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Main Idea and Details - Science, Social Studies and RLA

Total questions: 15

Worksheet time: 1hrs 29mins

Name
Class
Date
1.
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?
a)
Floods can cause a lot of damage.
b)
Floods cause mudslides.
c)
Floods damage houses and roads. 
2.
The peregrine falcon is a beautiful wild bird. It is also one of the fastest. In 1978, the peregrine falcon was placed on the endangered species list. The main reason the peregrine falcon was dying out was the use of pesticides. 
Which of the following is NOT a supporting detail? 
a)
The peregrine falcon is one of the fastest wild birds
b)
It was placed on the endangered species list
c)
It was dying out because of pesticides
d)
The peregrine falcon is an amazing bird
3.

Spider Webs

All spiders spin webs. That's because webs help spiders. Webs help spiders do three things. Webs help spiders hold eggs. Webs help spiders hide and webs help spiders catch food. Webs help spiders hold eggs. Many spiders like to lay their eggs in their webs. The webs help keep the eggs together. Webs help spiders keep their eggs safe. Webs help spiders hide. Most spiders are dark. They are brown, grey, or black. But spider webs are light. They are white and cloudy. When spiders hide in their webs, they are harder to see. Webs help spiders catch food. Spider webs are sticky. When a bug flies into the web, it gets stuck. It moves around. It tries to get out. But it can't. It is trapped! Spiders can tell that the bug is trapped. That's because spiders feel the web move and the spider is hungry. The spider goes to get the bug. As you can see, webs help spiders hold eggs. Webs help spiders hide and webs help spiders catch food. Without webs, spiders would not be able to live like they do. Spiders need their webs to survive!

This passage is mostly about

a)

spider colors

b)

spider webs

c)

spider food

d)

spider size

4.
Before the United States was a country, it was a group of English colonies.  Until 1793, England didn't really bother the American colonists.  The people handled their business the way they wanted.  However, England had a lot of war debts to pay.  Some of the money was owed because England had defended the colonies in the French and Indian War.  Citizens who were living in England wanted taxes to be lowered.  The king decided to take more control over the colonies to get the money to pay off the debts.  He started a new tax for the colonies.  After being left to make their own decisions for so long, some of the colonists did not want to give up control  They did not want to pay high taxes.  Why did England start demanding taxes in America?
a)
They are mean and nasty and just wanted the Americans to suffer
b)
England needed to sell more tea to the Colonies
c)
England had a lot of debt from wars
d)
The American Colonies were not making enough money for England
5.
The Periodic Table of Elements
The list of elements is arranged on a scientific chart.  The chart is called the periodic table.  Each element is grouped with other similar elements.  Elements can be metals, nonmetals, or semimetals.  Semimetals have some of the characteristics of metals, and some of the characteristics of nonmetals.  Metals, nonmetals, and semimetals each have their own section on the table. What are the different types of elements? 
a)
Alloys, Metals, and Nonmetals
b)
Conductors, Tables, and Atoms
c)
Atoms, Molecules, and Protons
d)
Metals, Nonmetals, and Semimetals
6.
Animals in the forest have a wide variety of adaptations.  Monkeys have long tails.  They can use them almost like another hand.  This helps them swing quickly through the tops of trees.  They can even do this while holding their babies or gathering food.  Giraffes need to reach leaves at the tops of tall trees.  Having a long neck is an adaptation that allows them to do this.  How do monkeys use their tails as an adaptation? 
a)
they swat flies with them
b)
they scare predators with them
c)
they use them like another hand
d)
they don't use their tails as an adaptation
7.
Native Americans dried strips of meat, pounded it into a paste, and then mixed it with fat. Sometimes they added berries and sugar. Then they pressed it into small cakes. They called these cakes pemmican. Pemmican didn't spoil, and it provided lots of energy for people traveling or going hunting. Today explorers still carry and eat this food.
What is the passage mostly about?
a)
who uses pemmican today
b)
what can be put into pemmican
c)
how pemmican was prepared by Native Americans.
d)
why people eat pemmican today
8.
Elephants use their trunks for many things. Elephants use their trunks to smell. In fact, elephants can smell better than bloodhounds. Baby elephants sometimes suck their trunks to soothe themselves the way human babies suck their thumbs. Elephants do not drink with their trunks. They use their trunks to suck up water and then pour it in their mouths. Elephants also greet each other with their trunks the way humans do by shaking hands.
a)
 How much water elephants drink
b)
Where elephants live
c)
How elephant use their trunks
9.
Can you imagine not having a television? Before the 1920’s there were no televisions. The first television set was invented by a 21 year old man named Philo Farnsworth. Farnsworth demonstrated the first moving picture in San Francisco in 1927. Even though it was only a simple, straight line, this was the beginning of electronic television as we know it. 
a)
 The invention of television
b)
Hobbies before 1920
c)
Who lives in San Francisco
10.

