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Main Idea 2

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• Main Idea Reading Test
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Learners read short paragraphs, summarize the passage in one sentence, and then develop an appropriate title that indicates the main idea of the selection. Part of a series of exercises designed to build literary skills.

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Classroom considerations.

• The third in a series of six worksheets that provide learners practice identifying the main idea of a passage
• Preview the interactive site to determine what resources are appropriate for your learners
• Readers are sure to be engaged by the passage topics which include rodeo clowns, the wolverine, the origins of basketball, and machine guns
• Additional worksheets and interactive assessments are attached
• Six practice exercises are included on the worksheet

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2nd grade reading & vocabulary

Course: 2nd grade reading & vocabulary   >   unit 2, what is a main idea | reading.

• Relationships between scientific ideas in a text | Reading
• Interpreting text features | Reading
• Finding connections between ideas within a passage | Reading
• The Moon: reading informational text; All About the Moon 2

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Video transcript

Reading Worksheets, Spelling, Grammar, Comprehension, Lesson Plans

Main Idea Worksheets

The main idea, also called the central idea or main point, is the primary concept of a passage. It represents the essential point that the author is trying to convey. The main idea may be clearly stated as a sentence. The main idea is usually reinforced by a series of other points or details which support the premise of the main idea. These are called supporting ideas and may also be stated or implied. Please use any of the printable main idea worksheets below in your classroom or at home. Just click on the worksheet title to view details about the printable PDF and print or download to your computer.Be sure to check out all of our reading worksheets . If you're looking for more activities, check out www.readingvine.com's main idea reading passages .

Find the Main Idea: Storms

After reading a brief passage about storms, students are prompted to write the main idea and 3 details.

Find the Main Idea: Spots the Barn Cat

A short passage about Spots the Barn cat. Students circle the main idea from a list of options.

What is the Main Idea? Carnival

Students read a short paragraph about carnivals, circle the main idea and write 3 details.

Find the Main Idea: Anne of Green Gables

A main idea worksheet about the book, Anne of Green Gables. Students write the main idea and two supporting ideas.

Find the Main Idea: Planets

Students read a passage about planets and then write the main idea and supporting ideas.

Find the Main Idea: The Jungle Book

Students read a passage from Rudyard Kipling’s book, The Jungle Book, and write the main idea in the large oval and two supporting ideas in the small, linked ovals.

Find the Main Idea: The Meerkat

Students read about the fascinating Meerkat and write down the main idea and supporting ideas.

Main Idea Graphic Organizer

Learning how to properly structure an essay can be difficult. With this Main Idea Tree, students will create an outline that allows them to better understand the different parts of a five paragraph essay. Students will be asked to write their introduction, a main idea, three topic sentences, three supporting details for each topic sentence, and a conclusion.

Find the Main Idea: Dolphins

Students read about the dolphins and write the main idea and two supporting ideas on the lines provided.

Find the Main Idea: The Louisiana Purchase

Students read about the Louisiana Purchase and write the main idea and two supporting ideas on the lines provided.

Find the Main Idea: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

Students write the main idea and three supporting ideas after reading a short passage from the book,The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

Find the Main Idea: 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea

A main idea worksheet about the book, 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea. Students write the main idea and two supporting ideas.

Find the Main Idea: Ben Franklin

A reading passage about Ben Franklin. Students read and write the main idea and supporting ideas.

Find the Main Idea: Black Beauty

After reading a passage from “Black Beauty” by Anna Sewell, students write the main idea and two supporting ideas.

Find the Main Idea: Little Women

Students read a passage from Louisa May Alcott’s book, Little Women, and write the main idea and two supporting ideas.

Find the Main Idea: The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

Students read a passage from The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and write the main idea and supporting ideas.

Find the Main Idea: Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain

Students write the main idea and up to 5 supporting ideas after reading a short passage from the book, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, by Mark Twain.

Find the Main Idea: Two Reading Passages

One passage about the U.S. Constitution and one about the sport of soccer. Students read both, circle the main idea and write a supporting idea.

Find the Main Idea: Call of the Wild

After reading a passage from “Call of the Wild” by Jack London, students write the main idea and two supporting ideas.

Find the Main Idea: Major Art Movements

A worksheet about the major art movements. Students write the main idea and 4 supporting ideas.

