Reading Passages Main Idea and Details

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Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 4
Read the paragraph. Then fill in the bubble
that best completes each sentence.

t takes a lot of trucks to get an


I airplane ready to fly. Fuel trucks
are very important. They fill the
fuel tanks of planes. Baggage
trucks carry people’s suitcases
to and from planes. Still other
trucks deliver food.You might
also see mail trucks and cargo
trucks. Also standing by at
airports are repair trucks.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is about the main this paragraph
idea is would be
A. airplanes are
like trucks A. trucks are A. The Role of
more Trucks at
B. some trucks important Airports
carry food than planes
B. Repair Trucks
C. how trucks B. many people on the Runway
help planes carry on their
luggage C. Mail Trucks
and Cargo
C. airplanes Trucks
depend on
trucks for fuel

12 Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 5
Read the paragraph. Then fill in the bubble
that best completes each sentence.

mericans like toast, eggs, and cereal. In


A China people eat congee, a thick rice.
People in Japan often have a soup called miso.
Pancakes made from lentil beans are favored in
India. Bread and coffee with milk are the most
popular breakfast foods in France. Breakfast
around the world is a matter of different tastes.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is about the main this paragraph
idea is would be
A. people in
China and A. breakfast is A. Soup in the
Japan like an important Morning
different foods meal
B. Breakfast
B. cereal is a B. everyone eats Around the
popular eggs at World
breakfast breakfast
food in the C. Something
United States C. people in to Eat
India eat
C. people eat lentil pancakes
different foods
for breakfast
around the
world

Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources 13
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 6
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that best completes each sentence.

he Holland Tunnel is a
T roadway under the Hudson
River. At one end of the tunnel
is New York City. At the other
end is the state of New Jersey.
Almost 50,000 cars and trucks
go through the Holland Tunnel
each day. The distance is just
over one and a half miles.
Depending on the time of day,
it can be a long or short trip.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. what the
Holland A. the places A. A Long or
Tunnel is that the Short Trip
tunnel
B. the length of connects B. Riding
the Holland Through a
Tunnel B. how to get Tunnel
through the
C. what the tunnel C. Holland
Hudson River Tunnel Facts
is like C. other ways to
cross the
Hudson River

14 Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 7
Read the paragraph. Then fill in the bubble
that best completes each sentence.

an you name the planets in our solar system?


C Mercury is one of them. Like the other planets,
Mercury moves in a path around the sun. Mercury
travels faster than the other planets. It speeds along
at about 107,000 miles an hour. Mercury is the
planet closest to the sun. Its days are very
hot, and its nights are very cold.
There is no water on Mercury.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. the lack of
water on A. the speed at A. Moving Around
Mercury which Mercury the Sun
travels around
B. the planets the sun B. Hot Days and
in the solar Cold Nights
system B. the names of
the other C. The Planet
C. what the planets in the Mercury
planet Mercury solar system
is like
C. how fast other
planets in the
solar system
travel

Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources 15
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 8
Read the paragraph. Then fill in the bubble
that best completes each sentence.

orses are often helpers for humans.


H In some communities the police
ride horses to control large crowds.
Cowboys use horses to help round up
herds of cattle. In some countries
farmers still use horses to pull plows
or wagons. People also use horses to
carry them from place to place.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. the different
jobs that A. how cowboys A. Helpful Horses
horses can do use horses in
their work B. Horses in
B. how the police Parades
use horses in B. the kinds of
crowds horses used in C. Traveling by
police work Horse
C. the ways that
animals help C. the names of
people countries
using farm
horses

16 Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 9
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that best completes each sentence.

ommunity names often have words


C for water in them. For example,
Riverview is a town in Kansas. Running
Springs is in California.You’ll find Bay
City in Michigan. Storm Lake is in
Iowa, Great Falls is in Montana,
and Brookfield is in Vermont.
Where is Silver Creek? Why,
it’s in Mississippi.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. where to find
Silver Creek A. which state A. Where Is
has the most Storm Lake?
B. names of bodies of
places with water B. Water Words
water words in Place Names
B. in which
C. different state you’ll C. How
bodies of find Bay City Communities
water in states Are Named
C. why water
words appear
in names

Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources 17
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 10
Read the paragraph. Then fill in the bubble
that best completes each sentence.

hat foods cause the most problems in


W a car? Chocolate is one. It gets all
over things. When drivers try to clean up
the mess, they often have accidents.
Hot drinks such as coffee are also
dangerous. Why? They spill. Greasy
foods cause trouble when they drip.
Jelly doughnuts cause problems
too. Can you guess why?

