Discovering the Main Idea in Articles

1. Bellringer • How do you find information in an article?

2. Main Idea • The writer’s most important idea. • Main ideas help readers remember important information. • Not the topic of the passage!

3. Good Readers can Identify…MAIN IDEA • The Main idea is what the text is mostly about! • **CLUES!!!** • 1. What is the text mostly about? • 2. Look at titles and headings. • 3. Look at pictures(if there are any) • 4. Sometimes the main idea is states in the first or last sentence. • 5. Look for clue wards that are used repeatedly.

4. Stated Main Idea Vs. Implied Main Idea • Stated Main Idea: the author clearly expressed the main point in their writing • Implied Main Idea: You may need to figure out the main idea by analyzing the meaning of the details.

5. Find the Main Idea • The rain forest is home to many creatures. Monkeys, toucans and macaws live in the rain forest. Blue Morpho butterflies and anteaters also live in the rain forest.Find the main idea. A) Sloths and tapirs are other creatures that live in the rain forest. • B) The rain forest is home to many creatures. • C) Monkeys, toucans and macaws live in the rain forest.

6. Write down the main idea • Soccer players learn many skills when playing soccer. Soccer players learn how to dribble and pass the ball. They also learn how to control the ball so they can eventually score. Most importantly, soccer players learn how to work together with their teammates.Find the main idea.A) They also learn how to control the ball so they can eventually score. • B) Soccer players learn how to dribble. • C) Soccer players learn many skills when playing soccer.

7. Organizational Text Structures Worksheet

8. Identify Specific Details • Answer detail questions: • Who? • What? • When? • Where? • Why? • How?

9. Who?What?When?Where?Why?How? • She's an App Maker • Anvitha Vijay has built two educational apps and is at work on a third. She aims to use her skills to help others. • Need an app for that? Anvitha Vijay, 9, can build it. With the help of YouTube videos, the young techie from Melbourne, Australia, learned to code at age 7. Soon, she was trying her hand at making apps. • “When I first got my iPad, I was fascinated by all the apps on it,” she told TFK. “It wasn’t long before I wanted to create my own.” • She built her first two apps with her younger sister in mind. Smartkins Animals helps children identify more than 100 animals and their sounds. Smartkins Rainbow Colors teaches kids colors. Each app has been downloaded thousands of times. • The Power of Technology • Anvitha’s skills won her a scholarship to attend a big tech conference hosted by Apple in San Francisco, California. There, she got tips from the pros. She went to workshops where she learned about the latest software for app building. • All that training led to an idea for a third app. This one, called GoalsHi, inspires kids to practice good habits. Users are rewarded for achieving goals, such as eating their vegetables or practicing piano. Anvitha says the rewards are like getting a sticker for a job well done. • “Kids can set goals with this app and get stars when they achieve them,” she says. “The idea is to empower and motivate kids to achieve one little step a day.” • Anvitha’s goal is to continue creating technology that helps kids learn while having fun. But even more important to her is that the world sees the power of technology in kids’ hands. “The more training we get in tech at an early age,” she says, “the better chance we have of becoming innovation champions who will one day change the world.”

10. Who? Anvitha Vijay • What? Created two apps, and working on third (won a scholarship to an Apple conference) • When? Started at age 7 • Where?Melbourne, Australia • Why? Her goal is make learning fun through her apps • How? She learned how to do it through youtube videos.

11. Fact and Opinion • A factis something that can be proven true. • An opinionis someone's feelings about a particular topic.

12. Tell whether each sentence is a fact or opinion. • 1._____________ Sunday is the best day of the week. • 2._____________ George Washington was born in February. • 3._____________ Memorial Day is the most important holiday of the year. • 4._____________ Thanksgiving is celebrated in autumn. • 5._____________ Some families eat turkey on Thanksgiving.

13. Identify Similarities and Differences • Similarities- A statement that discusses information that is common • Same as, similar, alike, as well as, not only…but also, both • Differences-A statement that discusses information that is different • Instead of, either…or, on the other hand, different from, as opposed to

14. Find the similarities and differences • You already know there are major differences between a house and a nest. In contrast to a house, a nest is very small and only has one room. Another difference is a house is typically for humans while a nest is for birds. However you might be surprised that a house and nest have some things the same. For instance, both houses and nests provide shelter. Another similarity is that they both use trees in their construction. Birds use sticks and twigs, while humans use lumber from trees. Lastly, they are alike because they both take up space, although a house usually takes up more space then a nest.