Main Idea and Text Structure Worksheet 2

Aren't robots great? Isn't it going to be great when they take over the world? Here's another text structure worksheet. This time it is themed around robots. This worksheet features six more nonfiction passages where students identify and represent main ideas and text structure. Suggested reading level for this text: Grade 6-10. Find this text structure worksheet along with many others on this page of text structure worksheets .

Find this and more at ereadingworksheets.com .

Understanding & Interacting with a Text

Finding the main idea in a piece of writing is a basic reading skill. No matter what type of expository text you read, the primary comprehension goal is to identify the main idea: the most important point that the writer wants to communicate.  Main ideas are often stated toward the start of a text, usually in an introductory paragraph. They are often repeated in fuller form toward the end of a text, usually in a concluding paragraph. Main ideas may be reinforced through headings, subheadings, and other forms of emphasis. However, main ideas may also be implied and not stated directly in the text.  Sometimes you need to infer the main idea based on the details, facts, and explanations in the text.

Some texts make the task of identifying the main idea relatively easy. Articles in scholarly journals often include an abstract, which is a condensed version of the information in the article, a version which focuses on main ideas. Textbooks, articles in general interest magazines, and online articles in blogs or on websites may include headings and subheadings which make it easier to identify core concepts. All types of texts may include graphic features such as sidebars, diagrams, and charts, which help readers understand complex information and distinguish between essential and inessential points. When reading a text with these features, use them to help identify the main idea.

For texts without graphic features, headings, or abstracts, and/or for texts with implied main ideas, use the following process to identify the main idea:

• Read the text.
• Ask yourself: What is the text about? – What is the topic?
• Ask yourself: What is the author saying about the topic?
• Identify repeated concepts and language; writers often use repetition to emphasize a main idea.
• Summarize the article after you read–put what you think the main idea is into your own words.  See if you can find any statements in the article that are similar to your summary.  If so, it’s likely that you’ve found the main idea.  If the main idea in the text is not stated but implied, then ask if your summary encapsulates the one thing you think the writer wants you to understand about the topic.

For a discussion of finding the main idea which includes examples, link to Finding the Main Idea from Monterey Peninsula College’s Writing Center.

The following two videos also provide very clear, useful discussions of finding the main idea in a text.

Read the article, “ Wikipedia Is Good for You!? ”  Then choose the statement that you think best offers the main idea.  In the answer, you’ll also find one reader’s discussion of her thought process finding the main idea.

• Wikipedia is a good source in certain cases.
• Wikipedia, although itself not always a valid source, is useful as a starting place for ideas, search terms, and other sources.
• Wikipedia, although itself not always a valid source, is useful both as a starting place and as a process guide to producing a text.

The third choice best offers the article’s main idea. I knew that the main idea would have something to do with the topic “Wikipedia,” because of the title.  But because the title included a question mark, I didn’t know if the main idea would end up being for or against Wikipedia.  Immediately after I skimmed, I thought that the main idea was stated directly in paragraph 12: “ There are productive ways to use Wikipedia. In fact, Wikipedia can be a good source in three different ways. Rather than a source to cite, it can be a source of (1) ideas, (2) links to other texts, and (3) search terms. ”  But when I read more fully, I realized that there were other things the author wanted me to understand, concepts more complex and nuanced than a direct “yes” or “no” answer to the title.  I found key ideas relating to the benefits of Wikipedia in paragraphs 2 and 4 in addition to 12. Paragraphs 2 and 4 discussed Wikipedia in terms of writing processes: the need to go back and revise, the co-production of an article’s text based on input from many sources (a “conversation”), and the concept of writing for a real audience. There are also a number of paragraphs that talk about the detriments of Wikipedia if used as a source.  Since there’s no single main idea sentence, I summarized the main concepts into a sentence that condensed and synthesized the article’s ideas into one main idea statement.

