Fruits are a source of nourishing substances that keep us alive and healthy.

For example, they

contain many vitamins, especially vitamins A and C, and many minerals, such as calcium,
potassium, and zinc. They also provide fiber for a healthy digestive system and carbohydrates
that the body needs to make energy. They don’t have a lot of calories to make us fat.
People use fruits for many things. We make juices from them. We cook bread and pie with them.
We make jams and jellies and sweets. We freeze them to eat later. We even make alcohol from
fruit. Beer comes from grains, wine comes from grapes, and some brandies are made from
plums, apricots, or other fruits.
But most of the time, we don’t do anything special with fruits. We eat them fresh, just as they
are!

17. What is the text about?

A. Vitamins.
B. Energy.
C. Fruits.
D. Minerals.
• Kunci jawaban: C
• Pembahasan:
Bila dibaca secara menyeluruh, maka kita dapat mengatakan bahwa teks tentang buah-buahan.
Jawaban yang lainnya sangat khusus. Dengan demikian jawaban yang paling tepat adalah C.

18. What is the main idea of the second paragraph?

A. We make juice from fruits.
B. People use fruits for many things.
C. Some beer and brandies are made of fruits.
D. We freeze fruits to eat whenever we need later.
• Kunci jawaban: A
• Pembahasan:
Pertanyaan di atas mananyakan pokok pikiran paragraph dua. Bila dibaca paragraf dua teks
diatas, jelas kalimat pertamanya merupakan pokok pkiran. Yang lainnya menjadi kalimat
penjelas. Dengan demikian jawaban peranyaan yang tepat adalah A.

Berbeda dengan gambaran umum. Main idea adalah inti dari suatu paragraf. Main idea dari
beberapa paragraf bisa digabung dan membentuk gambaran umum.
Possible Questions:
1. The second paragraph talks about.....
2. What is the main idea of the second paragraph?
3. What does the second paragraph talk about?
4. What is the topic of the 3rd paragraph?
5. The main idea of the first paragraph is ......
6. What does the first paragraph discuss about?
Trik menjawab.
 Ide pokok hampir selalu terletak di awal kalimat(kalimat pertama) atau kalimat kedua. Ide pokok
terdiri dari berbagai kalimat penjelas.
Contoh:
Mery is a dentist. She is so beautiful. She has fair skin, pointed nose and cute smile. Many
boys loves her very much.
Ide pokoknya adalah : Merry is beautiful dentist.
Cara menjawab bagi yang tidak mengerti arti:
1. Bacalah soal terlebih dahulu cari paragraf yang mau dicari main ideanya.
Example: What is the main idea of paragraph 2? (Artinya kita harus fokus ke paragraf ke dua)
2. Lihat pilihan jawaban (a) dan cari letaknya apakah ada di paragraf yang dimaksud yaitu
paragraf kedua apa tidak kalau memang ada di paragraf yang dimaksud lihat posisi kalimat
pilihan jawab (a) terletak di kalimat berapa?
STEVE IRVIN
Steve Irvin was known around the world as an expert crocodile hunter. He has a great ability
at hunting crocodiles because he had practiced a lot. Irvin was born in 1962. He grew up with
wildlife all around him at his parents’ reptile park in Queensland, Australia. He took over
direction of the park in 1991, naming it the Australian Zoo. With his wife, Terri Raines, from
United States, he created Tv show “The Crocodile Hunter” in 1992, which became an instant hit
on American cable television. Irvin and his wife were soon regulars of TV’s worldwide.
On September 4, 2006, Irvin was sadly killed. He was stung by a stingray during a
diving expedition on the Great Barrier Reef, where he was filming a documentary. He left
behind a wife and two children, Bindi and Robert. Bindi, his daughter, has starred in her own
show “Bindi the Jungle Girl” and says she wants to follow her father’s footsteps.
What is the main idea of the second paragraph?
a. Bindi has starred in her own show = Letakknya di paragraf 2 kal. 4
b. Bindi wants to follow her father footsteps = Letakknya di paragraf 2 kal. 4
c. Irvin was sadly killed in a job accident. = Letakknya di paragraf 2 kal. 1
d. Irvin left behindd a wife and two children = Letakknya di paragraf 2 kal. 3

3. Setelah mengetahui letaknya dari semua kalimat di pilihan jawaban a, b , c dan d. Cari mana
yang terletak di paragraf yang dimaksud yang berada di posisi kalimat 1. Jadi jawaban dari
pertanyaan diatas adalah jawaban (c).

Secara garis besar, kalimat utama akan memiliki point-point berikut.

