Main Idea 1

Beth likes to swim with her friends at the beach. The best part of going to the beach is collecting shells. She likes to use shells to make jewelry. The main idea is:

• Beth is a good swimmer.

• Beth likes to collect shells.

• Shells are easy to find.

Steel is a very important metal which is used for many things. In the U.S., the automobile industry uses the most steel. Steel is used to put up buildings. Cans and containers are made from steel. Steel is used to make farm and factory machines. The main idea is:

• Steel is used for many purposes.

• The auto industry is important.

• The auto industry uses more steel.

Honeybees travel up to four miles to find nectar. When a bee finds nectar, it does a wiggle dance to tell the other bees where the nectar is. Other worker bees head out to the source. All in all, a hive of bees can travel up to 55,00 miles and visit 2,000,000 plants to produce one pound of honey. The main idea is:

• Honeybees are hard workers.

• Honey is made from nectar.

• Honeybees like to dance.

Lisa’s birthday is soon. She wants to have a party. She will ask six friends to come. They will play games. They will eat cake and ice cream. It will be fun. The main idea is:

• Many people came to Lisa’s house.

• Lisa got many presents.

• Lisa wants to have a birthday party.

Jean finally had the money to buy something she had wanted for a long time, a skateboard. Today after school, Jean would buy her own skateboard. She was pretty good at using skateboards, because she used those of her friends to practice. The main idea is:

• Jean is an expert at skateboarding.

• Jean will get a skateboard.

• Jean borrows a skateboard.

It was the end of May and Li still hadn’t made any friends. Li was shy and self-conscious about his height. At his old school, he’d been on the golf team, but when he came here, golf season had already ended. Li planned to go out for the team next year, but that didn’t help his situation now. The main idea is:

• Going out for sports helps you make friends.

• New students are usually lonely.

• Li is having a hard time making friends.

Jim’s family bought a new car. Jim is very excited about it. His father and mother will take him for a ride in it tomorrow. Jim hopes it will be a long ride. The main idea is:

• Jim goes for his first car ride.

• Jim is happy about the new car.

• Jim learns how to drive.

There are about 2,000 kinds of bats. They come in many sizes. Bats are rather strange looking animals. They are soft and furry with large ears. Bats cannot run or walk. They usually eat insects. Bats are the only mammals that fly. The main idea is:

• Bats are unusual mammals.

• Bats move by flying.

• Bats look like many other animals.

Chemicals were placed into bee feeders. Within two days, the bees connected the smell of the chemicals with food. They were able to lead researchers to buried explosives by scents alone. Researchers hope to use honeybees to locate buried land mines. The main idea is:

• Insects are very intelligent.

• It may be possible to change insect behavior.

• All insect behavior can be changed.

The clock rang. John pulled the covers over his head. He did not want to get up. His eyes were shut. John heard his wife call him. He had to get up. The main idea is:

• John did not want to get up.

• John always sleeps late.

• John gets up at six o’clock.