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. foods that
are good for A. greasy foods A. Chocolate
car rides that drip Causes
cause Accidents
B. the problems problems
caused by B. Please Eat
chocolate B. drivers should Neatly
pay attention
C. foods that to the road C. Messy Foods
cause in Cars
problems C. cell phones
in cars are dangerous
in cars

18 Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 11
Read the paragraph. Then fill in the bubble
that best completes each sentence.

any U.S. presidents have had nicknames.


M James Madison was sometimes called
Jemmy. Honest Abe was a popular name for
Abraham Lincoln. Dwight Eisenhower was
known as Ike, and Theodore Roosevelt
was Teddy. Several presidents have been
called by their initials. John F. Kennedy
was JFK, while Lyndon B. Johnson
was LBJ.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. the nickname
of President A. not all U.S. A. Nicknames for
Eisenhower presidents Presidents
have had
B. nicknames for nicknames B. Lincoln Was
some U.S. Honest Abe
presidents B. some
nicknames C. Who Was
C. how presidents have come Jemmy?
got their from a
nicknames president’s
initials

C. only popular
presidents
have had
nicknames

Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources 19
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 12
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that best completes each sentence.

o you know what a chinook


D is? It’s a warm winter wind
in the western United States.
Another wind is a purga. This very
cold wind brings snow to Russia.
In France there is a dry wind
called a mistral. Egypt has a
khamsin. This wind blows across
the desert, stirring up sand.
Around the world different winds
come and go with the seasons.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. winds of the
western U.S. A. what a purga A. Cold Winter
is and does Winds
B. how winds
bring snow B. where the B. What’s the
to Russia word mistral Weather?
comes from
C. different C. Winds of
winds around C. how people the World
the world dress during
a khamsin

20 Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 13
Read the paragraph. Then fill in the bubble
that best completes each sentence.

eatrix Potter (1866–1943)


B loved animals. She also loved
to draw. As a young girl she kept a
sketchbook of plants and family
pets. She became a student of
nature. Later on Beatrix Potter
wrote stories for children. The main
characters were animals. Perhaps
you have read The Tale of Peter
Rabbit or Squirrel Nutkin.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. Beatrix
Potter’s A. how Beatrix A. Meet These
interest in Potter learned Animal
nature to draw Characters

B. the titles B. what Potter B. The Words


of Beatrix drew in her of Beatrix
Potter’s books sketchbook Potter

C. the names of C. how the C. Potter and the


Potter family book Squirrel Natural World
pets Nutkin ends

Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources 21
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 14
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that best completes each sentence.

eople often play with words when they name their boats.
P Go down to the harbor and you might see a boat named
Knot A Care. Some other names with double meanings are
Willy Tippit, Sea Ya, and Reel Time. Perhaps you will spot
the Crewless or the Scuba Due. Don’t leave until it’s official.
Find the O-Fish-Hull!

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. finding a
boat called A. a boat A. Fun With
Scuba Due might have Boat Names
a name such
B. boat names as Sea Ya B. Who Is
with double Willy Tippit?
meanings B. a popular
boat name C. Boats in
C. an official is Serenity the Harbor
visit to
the harbor C. why people
don’t name
their houses

22 Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 15
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that best completes each sentence.

hat is a census? A census is a count.


W Every ten years the U.S. Census
Bureau counts people. It also finds out
where people live, the kind of work they
do, and other facts. The census tells
whether the population of a state changes.
The number of representatives a state has
in Congress depends on its population.
Census numbers are helpful in planning
new roads, schools, and other things.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. how Congress
changes A. how many A. Every
people now Ten Years
B. why live in
populations the U.S. B. The Census
change Counts
B. which states
C. what the have the C. Where People
census is most people Live

C. how the
census
numbers
are used

Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources 23
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 16
Read the paragraph. Then fill in the bubble
that best completes each sentence.

oats help prevent fires in California.


