Central Idea

Central Idea

​Objective

​I will be able to determine the central idea of a section of text by describing what it is mostly about with three pieces of supporting evidence.

​Central Idea

​• what a text or a section of text is MOSTLY about

• SPECIFIC and EXACT

• different from a topic

• Topic: tells readers what you will be talking about.

• Central idea: tells people what your topic is focused on.

​Topic vs. Central Idea Example

​You write an article about how much candy certain countries eat.

Your topic is how much candy is being eaten by certain countries.

Your central idea should be something more specific, like that Germany eats more candy per pound than any other country.

​

Multiple Choice

A central idea is the same thing as a topic.

• True

• False

Multiple Select

A central idea is...

• specific

• what a text is mostly about

• related to a topic

• the most important character

​Supporting Details

​• Facts, examples, reasons, or descriptions that provide more information about the central idea

• Usually quotes copied from the text

• Prove your central idea is true

Multiple Choice

Why are supporting details important when finding the central idea?

• They show what your topic is.

• They provide extra length to your summary.

• They support that your central idea is true.

• They allow you to make inferences.

PRACTICE TIME!​

Multiple Choice

You get home from a movie and your friend asks you what it was about. Which answer below is a good response to your friend that shows a specific central idea?

• Jamie Ramon, a cop, jumps out of a plane in one suspenseful scene. She survives by wrestling a parachute from a bad guy.

• Jamie Ramon, a cop, chases after a group of thieves. She faces all kinds of dangerous situations as she tries to track down the thieves and arrest them.

Multiple Choice

One of the sentences below is a central idea. The rest support the central idea. Select the sentence that shows the central idea.

• Americans who moved West lived in mud houses.

• These pioneers needed to dig their own wells to get water.

• American pioneers had difficult lives.

• They faced harsh weather and rough farming conditions.

Multiple Choice

In some instances, the central idea will be obvious and stated by the author. What is the main idea of this passage?

Polar bears have adapted to their cold Arctic environment. Their fur has hollow hairs filled with air, which provides insulation so that they can live on the ice and swim in frigid water. Since polar bears spend more time in the sea than on land, they have webbed front paws to help them swim.

• Polar bears live in the Arctic.

• Polar bears have adapted to their environment.

• Polar bear fur is made up of hollow hairs.

• Polar bears have webbed front paws.

Multiple Choice

In some instances, finding the central idea requires you to make inferences using the details given. What is the central idea of this passage?

These days, learning to quilt is not often passed down from one generation to the next. Some people, though, have taken a new interest in quilting. Many learn to quilt through books and classes. People are discovering what those from past generations knew—that quilting can be difficult but worth the effort.

• Quilting is an old-fashioned art.

• Quilting is becoming popular again.

• Making quilts takes many hours.

• People can take classes to learn to quilt.

Multiple Select

Central idea: Classes should start later.

Which details below support the idea that classes should start later?

• Teens have different sleep cycles than adults; they need to sleep later in the morning.

• When students aren't focused on their clothes, they can focus on their lessons.

• Experts say that high school students are more alert and productive after 9:00 AM.

Multiple Select

Central idea: Coral reefs can help people.

Which details below support the idea that coral reefs help people?

• Human bone grafts have been done with the skeletons of coral reefs.

• About 500 million depend on coral reefs for employment.

• Coral reefs protect coastal lands and homes from sea damage.

• One quarter of all marine fish species live around coral reefs.