Look at the chart. Which main idea belongs in the empty box?

a)

The penguin mother walks or slides on her belly across the ice.

b)

Emperor penguins work hard to take care of their chicks in Antarctica.

c)

Most birds build nests for their eggs, but emperor penguins do not.

d)

Penguin mothers lay only one egg each year in the cold Antarctic.

11.

Living things are organisms with certain characteristics. They need water, food, and air to survive. They grow and change, and they move on their own. Living things reproduce, or make more of themselves. For example, plants and animals are living things. Plants make their own food and animals eat plants or other animals for food.

What is the main idea of the passage?

a)

There are four characteristics of living things

b)

Animals make their own food.

c)

All living things need sunlight.

d)

Plants eat other plants

12.

Hurricanes are large storms. They begin over the ocean. They gather heat and energy from the water. Hurricanes move slowly to land as they grow stronger. Hurricanes are dangerous because of their size. They are also dangerous because of high winds and big waves. Hurricanes can bring flooding, power outages, and tornadoes.

What is the main idea of the passage?

a)

Hurricanes are summer storms.

b)

Hurricanes are one type of storm.

c)

Hurricanes are large, dangerous storms.

d)

Hurricanes are just like tornadoes and floods.

13.

One way to stay healthy is to exercise. Exercise helps you feel better, lose weight, and grow stronger.Taking a walk is a form of exercise. It helps you go outside and get fresh air. Playing a sport is another form of exercise. This is a fun way to be active. Taking classes at a gym is a way to be healthy and fit. There are many types of exercise you can do to improve your health.

What is the main idea of the passage?

a)

Choose a fun way to exercise.

b)

There are many types of exercise.

c)

If you are not happy, exercise will fix it.

d)

There are many ways to make yourself feel better.

14.

Pizza is a favorite food in the United States. Pizza is from Italy in the late 1800s. It became popular in the United States after World War II. People like to add toppings. Some toppings are pepperoni, sausage, and vegetables. These toppings give pizza more flavor. Pepperoni is America’s favorite topping.

What is the main idea of the passage?

a)

Pizza is made from flour.

b)

Pizza was first made in Italy.

c)

You should eat the delicious pizza.

d)

Pizza is a popular meal in the United States.

15.

It is estimated that over twenty million pounds of candy corn are sold in the US each year. Brach’s, the top manufacturer, sells enough candy corn to circle the earth 4.25 times if each piece were laid end to end. That’s a lot of candy corn, but that’s nothing compared to Tootsie Roll production. Over 64 million

Tootsie Rolls are produced every day! But even Tootsie Rolls have got nothing on the candy industry’s staple product, chocolate. Confectioners manufacture over twenty billion pounds of chocolate in the United States each year. Now that’s a mouthful!

What is the main idea of the passage?

a)

The United States only produces candy corn.

b)

The United States produces many types of candies in large amounts.

c)

It is estimated that over twenty million pounds of candy corn are sold in the US each year.

d)

But even Tootsie Rolls have got nothing on the candy industry’s staple product, chocolate.