G In parts of the state, the fall
season is very dry. Hot winds
blow over the land. The
smallest spark can start a
fire. The fires spread easily
through grasses and bushes.
So people use goats to eat the plants
as a form of fire control. The goats eat anything,
even plants with thorns. Many people rent the goats
until the rains come and the danger is over.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. goats are
not very A. the goats are A. California
fussy eaters rented for the Fire Safety
dry season
B. goats prevent B. Goats as
fires by B. cows do not Firefighters
clearing land work well for
this job C. The Problems
C. California’s of Fall
dangerous dry C. goats also eat
season plants people
want to keep

24 Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 17
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that best completes each sentence.

eople have used many materials to


P make maps. At first they drew on
rocks, wood, or clay. Sometimes they made
maps on animal hides. Later mapmakers
painted on silk or scratched on metal.
On islands in the Pacific Ocean, people
made sailing maps from sticks. The
sticks were tied together to show the
patterns of winds and waves. Tiny shells
were added to show where islands
were located.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. using animal
hides for A. using maps on A. Sailing With
early maps the Internet a Map

B. different B. maps were B. Sticks and


materials used painted Stones
for maps on silk
C. Map Materials
C. sailing maps C. how the
for the first globes
Pacific Ocean were made

Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources 25
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 18
Read the paragraph. Then fill in the bubble
that best completes each sentence.

n a summer night you might


O see the light of a firefly. This
light is a mating message to other
fireflies. Some ocean creatures also
have lights. For example, the light on
an angler fish helps it catch food.
Other sea creatures with glow lights
include jellyfish and shrimp. On land
there are glow-in-the-dark creatures
such as earthworms. Many kinds of
animals have built-in lights.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. the lights of
summer nights A. how light A. The Story
helps an of Light
B. creatures with angler fish
built-in lights B. Ocean Glow
B. the codes that
C. lights in the fireflies use C. Creatures
deep, dark sea of Light
C. how animals
uses senses
at night

26 Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 19
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that best completes each sentence.

n ancient Rome people used their


I bodies as measuring tools. They used
the length of their foot to measure
distance. For smaller lengths they used
their thumb. A foot was divided into
12 thumb widths. Today we call these
units inches. The Romans measured long
distances in paces. A pace was two steps.
A thousand paces was called a mille.
Today we call this distance a mile.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. measurements
of ancient A. how people A. How We
Rome once measured Got the
a yard Modern Mile
B. how inches
were once B. how rulers B. Measuring
measured were first from Head
developed to Toe
C. why Romans
used feet to C. how the C. The Roman
measure Romans Way of
measured Measuring
a mile

Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources 27
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 20
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that best completes each sentence.

ave you ever played Monopoly?


H This famous game was invented
more than 70 years ago. Times were very
hard then. Many people were out of
work. Charles B. Darrow had lost his
job too. He began designing games to
earn money. One game was based on
getting rich. For many people the game
was a dream of better times. It became
one of the world’s most famous games.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. how and why
Monopoly A. what people A. Meet Charles
began liked about Darrow
Monopoly
B. the reason B. The Monopoly
Darrow lost B. how many Story
his job people could
play the game C. Popular Board
C. how to play Games
the game of C. how much
Monopoly Monopoly
costs

28 Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 21
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that best completes each sentence.

arc Brown writes books about an aardvark


M named Arthur. Many of Brown’s characters
are based on people in his life. For example,
Buster is based on a childhood friend. So is the
character Sue Ellen. Two other characters, D.W.
and Francine, are like his sisters in many ways.
Another book character is Grandma Thora. She is
named for Marc Brown’s real grandmother.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. how Marc
Brown started A. who Francine A. The Characters
writing the is based on of Marc Brown
Arthur books
B. why Arthur is B. Who Is Marc
B. why Marc an aardvark Brown?
Brown’s books
have so many C. where Marc C. Meet the Real
characters Brown grew up Grandma Thora

C. where Marc
Brown’s
characters
come from

Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources 29
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 22
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that best completes each question.

o you know what a palindrome is?


D It is a word, phrase, or sentence
that reads forward or backward the
same way. For example, the word
M-O-M is a palindrome. Whichever
way you read it, it is the same. Other
palindrome words are noon, did, level,
and bob. A famous palindrome sentence
is “Madam, I’m Adam.” Can you think
of some other palindromes?

