All About Main Idea
What is main idea?
What is The most important idea in a paragraph?
What is the passage mainly about? (summarizing) Peter's parents bought a new carpet for the lining room. Now, he has to take his shoes off when he enters the house. He's also not allowed to eat or drink in the living room any more. Peter's furry dog isn't allowed to play ball in there either. When his parents got the new carpet, there were lots of new rules.
Peter's parents made new rules so the new carpet stays clean.
After you find the main idea. Turn and Talk with your group to identify the supporting details of this short passage. He spent all that day roaming over the house. He nearly drowned himself in the bathtubs, put his nose into the ink on a writing table, and burned it on the end of the big man’s cigar, for he climbed up in the big man’s lap to see how writing was done. At nightfall he ran into Teddy’s nursery to watch how kerosene lamps were lighted, and when Teddy went to bed Rikki-tikki climbed up too. But he was a restless companion, because he had to get up and attend to every noise all through the night, and find out what made it.
1. He put his nose in the ink.
2. He wanted to know how kerosene lamps were lighted
3. He got up during the night to investigate every noise
The frog sat on the side of the pond. He was very still. His green color made him hard to see. A bug flew near him. His tongue zipped out, and he gobbled it up. Then the frog was still again. He waited for the next bug. The main idea in this passage is: Frogs are green. Frogs eat bugs. Frogs do not move. Frogs live in ponds.
What is frogs eat bugs.
What are supporting details?
What is details that support the main idea?
What is this selection mainly about? (summarizing) Someday we will all have robots that will be our personal servants. They will look and behave much like real humans. We will be able to talk to these mechanical helpers and they will be able to respond in kind! Amazingly, the robots of the future will be able to learn from experience. They will be smart, strong, and untiring workers whose only goal will be to make our lives easier.
Someday we will have robots that will be our personal servants.
What are the supporting details? Turn and talk with your group.
In 1803, President Thomas Jefferson completed a treaty with the French government to purchase a large section of land in North America. This land is now known as the Louisiana Purchase. The purchase was important to the future of the U.S. It was the fi rst major expansion of the U.S. since it had won its independence from Great Britain 20 years earlier. The territory gained in the Louisiana Purchase was the largest in U.S. history, totaling 828,000 squares miles, about 23% of the current U.S. land area. The Louisiana Purchase also secured the U.S.’s right to passage along the Mississippi River and allowed access to the important port of New Orleans.
1. The Louisiana Purchase was the first large land purchase in U.S history.
2. The Louisiana Purchase allowed for passage along the Mississippi River.
It was backward day at school. The students had to do things backward. Some of them wore their T-shirts backward. They took a test before they studied the lesson! Dessert was served first instead of last. They tried to walk home backward, but they bumped into each other and fell down. The main idea in this passage is: Dessert is supposed to come last. The students had a backward day. It is hard to do things backward. Students failed their tests.
What is the students had a backward day.
Name four TIPS that help you find the main idea?
1. Highlight important words 2. Ask yourself "What is the WHOLE passage trying to tell me about?" 3. Look at the first and last sentences. 4. Make sure every detail sentence would fit into the main idea.
What is the topic of this passage? There is a village on an island near Scotland. it was built out of stone. A storm covered in in sand 4,000 years ago. It stayed covered until 1851. Then another storm blew the sand away. The village looked just like it did 4,000 years ago!
A village covered in sand over 4,000 years ago
What are the supporting details? Dolphins are mammals that live in the ocean. Mammals are different than fish, reptiles or birds. As a mammal, dolphins breathe oxygen, even though they live in water. Because they are mammals, a dolphin mother gives birth to a live baby, unlike reptiles and birds who lay eggs. A dolphin mother also feeds her baby milk like other mammals.
1. A dolphin breathes oxygen.
2. A dolphin mother feeds her baby milk
What is the main idea? John's favorite sport is basketball. He practices every day after school. He won player of the year last year. One day, John hopes to enter a basketball competition (and of course win).
What is John's favorite sport is basketball?
When writing a paragraph you must have sentences that support your main idea. What are these sentences called?
What is supporting deatils?
What is the main idea? The rain began early in the morning. It fell as hard drops, morning. It fell as hard drops, one after another. The sky one after another. The sky was full of dark purple clouds. was full of dark purple clouds. Thunder began as a soft Thunder began as a soft rumble and became louder rumble and became louder and louder. Lightning crashed and louder. Lightning crashed every few minutes, making the sky a brilliant white.
What is the storm was very strong.
Even with eyes protected by the green spectacles, Dorothy and her friends were at fi rst dazzled by the brilliancy of the wonderful City. The streets were lined with beautiful houses all built of green marble and studded everywhere with sparkling emeralds. They walked over a pavement of the same green marble, and where the blocks were joined together were rows of emeralds, set closely, and glittering in the brightness of the sun. The window panes were of green glass; even the sky above the City had a green tint, and the rays of the sun were green. The main idea is
The Emerald City was a beautiful city all in green. Give the supporting details.
1. The houses were green marble covered in sparking emeralds.
2. The window panes were green glass and shone in the sunlight.
3. The pavement was made of green marble.
Which sentence best describes the main idea of the paragraph? Weather reporters have to give out a lot of information. That's why they use pictures. The pictures help them tell us about the weather without using so many words. Weather reporters need to know where the cold air is. They need to know where the warm air is. They have to know where it is raining and what types of clouds are in the area. Their reports need to be correct, but they also need to be short. The pictures help weather reporters get the information out in a fast way.
A. Weather reporters need to know where the cold air is B. Pictures help weather reporters get information out in a fast way. C. Their reports need to be correct, but they also need to be short. D. They have to know where it is raining and what types of clouds are in the area.
What is B?
Where can you sometimes find the Main Idea?
What is the first or last sentence?
What is the main idea? There are eight planets in the Solar System, and each one is very different. Some planets, like Jupiter and Saturn are very large. Others, like Mercury and Mars are smaller. Jupiter has moons that are larger than Mercury. The planets also have different atmospheres. Uranus, Jupiter and Saturn have atmospheres of hydrogen and helium. The atmosphere on Venus is made up of carbon dioxide. Earth has a nitrogen and oxygen atmosphere. Neptune’s atmosphere is mostly hydrogen. The planets also have different temperatures. Uranus is the coldest and Venus is the hottest.
What is planets are different?
Determine the supporting details. There are eight planets in the Solar System,
and each one is very different. Some planets,
like Jupiter and Saturn are very large. Others,
like Mercury and Mars are smaller. Jupiter has
moons that are larger than Mercury. The planets
also have different atmospheres. Uranus, Jupiter
and Saturn have atmospheres of hydrogen and
helium. The atmosphere on Venus is made up
of carbon dioxide. Earth has a nitrogen and
oxygen atmosphere. Neptune’s atmosphere is
mostly hydrogen. The planets also have different
temperatures. Uranus is the coldest and Venus
is the hottest.
1. The planets are different sizes, some are
large and some are small.
2. The planets have different atmospheres.
What is the main idea of this passage? Sonny watches too much television. A toddler shouldn't spend hours sitting in front of a television screen. Worse yet, some of his wild behavior has been inspired by those awful cartoons he watches. His parents should spend more time reading or playing games with him and pull the plug on the TV! A baby needs more attention than just keeping them occupied and quiet.
What is Watching a lot of television is bad for Sonny?