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Main Idea
A main idea, main point or central point, is viewed as a general statement that is supported by other material in the paragraph.
List words:
Examples of Main Ideas using List Words:
o Emotional decisions can be divided into two main types. o Pathologists identify four different stages of cancer in the body. o Winners of presidential elections share various traits in common.
Major and Minor Supporting Details
Supporting details are reasons, examples, facts, steps, or other kinds of evidence that explain the main idea. Major details explain and develop the main idea. Minor details help make the major details clear.
Addition Words:
One to begin with also further First (of all) for one thing in addition furthermore Second (of all) other next last (of all) Third (of all) another moreover final(ly)
Examples of Major Details Using Addition Words:
o One study shows that frequent TV watchers are more fearful and suspicious of others. o In addition , age is a biological factor to consider. o Muscle mass is another factor affecting our body temperature. o Finally, keeping pennies in circulation costs the nation as a whole.
Several kinds several causes of some factors in Three advantages five steps among the results Various reasons a number of effects a series of
Main Ideas, Topics, and Supporting Details
Identify the following sentences as Main Idea (MI), Topic (T), Supporting Detail (SD):
- _____ Kinds of power.
- ____ Influence, the ability to control or affect the behavior of others, is also a form of power.
- ___ Force, which the Italian statesman Machiavelli called “the method of beasts,” is the use of physical coercion.
- ___ Power, the ability to control or change the behavior of others, takes different forms.
Write the sentence number the corresponds with the Topic, Main Idea, Major Detail(s), and Minor Detail(s):
(^1) Functional illiteracy – the inability to read and write well enough to carry out everyday
activities – is a complex social problem that stems from several sources. 2 One source of the problem is our educational system. 3 Our schools are too quick to pass children from one grade to the next even when their learning is woefully deficient. 4 Even teachers who care may not want to “buck the system” by refusing to pass along students who have not yet learned important basic skills. 5 The community also contributes to functional illiteracy. 6 Local businesses and agencies, indifferent to education, do not work with schools towards improving children’s motivation and learning. 7 Another source is the home. 8 Millions of children grow up with illiterate parents who do not give them the opportunity or encouragement to learn language skills. 9 In all too many homes, a television is turned on much of the time, but there are few if any books to interest children in reading.
Pattern of Organization: _________________________________________________________
Main Idea: ____________________________________________________________________
Major Detail: ____________________________________________________________ Minor Detail(s): ____________________________________________________ Major Detail: ____________________________________________________________ Minor Detail(s): ____________________________________________________ Major Detail: ____________________________________________________________ Minor Detail(s): ____________________________________________________
Inferences
An inference is a discovered idea in writing that is not stated directly. You make inferences every day. In a text the correct inference will always be supported by the text.
Implied Main Ideas
The main idea is implied when it is only suggested by the supporting details and not clearly stated in one sentence.
Example Paragraph:
The work homemakers do is essential to the economy. The estimated value of the cleaning, cooking, nursing, shopping, child care, home maintenance, money management, errands, entertaining, and other services homemakers perform has been estimated at equal to roughly one-fourth of the gross national product. In fact, the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis has proposed a revision of the gross national product that would take into account the value of money or prestige. No financial compensation is associated with this position, and the Dictionary of Occupational Titles places mothering and homemaking skills in the lowest category of skills, lower than the occupation of “dog trainer.”
Which statement best expresses the unstated main idea of the paragraph?
a. We no longer value the work, done by homemakers b. Homemakers should receive salaries for their work. c. Although homemaking is essential to the economy, it brings no money or prestige. d. It’s better to be a dog trainer than a homemaker.
Fact and Opinion
A fact is information that can be proved true through objective evidence. An opinion is a belief, judgement, or conclusion that cannot be proved objectively true.
Identify the following sentences as Fact (F), Opinion (O), or both Fact and Opinion (F+O).
- ______ Salt, which is now common, was once so rare that Roman soldiers were paid with it.
- ______ The discovery that germs cause disease was the greatest scientific breakthrough ever.
- ______ Nevada and Rhode Island are the only two states in the United States that have legalized prostitution.
- ______ With all our wealth, America’s infant mortality rate, which is one of the highest in the world, should be the lowest in the world.
Author’s Purpose and Tone
The author’s purpose is the reason why he or she writes. The tone is the expression of the author’s attitude and feeling about a subject.
Purpose:
o To inform: To give information about a subject. o To entertain: To amuse and delight; to appeal to the reader’s senses and imagination. o To persuade: to convince the reader to agree with the author’s point of view on a subject.
Example Purpose Sentences:
Identify the following as inform(i), persuade(p), or entertain(e).
- _____ Professional athletes do not deserve their inflated salaries, nor does their behavior merit so much media attention.
- _____ It’s easy to quit smoking; I’ve done it hundreds of times.
- _____ On average, women dream more than men, and children dream more than adults.
- _____ More women should get involved in local politics and support the growing number of female candidates for public office.
Tone:
o Examples of Tone words: accepting, cheerful, admiring, affectionate, alarmed, amused, cruel, disapproving, doubtful, determined, loving, joyous, serious, fearful, humorous, sarcastic, warm, worried, optimistic, solemn, tolerant, hypocritical, ambivalent
Example Tone Sentences:
A. Bitter B. Humorous C. Optimistic D. Sentimental E. Tolerant
1. __________________ This place may be shabby, but since both of my children were born while we lived here, it has a special place in my heart. 2. __________________ If only there were some decent jobs out there, I wouldn’t be reduced to living in this miserable dump. 3. __________________ This isn’t the greatest apartment in the world, but it’s not really that bad.
