Main Idea and Details
RLA R.2 - Determine central ideas or themes
of texts and analyze their development;
summarize the key details and ideas
Journaling
 You are trapped in your car, unable to move anything but
your fingers and you have to contact someone to tell them
what happened. The quicker you are able to communicate
your message, the better. Luckily, your cell phone is on and
your index finger can reach it with only a bit of a struggle.
WHAT WOULD YOUR TEXT MESSAGE SAY?
Discussion
 Share what your text message would say.
 How did you make your language short, concise, and to the
point?
 Did you need to write a lot to get your point across? Why or
why not?
 What was the big message you were communicating?
Give this comic a title
Discussion
Possible Titles
 “The Winning Argument”
 “The Speechless Bee”
 “Competitive Insects”
Why are these good (or bad) titles? Is your title better?
If so, why?
Main Idea and Details
What should you look for while reading a text?
Definition:
The main idea of a paragraph or text is the
theme or topic which all other paragraphs,
sentences, and details directly support.
The implied main idea of a paragraph or text
is the theme or topic to which all other
paragraphs, sentences, and details directly
support. The implied main idea is not stated
or written directly.
Steps for Identifying the Main Idea (MI) or,
Determining the Implied Main Idea (IMI)
4
3
2
1
MI – Read or
examine the
passage.
IMI- Read or
examine the
passage and
determine the
topic that is
emphasized.
MI – Identify a
topic or theme that
the passage or text
seems to be
mostly about.
IMI- Us the
organization of the
text to help
identify the
implied main idea.
MI – Check the
information (facts
and details) to be
sure it all supports
the topic or main
idea that was
identified.
IMI – Identify
details the author
uses to persuade the
reader to agree with
the main idea.
MI – Remember, it’s
important to read the
entire passage and
then identify a topic.
Reread the passage
again to see if all the
facts and details
support the selected
main idea.
IMI – Create a main
idea sentence and
justify it using facts,
details and related
details from the text.
Signal Words Main Idea and Details
Mostly about
Most likely
Another title
Overall
Mainly about
Main lesson
Big idea
Summary
Best tells
Best way
Generalization
Basic idea
Best describes
Sums up
Generally means
Primarily about
Main Idea and Details
Practice and Assessment
Having landed in New York earlier in the week,
Angelina Jolie arrived with Brad Pitt and walked the red
carpet at the New York Film Festival for Saturday night's
premiere of her movie Changeling, a 1920's thriller directed
by Clint Eastwood.
Asked if she felt nervous to be back in the spotlight,
Jolie told PEOPLE, "Not nervous as much as I just took a
deep breath because it¹s been so long. It felt a little strange."
The Manhattan visit marks the first time since the birth
of their twins, Vivienne and Knox, that Jolie and Pitt have
been in the city with their children.
"Everybody's great," she told PEOPLE. "The babies are
getting big and healthy and developing personalities."
Which statement reflects what the
article is mostly about?
A. Angelina Jolie giving birth to twins.
Brad Pit and Angelina Jolie’s twins growing up.
C. How Angelina Jolie feels about returning to the spotlight.
D. Angelina Jolie’s return to the spotlight.
B.
Answer
C
Although the article is about her returning to the
spotlight after having her twins, the main idea would be
her FEELINGS toward returning to the spotlight.
Math
If we only studied math for math’s sake, we would never have to
worry about story problems. The fact is, though, that most of us study
math because it is useful. And it is useful precisely because it helps us to
get answers in the real world. What this means in practice is that the
mathematics you study is only going to be of help to you if you can apply
it to situations embodied in phrases like, “If a car starting at point A is
travelling due north at 30 mph . . .”
But story problems – let’s face it – have a reputation. Just when
you get used to manipulating the notation of a particular type of
problem, along comes something wordy and difficult, in which you are
asked to generate the notation for yourself and then solve the problem,
giving the answer in a way that relates it back to the question. Students
sometimes go about trying to work these problems in a way that is selfdefeating, most often by trying to figure how they are going to get the
answer before they have really analyzed the problem.
Answer the following question using
the text provided.
 Based on the text, what is the author’s attitude towards “story
problems?” Explain your answer.
Possible Responses
 The author thinks that story problems are helpful in every
day life, but that they can be very complicated and difficult to
figure out.
 The author thinks that story problems are difficult but if we
truly understand their meaning, they can help us in our
everyday lives.
Science
TITLE:_______________
The average temperature around the world is rising. People living
in the U.S. Midwest might find this fact hard to believe, though.
Two new studies show that in America’s heartland, summers are
now cooler and wetter than they were in years past. The scientists
suggest that the change in the Midwest climate may have happened
because of farming.
The first study was led by David Changnon, a climatologist at
Northern Illinois University in DeKalb. He presented one of the
studies in January during a meeting of scientists who study
weather and climate. A climatologist studies the climate of an area,
which includes measuring rainfall, temperature and wind.
Climatologists want to know how these factors have changed in
the past, and how they’ll change in the future.
Writing Opportunity!
 Using information from the text, give this short news article
excerpt a headline that reflects the main idea and defend your
title in a paragraph.
Possible Responses
 “Farming causes Midwest to cool down this summer.”
 “Cooler and wetter Midwest leads researchers to ask, ‘why?’”
Social Studies
MEXICO CITY (AP) -- Mexico announced some of the
toughest restrictions in its history on dollar cash transactions
on Tuesday in an attempt to fight money laundering that is
fueling an increasingly bloody drug war. Tourists and
Mexicans without bank accounts will be limited to
exchanging a maximum of $1,500 per month, Finance
Secretary Ernesto Cordero said. The measure is meant to
help stem the flood of about $10 billion per year in
suspicious cash flows that are thought to be linked to drug
trafficking.
Answer the following question using
the information provided in the article
 What is the main concern of the Mexican Government in
making these changes in monetary transactions?
Answers
“The measure is meant to help stem the flood of about $10
billion per year in suspicious cash flows that are thought to be
linked to drug trafficking.”
English
The beating of my broken heart, now chained and locked away,
I hear much louder, through the night, than words we never say.
As hollow kisses turn to dust and fall against my skin,
I pray that I might find the strength to fall in love again.
Abandoned innocence, stripped away, discarded on the floor.
In the dirt, I bury hope that love leaves unlocked doors.
I am held, though never cherished, yet to be made whole.
My tears can wipe themselves away, but I must save my soul.
Bare feet, run, lead me home, where I am Mother’s child,
And toward the pale rose sunset for a pretty little while.
If broken wings may carry dreams, and carry me to sleep,
Take me far away from love and tell me what it means.
Writing Opportunity!
 Give this poem a title and defend your reasoning using words
and phrases from the poem.