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. palindromes
as sentences A. what most A. Learning
palindromes About
B. words with mean Palindromes
the same
letters B. examples of B. Some Famous
palindrome Palindromes
C. what a words
palindrome is C. Going
C. reading words Backward and
upside down Forward

30 Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 23
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that best completes each sentence.

any popular sayings are


M about dogs. Have you ever
been “in the doghouse”? That means
you are in trouble. If you are “sick
as a dog,” you don’t feel very well.
If you are “dog-tired,” you are really
weary. Someone who is the “top dog”
is the one in charge. What do people
say when it is raining very hard?
They often claim that it is “raining
cats and dogs.”

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. common
sayings with A. why people A. How to Be
dog in them use dog in a Top Dog
many sayings
B. how people B. Colorful Sayings
think about B. the meaning Using Dog
dogs and cats of “in the
doghouse” C. The Story
C. what it is like Behind
to be “sick as C. how people “Dog-Tired”
a dog” feel about
dogs as pets

Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources 31
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 24
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that best completes each sentence.

n oyster lies on the warm sea floor. One day a


A speck of something gets inside the oyster shell.
To protect itself, the oyster builds layers of a special
material around the speck. The material is called
nacre. After a few years a pearl is formed from
the nacre. Someday a diver may find this
natural pearl. It might become part of a
valuable piece of jewelry.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. how pearl
divers work A. how natural A. How Natural
pearls differ Pearls Are
B. how a pearl from cultured Made
is formed ones
B. An Oyster’s
C. what the B. the names of Life in the Sea
material the seas where
nacre is natural pearls C. Using Pearls in
are found Fine Jewelry

C. the role of
nacre in
forming a
natural pearl

32 Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 25
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that best completes each sentence.

ome people think your handwriting


S tells something about you. They say
that up-and-down writing shows a calm,
logical person. Is that you? Writing that
slants a little to the right means
someone is outgoing. If writing slants
a lot to the right, that person is very
friendly. What about writing that
slants to the left? Someone who
writes this way is rather quiet.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. why people
slant their A. what kinds A. Writing to
handwriting of pens the Right
people use
B. how friendly, B. How to
outgoing B. what up-and- Become a
people write down writing Writer
means
C. what C. The Meaning
handwriting C. how of Handwriting
tells about computers
people have changed
writing

Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources 33
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 26
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that best completes each sentence.

eople play chess all over the


P world. In a town in Italy people
are the chess pieces. Every two years
the town holds a human chess game.
It is played on a huge chessboard
painted in the town square. Some
players such as the knights ride
horses. All are in costumes to look
like real chess pieces. Town officials
call out the moves as large crowds
of people cheer.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. playing chess
with people A. how this A. Human Chess
as pieces human chess Pieces
game got
B. a town square started B. Costumes
becomes a for Chess
chessboard B. people who
are knights C. Places to See
C. how people are on horses in Italy
play chess
around the C. the history of
world the game of
chess

34 Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 27
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that best completes each sentence.

he earliest people did not have a written


T language. Instead, people learned things
by telling and listening to stories. How did
storytellers recall everything? Some drew
pictures on cave walls to help them remember.
Some made up chants to the rhythm of drums.
Other storytellers made belts or necklaces.
Colored threads, beads, and special knots
stood for different events.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. long-ago
drawings on A. which people A. Stories on
cave walls became Television
storytellers
B. why there B. Remembering
were no books B. beads on Stories Long
or magazines belts helped Ago
recall things
C. different ways C. Using Special
storytellers C. what kinds Knots
recalled events of stories
people told

Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources 35
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 28
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that best completes each sentence.

olphins usually work together


D as a team. They like to travel
in groups. Large groups are
called herds. Smaller groups
are known as pods. If a dolphin
is sick, others in the pod will
swim alongside of it. They help
the sick dolphin get to the water’s
surface so it can breathe. Dolphins
also work together to find food. And
when a mother dolphin looks for food,
others will care for its baby.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. how dolphins
work together A. what dolphins A. The Teamwork
do at school of Dolphins
B. helping out
mother B. different kinds B. Helping a Sick
dolphins of dolphins Dolphin

