K12 Reader
Find the Main Idea: The Meerkat
After examining a short article about African meerkats, readers identify the main idea and supporting ideas in the paragraph.
Curated OER
Introduce: Main Idea
Begin exploring main idea in a text by telling the class an interesting story. Can they recall the main idea after you finish? What clues told them this was it? Explain that you will apply this concept as you read a nonfiction book....
Curated OER
Paragraphs: Main Idea and Supporting Details
This is a great way to review the concept of main idea and supporting details with younger learners. Learners read two short passages and identify the main idea and supporting details using visual prompts and a graphic organizer.
Curated OER
Finding Main Ideas
Elementary schoolers read paragraphs one at a time in order to pick out the main ideas. They choose which sentences are most important in a paragraph. This type of exercise prepares learners to identify the main idea in longer narratives.
K12 Reader
Anne of Green Gables
A passage from Lucy Maud Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables provides young readers with an opportunity to demonstrate their ability to identify the main idea and supporting ideas in a paragraph.
K12 Reader
The Jungle Book
Young readers complete a graphic organizer identifying the main idea and the supporting ideas in a passage taken from Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book.
For the Teachers
Main Idea Outline
Find the main idea in an informational text with a versatile lesson. Three levels of differentiation help you implement the strategy in any age or class level, based on the ability and objectives of your learners.
K12 Reader
Planets
Readers are asked to identify the main ideas and supporting ideas in a passage about the eight planets in our solar system.
Curated OER
Using Pictures to Support the Main Idea
Second graders practice using photos to support the main idea. For this reading comprehension lesson, 2nd graders read and explore the photos in the book, Amazing Tigers! Students examine the photos to identify and support the main idea....
Curated OER
Using Chapter Titles to Determine the Main Idea
Second graders listen to the passage titled Pumpkin Picking and identify the main idea based on the title. In this main idea lesson plan, 2nd graders discuss how the title of a book or chapter sets the tone for the reading.
DePaul University
Learn about Fables
Expose young readers to a new genre of fiction with a short reading passage. After learning about fables, children identify the main idea and supporting details in preparation for writing a short summary. Read the text as a class,...
Curated OER
What's in a Main Idea?
Second graders read newspaper articles. In this language arts lesson, 2nd graders identify the main ideas found in the articles by highlighting them. The entire class selects one interesting article from the sports section to discuss.
Curated OER
Determining Ideas and Adding Details
A handy TFDC (topic/fact/detail/conclusion) graphic organizer (included) allows young writers to outline and record their main ideas and supporting details in the prewriting phase. They then continue to add details to the topic sentences...
Orange County Schools
Piggybook
Summarizing text is a balancing act between being brief but thorough. You need to be short and to the point, but also cover all the important details, a task that presents a challenge for many young learners. In this lesson based on the...
Curated OER
When the Fly Flew In
Explore visual and verbal recall and sequencing with your youngsters. Start by reading a story and completing a worksheet after listening to the story. They work to identify the main idea and supporting details. The worksheet is included...
Curated OER
Creating a Chapter Title
Second graders identify the main idea of a selection of text. In this creating a chapter title lesson, 2nd graders discuss how to find the main idea of a chapter, listen to a chapter read aloud, and create a title with explanation.
Curated OER
Write a Story
Here is a great way to explore narrative writing! Learners review a previously constructed story map and identify the characters, setting, and main events in the book Anansi and the Moss-Covered Rock retold by Eric A. Kimmel. They...
Curated OER
Mapping Out the Story
Discuss the reading comprehension strategy of summarization with your elementary schoolers! They read a chapter from their social studies textbook, Regions Near and Far, and create a map, or word web, for the chapter. They identify...
Curated OER
Lesson Plan: Long Vowel Phoneme "oa"
Students read The Toad and The Goat, discuss main idea and story sequence, and identify rhyming words with the "oa" sound.
Curated OER
Printing and Publishing
Explore African literature and artwork in a multicultural literacy and art lesson. Begin with a read aloud of Tiger and the Big Wind: A Tale from Africa, and afterward, have kids retell the main events in the story. They identify and...
Curated OER
Comprehension: Create a Summary from a Narrative Text
If your class can sequence events in a story, are pretty good at retell, and can identify the main point, they are probably ready for reading comprehension through summarizing. This instructional activity provides a teacher's script that...
Curated OER
Using Wordless Comics To Help Create Meaning in Reading
Use picture cues as a tool in order to create meaning along with text. With a wordless comic, young illustrators discuss the main idea and character traits, and independently write a summary for a page of a wordless comic. This strategy...
Curated OER
Goodnight Goon
Students identify fictional story elements. For this reading comprehension lesson, students read the book Goodnight Goon, which is a parody of Goodnight Moon, and discuss the story elements. Students use an included worksheet to record...
Weebly
Author Study: Eric Carle
Dive into an author study of one of the most beloved children’s book authors, Eric Carle. After reading some of his stories, including Papa Get me the Moon, A House for Hermit Crab, The Grouchy Ladybug, and The Very Busy Spider, readers...