Reading Comprehension Tool:

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Reading Comprehension Tool

• Identifying the Main Idea

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What is it?

• The main idea is the most important idea an
  author makes in a paragraph or passage.

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Where can a reader find the main idea?

• The writer may state the main idea in a sentence.
• This sentence can appear at the beginning,
  middle, or end of a paragraph or passage.

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What if the main idea does not appear directly in
a sentence?

• Sometimes the author implies the main idea.
• (Definition to imply to express or suggest
  without being directly stated)
• The reader must then figure out the main idea by
  thinking about the details and stating the main
  idea in his/her own words.

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Example Stated Main Idea

• Every year teens spend billions of dollars.
  In 1999 American teens spent 153 billion!
  According to one research company, the average
  teenager spends about 35 every time he or she
  goes to the mall. Experts expect more sales as
  the population of teens increases by 4 million by
  the year 2010.

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Example Implied Main Idea

• Ballooning got its start in 1783 when two
  ballooning pioneers launched a duck, a sheep, and
  a rooster in the first historic balloon flight.
  Since then, many people have ballooned
  successfully across lakes, channels, and even
  oceans. Ballooning has become so popular that
  people now compete for the world record in time
  and distance.

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About Point Strategy

• To effectively state a main idea link together
  two separate pieces of information
• 1. What is the paragraph/passage about? (What
  is the topic?)
• 2. What is the point the author is making about
  the topic? (What is important to understand/know
  about the topic?)

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About-Point Examples

• Example Stated Main Idea
• What is it about? Teens
• Whats the point? They spend billions of dollars
  each year.
• Main Idea Every year teens spend billions of
  dollars.

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About-Point Examples

• Example Implied Main Idea
• Whats it about? Ballooning
• Whats the point? How ballooning changed
  throughout history
• Main Idea Ballooning has developed and changed
  throughout history.

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Another Example

• Have you ever wondered if time travel is
  possible? If you have, youre not alone.
  Philosophers and scientists, including Albert
  Einstein, have studied the concept of time.
  Writers have written stories about time travel
  into the past and future. Movies like Star Trek
  and The Terminator explore the possibilities of
  time travel.

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Use the About-Point Strategy!

• Whats it about? _______________
• Whats the point? ______________
• Main Idea ___________________