C
Understanding Main Idea and Details
To
the
Student
In this book, you will learn how to use the reading strategy
called Understanding Main Idea and Details. With your
teacher’s help, you will practice using this strategy to better
understand what you read.
Acknowledgments
Product Development
Design and Production
Product Developer: Dale Lyle
Product Designer: Susan Hawk
Book Editor: Joan Krensky
Cover Designer: Susan Hawk
Book Writer: Barbara Fierman
ISBN 978-0-7609-4978-8
©2009—Curriculum Associates, Inc.
North Billerica, MA 01862
No part of this book may be reproduced by any means
without written permission from the publisher.
All Rights Reserved. Printed in USA.
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Table
of
Contents
Introduction. ................................................................................................................. 2
Instruction
and
Practice
Lesson 1
Part One, Modeled Instruction...................................................................................... 4
Part Two, Guided Instruction......................................................................................... 6
Part Three, Guided Practice........................................................................................ 12
Part Four, Independent Practice................................................................................. 20
Lesson 2
Part One, Modeled Instruction.................................................................................... 26
Part Two, Guided Instruction....................................................................................... 28
Part Three, Guided Practice........................................................................................ 34
Part Four, Independent Practice................................................................................. 42
Lesson 3
Part One, Modeled Instruction.................................................................................... 48
Part Two, Guided Instruction....................................................................................... 50
Part Three, Guided Practice........................................................................................ 56
Part Four, Independent Practice................................................................................. 64
Application
Lesson 4............................................................................................................................ 70
Lesson 5............................................................................................................................ 74
Lesson 6............................................................................................................................ 78
Lesson 7............................................................................................................................ 82
Lesson 8............................................................................................................................ 86
Tracking Chart.......................................................................................................... 91
Self-Assessments 1–8. ........................................................................................ 93
Graphic Organizer................................................................................................ 101
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Introduction
Understanding Main Idea and Details
The main idea is what a passage or paragraph is mostly
about. Details are pieces of information that tell about
the main idea.
Graphic Organizer
Main Idea
Detail
Detail
Detail
Key Points
1 A whole passage has a main idea. The main idea tells
what the whole passage is mostly about.
2 A paragraph also has a main idea. The main idea tells
what the paragraph is mostly about.
3 The main idea is sometimes stated in the first sentence.
Or the main idea may be in the last sentence.
4 Details explain the main idea by telling who, what,
where, when, why, or how.
5 Sometimes the main idea isn’t stated in a sentence. Then
you ask yourself, “What is the paragraph or passage
mostly about?” “What do the details tell about?”
2
Introduction
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Example
As you read a paragraph, look for the main idea. Also look for
the details that tell about the main idea.
main idea
The rafflesia is an unusual
detail
plant. For one thing, it has the
largest flower of any plant in the
world. The flower can be 3 feet
across and weigh up to 15 pounds.
Also, the rafflesia doesn’t have its
detail
own roots. It lives on the roots of
vines. And it gives off a nasty odor
detail
of rotten meat.
The main idea of the paragraph above is that the rafflesia is
an unusual plant. The main idea is the first sentence. The details
in the paragraph tell why the rafflesia is an unusual plant.
Remember
The main idea is what the passage or paragraph is
mostly about. The details tell more about the main idea.
Introduction
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3
Lesson 1, Part Two, Guided Instruction
This passage is a science lesson. As you read the science lesson,
think about main ideas and details.
The Sun
Zoom In
Find the title of the science
lesson. Remember that the title
tells something about the whole
passage. It is found at the top
of the passage.
and Its
Planets
1 Are you curious about outer space?
Have you ever wanted to travel in a
spaceship? Maybe you’d like to see
how Earth looks from space. Maybe
J Underline the title of
you’d like to explore Mars or another
the science lesson.
planet. As you read, try to imagine
seeing each object from a spaceship.
My Notes
Sun
The Sun
2 The sun and its planets make up our
solar system. The word solar means
“of the sun.” The sun is in the center of
the solar system. Eight planets travel
around the sun.
3 Our sun is a medium-sized star. It spins
like a top as it moves through space. The
center of the sun is very, very hot. Some
of this heat travels out into space and
reaches Earth.
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Lesson 1, Part Two, Guided Instruction
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Mercury
Venus
Mercury
4 Mercury is the closest planet to the
sun. It gets much of the sun’s heat, so
it is very hot. Mercury travels around
the sun faster than any other planet.
Zoom In
Look at paragraph 7. The main
idea is the first sentence of the
paragraph.
J Underline the sentence
in paragraph 7 that tells
the main idea.
This planet got its name from a very fast
messenger in ancient Roman myths.
The messenger’s name was Mercury.
