Main Idea/Detail Graphic Organizer
According to page 65 of Dr. Mimi Miller and Nancy Veatch in their 2011 book entitled Literacy in Context (LinC): Choosing Instructional Strategies to Teach Reading in Content Areas for Students Grades 5-12, "The purpose for using this graphic organizer is to provide a framework for students to record the main idea and details that can be found within each paragraph as they read the text. It gives students a road map that they can use to chart the course before reading and a study guide
or writing support to use after reading." According to 2011 website by studyzone.org, "the main idea is the most important idea in a paragraph. Supporting details help you to better understand the main idea. Supporting details make your main idea stronger!" Common Core Standard
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.3.2 Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea. |
Video Examples
In this lesson the teacher uses a Wordle to help students see the main ideas and details from their writing. Students create an accordion graphic organizer for a paragraph that incorporates a main idea, details, explanations of the details, and a wrap-up. The wordle graphically shows the difference between the big (main) ideas and the small (details) ideas.
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In this lesson students find the main ideas from a passage about pandas. The teacher does a great job of doing a think aloud for the students to show the process.
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Miller and Veatch's 2011 Guide to:
Main Idea/Detail Graphic Organizer
1. Choose an appropriately leveled piece of text that covers the content, and be sure the text is either summative or descriptive in order to match the structure of the Main Idea/Detail Graphic Organizer.
2. Give all students a copy of the Main Idea/Detail Graphic Organizer that they can fill out, and prepare a copy for the overhead or Interwrite board. Have students survey the paragraphs that need to be read for the assignment, and number them on their graphic organizer sheet. (This task can be difficult for struggling readers, as many still do not know where a paragraph ends and where it begins or how to count how many paragraphs are within a section to be read.)
3. Model reading one paragraph at a time and recording significant details from the text. These details should be recorded in note format.
4. When details for that particular paragraph have been recorded, think aloud with students to determine the main idea of the paragraph. (Often, the main idea can be found in the topic sentence, so be sure to direct students to search for it there. In more complex text, students may have to summarize the details to find the main idea.)
5. Students will then fill out the graphic organizer as the teacher models it on the overhead or Smartboard.
6. As students become more proficient with using this graphic organizer, have them begin to work in small groups or pairs under guided practice. Students complete one paragraph at a time, and then the class comes together to share the details and main idea before moving on to the next paragraph.
7. After much modeled and guided practice with this graphic organizer, allow the students to practice independently, but continue to frequently check student progress.
2. Give all students a copy of the Main Idea/Detail Graphic Organizer that they can fill out, and prepare a copy for the overhead or Interwrite board. Have students survey the paragraphs that need to be read for the assignment, and number them on their graphic organizer sheet. (This task can be difficult for struggling readers, as many still do not know where a paragraph ends and where it begins or how to count how many paragraphs are within a section to be read.)
3. Model reading one paragraph at a time and recording significant details from the text. These details should be recorded in note format.
4. When details for that particular paragraph have been recorded, think aloud with students to determine the main idea of the paragraph. (Often, the main idea can be found in the topic sentence, so be sure to direct students to search for it there. In more complex text, students may have to summarize the details to find the main idea.)
5. Students will then fill out the graphic organizer as the teacher models it on the overhead or Smartboard.
6. As students become more proficient with using this graphic organizer, have them begin to work in small groups or pairs under guided practice. Students complete one paragraph at a time, and then the class comes together to share the details and main idea before moving on to the next paragraph.
7. After much modeled and guided practice with this graphic organizer, allow the students to practice independently, but continue to frequently check student progress.
Examples
Resources
Florida State University. (2015). Main idea template. Retrieved from http://www.cpalms.org/Public/PreviewResource/Preview/50863
Lea, Rachel. (2011). Miss meghan's lesson on main idea and detail. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APofOnvUEoc
Miller, M., & Veatch, N. (2011). Literacy in context (LinC): Choosing instructional strategies to teach reading in content areas for students grades 5-12. Boston: Pearson.
Ober, Rebecca. (2012). Understanding main idea and supporting details as a reading strategy. Retrieved from http://www.sophia.org/tutorials/understanding-main-idea-and-supporting-details-as
SECCEducationalTV. (2014). Teach 21: Main ideas & details - Part 2. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GebKs6ZjdGU
Florida State University. (2015). Main idea template. Retrieved from http://www.cpalms.org/Public/PreviewResource/Preview/50863
Lea, Rachel. (2011). Miss meghan's lesson on main idea and detail. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APofOnvUEoc
Miller, M., & Veatch, N. (2011). Literacy in context (LinC): Choosing instructional strategies to teach reading in content areas for students grades 5-12. Boston: Pearson.
Ober, Rebecca. (2012). Understanding main idea and supporting details as a reading strategy. Retrieved from http://www.sophia.org/tutorials/understanding-main-idea-and-supporting-details-as
SECCEducationalTV. (2014). Teach 21: Main ideas & details - Part 2. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GebKs6ZjdGU