Finding Main Ideas Mrs. Kaminsky (Modified from Emily Kissner’s presentation on Topics and Main Ideas)

Using topics to find main ideas  Once we have figured out the topic of a paragraph, we need to find the main idea Main Idea = what the author wants you to know about the topic.

Example 1: Can you find the main idea? Water is an amazing resource. Everyone in the world depends upon it. Every creature needs water to survive. Without water, we would not last long. Water makes our world beautiful.

First: what’s the topic? Water is an amazing resource. Everyone in the world depends upon it. Every creature needs water to survive. Without water, we would not last long. Water makes our world beautiful.

 The topic is WATER Now, what does the author want you to know about water?

Can you find the main idea? Water is an amazing resource. Everyone in the world depends upon it. Every creature needs water to survive. Without water, we would not last long. Water makes our world beautiful.

Did you find the main idea?  The first sentence is the main idea  Water is an amazing resource  The topic = water  What the author wants you to know about water = it’s an amazing resource

Example 2: Now try this one! Colonial Williamsburg is a great place to visit. In Williamsburg, you can see how people lived in colonial times. There are guides in costumes who can show you to taverns, shops, and houses. You can even sample some colonial food at the restored taverns! One visit to Williamsburg will make you feel as if you have been transported to the 1700s.

Now try this one! Colonial Williamsburg is a great place to visit. In Williamsburg, you can see how people lived in colonial times. There are guides in costumes who can show you to taverns, shops, and houses. You can even sample some colonial food at the restored taverns! One visit to Williamsburg will make you feel as if you have been transported to the 1700s.

Did you find the main idea?  Once again, the main idea was in the first sentence  Topic = Williamsburg  What the author wants you to know about the topic= it’s a great place to visit

Is the first sentence always the main idea?  What do you think? Talk about it with your partner!

Example 3: Think about this paragraph Croak, croak, kerplop! What’s that at the water’s edge? It might be a green frog, a creature that’s well-suited for life at the pond’s edge. Green frogs like to live where the land meets the water. This keeps them safe from predators that live on the land. When a predator like a snake comes near, the green frog can quickly leap into the water and get away. Green frogs can eat animals from both places, including crayfish, spiders, fish, and even birds.

Is the first sentence the main idea? Croak, croak, kerplop! What’s that at the water’s edge? It might be a green frog, a creature that’s well-suited for life at the pond’s edge. Green frogs like to live where the land meets the water. This keeps them safe from predators that live on the land. When a predator like a snake comes near, the green frog can quickly leap into the water and get away. Green frogs can eat animals from both places, including crayfish, spiders, fish, and even birds.

That doesn’t make sense!  Croak, croak, kerplop! can’t be the main idea of the paragraph  This sentence does not express a topic or a main point about the topic

Let’s find the topic first Croak, croak, kerplop! What’s that at the water’s edge? It might be a green frog, a creature that’s well-suited for life at the pond’s edge. Green frogs like to live where the land meets the water. This keeps them safe from predators that live on the land. When a predator like a snake comes near, the green frog can quickly leap into the water and get away. Green frogs can eat animals from both places, including crayfish, spiders, fish, and even birds.

Let’s find the topic first Croak, croak, kerplop! What’s that at the water’s edge? It might be a green frog, a creature that’s well-suited for life at the pond’s edge. Green frogs like to live where the land meets the water. This keeps them safe from predators that live on the land. When a predator like a snake comes near, the green frog can quickly leap into the water and get away. Green frogs can eat animals from both places, including crayfish, spiders, fish, and even birds.

Let’s look at the second sentence Croak, croak, kerplop! What’s that at the water’s edge? It might be a green frog, a creature that’s well-suited for life at the pond’s edge. Green frogs like to live where the land meets the water. This keeps them safe from predators that live on the land. When a predator like a snake comes near, the green frog can quickly leap into the water and get away. Green frogs can eat animals from both places, including crayfish, spiders, fish, and even birds.

Is it the main idea?  Do you think that the second sentence, What’s that at the water’s edge? is the main idea?  This doesn’t make sense either. The paragraph is not mostly about the water’s edge

What about the third sentence? Croak, croak, kerplop! What’s that at the water’s edge? It might be a green frog, a creature that’s well-suited for life at the pond’s edge. Green frogs like to live where the land meets the water. This keeps them safe from predators that live on the land. When a predator like a snake comes near, the green frog can quickly leap into the water and get away. Green frogs can eat animals from both places, including crayfish, spiders, fish, and even birds.

