Main Idea
What is the main idea?
"Tara practiced soccer every day. At first, she struggled, but over time she improved and made the team."
A. Soccer is fun
B. Practice leads to improvement
C. Tara has friends
D. Teams are important
Practice leads to improvement
"The test was difficult, but she remained confident."
Confident means:
Sure of herself
Question:
How does the setting influence the character’s actions in the passage?
The setting influences the character’s actions by…
Theme is:
The lesson or message of the story
"Jake brought an umbrella and wore boots. The sky was dark."
What can you infer?
It is raining or about to rain
Main idea of a paragraph mostly about how to recycle plastic bottles?
A. Pollution is bad
B. Recycling helps the environment
C. Bottles are useful
D. Trash is everywhere
Recycling helps the environment
"The room was silent during the test."
Silent means:
Quiet
Question:
What is the most likely reason the author included this detail?
The author most likely included this detail to…
Story: character keeps trying and improves
Theme:
Never give up
Inference means:
using context clues and thinking or educational guess based on information
If MOST of a passage talks about a problem and how it was fixed, the main idea is:
A. Just the problem
B. Just the solution
C. Both the problem AND solution
D. The setting
C. Both the problem AND solution
"He was frustrated after making many mistakes."
Frustrated means:
Upset or annoyed
Question:
How does the character change from the beginning to the end of the passage?
The character changes from the beginning to the end of the passage by…
Which is a theme?
A. Dogs are pet
B. Friendship is important
C.The park is red
D.Uno is a game
B. Friendship is important
"Lena studied all night and reviewed her notes again in the morning."
Inference?
She has an important test
Which is NOT a good main idea?
A. Covers the whole text
B. Too specific detail
C. Big picture
D. Includes key idea
B. Too specific detail
"The instructions were complicated."
Complicated means:
Hard to understand
Question:
What central idea is developed throughout the passage?
The central idea developed throughout the passage is…
Story: A boy lies and loses trust
Theme:
Honesty matters
"The dog scratched at the door and barked loudly."
Inference?
The dog wants to go outside
Best strategy for unknown words:
Use context clues in the sentence
"The dog was **obedient**. He sat, stayed, and laid down exactly when he was told." What does **obedient** mean?
What is "follows rules" or "listens well"?
Question:
How do specific details in the passage support the theme? Use evidence.
Specific details in the passage support the theme by…
Theme vs. main idea:
Theme = lesson
Main idea = what it’s mostly about
Why are inference questions tricky?
You must combine text + thinking
answers are not specifically stated in the text
critical thinking skills