Soccer players learn many skills when playing soccer.  Soccer players learn how to dribble and pass the ball.  They also learn how to control the ball so they can eventually score.  Most importantly, soccer players learn how to work together with their teammates.
What is the main idea?

John and Matt want to be firemen.  They want to ride on the big fire truck.  John wants to climb ladders and rescue people from fires.  Matt wants to hold the big hose and spray water on the fires to put them out.
What is the main idea?

Jenny visited her grandmother in the hospital.  She saw how kind and helpful the nurses were to her grandmother.  Now she wants to be a nurse when she grows up.  She wants to help sick people get well. 
What is the main idea?

Mrs. Jones and Mrs. Brown are bakers.  They work at a store called Bake Goods to Go.  Mrs. Jones works nights.  She bakes cakes, cookies, and pies.  Mrs. Brown works in the daytime.  She bakes bread and rolls.  Both Mrs. Jones and Mrs. Brown are very good bakers.
What is the main idea?

Mary has a new pet.  Her pet is a baby kitten.  It is soft and cuddly.  The kitten likes to sleep a lot.  Mary put a soft blanket in a box for its bed.  Mary plays with her kitten when it is awake.  She never forgets to feed her kitten.
What is the main idea?

The frog sat on the side of the pond.  He was very still.  His green color made him hard to see.  A bug flew near him.  His tongue zipped out, and he gobbled it up.  Then the frog was still again.  He waited for the next bug.
What is the main idea?

It was backward day at school.  The students had to do things backward.  Some of them wore their T-shirts backward.  They took a test before they studied the lesson.  Dessert was served first instead of last.  They tried to walk home backward, but they bumped into each other and fell down. 
What is the main idea?

Mark wanted to be a great skater. But he didn't want to spend the hours practicing. He wished he could just do the tricks easily. Mark's dream was to have everyone stop and stare when he entered the skate park. He  wanted them to say, "Mark is the best skater in the whole world."
What is the main idea?

If you are feeling sad, you can make yourself feel better by doing a few simple things. You can take a walk (or get another form of exercise), you can talk to a friend, or you can write down your feelings. Writing down the good things in your life will help too. Doing something good for someone else will also help you feel better. If you still feel a little sad, act happy. It works like magic to make you feel better!
What is the main idea?

I can't wait until this weekend! We’re going to my grandparents’ house and my entire family will be there. I will spend most of my time playing games with my cousins. We always have such a good time together! The day goes by so fast, and by the end we are all exhausted... but we still don’t want to leave!
What is the main idea?

The class scares were out! Kenny was so nervous to see the scores, he knew he didn't study enough and the test was so hard. Well, sure enough, he failed. He was shocked to see that he was one of only two people who failed. What? He had to find a way to improve his scores! He couldn't be a failure, so he asked his teacher for another chance to take the test. She said yes and Kenny got to studying right away. He knew he could do it!
What was Kenny's motivation?

Trent’s bike was getting too small and just wasn’t cool anymore. Trent was watching TV and saw the new Bike Racer 2000 and knew he had to have it. He could no longer ride that old bike. All he could think about was how amazing he would look on the new bike and how smooth the bike would ride. He counted how much money he had and realized he needed $50. He went out and did chores for his parents and jobs for the neighbors until he earned $50. He went and bought the bike right away. Woohoo!
What was Trent's motivation?

Julie had a school mission project to complete. She was given a whole month to get the project done but had procrastinated and now only had one week to get it done! Julie’s mom found out that Julie hadn’t even started the project, and she was very angry. She told Julie that she was grounded until it was done. Julie couldn’t believe her mom grounded her over a lame project. Julie couldn’t handle being grounded, so she decided to just get the project done.
What was Julie's motivation?

Ella was the most beautiful girl in school. Mike wanted so badly to take her to the school dance. He was so nervous, he couldn’t get any words out when she was around. He tried and tried to find a way to ask her to the dance, but he couldn’t do it. He was so upset with himself that one day he told himself to “Just do it!” Either she would say yes or she would say no. He finally found the courage inside himself and walked up to Ella and asked her to the dance. She said yes!

One day Kevin looked out the window and noticed a new family was moving in across the street. Later that evening, Kevin's mom told him that the new neighbors were coming to dinner and that they had a 10-year-old son named Tanner. Kevin’s mom told Kevin that he would hang out with Tanner. Kevin was not excited or interested in meeting a new person, but his mom told him that they could rent the new movie Fire. Kevin really wanted to see this movie, so he told his mom he would hang out with Tanner.
What was Kevin’s motivation?

