Main Idea and Supporting Details

Please read the following details and determine the main idea of these words.
-fireworks
-flags
-food
-America
-summer holiday

• St. Patricks Day

• Christmas

• Easter

• Fourth of July

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

What is the main idea?
  Shells
Susan likes to swim with her family at the beach. The best part of going to the beach is collecting shells. She likes to use shells to make jewelry. Collecting shells is fun.

• Susan is a good swimmer.

• Susan likes to collect shells.

• Jewelry is fun to make.

• Susan likes to go fishing.

Jake's family went on a camping trip. They went to a park by the ocean. They rode their bikes around the park and cooked their food over a fire outside. They saw some deer. They came home Sunday afternoon. 
What is the main idea? 

• They saw some deer

• Jake's family likes to camp

• Jake's family went on a camping trip

• They cooked their food outside

Juan loves to play games. His favorite game is chess because it requires a great deal of thought. Juan also likes to play less demanding board games that are based mostly on luck. He prefers Monopoly because it requires luck and skill. If he's alone, Juan likes to play action video games as long as they aren't too violent. 
What is the main idea? 

• Juan dislikes violence

• Juan likes to think

• Juan enjoys Monopoly

• Juan enjoys playing games

Someday we will all have robots that will be our personal assistants. They will look and behave much like humans. We will be able to talk to these mechanical helpers. Amazingly, the robots of the future will be able to learn from experience. They will be smart, strong, and untiring workers whose only goal will be to make our lives easier. 
What is the main idea? 

• Someday we will all have robots to be our personal assistants

• We will be able to talk to these mechanical helpers

• They will look and behave much like real humans

• Robots of the future will be able to learn from experience

If you were to describe what main idea is to someone else, which of the following phrases would you use to help them understand?

• "Lots of details that make up a story."

• "What it's ALL about!"

• "Only look at the title."

• "The last sentence in a paragraph."

The main idea does not need supporting details.True or False?

• True

• False

Please read the following details and determine the main idea of these words.
-football
-soccer
-volleyball
-baseball
-tennis

• school

• games

• something hard

• sports