15. You already know there are major differences between a house and a nest. In contrast to a house, a nest is very small and only has one room. Another difference is a house is typically for humans while a nest is for birds. However you might be surprised that a house and nest have some things the same. For instance, both houses and nests provide shelter. Another similarity is that they both use trees in their construction. Birds use sticks and twigs, while humans use lumber from trees. Lastly, they are alike because they both take up space, although a house usually takes up more space then a nest.

16. Conclusion • What stuck with you today?

17. Cause and Effect • Statements that relate a situation and how it happened • A cause makes something happen • An effectis what happens as a result of that cause. • The link between cause and effect can sometimes be very obvious; at other times you may be required to make an educated guess about the connection.

18. Cause and Effect • Signal Words and Phrases: for this reason, thus, since, in order to, as a result, therefore, consequently, because, due to, for this reason, on account of, accordingly, effect, in order that, affect, cause, therefore, as a result, consequently, if . . Then, results in, why

19. How to find Cause and Effect • STEP 1: Ask yourself, “What happens in the passage?”(What is the effect?) • STEP 2: Ask, “Why does it happen?” (What is the cause?) • STEP 3: Rewrite the passage using an explicit cause-and-effect signal word like cause, effect, orbecause.

20. Practice • Many scientists believe that the extinction of the dinosaurs was caused by a large meteorite hitting the Earth millions of years ago. • Cause: Large Meteorite hitting the earth • Effect: extinction of dinosaurs

21. Practice • The Stamp Act enraged the colonists and was one of the leading causes of the Revolutionary War. • Cause: • Effect:

22. Practice • The Exxon Valdez oil spill had devastating long-term effects on the seal population in Alaska. • Cause: • Effect

23. Order of Organization • Writers don’t let their thoughts wander aimlessly. They think logically. They organize details in patterns. • In the written language these patterns help you follow ideas more easily and, therefore, improve your understanding of the text. • Authors use transition words and phrases to create patterns within their writing.

24. Chronological Order • Chronological order: a way of arranging details in a paragraph or composition according to when events take or have taken place. • Chronological order signal words: first, third...; next; then; finally; eventually; following this

25. Chronological Order Example • It was just one of those days. First, I woke up an hour late. Then, I realized that my shirt had a big stain on it. So I quickly changed and ran out the door. A few minutes later, I was standing at the bus stop wondering where my bus could be. Suddenly I remembered that I was supposed to set my clock back an hour last night. That's when I realized I wasn't late - I was a whole hour early!

26. Spatial Order • Spatial Order is a way of arranging details in a paragraph or composition by ordering them according how they are spaced – nearest to farthest, left to right, and so on ( like a virtual tour) • Spatial order signal words/examples: just to the right, a little further on, to the south of Memphis, a few feet behind, in New Mexico, turning left on the pathway.

27. Spatial Order Example • "Far to his left, in the northeast, beyond the valley and the terraced foothills of the Sierra Madre Oriental, the two volcanoes, Popocatepetl and Ixtaccihuatl, rose clear and magnificent into the sunset. Nearer, perhaps ten miles distant, and on a lower level than the main valley, he made out the village of Tomalín, nestling behind the jungle, from which rose a thin blue scarf of illegal smoke, someone burning wood for carbon. Before him, on the other side of the American highway, spread fields and groves, through which meandered a river, and the Alcapancingo road."(Malcolm Lowry, Under the Volcano, 1947)

28. Order of Importance • In this pattern, a way of arranging details in a paragraph or composition according to details or levels of importance. • Order of importance signal words: more important, most difficult, still harder, by far the most expensive, even more damaging, worse yet

29. Order of Importance Example • There are many benefits to reading more often. First and foremost, reading more will broaden your understanding of yourself and other people. It will also introduce you to new information and ideas. Furthermore, it will improve your overall reading comprehension. In addition, reading more will improve your vocabulary and increase your reading speed.

30. Practice • "It's incredible how dirty farm labor can be. When I finished moving the irrigation pipe, my shoes were caked in muck and smears of dirt covered the bottoms of my pants. Higher up, rust stains streaked across the thighs and hips of my jeans. The bottom of my shirt had similar stains, while the shoulders and back of my t-shirt was soaked in sweat. Salty lines of perspiration ran down my neck, and my hair was tangled from the wind.” • A. order of importance • B. spatial order • C. chronological order

31. Practice • When I got home from school, first I ate my favorite snack. Next, I did my homework. After I did my homework, I rode my bike.” • A. order of importance • B. spatial order • C. chronological order

32. Practice • "If my room ignited, and the fire threatened to destroy my belongings, I would run past the trash can, past the heap of dirty laundry, past my wallet, and past my checkbook, so I could grab my beloved English textbook and race for the door.” • A. order of importance • B. spatial order • C. chronological order

33. Closure • Explain one type of order of organization with your neighbor.