1. Mengandung permasalahan yang potensial untuk diuraikan;

2. Mempunyai arti yang jelas tanpa dihubungkan dengan kalimat lain
3. Umumnya berada di awal paragraf (untuk paragraf deduktif), dan di akhir paragraf (paragraf
induktif).

Nah, berikutnya menentukan kalimat utama pada paragraf Orientation.

Perhatikan paragraf berikut.

On Friday I went to Mount Bromo. It is one of the mountains Iwant to see very much. It is
near Probolinggo. That is why I stayed at Nida and Hasan's house at Cemara Lawang,
Probolinggo.

Ingat :

- main idea adalah ide pokok (gagasan utama) dalam suatu paragraf.
- main idea dapat diletakkan di depan, tengah atau akhir paragraf.

Jadi, main idea pada paragraf di atas terdapat di awal paragraf yaitu : "On Friday I went to
Mount Bromo".

Latihan dan pembahasan.

The Navajo Indians

A Report By: Rachel

The Navajo Indians were a very interesting tribe to learn and study about. The things that
interested me the most were their simple lifestyle. They had no electricity, running water, or
indoor plumbing. Life couldn't get much simpler than this!

Navajo Indians lived in houses called hogans. These houses were made of mud, wooden
poles, and tree bark. Many Navajo today still live in hogans.

The Pueblo Indians taught the Navajo many skills. They taught them to plant crops, such as
melon, corn, beans, and squash. This is why the Navajo were referred to as farmers, sheep
herders, and laborers. Other skills of the Navajo are sand paintings, jewelry making, and rug
weaving.

Navajo Indians wore shoes called moccasins to protect their feet from the hot, desert ground
and cactus. They were made from leather or rawhide.

Navajo Indians held ceremonies called Night Chants. They wore masks and shook rattles
while praying for rain and good crops. The ceremonies lasted for nine days!

The Navajo were warlike. They would sometimes raid other Indians, Mexicans, and white
men. They would steal horses, sheep, and cows. In 1863, Kit Carson marched 400 men through
Canyon de Chelly, the stronghold of the Navajo. Carson and his men killed so much livestock
and destroyed so many crops, that the Navajo begged for peace. Carson gathered the Navajo and
moved them to Fort Sumner in New Mexico. They were held prisoners there until 1867.

So as you can see, the Navajo Indians were a very interesting tribe to learn and study about.
Question :
1. What is the main idea of this passage?
A. The Navajo Indians were warlike.
B. The Navajo Indians were a very interesting tribe to learn and study about . (benar)s
C. The Navajos had ceremonies called Night Chants.
D. The Pueblo taught the Navajo many skills.
Pembahasan :
(Main idea selalu terletak pada kalimat pertama atau terakhir dari suatu paragraf, atau tersebar,
tapi dalam hal ini yang sering dijumpai dalam soal, kalimat utama kebanyakan terletak diawal
dan akhir)

2. What is the main idea of the third paragraph?

A. The Pueblo Indians taught the Navajo many skills.
B. The Navajo wore shoes called moccasins.
C. The Navajo were skilled at rug weaving.
D. The Navajo were referred to as sheep herders.
Pembahasan :
(Dalam soal diminta menentukan main idea untuk paragraf ke tiga, jadi kita hanya fokus pada
kalimat pertama dan terakhir pada paragraf ketiga saja)

3. What is the main idea of the sixth paragraph?

A. The Navajo were held prisoners for many years.
B. Kit Carson was a brave and daring man.
C. The Navajo were a warlike people.
D. The 400 men all died.
Pembahasan :
(Dalam paragraf ke enam pun demikian, kalimat utamanya terletak pada kalimat pertama)

Secara garis besar, kalimat utama akan memiliki point-point berikut.

