STANDARDS:

LAFS.910.RI.1.1 CITE THE TEXTUAL EVIDENCE THAT MOST STRONGLY ELA TEACHER’S NAME
SUPPORTS AN ANALYSIS OF WHAT THE TEXT SAYS EXPLICITLY AS WELL AS PACING: EACH CONCEPT IS TO BE
INFERENCES DRAWN FROM THE TEXT. TAUGHT IN 50-60 MINUTES.
LAFS.910.RI.1.2 DETERMINE A CENTRAL IDEA OF A TEXT AND ANALYZE ITS
DEVELOPMENT OVER THE COURSE OF THE TEXT, INCLUDING ITS
RELATIONSHIP TO SUPPORTING IDEAS; PROVIDE AN OBJECTIVE SUMMARY OF
THE TEXT.

Key objectives ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS LESSON ATTACHMENTS

Distinguish topics from a central idea How is a topic different from a central idea? Main Idea Practice Passages
Identify Central Ideas and supporting details How does the author reveal their central idea? Text “Taking Away the Phones Won’t Solve Our
Analyze the relationship of the central idea to the How do I determine what details should be used as Teenagers’ Problems”
supporting details by drawing on inferences made textual evidence to support the central idea? Activity Instructions for “Add Up Facts”
from the text. How do I summarize the central idea and key details “Important vs. Interesting” Activity
Provide an analysis statement with textual evidence in one paragraph?
that strongly supports the inferences drawn

CONCEPT #1 CONCEPT #2 CONCEPT #3 CONCEPT #4

Topic Vs. Central Idea
LESSON ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS #1
How is a topic different from a central
idea?
INSTRUCTION
These terms are easy to mix up, so
let’s make sure we understand the
difference as we begin our journey.
Topic refers to the subject of a text in
its simplest form. Topics are very
general, so they consist of only one
Central Idea Revealed
LESSON ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS #2
How does an author reveal their
central idea?
INSTRUCTION
Now you understand the difference
between topics and central ideas. The
general topic of a text is usually pretty
easy to recognize, but the central idea
is not always as obvious. In order to
find the central idea of a text, it helps
Details
LESSON ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS #3
How do I determine what details
should be used as textual evidence to
support the central idea?
INSTRUCTION
For information to be considered a key
detail, it has to be a detail that
connects to the central idea that the
author is presenting. In most
nonfiction texts, the author fills the
pages with information that is
Summary
LESSON ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS #4
How do I summarize the central idea
and key details in one paragraph?
INSTRUCTION
Once you can identify the central idea
of a text, along with its its supporting
details, you can take the next step and
write a summary of the text. You
probably already have some
experience writing summaries. You

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word or a short phrase. Examples of
topics are trains, the Olympics, or air
pollution. These are short, simple
words and phrases that express the
overall subject of a text. Central ideas
are a little more specific. These refer
to the most important idea that an
author is trying to convey in a
paragraph or a short text. Central idea
statements are usually short but
complete sentences that express the
main thought of a text. Examples of
central ideas are, “Trains are a fun way
to travel,” “The Olympics are an
important athletic tradition,” and “Air
pollution is a danger to public health.”
As you can see, central ideas are
expressed as full statements, and they
include more details than topics. A
central idea statement doesn’t just
explain what a text is about-it goes
beyond that to explain what the
author is saying about the topic.
to find the supporting details.
Supporting details provide the
foundation for the central idea within
the text. They are the pieces of
information which help explain and
illustrate what the author is trying to
say. Supporting details may include
facts, statements, statistics, and
examples. All of these supporting
details are intended to help guide
readers to a better understanding of
the central idea. So, if it’s tricky to
identify an author’s overall point, try
to determine what idea or message
the supporting details point toward.
Probably, that’s the central idea.
important (or key) and also
information that is meant to wow,
amaze, or keep the reader interested.
It’s all great information because it
keeps us reading and engaged.
However, when we go to summarize
the text, we need to sort through all of
the information and just present
what’s most connected to the central
idea. So, we need to file information
and facts into separate folders:
interesting detail folder and important
detail folder.
may remember that a summary is a
brief overview of the text that
highlights its key points. The summary
includes the central idea of the text
expressed in your own words. It also
includes the most important
supporting details from the text which
support the central idea. Remember,
that the summary is just an overview,
so it won’t include the interesting
details-just the ones that are the most
important to the central idea.

ACTIVITY/PRACTICE ACTIVITY/PRACTICE ACTIVITY/PRACTICE ACTIVITY/PRACTICE

Provide a list of topics and central Provide students with text. Read the Have students break up into their Teacher led discussion. Have the
ideas on the board. Ask students to Title aloud as a class. “Taking Away pairs again. entire class discuss the central idea of
“Think, Pair, Share” and determine the Phones Won’t Solve Our Complete the “Important vs. the entire text based on the central
which are topics and which are central Teenagers’ Problems” Interesting” Activity in pairs. ideas from each chunk. Make sure one
ideas. Text attached. central idea is determined before
Attached moving to students writing
Examples: Ask “What is the topic of the text?” Students find ONE interesting detail independent summaries.
Japan has some of the fastest trains in Ask “How do you know what the topic and ONE Important detail from their
the world. Central Idea Give students 10-20 minutes to write
is?” paragraph chuck. their summaries.
The invention of the steam locomotive 1-2 minute class discussion on above Take 3-5 minutes to write down each
changed the world. Central Idea Provide sentence stems if needed.
questions. fact in the graphic organizer. Some students may get stuck trying to

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History of freight trains Topic
Railway-related careers Topic
Next, allow students to give create
their own topics. Ask them for any
topic and then have them create a
main idea based on that topic.
Example:
If a student said they choose
“BANANA” as their topic, allow
students to take one minute to create
a main idea for that topic. Main ideas
could be: “If you see a banana, do not
step on it because you will fall and
break your hip!” or “Bananas are way
better fruits than apples.”
Repeat this process as long as the
students will stay engaged for it. They
will come up with some fun/absurd
topics.
Hand out the worksheet provided and How did they know it was the central
allow students to complete it either
individually or in pairs.
Read the instructions and hold a class
discussion to confirm understanding
of topic vs. main idea.
Allow students to work and share
their answers.
additional information
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Use the “I do, We do, You do” strategy
to find the supporting details and
main idea of the first paragraph.
Read paragraph 1 as a whole class.
Pause to discuss complex words and
help students use context clues to
comprehend the words.
Answer the main idea with supporting
details for paragraph 1.
Assign partners to do Add Up Facts
Strategy
Give each group 7-10 minutes to find
the facts from paragraph 2. Add up
the facts to identify the main idea for
paragraph 2.
Activity directions attached.
After students identify the central
idea, have them write it down in their
text.
Have students share the central ideas
to the class.
After students share, ask how they
came to agree on the central idea? Have students share the details in
order by paragraph.
idea? After students share, ask how they start. Provide support in starting the
came to agree on which detail was summary with sentence stems and
Conduct 5-10 minute class discussion
on the above question. interesting and which one was encouragement.
important? Once summaries are written, allow
Does the important detail support students to share with the class if
Repeat this process for the remaining
their main idea from the last activity? they’d like to.
paragraphs. The students should have
all main ideas and supporting details Conduct 5-10 minute class discussion Encourage students with positive
written in their article. This may carry on the above question. feedback.
over to the next day.
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