Main Idea and Details

Find what a paragraph is mostly about and the details that tell more.

Warm-up, learn, try it together, practice, then a quick check. About 15 minutes.

What children learn in Level 15

A paragraph is a group of sentences about one big idea. That big idea is called the main idea.
The other sentences are details. Details tell more about the main idea, like the legs of a table hold up the top.
Read this paragraph. What is it mostly about?
It's mostly about how penguins stay warm. Fat, packed feathers, and huddling are details that tell how.
If a sentence is about something else, it doesn't belong. Parrots don't belong in a paragraph about penguins staying warm!

Georgia's K-12 English Language Arts Standards:

2.T.T.2.a — Identify and describe techniques used to craft expository texts, including main idea and key supporting details within specific paragraphs.