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Reading Comprehension. Main Ideas and Supporting Details. Titles and Main Ideas. Titles are almost always associated with the main idea of a text. Authors carefully choose words in a title and so it’s always a good idea to look up the meanings of unfamiliar words.
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Reading Comprehension Main Ideas and Supporting Details
Titles and Main Ideas • Titles are almost always associated with the main idea of a text. • Authors carefully choose words in a title and so it’s always a good idea to look up the meanings of unfamiliar words. • The tone of a title can also give ideas about the purpose of the text (entertain, inform, persuade, describe). • Titles can also help the reader predict what the text is about.
Main ideas in writing • Writers narrow down topics to a main idea. • In paragraphs, a topic sentence contains the main idea. • When looking for the main idea in a paragraph, pay attention to topic and concluding sentences. • In longer texts, the main idea is usually stated in introductory paragraphs and then supported with details and examples in later paragraphs. • The main idea are usually repeated in the concluding paragraph of a longer text.
Main Ideas and Supporting Details • Main ideas need to be supported with specific details. • These details also make the writing more interesting, realistic, entertaining • Details can used to show rather than tell (descriptive) • Supporting details can come be facts, opinions, statistics,etc. • Supporting details can also be text connections (text-self, text-text, and text-world)
Finding main ideas and supporting details • A good strategy is to stop at the end of each paragraph to condense and summarize it to a single sentence or thought. • As you read each paragraph, underline key sentences and key phrases. Use these ideas to construct your one sentence summary.
Principals and Principles (p.19-20) Analysis of Title What is the meaning of these words? Principal: a school administrator—or head of a teacher Principles: rules, laws, beliefs that something is based on Both words sound the same—they are homophones Greek words: [homo (same) phone (voice)]
Principals and Principles: Main Idea How does this title help you make predictions about the story? Is this about a principal and school rules? Main idea and the title • The principal at the school has decided to ban shorts • The writer has decided to stand up for the principle of free dress • The title uses the words “principal” and “principle” and the main idea is about standing up for a principle that the principal didn’t support
Supporting Details • The students have a right to free dress according to the school pamphlet on student rights and responsibilities. • The writer convinces the students to defy the principal’s “unfair cancellation” of student rights. • Someone “ratted” on the writer and he was sent to the office. Details about the rat are included to make the story more interesting. • The writer is confronted by the principal, but refuses to give in and continues to stand up for student rights. • The principal gives in and the writer goes back to class to applause. • The school pamphlet is changed the following year-”students have the responsibility to dress appropriately.” • The main message at the end of the story is stand up for your rights anyway.
Details, details, details Believable • Specific details about the school setting • Description of the kids at Herbert Hoover Middle School • The reasons for the “no shorts” rule • The description of weather etc. Warmest months are in the fall August 67F, September 70F, October 69F (all are average high temperatures) Unbelievable • The “free dress” section of the student pamphlet—school have dress codes. School rules are usually carefully analyzed. • “All of the students” participated? • The description of the principal and her inaction over student’s defiant behaviour. • Students all wore shorts in celebration—despite the cold.