C. how dolphins C. how dolphins C. What Dolphins


act with travel in Look Like
people groups

36 Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 29
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that best completes each sentence.

ome people in Asia live in round tents called


S yurts. A yurt has a wooden frame that is
covered with felt. A yurt is good in the wind. Its
round shape causes winds to blow around and
away from it. The felt covering of a yurt keeps
out snow and rain. The felt also keeps in heat
given off from stoves inside the yurt. A yurt
is a comfortable home in the cool highlands
of Central Asia.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. different kinds
of homes A. what kind A. A Yurt’s Felt
around the of furniture Covering
world is in a yurt
B. Cooking in
B. where in B. how long it a Yurt
Asia people takes to set
live in tents up a yurt C. Staying Warm
called yurts in a Yurt
C. how a yurt’s
C. how a yurt shape helps
protects in wind
people from
the weather

Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources 37
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Practice Page 30
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that best completes each sentence.

here did the dandelion gets its


W name? Look carefully at the
leaves of this plant. They are jagged,
or toothlike. Some say the leaves look
like the tooth of a lion. In French the
phrase dent de lion means just that. If
you say dent de lion fast, it sounds like
dandelion in English. As for the yellow
flower of a dandelion, some people think
it looks like the fluffy mane of a lion!

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. the yellow
flower of the A. why people A. Don’t Pick the
dandelion think Dandelions
dandelions
B. where the are weeds B. The Word
word History of
dandelion B. how French Dandelion
comes from words are
spoken fast C. How Lions
C. why a lion’s Became
tooth looks C. what the Flowers
like a leaf term dent de
lion means

38 Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 31
Read the paragraph. Then fill in the bubble
that best completes each sentence.

isor is a robot. It can do a job that is


W difficult and dangerous for people.
Wisor is shaped something like a torpedo.
The robot works underground in New York
City. Wisor crawls through steam pipes to
find cracks and holes. Five cameras help
Wisor make its way through the twists and
turns of the pipes. Once Wisor finds a crack,
it cleans it out and welds it back together.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. five cameras
help Wisor A. how Wisor got A. Under New
its name York City
B. what Wisor is
and does B. how many B. A Crack in
miles of pipes the Pipes
C. jobs that are in the city
robots do well C. Wisor at Work
C. the robot is
shaped like a
torpedo

Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources 39
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 32
Read the paragraph. Then fill in the bubble
that best completes each sentence.

ylon is a kind of plastic. Like other plastics, nylon is made from


N crude oil. One of the most important uses of nylon is in making
clothing. Perhaps you are wearing something
made of nylon today. Nylon is also used
to make carpets. Where else will you
see nylon? It’s used in fishing nets
and in the small wheels found
in gears. A tennis racquet
also has nylon strings.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. information
about nylon A. nylon is used A. What Are You
for tennis Wearing?
B. carpets made racquet
from nylon strings B. Looking at
Nylon
C. the different B. rayon is also
uses of plastic a man-made C. Nylon Fishing
fabric Nets

C. racquet frames
were once
made of wood

40 Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 33
Read the paragraph. Then fill in the bubble
that best completes each sentence.

ost animals you see in cities are pets.


M You might also see some squirrels
in city parks. But if you visit Thailand,
watch out for monkeys. Many wild
monkeys moved into the city of
Lop Buri. There the monkeys are
troublemakers. They go into houses
and take things. On the street they snatch bags and eyeglasses.
How do people get their things back? They give food to the monkeys.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. squirrels live
in many A. chipmunks are A. Monkey
city parks another wild Trouble
animal found
B. monkeys in in cities B. Unusual
Lop Buri steal City Pets
eyeglasses B. the monkeys
in Lop Buri C. The Food
C. wild monkeys enter people’s Exchange
cause trouble homes
in Lop Buri
C. Thailand now
has fewer
forests than it
once did

Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources 41
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 34
Read the paragraph. Then fill in the bubble
that best completes each sentence.

family in Virginia plants a field of


A corn in the pattern of a maze. The
pattern for the maze is designed on a
computer. Then family members use the
maze map to make paths in the field.
They plant the corn around the paths.
By July the maze is ready for visitors. It
covers 15 acres! Visitors enjoy trying to
walk through it. If people get lost, they
hold up a flag for help.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. how
computers A. mazes have a A. Maze in a
are used long history Cornfield
for mazes
B. some people B. Fly a Flag
B. how a plant gardens for Help
cornfield as mazes
becomes a C. How to
maze C. the corn Plant Corn
maze is ready
C. why it’s fun to in July
walk through
a maze