1. Mengandung permasalahan yang potensial untuk diuraikan

2. Mempunyai arti yang jelas tanpa dihubungkan dengan kalimat lain

3. Umumnya berada di awal paragraf "untuk paragraf deduktif “, dan di akhir paragraf"paragraf
induktif “
1. TEXT adalah segala bentuk tulisan yang ada pada sebuah buku, artikel dll yang mempunyai makna. Non-
continuous text misalnya brosur, label, grafik, tabel, map, diagram dsb. Continuous text misalnya narrative,
descriptive,exposition, spoof dsb.
2. PARAGRAPH adalah bagian dari sebuah tulisan/teks dan mungkin saja terdiri dari sebuah kalimat atau sekumpulan
kalimat yang merupakan pengembangan dari pokok pikiran/main topic/main idea.
3. Kalimat yang menggambarkan main idea/pokok pikiran dari sebuah paragraph disebit TOPIC SENTENCE.
4. Topic sentence biasanya ada pada awal/akhir/kadang di tengah sebuah paragrap.
5. Gambaran umum tentang isi bacaan bisa merupakan MAIN TOPIC atau MAIN IDEA.
6. TOPIC dari sebuah paragrap/teks adalah subjek dari tulisan, sedangkan MAIN IDEA adalah keterangan,
penjelasan, uraian topic atau merupakan pendapat penulis tentang topic tulisannya.
7. Oleh karena itu pertanyaan tentang topic dari sebuah paragraph/text bisa tentang inti isi tulisan yang juga bisa
merupakan judul.
8. Jika pertanyaan menanyakan ‘TOPIC’ maka jawaban ditulis dalam satu kata atau bentuk frasa, tetapi jika
pertanyaan menanyakan tentang ‘MAIN IDEA’ maka jawaban ditulis dalam kalimat lengkap.
9. Yang dimaksud dengan ‘informasi tertentu/specific information’ adalah informasi yang tertera jelas dalam text,
biasanya tentang nama, tempat, tanggal, tahun, dsb.
10. Yang dimaksud dengan ‘informasi tersirat’ adalah informasi yang tidak tertera jelas dalam text. Untuk dapat
menjawab pertanyaan spt ini dibutuhkan keterampilan ‘reading between the lines’.
11. Frasa adalah rangkaian kata yang mempunyai makna..

Finding the Main Idea

How Can I Locate the Main Idea?
Once you can find the topic, you are ready to find the main idea. The main idea is the point of the
paragraph. It is the most important thought about the topic.

To figure out the main idea, ask yourself this question: What is being said about the person, thing, or
idea (the topic)?

The author can locate the main idea in different places within a paragraph. The main idea is usually a
sentence, and it is usually the first sentence. The writer then uses the rest of the paragraph to support
the main idea.

Let’s use the paragraph below as an example. First find the topic, then look for the main idea.

Summer is a wonderful time to spend at West Beach. It is a beach with light- colored, soft sand. The
coastline goes on for a long way and many people enjoy walking along it. Children like to play in the
surf and walk along the rocks that are visible at low tide. This is a fun beach for people of all ages.
In this paragraph:
 the topic is West Beach
 the main idea (what the writer is saying about the topic) is that summer is a wonderful time at
West Beach
Here is another example:
The movie Apollo 13 was a blockbuster for the summer of 1995. It is an exciting story about space
exploration. In the movie, the astronauts get in trouble while they are trying to return to Earth.
People in the audience are on the edge of their seats waiting to see what happens. What makes it
even more exciting is that it is a true story.
In this paragraph:
 the topic is the movie Apollo 13
 the main idea is in the first sentence: Apollo 13 was a blockbuster for the summer of 1995

While the main idea is usually in the first sentence, the next most common placement is in the last
sentence of a paragraph. The author gives supporting information first and then makes the point in
the last sentence.

Here’s a paragraph we can use as an example. Try to locate the topic and the main idea.
Most teenagers and young adults do not know what they want to do for the rest of their lives. It is a
big decision. There are a number of things you can do to narrow the choices. For example you can
take an interest test, do some research on your own about a career, try volunteer work in the field in
which you are interested, or “job-shadow”, in which you spend a day with a person who is
working in a field that interests you. These are just a few helpful ideas as you begin to choose a
career.
In this paragraph:
 the topic is jobs or career choices
 the main idea is a few ideas to help the reader choose a career

Finally, an author might put the main idea in the middle of a paragraph. The author will spend a few
sentences introducing the topic, present the main idea, then spend the rest of the paragraph
supporting it. This can make the main idea more difficult to find.

See if you can find the topic and main idea in the paragraph below.

The United States seems to be in love with the idea of going out to eat. Because of this, a real variety
of restaurants has come about specializing in all kinds of foods. McDonald’s is the king of a
subgroup of restaurants called fast-food restaurants. Chances are, no matter where you live, there is
a McDonald’s restaurant near you. There are even McDonald’s in the Soviet Union. Now
McDonald’s is trying something new. It is called McDonald’s Express and there is a test site in
Peabody, Massachusetts. It is part of a Mobil gas station. This allows you to fill up with gas and fill
up on food at the same time. What will they think of next?

In this paragraph:

 the topic is McDonald’s

 the main idea is in the middle of the paragraph, in the third sentence: McDonald’s is the king
of fast food