The Mississippi River

What's the difference between the main idea of a text and the topic? Take kids through the process of literary analysis with a presentation about finding the main idea and supporting details. Additionally, it guides learners through...

Can your class find the main idea for the short passages provided here? Not only do they identify the main idea out of four selections, but they must also write a supporting idea for their choice. The answer sheet provides example...

Thar she blows! An excerpt from Herman Melville’s Moby Dick provides the text for an exercise in finding the main idea. After recording the main idea of the passage, readers also provide two supporting ideas. An answer key is provided.

An excerpt from Willa Cather's O Pioneer's! provides learners with practice in finding the main idea and supporting details in a narrative. As readers record the bleak details on the included graphic organizer, they can conclude that...

Shrink up a section by asking pupils to write down the main idea for each of seven paragraphs. There is a space provided for each main idea. When students have completed this portion, they write down what they think to be the central...

High schoolers use the provided graphic organizer to demonstrate their ability to identify the main idea and supporting ideas in a passage from Charles Dickens' David Copperfield.

A passage about the Magna Carta provides readers with an opportunity to demonstrate their ability to identify the main idea and supporting ideas in an article.

After examining a brief article about the major art periods, readers use the provided graphic organizer to identify the main idea and supporting ideas in the paragraph.

Whether or not your class is reading Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women, you can use this exercise as the basis of a mini-lesson on how to determine the main idea of a passage or as a pre-test to assess mastery of the skill. A graphic...

This instructional activity that accompanies a reading of A Beautiful Mind includes over 20 questions that address theme, fact and opinion, supporting details, characterization, and quote comprehension.