• Main Idea. Authored by : Susan Oaks, includes material adapted from Let's Get Writing; attribution below. Project : Introduction to College Reading & Writing. License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
• Chapter 1 - Critical Reading. Authored by : Elizabeth Browning, Kirsten DeVries, Kathy Boylan, Jenifer Kurtz, and Katelyn Burton. Provided by : Virginia Western Community College. Located at : https://vwcceng111.pressbooks.com/chapter/chapter-1-critical-reading/ . Project : Let's Get Writing. License : CC BY-NC-SA: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
• image of woman thinking, with question mark. Authored by : Tumisu. Provided by : Pixabay. Located at : https://pixabay.com/photos/question-doubt-problem-mark-3385451/ . License : CC0: No Rights Reserved
• video Location of the Main Idea Sentence. Authored by : Marc Franco. Provided by : Snap Language. Located at : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0yZ8z7lt3Q . License : Other . License Terms : YouTube video
• video Implied Main Ideas and a Reading Strategy to Figure them Out. Authored by : Marc Franco. Provided by : Snap Language. Located at : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wydDRf3XEb8 . License : Other . License Terms : YouTube video

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How to Find the Main Idea

ThoughtCo / Mary McLain 

• B.A., English, University of Michigan

Questions about the "main idea" of a passage are popular on reading comprehension tests, but sometimes, those questions are pretty difficult to answer, especially for students who are not completely sure they understand what the main idea really is.  Finding the main idea of a paragraph or longer passage of text is one of the most important reading skills to master, along with concepts like making an inference , finding the author's purpose , or understanding vocabulary words in context.

Here are a few techniques to help understand what, exactly, is a "main idea" and how to identify it accurately in a passage.

How to Define the Main Idea

The main idea of a paragraph is the primary point or concept that the author wants to communicate to the readers about the topic. Hence, in a paragraph, when the main idea is stated directly, it is expressed in what is called the topic sentence . It gives the overarching idea of what the paragraph is about and is supported by the details in subsequent sentences in the paragraph. In a multi-paragraph article, the main idea is expressed in the thesis statement, which is then supported by individual smaller points.

Think of the main idea as a brief but all-encompassing summary. It covers everything the paragraph talks about in a general way, but does not include the specifics. Those details will come in later sentences or paragraphs and add nuance and context; the main idea will need those details to support its argument.

For example, imagine a paper discussing the causes of World War I . One paragraph might be dedicated to the role that imperialism played in the conflict. The main idea of this paragraph might be something like: "Constant competition for massive empires led to increasing tensions in Europe that eventually erupted into World War I." The rest of the paragraph might explore what those specific tensions were, who was involved, and why the countries were seeking empires, but the main idea just introduces the overarching argument of the section.

When an author does not state the main idea directly, it should still be implied , and is called an implied main idea. This requires that the reader look closely at the content—at specific words, sentences, images that are used and repeated—to deduce what the author is communicating.

Finding the main idea is critical to understanding what you are reading. It helps the details make sense and have relevance, and provides a framework for remembering the content. Try these specific tips to pinpoint the main idea of a passage.

1) Identify the Topic

Read the passage through completely, then try to identify the topic. Who or what is the paragraph about? This part is just figuring out a topic like "cause of World War I" or "new hearing devices;" don't worry yet about deciding what argument the passage is making about this topic.

2) Summarize the Passage

After reading the passage thoroughly, summarize it in your own words in one sentence . Pretend you have just ten to twelve words to tell someone what the passage is about—what would you say?

3) Look at the First and Last Sentences of the Passage

Authors often put the main idea in or near either the first or last sentence of the paragraph or article, so isolate those sentences to see if they make sense as the overarching theme of the passage. Be careful: sometimes the author will use words like but , however ,  in contrast , nevertheless , etc. that indicate that the second sentence is actually the main idea. If you see one of these words that negate or qualify the first sentence, that is a clue that the second sentence is the main idea.

4) Look for Repetition of Ideas

If you read through a paragraph and you have no idea how to summarize it because there is so much information, start looking for repeated words, phrases, or related ideas. Read this example paragraph :

A new hearing device uses a magnet to hold the detachable sound-processing portion in place. Like other aids, it converts sound into vibrations, but it is unique in that it can transmit the vibrations directly to the magnet and then to the inner ear. This produces a clearer sound. The new device will not help all hearing-impaired people—only those with a hearing loss caused by infection or some other problem in the middle ear. It will probably help no more than 20 percent of all people with hearing problems. Those people who have persistent ear infections, however, should find relief and restored hearing with the new device.

What does this paragraph consistently talk about? A new hearing device. What is it trying to convey? A new hearing device is now available for some, but not all, hearing-impaired people. That's the main idea!

