Main Idea & Details

What is the main idea of a story?

• the things that support what the story is talking about

• the overall message of the story

• the central point or big picture concept that the reader should walk away with

• who the story is about.

The supporting details in a story are the sentences or phrases that help out the main idea of the story.

• True

• False

The rain began in the morning. It fell as hard drops, one after another. The sky was full of dark of purple clouds. Thunder began as a soft rumble and became louder and louder. Lightning crashed every few minutes, making the sky a bright white color.

What is the main idea?

• The farms needed rain.

• The thunder hurt the people's ears.

• Lightning made the sky bright.

• The storm was very strong.

The rain began in the morning. It fell as hard drops, one after another. The sky was full of dark of purple clouds. Thunder began as a soft rumble and became louder and louder. Lightning crashed every few minutes, making the sky a bright white color.

Which one of these is a supporting detail from the story?

• The farms needed the rain.

• The thunder hurt the people's ears.

• Lightning made the sky bright.

• The storm was very strong.

Spiders have eight legs and two body parts. Insects have six legs and three body parts. Spiders do not have wings like most insects do. Spiders do not have antennae. To catch their food, most spiders spin webs. They trap their food in their web. Spiders wrap their food in their web. Spiders wrap their food in silk to keep it in the web. Spiders are interest creatures, but some think they are scary.

What is the main idea of this passage?

• Spiders have eight legs and two body parts.

• Spiders are interesting creatures that are not scary.

• Spiders wrap their food in silk to keep it in the web.

• Insects have six legs and three body parts.

Spiders have eight legs and two body parts. Insects have six legs and three body parts. Spiders do not have wings like most insects do. Spiders do not have antennae. To catch their food, most spiders spin webs. They trap their food in their web. Spiders wrap their food in their web. Spiders wrap their food in silk to keep it in the web. Spiders are interest creatures, but some think they are scary.

What are the supporting details in the story?

• Spiders wrap their food in their webs.

• Insects have six legs and three body parts.

• Spiders trap their food in silk to keep it in the web.

• Spiders are interesting creatures but some think they are scary.

There can be more than 1 main idea in a story.

• True

• False

There can only be one detail to support the story.

• True

• False

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 text features can give you a clue of what the main idea is?

• Title

• Headings

• Pictures

• All of these