My Notes
5 The surface of Mercury is covered
with holes. These holes are shaped like
bowls. They are called craters. They were
made when objects in space crashed
into Mercury.
Venus
6 Venus is known as Earth’s sister planet.
It is the closest planet to Earth. It is also
just about the same size as Earth.
7 Venus is different from Earth in several
ways. There is no water on Venus. Venus
gets very hot because clouds surround it
and hold the heat in. Also, Venus travels
around the sun in a different direction
from Earth—and the other planets.
Lesson 1, Part Two, Guided Instruction
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7
Zoom In
Paragraph 8 gives reasons that
people can live on Earth. The last
sentence tells the main idea of the
paragraph.
J Underline the sentence
in paragraph 8 that tells
the main idea.
Earth
Mars
Earth
8 Earth is just the right distance from
the sun. So, it is not too hot and not
too cold. Water covers more than half
of Earth’s surface. The air surrounding
Earth contains gases that people can
breathe. Life can exist on Earth for all of
My Notes
these reasons.
9 Earth has one moon. The moon is
made of gray-black rock and dust from
volcanoes. There is no air on the moon.
In 1969, astronauts flew from Earth to the
moon. They stepped out of their spaceship
and walked on the moon. They had to
wear special spacesuits that contained air
to breathe.
Mars
10 Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun.
It is cold on Mars most of the time. There
is some air on Mars, but not enough for
people to breathe. Scientists think that
there may have been water on Mars long
ago. But today, Mars is a desert.
11 Scientists from the United States have
studied the soil on Mars. They learned that
the soil is a red dust. The red color has
given Mars the nickname the “Red Planet.”
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Lesson 1, Part Two, Guided Instruction
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Jupiter
Saturn
Jupiter
12 Jupiter, the fifth planet, is one of the
planets made of gases. It is the largest
planet. It is so large, in fact, that all
the other planets could fit inside it.
Zoom In
Look at paragraph 15. One detail
tells how most people recognize
Saturn. Look in the last sentence
of paragraph 15 for this detail.
J In paragraph 15, underline
the detail.
The Great Red Spot can be seen on
Jupiter’s surface through a telescope.
The spot is a huge storm.
My Notes
13 Orange and white clouds travel around
Jupiter. Wind blows the orange clouds in
one direction. It blows the white clouds in
the opposite direction. This makes it look
like Jupiter has orange and white stripes.
Saturn
14 Saturn is the sixth planet. It is also
a large gas planet. Saturn has at least
30 moons.
15 More than 1,000 rings surround Saturn.
The rings are made of rock, dust, and ice.
Some of the rings are thick, while others
are thin. Most people recognize Saturn
in photographs because of its rings.
Lesson 1, Part Two, Guided Instruction
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9
Uranus
Zoom In
Paragraph 17 has three details that
tell about how Neptune and Uranus
are alike. These details are in the
second, third, and fourth sentences.
J In paragraph 17, underline the
three details.
Neptune
Uranus
16 Uranus, another gas planet, is the
next planet after Saturn. It is small for a
gas planet. But it is still 64 times bigger
than Earth! Cold gases in Uranus give
it a blue-green color. Sometimes the
My Notes
planet looks as though it is covered with
blue-green fog. One unusual thing about
Uranus is that it spins on its side.
Neptune
17 The planet Neptune is very similar to
Uranus. It is a gas planet, too. Its gases
also give it a blue-green color. It is about
60 times larger than Earth as well.
18 Neptune is a very windy planet. Winds
on Neptune blow as fast as 1,200 miles
per hour. Scientists believe that Neptune
may be the windiest planet in the solar
system.
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Lesson 1, Part Two, Guided Instruction
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Pluto
Pluto
19 At one time, Pluto was considered
a planet. It is farther from the sun than
Neptune, so it was the last planet. Then,
in the year 2000, scientists realized that
Zoom In
Paragraph 19 tells about Pluto.
The first sentence tells the main
idea of the paragraph.
J In paragraph 19, underline
the sentence that tells
the main idea.
Pluto is not like the other eight planets.
It is more like dozens of other objects
that are far out in the solar system.
My Notes
They are called dwarf planets. In 2006,
scientists named Pluto a dwarf planet, too.
20 One way that Pluto is like the other
dwarf planets is that it is very far from
the sun. It is also very far from Earth. The
U.S. government sent a spaceship to
Pluto in 2006. It will take about 15 years
for that spaceship to reach Pluto!
Objects in the Solar System
21 Our solar system includes many other
space objects. Some of them are made
of rock. Others are made of ice and
dust. Sometimes bits of these objects
break off and land on the planets.
When they do, they make craters.
Lesson 1, Part Two, Guided Instruction
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