Main Idea and Summarizing

1. Main Idea and Summarizing

2. Main Idea and Supporting Details • The main idea of a passage is the idea that most of the passage covers. It is the basic point that the author wants to convey to the reader. The sentences that explain, describe, or support the main idea are called supporting details.

3. Main Idea • The main idea of a passage is the idea that the author wants to convey to the reader. • Why did the author write this passage? • What is the point he/she is trying to make? • What is the passage mostly about? • What idea is conveyed in the passage?

4. Main Idea and Topic • One important thing to remember is that a main idea and a topic are not the same thing. • The main idea is a specific point the author is making, while the topic is the general idea of the passage.

5. Main Idea and Topic • It is just like a research paper. Your teacher might give you the topic of Abraham Lincoln. • You might choose to write your paper about Lincoln's effectiveness as president. Lincoln is the topic and his effectiveness as president is the main idea.

6. Summary • A summary is a shorter way to retell a story or passage. • It tells only the most important details or events. • It does not include every single detail or description.

7. Paragraph: • group of sentences related to a particular topic, or central theme. • key concept or main idea. • most important piece of information the author wants you to know • An author organizes each paragraph's main idea and supporting details in support of the topic or central theme, and each paragraph supports the paragraph preceding it.

8. What is a Topic Sentence? • A Topic Sentence tells the main idea of a paragraph • Every paragraph should have a topic sentence. • A topic sentence usually comes at the beginning of a paragraph. It tells the reader what to expect.

9. Topic Sentence • Choose the best topic sentence for the following content-area paragraph. Wait until I call on you to give me your answer. • The book tells the story of the young Harry Potter, who goes off to learn to be a wizard at a school called Hogwarts. At Hogwarts, Harry makes two special friends, Ron and Hermione. The three have many adventures. They fight a troll, battle dark forces, and watch as a dragon hatches! Hogwarts is full of interesting characters and events. I’d recommend this book to anyone. I can’t wait to read it again! • Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone is a book filled with adventures. • Last night I finished reading a book • My father said we can read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone together.

10. Identifying the Topic Sentence: Let’s start simple. Read the following part of a paragraph. After you are finished I will ask you to create the topic sentence. Dogs need to be walked at least three or four times a day, while cats never have to be walked. You can leave cats home alone for longer periods of time than dogs. Also, dogs usually cost more to feed. What is the topic sentence?

11. Topic Sentence • Take out a pencil and paper. I am going to give you 4 simple topics. I want you to write a “possible” topic sentence about each. • Choosing a pet • My favorite movie • Best places to travel • Best kind of shoes to buy

12. Small newspaper seeks writers. Writers must work well under pressure and focus on details. Good writing skills are necessary. Related experience preferred. Must be flexible with hours. May need to work overtime, nights, and weekends. Call 555-1234 for information. (Select main idea). • You need experience to get a good job. For example, in order to get a writing job, it is helpful to have some writing experience. • Most newspapers want flexible workers. They want people who are able to work nights, weekends, and even overtime. • A small newspaper is looking to hire writers. They would like someone who can work under pressure and have flexible hours.

13. The earliest human legal systems were almost completely forms of lex talionis. That means "the law of revenge." The lex talionis is a law of equal and direct revenge. It is what it says in Hebrew scriptures: "an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a life for a life." The best example of this law was Hammurabi's Code. Hammurabi was a Babylonian king. He created a series of 282 laws. Those laws were based entirely on the principle of revenge. Under this code, a person found guilty of murder was immediately stoned to death or drowned in a river. A person who assaulted another person was to have his or her hands cut off.

14. Hammurabi was a Babylonian king. He created 282 laws based on revenge. One law said a person that beat up another person had to have his or her hands cut off. • Lex talionis is the idea of law based on revenge. Hammurabi's Code is an example of this. The code was made up of 282 laws based on the idea of revenge. • Hebrew scriptures say, "an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a life for a life." This means the punishment should fit the crime. It is law based on revenge.

15. According to his mother, Adam was a sweet, wonderful young man. He was a high school athlete and captain of his football team. He was active in his college fraternity and a good student. He had graduated from college and started working. He was studying for a professional certification exam. Then, something inside him changed. Adam stopped being careful about his personal appearance. He claimed that the CIA was trying to turn him into a triangle. He said that he could hear voices telling him to hurt people. He would stare at the television, claiming it was a window into an alternate reality. That is when he found out he had schizophrenia.

16. Adam was a nice young man. He was the captain of his football team in high school, and he graduated from a good college. • Adam thought that the government was going to turn him into a triangle. He started at the TV to find an alternate reality. • Adam was a seemingly normal young man. Then, something inside him changed, and he found out he had schizophrenia.

17. Yesterday, two early morning fires were started within hours of each other. The fires destroyed two separate garages in the 1600 block of Cloverleaf Circle. Three automobiles were ruined, along with lawn equipment and household tools. The firefighters who responded to the fires believe they are related. Arlington Fire Marshall Ben Lee said the cause of the fires would stay "undetermined" for a while. A complete investigation will be conducted. Lee suspects that both fires were set on purpose.

18. Two fires destroyed two garages and their contents on the same street. Firefighters say that they might have been set on purpose. • Two garages were destroyed in two fires yesterday. Specifically, the massive fire happened in Cloverleaf Circle in Arlington. • Ben Lee is the Arlington Fire Marshall. He investigates the causes of fires all over the city. He suspects someone set the fires on purpose.