Mallory was listening to a nutrition presentation at school and couldn’t believe how much she was learning. She came to the realization of how unhealthy her family ate. She decided she wanted to get healthy and help her family get healthy too. She devised a plan to add one healthy item to their diet each Week. She also started grocery shopping with her mom to help her learn how to cook healthy.
What was Mallory’s motivation?

Jimmy was the cool kid at school and everyone wanted to be his friend. One day Jimmy decided to ask Joey to hang out. Joey thought it was so awesome that Jimmy wanted to hang out with him. He couldn’t believe it. Maybe he would become a cool kid too! Things were going well until Jimmy asked Joey to steal some candy at the convenience store. Joey couldn’t believe Jimmy asked him to do this. He knew if he didn’t do it, Jimmy wouldn’t think he was cool anymore. He knew it was wrong, but he decided to do it anyway.
What was Joey’s motivation?

Emily’s dance group is always the runner up. They have another competition in a few days. They have worked very hard to improve. Emily thinks they have a chance to come in first place. Then Emily’s dance group notices that the A+ Dance Group is in this competition. They always win. Emily’s dance group gets very discouraged. Emily can’t believe they would give up this easily. Emily tells them that if they want to win as badly as she does, they need to be positive, have faith, and work harder than ever.
What is Emily’s motivation?

The basketball team is trailing the other team by eight points. The players look dejectedbut their coach still believes in them. “You guys can do it! We practiced hard this week and I know that you can play better,” he told them during the timeout. He smiled at the players and tried his best to cheer them on.
The coach is: 

Nina doesn’t like it when people do not follow her instructions to the letter. If she tells her co-workers that a report should be printed on light blue paper, she expects it to be printed on light blue paper. One day, her officemate brought a small plant to the office. She wanted to place it on her desk. Nina told her to get rid of the plant because it does not go well with the office décor.
Nina is: 

Mr. Hidalgo picks his daughter up from school everyday. Today, he was already waiting at the gate of the school when his daughter texted him that she has to stay a bit longer for soccer practice. Mr. Hidalgo went back to the car and brought out a book. He has been reading for nearly an hour when his daughter texted again. Soccer practice is not yet done. Mr. Hidalgo replied that it was okay. He will just try to take a nap as he waited. After another hour, his daughter finally came out. Mr. Hidalgo quickly got out to help her with her bags.
Mr. Hidalgo is: 

Manny just got home from school. He left his bag, shoes, jacket, and lunch pack on the floor. He went to his room and started playing a video game. He reached under his bed and got out a small plastic box. He keeps some snacks in this box so he won’t need to go to the kitchen. After a few hours, his mom called him down to help in setting up the table. Manny quickly went to his bed and pretended to sleep. His mom called him a few times but gave up eventually.
Manny is: 

Little Johnny Wiggins fell down a well on the farm.  His family looked for him.  Finally, at sundown, Mr. Wiggins found Johnny.  He had been trapped in the well for three hours.
CAUSE: Johnny Wiggins fell down a well.
What was the EFFECT?

Mark went on a fishing trip with his father.  His father caught three fish.  Mark caught two fish.  Mark's fish were so little that he had to throw them back.
CAUSE: Mark's fish were very small
What was the EFFECT?

Policeman sometimes use dogs to help them in their line of work.  Dogs have a good sense of smell.  this makes them useful in tracking down outlaws.  Dogs can also help find stolen goods.
CAUSE: Dogs have a good sense of smell.
What was the EFFECT?

Policeman sometimes use dogs to help them in their line of work.  Dogs have a good sense of smell.  this makes them useful in tracking down outlaws.  Dogs can also help find stolen goods.
CAUSE: Dogs have a good sense of smell.
What was the EFFECT?

The clown did a trick on his bicycle.  He went very fast and stood up on his seat.  I am a good bike riders, but not that good.  When I tried the trick, I fell off my bike.
CAUSE: I tried to do a bicycle trick.
What was the EFFECT?

Someone rang my doorbell last night.  He must have run away, though.  I got up when I heard the bell.  But when I opened the door, there was nobody there.
CAUSE: Someone must have run away.
What was the EFFECT?

Rosa and her friends spent two weeks in a cabin on the lake.  There was no electricity in the cabin.  The girls had to use a lantern for light.  Sometimes they made a fire in the fireplace.
CAUSE: The cabin had no electricity.
What was the EFFECT?