Avoid Main Idea Mistakes

Choosing a main idea from a set of answer choices is different than composing a main idea on your own. Writers of multiple choice tests are often tricky and will give you distractor questions that sound much like the real answer. By reading the passage thoroughly, using your skills, and identifying the main idea on your own, though, you can avoid making these 3 common mistakes : selecting an answer that is too narrow in scope; selecting an answer that is too broad; or selecting an answer that is complex but contrary to the main idea. 

Resources and Further Reading

• How to Find a Stated Main Idea
• How to Find an Implied Main Idea
• Finding the Main Idea Practice
• Finding Main Ideas In Paragraphs,  http://english.glendale.cc.ca.us/topic.html
• Finding the Main Idea , Columbia College

Updated by Amanda Prahl 

• Questions for Each Level of Bloom's Taxonomy
• How to Find the Implied Main Idea
• How to Find the Stated Main Idea
• Find the Main Idea Worksheets and Practice Questions
• Finding the Main Idea Worksheet 2
• How to Outline a Textbook Chapter
• Top 5 ACT Reading Strategies
• Paragraph Unity: Guidelines, Examples, and Exercises
• How To Write an Essay
• How to Find the Main Idea - Worksheet
• How to Teach Topic Sentences Using Models
• How to Boost Reading Comprehension With Reciprocal Teaching
• How to Write a Descriptive Paragraph
• An Introduction to Academic Writing
• How to Make an Inference in 5 Easy Steps
• What is The Author's Purpose?

Try This With Your Students - The Main Idea Game Pdf

Help your students enjoy learning to find the main idea and supporting points in key texts. suited for grades 2-8..

How Does The Main Idea Classroom Activity Work?

Arrange the story blocks and enter the tomb

Identify key information and answer questions

Assemble the tomb and uncover the mystery

What's the main idea.

When it comes to important steps in a student's journey towards good reading comprehension , finding the main idea of a paragraph is a giant leap! It's a skill that relies on being able to absorb several pieces of information and figure out how they are connected, and then to explore what conclusion might be the most important one. It can also require evaluating which pieces of information are important, as well as how they're important.

This takes students beyond understanding just what sentences say and into the territory of discovering what they mean when combined as a whole. (this is especially important for kids who are homeschooling!)

They're learning that there's a point in how these thoughts are put together!

Making a Game of It Using the Main Idea Worksheets pdf

Exploring the main idea in the form of an interactive game can be a great way to introduce students to this concept (especially in a homeschool environment!).

This goes especially for younger students who are just beginning to practice this skill, but turning learning into play helps students learn more naturally at any age.

Having fun with an activity makes the practice its own reward instead of reinforcing the idea that learning something has to be a chore.

Transform Reading Comprehension Into An Adventure with this Printable Main Idea Game:

Take your students on a gripping quest through tutankhamun's tomb., this worksheet guides them through fascinating egyptian history, while teaching them to identify the main elements of each story thread., it sets up instantly and easily. just print and your lesson prep is done, building your way up.

'Gamifying' learning is a sure-fire way to keep your kids 100% engaged in your classroom and homeschool lessons.

And it's easy to do - just try out one of our ready-to-play worksheet games here ..

Teaching this subject can be tricky - learning it, even more so! Why? Each piece of text could potentially have a wide variety of answers. It's often difficult for kids to find these ideas on their own, especially as more complex texts may only imply the main idea based on subtle clues.

Whether teaching in the classroom, or your kid at home, we often find that it helps to approach it with scaffolding techniques , where you begin with having all of the information on hand and then focus on how to structure the details around the conclusion. Making sure your students have the initial building blocks will let them work their way up to finding the solution on their own.

Your strategies for teaching this skill can be as widely varied as you need them to be. Whether you're identifying topic sentences, grouping words to organize details, or narrowing in through summaries, there are lots of ways for you to help your students get a good grasp on what these main ideas are and how they work.

We're here to help if you're looking for new ways to make sure your students get ongoing practice, and to make sure you have an option to fall back on when you need to keep it fresh and make it stick.

Alternative 1: The Main Idea Raincloud Game

Looking for a free online main idea game instead of an in-depth worksheet activity? We've gotcha covered!

There are several versions of this kind of online educational English game that focus on finding the main idea.

Our favorite that we want to share with you is the Rain Cloud game, which can be found here ! This game is perfect for mixing up your homeschool approach, or a fun classroom activity.

