To identify the main idea of a paragraph,

first you have to identify the topic, the topic

sentence, and supporting details.
 THE TOPIC

It is the subject under discussion. It’s the person,

place, experience, or event most frequently
mentioned or referred to in the paragraph.
TOPIC
cage, bars, ticket, lion, zebra, snake, bear ZOO
Nurse, doctor, medicine, building, disease, needles. HOSPITAL

• To identify the main idea of a paragraph, you first

need to identify the topic.
 EXAMPLE

 A favorite place for free samples is the supermarket, where

custumers are frequently given small amounts of a product to
try. Many people find it difficult to accept free samples, return
only the toothpicks or cups, and walk away. Instead, they buy
some of the product, even if they might not have liked the free
sample very much.

Who or what is more frequently mentioned or referred to

in this paragraph?

Topic: free samples

THE TOPIC SENTENCE
 What is the topic sentence?

 It is a general statement in the paragraph

that expresses the author’s main idea.

 A topic sentence is usually the first sentence

of a paragraph, but sometimes it can appear
in the middle or at the end of it.
 How can you identify the topic
sentence?

 Topic sentences are more general than most

of the sentences in the paragraph.

 Topic sentences answer the question: What’s

the point of this paragraph?

 Topic sentences are developed throughout

most of the paragraph.
 EXAMPLE

 As early as1908, Thomas Alva Edison made a movie about

Frankenstein´s monster. A similar film about manmade monster
(The Golem) appeared just before World War I. Following the
war, several German directors produced some classic horror
films, among them Nosferatu, a brilliant film based on Bram
Stoker’s novel Dracula. The movie was a box-office hit, and
other horror films soon followed. It seems that the history of
horror films is almost as long as the history of film itself.

Topic Sentence
 EXAMPLE

 During World War II, thirty-two men voluntered to be

subjects in a study of hunger. Over a period of six
months, each man lost approximately 25% of his
body weight. During that time, all the men in the
study became weak and irritable. They also lost all
interest in sex. The subjects, however, didn’t lose
interest in food. They studied cookbooks and spent
hours daydreaming about their favorite foods and
ideal meals.
Topic Sentence
SUPPORTING DETAILS
 Supporting Details

 These are the sentences in the paragraph

that supply specific reasons, examples,
dates, statistics, etc. that help readers
understand the topic sentence
 Supporting details help readers anticipate
and answer questions that they might have
about the topic sentence.
 Example

 In the XVIII century, few American poets

achieved any lasting fame; Phillis Wheatly,
however, was an astonishing exception.

How was her life like?

What part of theUS was she from?
What did she write?
 Example

 In the XVIII century, few American poets achieved

any lasting fame; Phillis Wheatly, however, was an
astonishing exception. A slave in a Massachusetts
household, Wheatly was taught to read and write.
By the age of thirteen, she was writing poems.
When the Weatly family traveled to England, they
Supporting took Phillis with them and encouraged her to read
details her poems at public gatherings. The response was
enthusiastic, and word of the girl’s talent spread to
the colonies. By the time she returned home,
Phillis Wheatly was famous.
 Major Supporting Details

 Major details answer questions readers

might ask about the topic sentence. These
sentences explain the topic sentence.
Example:
Unwanted noise, especially if it persists over time,
can cause problems.
Readers might ask: What are those problems?
 Example

 Unwanted noise, especially if it persists over

time, can cause problems. Researchers
suggests that continued exposure to noise in the
workplace can contribute to heart disease and
ulcers. In addition, people who live in noisy areas
have been found to have higher blood pressure
than those who live in quiter surroundings.
Moreover, people continually exposed to high
noise levels, whether at home or in a workplace,
report a high degree of conflict in their lives.
 Minor Supporting Details

 These are sentences that provide more specific details that

further explain the major supporting details. They are the most
specific sentences in the paragraph.

Example
Unwanted noise, especially if it persists over time, can cause
problems. Researchers suggests that continued exposure to
noise in the workplace can contribute to heart disease and ulcers.
It is not surprising, then, that factory workers who spend eight hours a
day surrounded by noisy machinery are likely to have heart and
stomach problems.
 Example

 Unwanted noise, especially if it persists over time, can cause

problems. Researchers suggests that continued exposure to
noise in the workplace can contribute to heart disease and ulcers.
It is not surprising, then, that factory workers who spend eight hours a
day surrounded by noisy machinery are likely to have heart and
stomach problems. In addition, people who live in noisy areas have
been found to have higher blood pressure than those who live in
quiter surroundings. It has been shown, for example, that among
those living near airports, train tracks, or interstate highways, high
blood pressure is a common problem. Moreover, people continually
exposed to high noise levels, whether at home or in a workplace,
report a high degree of conflict in their lives. They tend to argue
more readily with family members and co-workers.
MAIN IDEAS
 MAIN IDEAS

 The main idea is the central message or

point of the paragraph. It’s the thought that
unites, or ties together, all of the individual
sentences.
 Without the main idea, the paragraph would
be a collection of unrelated sentences, so it
wouldn’t be a paragraph.
How can you find the main idea?

 Ask these two questions:

 What does the author want to say about

the topic?

 What idea is developed in both general and

specific sentences?
 EXAMPLE

 From the beginning of the abolitionist movement, women played a key role.
They circulated petitions requesting that slavery be abolished. They also
organized social gatherings to spread the abolitionist word and to raise money
for the movement. Some female abolitionists, at great risk to themselves, even
hid runaway slaves in their homes. That’s how determined they were to end the
practice of slavery.

Topic: women in the abolitionist movement

Topic sentence: From the beginning of the abolitionist movement,

women played a key role.

Main idea: the role of women in the abolitionist movement