Engage your class in a scavenger hunt to find the main ideas and supporting details in a text. They follow the teacher while s/he models how to determine main idea and find supporting details, and then they work independently. A fun...

Young readers explore a nonfiction text for its main idea. They will listen to the book Animal Sight by Kirsten Hall, and then observe as the teacher models a main idea think-aloud. Later, for independent practice, they listen to the...

Connect to real-world experiences by having your primary learners create an award certificate based upon literal and inferential information from a story. They present the award to a character from a story and explain the criteria used....

Students read a book about leopards and create a title based on the details they read about the book. In this titles lesson plan, students read the book In the Wild: Leopards with the title covered up.

Fourth graders discuss the difference between main ideas and supporting details. They use large placement cards made by the teacher with main idea and supporting detail statements on them to practice.

Supporting characters need detail and characteristics just like a main character. Keep your budding authors entrenched in detail as they write their novels. This lesson focuses on developing supporting characters using personal...

Where would Harry Potter be without Ron Weasley? Where would Holmes be without Watson? Where would a good narrative be without an interesting supporting character? Encourage character analysis with this resource, which includes six...

Students write a topic sentence to a paragraph and explain that it introduces the main idea. After a whole-class demonstration, students write a complete paragraph with their topic sentence and supporting sentences. There are some...

You can mix almost any subject with an arts curriculum. Find out how to use drama to find the main idea of a literary text. You'll read a story, and then learners will make tableaus showing what happened, or what they think will happen...

Cross-media analysis takes time and attention to detail. The class analyzes the painting Long Jakes and the poem "Backward Bill." They pay attention to the similarities and differences in each piece, looking for details that describe the...

Learners read given information and identify the main ideas and specific detail of the story. In groups, they read a historical title and create a "book talk" for each one, summarizing the story. In addition, students create a...

Fourth graders read the passage Seven Great Summits and identify the main idea and main and secondary details. In this details lesson plan, 4th graders classify their details into 2 categories.

Students use a stick figure to help them learn to write with details. In this details lesson, students brainstorm details to add to the stick figure 'Plain Polly.' Students then draw stick figures for their own writing and give them a...

In this reading for understanding lesson, learners underline information in a text that is important in identifying the main idea. This lesson provides good practice for students who usually have difficulty in finding the main idea in...

Elementary readers in literature groups practice summarizing chapter-by-chapter with Roald Dahl's James and the Giant Peach. Focus on main idea, supporting details, and the 5 Ws. Unfortunately, a clever "peach" graphic organizer to which...

Sure to activate young minds, this resource asks learners to consider how media influences their personal points of view. Pupils examine how animals are portrayed in the media to understand why they feel the way they do about those...

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...

Investigate motivational problems using educational software as your students determine details and main ideas of the reading. the class practices sequencing activities and read scary and monster stories, then complete associated...

Students research information about pigs and their habits. They read fictional books or poetry that include pigs as main characters. Students desgin and create a poster-sized pig on which to write and illustrate a detailed book report...

Explore writing techniques by analyzing newspapers and magazines with middle schoolers. They will collaborate in small groups to read local news stories and identify the main ideas and author's intent. They also utilize an information...

Work on narrative writing with this lesson, in which middle schoolers analyze the characters from a selected piece of literature and write narrative diary pieces as the character. They work to understand the point of view of the...

Students discuss the basics of poster productions. In groups, they follow written directions to make a poster about asthma, allergies, AIDS, or personal safety. They present their poster to the class and reflect on the process in a journal.

Third graders create a shipping box from a cardboard material. In this measuring lesson, 3rd graders read the book Henry's Freedom Box and discuss the main idea. In the story a slave ships himself to freedom and the students measure and...

Third graders identify story elements. In this story elements lesson, 3rd graders look at main idea, characters, point of view, theme and setting. They create a five paneled comic strip from a book.