How to play:

The Rain Cloud game is set up to allow students to determine the primary piece of information from a set of options. The concept and controls are very simple : follow the link to the game page and select between the mouse or touchscreen options to get started. A hovering rain cloud containing a couple of sentences will appear over three trees, which each present a possible conclusion. Here's an example:

The rain cloud says 'Plants need sunlight to make their own food. Rabbits eat plants in order to get energy. Some animals need to eat other animals to survive.'

• The first tree at the bottom says 'Rabbits eat plants.'
• The second says 'Some animals are dangerous.'
• The third says 'Living things need energy.'

This provides a set of options where one is based on an existing information sentence, another is a possible conclusion based on a different piece of information, and the third is a fact based on all three of the given sentences. This kind of set-up gives the kids a chance to distinguish between options that are somewhat relevant from the ones that actually capture the idea as a whole.

Using the mouse to hover over and click the tree or swiping down the screen from the cloud will strike it with a bolt of lightning. A message like 'You Got It!' or 'Nope, Try Again!' will appear to indicate whether or not it was the correct one. (This can be fun for kids, but some of them may be scared by the thunder sounds or spooky music, so you can decide if this is a good fit for younger or more sensitive students. You can also make sure they know how to adjust the computer's volume on their own so they can play more comfortably.)

The game is based on gaining points, and the score will either increase or decrease as the players choose correct or incorrect options. This allows the kids to learn through process of elimination. If they get an answer wrong, the question stays up so they can keep trying until they get the correct one, and then move on to the next set.

Alternative 2: Main Idea Millionaire

This game allows kids to play a main idea version of "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?" It even lets them use powers to make the questions easier. This game has a paragraph with four sentences in it and you have to pick the one that doesn't belong. This continues until you get one wrong or until you win the game.

This game will allow kids to identify the main point of the sentence and then figure out which sentence doesn't fit into that main point.

Why Not Try Our Best Game Idea - An Escape Room Adventure!

Classroom escape room games  engage the whole classroom. Every. Single. Time!

They're not just games, they're valuable learning experiences that  develop critical thinking skills ,  refine group communication,  and  engage multiple learning styles  at once.

Worksheets can easily be integrated into a classroom escape room game as another puzzle that students must work together to solve.

Read our guide here  to discover how you can use escape room games to reignite creativity in your classroom.

Why Should I Use Online Games In the Classroom?

We like this concept because it's interactive and striking — literally! It's colorful and atmospheric enough to be appealing while still simple enough that it doesn't overwhelm the learning process. The multiple-choice approach gives kids a chance to evaluate different possibilities and build a frame of reference for the kind of information that might be important. They learn how the individual sentences contribute to the big picture in different ways, how some information might seem distracting at first glance, and how the conclusion shows the way each part connects to the other. This builds students' abilities to evaluate situations where all the options might be feasible, and to prioritize which one is more important.

Additionally, younger students may not be ready to come up with conclusions without some kind of prompting, so getting the chance to decide between a few and having the choice reinforced helps them build confidence as they work their way up. This is a great example of the scaffolding technique we mentioned earlier, where the final possibility is present and their job is to identify it. They're going to be honing this skill as it continues to show up no matter what grade or stage of life they're in, but learning to provide that answer on their own comes with time and practice through games like this.

We also think this game works well because it isn't set up to win or lose: the questions are ongoing, and while players can get answers wrong, that doesn't end the game or set back their progress. Games that send you back to the beginning when you get something wrong can risk creating feelings of frustration and apathy — the opposite feelings of what we want our students to associate with learning activities! This game allows them to continue trying until they find the correct answer, and this set-up also enables them to put together patterns for the kinds of ideas they're looking for. They learn to distinguish merely plausible answers from the ones that really capture the essence of the information.

The way the game provides feedback, progression, and the opportunity for persistence will strengthen their learning habits by building up their frame of reference in ways that they can apply to more complex ideas in the future. Not only that, it makes them less likely to become frustrated by failure and simply give up — not just in the game, but in life and learning later on.

Keep it For a Rainy Day

This kind of English game can make for a great activity to follow up a lesson on the subject, or for students to do at home after going over some examples in class together. You can assign them a set number of questions or give them a certain amount of time to complete as many as they can. Keeping track of scores might help you evaluate their progress as they become more familiar with the concept, but the important thing is that they get the chance to practice, build their patterns, and become comfortable with the skill.

