Main Idea & Cental Ideas
What question should you ask yourself when determining the main idea of a passage?
What is the passage mostly about, and what does the author want me to understand about it?
What are supporting details?
Facts, examples, descriptions, or explanations that develop the central idea.
What does it mean to make an inference?
To reach a logical conclusion using textual evidence and reasoning.
What does analyze mean on the ACT?
To examine information closely and determine how its parts relate or contribute to meaning.
What does author's purpose mean?
The primary reason why a writers creates a text. It defines what the athor wants the reader to experience, learn, or believe. The core reasons are often remembered using the acronym PIE: Persuade, Inform, and Entertain.
Where can clues to the central idea often be found?
The introduction, conclusion, topic sentence and repeated ideas.
What should you do when an ACT question asks, "According to the passage ..."?
Return to the passage and locate specific textual evidence.
Complete the formula: Text Evidence + ________= Inference.
Reasoning/background knowledge.
What does it mean to compare two texts?
Identify meaningful similarities between their ideas, perspectives, structures, or evidence.
Name three common purposes for writing.
To Inform, persuade, and entertain.
What is the difference between a topic and a central idea?
The topic is the general subject; the central idea is the author's main message about the subject.
Why is it important to distinguish between important and minor details?
Important details support key ideas, while minor details may provide additional information without developing the central idea.
An author writes, "Marcus stared at the unopened envelope for several minutes before finally sliding it beneath a stack of books." What can you reasonably infer?
Marcus may be nervous, hesitant, or concerned about what the envelope contains.
What does it mean to contrast two texts?
Identify meaningful differences between their ideas, perspectives, structures, or evidence.
What is point of view?
The perspective from which information, events, or ideas are presented.
A passage repeatedly describes how technology has made communication faster but sometimes less personal. What is a likely central idea?
Technology improves the speed of communication but can reduce personal connection.
What ACT reading strategy can help you locate evidence quickly?
Idnetify key words in the question and scan the passage for those words or related ideas.
What is the biggest mistake students can make when answering an inference?
Choosing an answer based primarily on personal opinion rather than textual evidence.
Why might an author include a particular paragraph, example, or anecdote?
To develop an idea, provide evidence, illustrate a point, create a transition, or influence the reader.
If an author includes statistics, expert testimoney, and research fidnings, what might the author be trying to accomplish?
Support or strengthen a claim with credible evidence.
What evidence should you use to confirm that you have correctly identified a central idea?
Multiple relevant details from through out the passage.
It two answer choices seem correct, what should determine your final answer?
Which choice is most directly supported by evidence in the passage.
ACT inference questions often use which words?
"Suggest," "implies," "most reasonably infer," or "likely"
Passage A argues that social media strengthens relationships, while Passage B argues that social media can weaken face -to-face communication. What should students analyze?
How the author's claims, evidence, reasoning, and perspectives differ.
How can word choice help reveal an author's perspective?
Positive, negative, neutral, or emotionally charged words can indicate the author's attitude toward the subject.