for each paragraph (figuring out what its main point is).	Think about the role each paragraph has in the entire text and talk about the choices one has in making one versus two paragraphs.
6	Go back to the first paragraph and look at the first sentence that is not used in the topic for the heading of the paragraph. Think of a summary for that point.	Click at the end of the line with your paragraph topic and hit 'enter'. Then hit the right facing arrow and notice that it will indent. Type in the subtopic and hit 'enter'. This will create a sister for the first subtopic.
7	Talk about standard outline form (and using Roman I, II for main headings, and A, B... for subheadings under that etc.).	Also talk about not having widows (single sentence paragraphs) and only children (subtopics without a sister).
8	Repeat for all the information in the first paragraph.	You can do sub-subtopics is you like, but clicking the right arrow again. You can also use the 'tab' key to indent further, and the 'tab' key while holding down the 'shift' key to un-indent.
9	Repeat for the rest of the paragraphs.	You can now collapse or expand the paragraph to see all the details or just the topic of each paragraph. You can select a section (and all of its subsections) by clicking on the + to the left. Once selected, you can collapse that material (hide detail) by clicking on the '-' that appeared in line with the new arrow keys when you went into outline mode. Click on this more than once to hide more and more detail. To show the detail again, click on the '+' near the arrows and the '-'.
10	You can now talk about editing an outline.	Moving sections around, adding details, for example.
11	You can also talk about uses of an outline.	As a first step in writing a well-organized text, as a first step in writing a summary of something, as a way to try to understand a text, for example.
12	You can elaborate on the above.	For example, you might ask the child to first make an outline and then write a text from it. Or to first make an outline of an existing text, and then write a summary.

Working in Outline Mode in Word