You can also encourage them to compare notes with each other or talk as a class about which questions tripped them up and how they decided on the answers they chose. If students are dissatisfied with the designated correct answers, don't be afraid to let them voice those feelings! The game can be a jumping-off point for further discussions about why it might have been correct, or whether they could come up with a better one, instead of making them feel like they have to take the exercise at face value. If they're engaged and asking questions about the process, that's a good sign that they're getting something out of it.

If You Liked That Game, Your Kids Will Love These!

Baby Steps Will Take You Far

Ultimately, we want to make sure our students come away with valuable skills in analyzing what they read, evaluating its intended effect, and making thoughtful judgments about its meaning.

This kind of critical thinking will help them go a long way as they navigate through life. We hope they enjoy the game, and that you all find this important lesson fun and worthwhile!

Thanks for stopping in with us today!

Finding the Main Idea can be FUN. Download the Printable Main Idea Game and Watch Your Kids Light Up!

A complete classroom (or homeschool) activity that 'gamifies' history and reading comprehension.

Risk-free download - don't love it? Get your money back!

Instant setup. Tailored to be easy on your time and super engaging for your kids!

Main Idea Details

Key Ideas and Details - Literature and Informational Text CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.1.1 Ask and answer questions about key details in a text. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.1.2 Identify the main topic and retell key details of a text. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.1 Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.2.2 Identify the main topic of a multiparagraph text as well as the focus of specific paragraphs within the text. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.1 Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.2 Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea.

Reading to Understand

• Reading to Understand (8 minutes)
• Working with Context Clues (5 minutes)
• The Main Idea

Steps for Identifying the Main Idea

• Knowledge Check
• Academic Reading Challenges (7 minutes)

The main idea is the point or message - what an author presents and what a reader takes from a text. 

Searching for that main idea is a very important activity in understanding a text. It is usually found in the opening paragraph when the author is  setting up the topic  and  expressing the thesis.  

However, the location can vary according to the type of reading. For example, a research article's main idea is toward the end, whereas a persuasive essay's main idea is conveyed at the beginning.

Pre-read to Determine the Overall Topic

Examine the title and then skim the text to determine who or what the reading is about. If you see the same word repeated you know that it is likely the topic or at least an important element of the topic. The topic should be a noun or a noun phrase such as "online education." The topic itself does not convey any meeting us you must read on to determine the main idea.

Ask yourself questions about the text as you read in-depth. Pay close attention to the introduction, the first sentence of body paragraphs, and the conclusion. In these places, the author typically states and supports the main idea. 

Questions to Ask Yourself While Reading : 

• What elements make up this topic?
• What is the author saying about this topic?
• What does the author want me to know or believe about this topic?

Reflect on what you have read. If the main idea is not immediately apparent to you review the introduction and conclusion. The  main idea should be a complete thought  such as "because of its flexibility, comfort, and lower-cost online education is increasing in popularity for younger generations."

Questions to Ask Yourself While Reflecting:

• What is the message I take away from this reading?
• What point does the information add up to?
• What idea does the author reinforce in the conclusion?
• What is the final impression I have about this topic?

Finding the Main Idea

Once you believe you have found the main idea, check that each body paragraph relates to that main idea. The body paragraph should include  supporting ideas  that reinforce and provide greater detail about the main idea. 

Some students find it beneficial to sketch the main idea and supporting ideas in their notes as a concept map.

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Main Idea & Details Worksheets

Identifying the main idea and the supporting details.

These worksheets introduce students to identifying the main ideas of a text as well as the details that support those main ideas.

Choose your grade / topic:

Grade 1 - Main Idea Worksheets

Describe what the picture is "mostly about".

Grade 2 - Main Ideas & Details Worksheets

Circle the sentence which describes what the short text is "mostly about".

Grade 3 - Main Idea & Supporting Details

Identify the main idea of each paragraph and the details that make it more interesting.

Grade 4 - Main Ideas, Details and Summaries

Identify the main ideas and supporting details of texts.

Grade 5 - Main Idea, Details and Summaries

Identify the main ideas of individual paragraphs and entire texts.

Sample Main Idea & Details Worksheet

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