New York State Education Department
TASC Transition Curriculum: Workshop 5
Are video games sports? Pupils investigate this question as well as various nonfiction selections to learn more about claims and the support that defines them. All of the selections mimic the rigor on state tests and encourage close...
EngageNY
TASC Transition Curriculum: Workshop 6
Is a college education necessary for success in today's world? The class investigates the question, along with others at the end of the sixth workshop in a 15-part series. The lesson has four parts with multiple activities and...
Love To Know Media
Your Dictionary: Lessons and Activities on Main Ideas for First Grade
This site offers links to several lesson plans for teaching main ideas to first and second graders; it also provides and explains some activities for teaching the main idea to first graders.
Texas Education Agency
Texas Gateway: Synthesize Ideas and Details in Several Texts (English I Reading)
In this lesson, you will practice making connections between ideas on the same topic. Some of the ideas will differ from each other, so we will learn how to identify and synthesize important details and draw conclusions. W.9-10.7 Research
Tom Richey
Slide Share: Identifying Topics, Main Ideas, and Supporting Details
A slide show with thirty-nine slides explaining and giving examples of topics, main ideas and supporting details within an informational text.
Tom Richey
Slide Share: Distinguishing Main Ideas and Supporting Details
This downloadable slideshow focuses on main ideas and supporting details including definitions, identification, and practicing with paragraphs. RI.9-10.2 central idea/summary
SMART Technologies
Smart: Identifying Main Ideas & Details
This lesson operates on the Scaffold Instructional of Release model (I do, we do, you do). Students will use the main idea and supporting details to expand understanding of a variety of texts.
Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Learner: Journey North: Reading Strategies: Main Ideas and Supporting Details
Learn how to identify the main ideas and supporting details in an informational text by using a list of guiding questions.
Scholastic
Scholastic: Informational Text: Reading Response: Main Ideas & Details [Pdf]
This graphic organizer can be used with students when they read informational text. Students will write the main idea in a central oval and then write four details that support the main idea of this reproducible graphic organizer.
Read Works
Read Works: Grade 2: Three Lesson Unit: Main Idea
[Free Registration/Login Required] A series of three lesson plans designed to teach students to identify main ideas through headings and chapter titles, and then to write appropriate titles of their own. Lessons are based on the books...
Sam Houston State University
Texas Center for Academic Excellence: Summarizing Pre Test
Check students' prior knowledge and understanding of how to summarize passages and identify main ideas.
Khan Academy
Khan Academy: Supporting Ideas Quick Guide
Supporting Ideas Questions: These questions ask you to identify the supporting ideas and specific details mentioned in a passage. What does the passage say? Perhaps the most basic task of the Praxis Core Reading Test is recognizing...
CPALMS
Cpalms: Calling All Kid Presidents
[Free Registration/Login Required] In this instructional activity, students will watch a video of Kid President giving a speech and another of a student's winning speech to be vice-president of the student council. They will also read an...
Tom Richey
Slide Share: Main Idea & Supporting Detail
Ten slides explaining how to identify main ideas and details within a text.
Other
Smekens Educational Solutions: Expose K 2 Readers to Annotation Strategies
This article discusses how to begin teaching students in K-2 to record their ideas about text using highlighters, colored pens, large graphic organizers, and sticky notes. Students can retell a story with a storyboard, use a web to find...
Thinkport Education
Thinkport: Determine the Central Idea: Human Impacts
Students will learn how to identify the central idea of a text about human impacts by examining key details.
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: Point to Main Idea/point of View in Literature
This lesson uses the story Corduroy by Don Freeman to teach the main idea and supporting details of a story, as well as what we mean by the character's point of view. The lesson is done using print materials and a whiteboard with...
Curated OER
Mc Graw Hill: Part 2 Reading: Informational Text: How Reasons Support Key Points
Get an example of how to identify an author's main idea in a text on this site. Also, learn how to recognize supporting ideas to main ideas presented in a text. CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.2
Polk Brothers Foundation Center for Urban Education at DePaul University
De Paul University: Center for Urban Education: Analyze Nonfiction: Central Idea [Pdf]
This graphic organizer will help students analyze nonfiction pieces. Students will use the graphic organizer to guide them as they identify the central idea and supporting details.
Better Lesson
Better Lesson: Points of Informational Text Main Idea and Details
This instructional activity uses the book Explorers of North America - A True Book by Brendan January to teach young scholars how to identify the main topic of a multi-paragraph informational text and specific paragraphs within the text....
University of South Florida
Fcat Express: Selective Underlining
Site provides extensive assistance in preparing 4th grade students for Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test. This section focuses on identifying main ideas and significant details by selectively underlining them in a text.
E Reading Worksheets
E Reading Worksheets: Main Idea Structure and Valentine's Day Worksheet
Written exercises related to identifying the main ideas and details are provided on this module. Students will enjoy learning about Valentine's Day in these text structure exercises.
E Reading Worksheets
E Reading Worksheets: Main Idea Worksheets
In this learning module, students will learn how to identify the main ideas in individual pararaphs. Worksheets, PowerPoint lessons, and activities are provided to reinforce the concept of main idea. This module is designed to support...
PBS
Pbs Learning Media: Main Idea and Details Cloud
Students practice distinguishing between relevant and irrelevant ideas by identifying relevant details in a video segment about a wild horse roundup. Students watch the video, read the transcript, and identify details they believe are...