Transcript Reading Objective 2

MAIN IDEA AND DETAILS
CHAPTERS 1, 2, AND 3
CHAPTERS 2, 3, AND 4
What is a Main Idea?
A Main Idea is :
•A general statement about the WHOLE
passage that contains the TOPIC .
The main idea is vividly
supported by the dog’s
three specific reasons.
The main idea (or point)
is that the man is a
terrible pet owner.
Here are four strategies that will help you find the
main idea.
1 Find the topic first.
2 Look for general versus specific ideas. The
general statement will be the main idea.
3 Use key words to lead you to the main idea.
4 Make sure the main idea is about the WHOLE
passage.
1. Find the topic first
The topic is the general subject of a selection. It can often
be expressed in one or more words.
The main idea always contains the topic.
Many times, the topic will be the heading of the passage.
But there are many times when you are not given
topics—with individual paragraphs in articles or
textbooks for example.To find the topic of a selection
when the topic is not given, ask this simple
question:
Who or what is the selection
about?
Social psychologists have found that almost everyone gossips.
Male or female, young or old, blue-collar or professional, humans
love to talk about one another. All too often, such gossip is viewed
as a frivolous waste of time.
What is the paragraph about?
Gossip
Here are four strategies that will help you find the
main idea.
1 Find the topic first.
2 Look for general versus specific ideas. The
general statement will be the main idea.
3 Use key words to lead you to the main idea.
4 Make sure the main idea is about the WHOLE
passage.
2. GENERAL VS SPECIFIC
•
General
Specific
Specific
General
General
Attending college can help you make friends.
A college degree will help you get a higher paying job.
College has many beneficial outcomes.
A college degree helps you earn respect.
College will improve the way you think.
Here are four strategies that will help you find the
main idea.
1 Find the topic first.
2 Look for general versus specific ideas. The
general statement will be the main idea.
3 Use key words to lead you to the main idea.
4 Make sure the main idea is about the WHOLE
passage.
3. Use key words to help you find the main idea.
First to note are list words, which tell you a list of items is
to follow.
The main idea in the paragraph about gossip was stated like this:
However, it actually serves several important functions in
the human community.
The expression several important functions helps you
zero in on your target: the main idea.
List Words
Many other list-word expressions are possible—“four
kinds of,” “some advantages of, ” “three reasons for,” and
so on. If you see a sentence with a word group like the
ones above, you’ve probably found the main idea.
Here are some common word groups that often announce a
main idea:
List Words
Note that each of them contains a word that ends in s—a
plural that suggests the supporting details will be a list of
items.
What are the list words in each of the sentences below?
1. Researchers have identified two factors that play a
significant role in our dreams.
2. Several steps can help you overcome the fear of
speaking and become an effective speaker.
3. Three key differences exist between the House and the
Senate.
Each of these phrases tells you that a list of details
will follow.
In addition to list words, addition words can alert you to the main
idea.
Addition words are generally used right
before a supporting detail.
Here is a list of words that often introduce major
supporting details and help you discover the main idea:
Addition Words
When you see this type of clue, you can assume that the detail it
introduces fits under the umbrella of a main idea.
Here are four strategies that will help you find the
main idea.
1 Find the topic first.
2 Look for general versus specific ideas. The
general statement will be the main idea.
3 Use key words to lead you to the main idea.
4 Make sure the main idea is about the WHOLE
passage.
As you read the paragraph below, look for the
main idea. 4. Make sure the main idea is about
the WHOLE passage
Today, most people in the Western world use a fork to eat. But before the
eighteenth century, using a fork was highly discouraged. Most people in Europe ate
with their hands. People from the upper class used three fingers, while the commoners
ate with five. When an inventor from Tuscany created a miniature pitchfork for eating,
Europeans thought that it was a strange utensil. Men who used a fork were often
ridiculed and considered feminine. Priests called out against the fork, claiming that only
human hands were worthy to touch the food God had blessed them with. One wealthy
noblewoman shocked clergymen by eating with a fork she designed herself. Over
dinner, they accused her of being too excessive. When the woman died from the
plague a few days later, the priests claimed her death was a punishment from the
heavens. They warned others that using a fork could bring them the same fate.
Which sentence contains the main idea?
As you read the paragraph below, look for the main idea.
