Main Idea 8th Grade

What is the best question to ask yourself when you are trying to find the main idea?

• Who is the main character?

• What is the main event?

• What is one important detail?

• What point is the author trying to make? What is the paragraph all about?

Tags

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RL.6.2

Shanna had never seen so many fish before. She looked around at the huge tanks and could see hundreds of fish, crabs, shrimp, and all other amazing creatures completely surrounding her. She never thought she could feel like she was completely underwater, yet still be completely dry.

The main topic is about...

• The Mall

• The Ocean

• The Aquariam

• The Park

Tags

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RI. 9-10.2

Floods can cause tremendous damage.  They can ruin houses, roads and buildings. Floods can take down trees and cause mudslides. It often leaves mud, sand and debris behind.  It can take months to clean up after a flood.
 What is the main idea?

• Floods can cause a lot of damage.
• Floods cause mudslides.
• Floods damage houses and roads. 

Tags

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RL.6.2

Some people say that the White House has ghosts.  The most famous ghost is Abraham Lincoln.  He is often seen standing in his room looking out the window.  Even Eleanor Roosevelt said that she saw him.  There is a legend that old Abe walks back and forth all night before something terrible is about to happen.  This paragraph mainly tells:

• what Lincoln's ghost is like
• when Eleanor Roosevelt's ghost walked
• hwo many ghosts the White House has
• how ghosts show when something will happen

Tags

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RI.6.2

When we think of seaweed, we usually picture brown or green plants a foot or so in length.  Seaweeds are also of other colors.  Some are red.  Some kinds grow to lengths of a hundred feet!  These form giant seaweed forests, where many kinds of fish take shelter.  What is the main idea?

• Why some seaweed grows so large
• What seaweed is like
• Why seaweed is red

Tags

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RI.6.2

Animals and plants living in deserts have adaptations which enable them to survive there. Desert plants have little or no leaves where moisture can escape. They also have deep roots to soak up water underground. Many desert animals are nocturnal. They burrow in the soil or sand during the hottest part of the day and are active at night when it is cooler. Desert animals also survive by getting the water they need from desert plants.

• How much it rains in the desert
• Types of animals living in deserts
• How animals and plants survive in deserts

Tags

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RL.6.2

Sharks can lose up to 30,000 teeth in their lifetime. Sharks have teeth arranged in rows inside their mouths. These teeth do not have roots like human teeth do, so they fall out easily. When a shark takes a powerful bite into its food, several teeth are lost. When these teeth are lost, new ones push forward from the back rows to replace them. Luckily, sharks continually grow new teeth to replace the thousands they lose.

• What shark teeth look like
• Sharks lose many teeth over their lifetime.
• Sharks are carnivorous predators. 

Tags

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RI. 9-10.2

a statement or main point that tells what a passage is mostly about

• Topic

• Claim

• Main Idea

• Transitional sentence

Tags

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

CCSS.RL.8.2

CCSS.RI.6.2

Which sentence is a supporting detail that you should get enough sleep?

• Many people sleep later on the weekends.

• Caffeine keeps some people awake at night.

• Dark rooms are best for sleeping.

• Seven to nine hours keeps you refreshed the next day.

Tags

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

CCSS.RL.7.1

CCSS.RL.8.1

Which sentence is a supporting detail that recycling is important?

• There are many landfills available for waste.

• Recycling paper saves trees from being cut down.

• Clean jars before recycling them.

• Separate your paper, cans, and glass jars before recycling.

Tags

CCSS.RI.7.2

CCSS.RI.8.2

CCSS.RL.7.2

CCSS.RL.7.1

CCSS.RL.8.1