Reading MAIN IDEA Reading Basics Making Inferences Relating Ideas PRACTICE Reading Basics MAIN IDEA Main Idea Supporting Details Word Meaning Making Inferences Drawing Conclusions Author’s Approach Relating Ideas Cause and Effect Comparative Relationships Sequence Copyright © 2012 Mary Kate Durkin and Chris Mikulskis

Reading Reading Basics MAIN IDEA What these questions look like PRACTICE Reading Basics MAIN IDEA The main idea of a passage is simply a sentence summary of the information, purpose, or focus of the passage. What these questions look like The main purpose of the third paragraph (lines 21-28) is… The primary purpose of the fourth paragraph (lines 29-35) can best be summarized by which of the following statements? The passage primarily focuses on… The overall purpose of the passage is to… The passage as a whole suggests that… Which of the following statements best describes the main point of the passage? Information in the second paragraph (lines 9-16) supports the narrator’s claim that… Copyright © 2012 Mary Kate Durkin and Chris Mikulskis

Reading Reading Basics MAIN IDEA Strategies to win PRACTICE The main idea of a passage is simply a sentence summary of the information, purpose, or focus of the passage. Strategies to win As you read a passage, think about: What the author’s main point is What the author is trying to prove What the author deals with the most How information in the passage or paragraph adds up to one major idea How the thesis statement (can be the main idea or very close) usually hangs out in the first paragraph How the introduction and concluding paragraphs can reveal the passage’s main idea while topic sentence can reveal a paragraph’s main idea. Copyright © 2012 Mary Kate Durkin and Chris Mikulskis

Reading Reading Basics MAIN IDEA PRACTICE The main idea of a passage is simply a sentence summary of the information, purpose, or focus of the passage. Be careful of: Answer choices that are too broad or too narrow to be the main idea A supporting detail answer choice posing as a main idea (Hey, I read that in that answer choice in the passage, so it must be the main idea, right? WRONG!) Copyright © 2012 Mary Kate Durkin and Chris Mikulskis

Reading Reading Basics MAIN IDEA PRACTICE The main idea of a passage is simply a sentence summary of the information, purpose, or focus of the passage. Copyright © 2012 Mary Kate Durkin and Chris Mikulskis

Reading Reading Basics MAIN IDEA PRACTICE The main idea of a passage is simply a sentence summary of the information, purpose, or focus of the passage. Copyright © 2012 Mary Kate Durkin and Chris Mikulskis

Reading Reading Basics MAIN IDEA PRACTICE The main idea of a passage is simply a sentence summary of the information, purpose, or focus of the passage. Copyright © 2012 Mary Kate Durkin and Chris Mikulskis