42 Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Practice Page 35
Read the paragraph. Then fill in the bubble
that best completes each sentence.

arch is a good month to celebrate


M authors’ birthdays.You can begin
on March 2. That’s the day when Dr. Seuss
was born in 1904. March 11 is the birth
date of Ezra Jack Keats. Have you ever
read his book The Snowy Day? On March 12
you can celebrate the birthday of Virginia
Hamilton. One of her well-known books
is The People Could Fly: American Black
Folktales.

1. The main idea of 2. A detail that tells 3. The best title for
the paragraph is more about the this paragraph
main idea is would be
A. authors with
March A. how Dr. Seuss A. A Snowy Day
birthdays got started in March
writing
B. the birthday B. Happy
of Virginia B. ways to Birthday,
Hamilton celebrate an Authors
author’s
C. favorite birthday C. What to Read
children’s book in March
authors C. Ezra Jack
Keats was
born on
March 11

Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources 43
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Assessment 1

Read the paragraph. Circle the sentence that tells the main idea.
Then write a title that tells the main idea.

_______________________________________________
Title

ens have come a long way over time. The first pens were
P sticks with sharp points. Long-ago people used them
to draw messages on wet clay. The ancient Egyptians
made pens from hollow plant stems called reeds. They
dipped the reed pens in paint or ink. Later, people used
feathers called quills. Fountain pens were invented about 100 years
ago. More recently, ballpoints were developed.

Read the paragraph. Circle the sentence that tells the main idea.
Cross out the sentence that does NOT tell about the main idea.

eople use many slang terms when they talk about money. For
P example, a buck is a dollar bill. If you have two bits, you have a
quarter. A ten-dollar bill is sometimes called a sawbuck. A C-note is a
hundred-dollar bill. What is a thousand dollars? That’s a grand. A lot
of people use credit cards instead of cash. And a slang word for all
kinds of money is moolah.

44 Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Assessment 2

Read the paragraph. Circle the sentence that tells the main idea.
Then write a title that tells the main idea.

_______________________________________________
Title

ou have most likely seen pictures of log


Y cabins. The story of log cabins begins with
Swedish settlers in 1638. When the first Swedes
landed in America, they built houses that were
like those in Sweden. They fit together logs that had notched ends.
They used clay or moss to fill in any spaces. Then they added a roof.
These log houses were snug during cold winters and wet springs.

Read the paragraph. Circle the sentence that tells the main idea.
Cross out the sentence that does NOT tell about the main idea.

he United States holds many geography records. The world’s


T largest underground lake is in Tennessee. The world’s largest
canyon is in Arizona. The deepest canyon in the world is between
Idaho and Oregon. The first night baseball game took place in Ohio in
1935. The wettest place in the world is in Hawaii. And Utah has the
world’s longest natural bridge.

Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources 45
Identifying Main Idea & Details

Name Date
Assessment 3

Read the paragraph. Circle the sentence that tells the main idea.
Then write a title that tells the main idea.

_______________________________________________
Title

ats sleep upside down. They use their wings as


B blankets when they sleep. A fox curls up in a
furry ball and uses its bushy tail as a pillow. Turtles
head for the muddy bottom of a pond to doze. For a nap,
horses and elephants like to stand up. Birds have special muscles in
their legs. That way they can sleep standing on a branch and not fall
off. Animals have many different ways of sleeping.

Read the paragraph. Circle the sentence that tells the main idea.
Then write a title that tells the main idea.

_______________________________________________
Title

hree is an important number in many traditional stories. Most


T likely you have read “The Three Little Pigs.” You probably also
know the story “Goldilocks and the Three Bears.” Some tales are
about two brothers or sisters. In many stories a young man has to do
three tasks to win a princess. In other tales, such as “The Fisherman
and His Wife,” the main character is granted three wishes.

46 Reading Passages That Build Comprehension: Main Idea & Details © Linda Ward Beech, Scholastic Teaching Resources

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