Is it the main idea?  Is the third sentence, It might be a green frog, a creature that’s well-suited for life at the pond’s edge the main idea?  This sentence includes the TOPIC (green frog) and a main point about the topic (it’s well-suited for life at the pond’s edge)

Hooray! The main idea!  As you can see, the first sentence is not always the main idea  To find the main idea, you need to think about the topic of the paragraph  Look at each sentence until you find the best main idea sentence

Example 4: Now try this one What a gorgeous view! Kings Gap State Park is a great place to see the Cumberland Valley. This is because the park was built on top of a mountain. From the mountain top, the fields and farms of the valley stretch out far below. The Doubling Gap, a mountain that curves like the letter s, can also be seen.

How do we find the main idea?  Start by finding the topic  Then look at each sentence in the paragraph  Look for the sentence that states the topic and gives a main point about the topic  Once you think you have found it, match it against the rest of the sentences

First, find the topic: What a gorgeous view! Kings Gap State Park is a great place to see the Cumberland Valley. This is because the park was built on top of a mountain. From the mountain top, the fields and farms of the valley stretch out far below. The Doubling Gap, a mountain that curves like the letter s, can also be seen.

Finding the topic What a gorgeous view! Kings Gap State Park is a great place to see the Cumberland Valley. This is because the park was built on top of a mountain. From the mountain top, the fields and farms of the valley stretch out far below. The Doubling Gap, a mountain that curves like the letter s, can also be seen.

Finding the topic  The topic is Kings Gap State Park  To find the main idea, we need to understand what the paragraph is saying about Kings Gap State Park. What does the author want us to know about the Park?

Let’s try the first sentence What a gorgeous view! Kings Gap State Park is a great place to see the Cumberland Valley. This is because the park was built on top of a mountain. From the mountain top, the fields and farms of the valley stretch out far below. The Doubling Gap, a mountain that curves like the letter s, can also be seen.

Not the main idea  The first sentence, What a gorgeous view, does not state the main idea  It does not state the topic of the paragraph

What about the second sentence? What a gorgeous view! Kings Gap State Park is a great place to see the Cumberland Valley. This is because the park was built on top of a mountain. From the mountain top, the fields and farms of the valley stretch out far below. The Doubling Gap, a mountain that curves like the letter s, can also be seen.

Better!  The second sentence, Kings Gap State Park is a great place to see the Cumberland Valley, includes both a topic and a main idea  Let’s see if all of the other sentences in the paragraph relate back to it

Do the rest of the sentences relate? What a gorgeous view! Kings Gap State Park is a great place to see the Cumberland Valley. This is because the park was built on top of a mountain. From the mountain top, the fields and farms of the valley stretch out far below. The Doubling Gap, a mountain that curves like the letter s, can also be seen. The rest of the sentences do relate back to the second sentence. It’s the main idea.

What have we learned?  What is the topic of a text? The topic is one to three words that tell the reader what the article is about.  What is a main idea? The main idea of a paragraph is what the author wants you to know about the topic.

What have we learned?  Is the main idea of a paragraph always the first sentence? No! Sometimes the main idea appears in other parts of the paragraph  How do we find the main idea? We need to think about the topic, and look for a sentence that includes the topic plus a main point about the topic

Does every paragraph work like this? A. Yes! Every paragraph in the whole universe is like this and you will never have to think hard again B. No, some paragraphs are different. Sometimes the paragraph has the topic sentence at the end of the paragraph. Sometimes the author leaves out the main idea altogether, and we need to figure it out

And the answer is…  The answer, of course, is B  While most paragraphs do have a stated main idea, some do not  Sometimes this is because the author wants to make the reader think more carefully  (Dark secret) Sometimes it’s because the author just didn’t write the paragraph very well!

But these guidelines usually do work 1. Find the topic of the paragraph 2. See if the first sentence states the main idea 3. If not, check other sentences in the paragraph 4. Find the sentence that includes the topic and states a point about the topic 5. Make sure that the other sentences in the paragraph relate back to the main idea

Fun stuff for the end….  Can you find the frog in this picture?

Fun stuff for the end….  What about this one?

Reflect on what you’ve learned  What have you learned about topics and main ideas?

Reference and credit to Emily Kissner