Each year, as days grow shorter and nights grow colder, animals take
action to survive the winter. Many animals fly, swim, or walk hundreds or
thousands of miles to the south in search of a warm winter home. Earthworms
travel too slowly to make a long journey to warmer regions. But they will die
if they get trapped in the frozen ground. To survive a brutal winter,
earthworms practice vertical migration. They move from dirt that’s close to the
surface to dirt that’s deeper down. Each fall, the same instinct that sends geese
flying south causes earthworms to start moving downward. As little barbs that
stick out of their bodies poke into the dirt, the earthworms contract their
muscles. This moves them downward to a point where they’re below the soil
that will freeze in the winter. Only after winter passes and soil overhead warms
up to 36 degrees or more do the earthworms tunnel back upward.
Which sentence contains the main idea?
Theory
Main Idea
detail
detail
detail
detail
detail
Topic
detail
A Main Idea is a general statement that incorporates all details.
This statement must contain the topic. A main idea without a topic
is like a Whataburger with no meat!




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IF THE PASSAGE IS DISCUSSING A STUDY, RESEARCH, SURVEY, OR EXPERIMENT,
THE MAIN IDEA WILL BE THE RESULTS OR THE OUTCOME OF THAT STUDY
THE MAIN IDEA IS NEVER A QUESTION.
The Center for Disease Control in Atlanta, Georgia, has conducted a
wide-scale survey in eleven states to determine teenagers’
knowledge about AIDS. Half of the teens surveyed believe a
person can get AIDS through giving blood. Almost three-quarters
of teenagers think that AIDS can be gotten from a simple blood
test. And half believe that the disease can be easily contracted
from a public toilet. None of these beliefs is well-founded.
A.
According to one survey, many teens have a poor
understanding of how people get AIDS.
B. The Center for Disease Control conducted a survey
to discover teens’ knowledge about AIDS.
C. Teenagers have a poor understanding of sexually
transmitted diseases.
Before they can say any words, babies communicate by making a variety of sounds. They start by
crying. Then they progress to cooing when they are happy, squealing, gurgling, and making long
“oohs” and “aahs.” At about six months they babble, repeating syllables such as “buh” and “muh.”
Next they start to imitate sounds they hear, even though they don’t seem to understand these
sounds. At the next stage, they string such sounds together in a way that is almost speechlike. At
about age 1, they say their first meaningful word—usually “mama” or “dada.” Soon they use
many words, and at about eighteen months they begin to make combinations of words, forming
simple sentences.
A. Babies are able to communicate before they can actually speak.
B. Babies coo and babble when they are happy.
C. Babies learn to speak in several stages.
According to scientists, cockroaches evolved about 300 million years ago, which means
they saw the dinosaurs come and go and later watched people emerge on Earth. If
you wonder how such little creatures have lasted so long, consider the fact that they
can live in a refrigerator or in extreme heat. They can develop resistance to poisons
faster than scientists can develop new ones. And they can live for two months on
water alone or go for five months without water. Furthermore, they are quick to escape
from danger. The takeoff time for a threatened cockroach has been timed at 54/1000th
of a second.
A. Cockroaches evolved about 300 million years ago.
B. Cockroaches can live in a wide variety of temperatures and quickly develop
resistance to poisons.
C. Cockroaches have survived for millions of years because they can adapt to a wide
variety of circumstances and react quickly to danger.
Imagine a beam of light many billions of times more
concentrated than the sunlight focused by a magnifying
glass. A beam so intense that it will burn a hole in a steel
plate, or even through a diamond, the hardest natural
material known to man. Such a beam can be produced by a
modern source of light called a laser. Laser light is used for
communication, for extremely accurate measurements, for
surgery and dentistry, and for many different purposes in
engineering and science.
a. Laser light can be made from sunlight
b. Laser light can be used for communication, for extremely accurate measurements, for
surgery and dentistry, and for many different purposes in engineering and science
c. A laser is an intense form of light that has many valuable uses
d. Laser beams can burn holes through very hard surfaces.
A. Some pesticides have been linked to cancer and other health problems
B. Pesticides can be very harmful.
C. Pesticides kill plants and animals other than the pests they are intended for.
D. They can be very dangerous to both people and the environment.