Vocabulary
What is a main or central idea?
What the text is about, or the most important idea in a text.
The rain began early in the morning. It fell as hard drops, one after another. The sky was full of dark purple clouds. Thunder began as a soft rumble and became louder and louder. Lightning crashed every few minutes, making the sky a brilliant white.
What is the main idea? Choose the correct answer.
A. The farms needed the rain.
B. The thunder hurt the people’s ears.
C. Lightning made the sky bright.
D. The storm was very strong.
D. The storm was very strong.
Is the sentence below a theme or main idea?
Money cannot buy happiness.
Theme
Where can I find the main idea in a text?
The main idea is usually the first sentence of a text. The main idea could also be the last sentence of the first paragraph.
Spots was a large grey and white cat. Spots lived in a barn on a farm. Spots liked living in the barn. It was warm in the winter and cool in the summer. There were many mice for Spots to chase. Best of all, Spots had a soft place to sleep in the corner of the barn.
What is the main idea? Circle the correct answer.
A. The barn was dirty.
B. Spots was grey and white.
C. The barn was a good place for Spots to live.
D. Spots often slept outside when it rained.
C. The barn was a good place for Spots to live.
Is the sentence below a theme or main idea?
Growth can come from failure.
Theme
What is a theme?
The main idea or underlying meaning a writer explores in a novel, short story, or other literary work.
James and his sister, Anna, went to the carnival on Saturday. They rode the merry go-round, the roller coaster and the Ferris wheel. James ate popcorn and a hot dog. Anna drank lemonade and ate an apple. They saw many exciting shows. They were tired when they went home.
What is the main idea? Circle the correct answer.
A. James and Anna were hungry.
B. James and Anna did many things at the carnival.
C. The merry-go-round was broken.
D. The carnival was on Saturday.
B. James and Anna did many things at the carnival.
Identify which sentence is the theme and which is the main idea below.
1. Families face challenges together.
2. Dolphins are mammals that live in the ocean.
1. Theme
2. Main Idea
What is a type of theme?
Some examples are: love, survival, survival, suffering, good vs. evil, etc.
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.
Write the main idea of the paragraph in your own words.
The planets are all different.
Identify which sentence is the theme and which is the main idea below.
1. The girls were jealous that the boys scored higher on their tests.
2. Jealousy comes in all forms.
1. Main Idea
2. Theme
How is the main idea different than the theme?
The main idea is what the text is about but the theme is universal or hidden message that the text has.
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.
What is the main idea of the passage?
A dolphin is a mammal.
What is the theme or themes of the passage below?
Jenny was so excited. She had a pack of Starburst in her lunch and she had been looking forward to eating them all morning. Lunch finally came and Jenny sat down to eat her Starbursts when her friend Judy sat next to her. "Let me have the pink ones," asked Judy. Jenny liked the pink ones best, but she thought Judy was funny and Jenny wanted Judy to like her, so Jenny gave Judy all her pink Starbursts. Before Jenny was done giving Judy the pink ones, Amelia sat on the other side of Jenny. "Let me get the red and the orange ones, Jenny. Remember when I gave you those Takis?" Jenny didn't remember that, though she did remember when Amelia ate a whole bag of Takis in front of her, but Jenny thought Amelia was cool, so she gave her the red and orange Starbursts. Now that Jenny only had the yellow ones, she wasn't so excited to eat Starbursts anymore.
1. You can't buy friends.
2. You have to take care of yourself.
3. Not everyone can be your friend.