Three big ideas for understanding text
When you finish reading, you should be able to answer, “What was the most important idea?” Depending on what you read, the answer is either a main idea or a theme, and both are backed up by supporting details.
- Main idea: the most important point in an informational text (or paragraph).
- Theme: the message or life lesson in a story, poem or play.
- Supporting details: the evidence that explains or proves the main idea or theme.
Topic vs. main idea
The topic is the subject, often just a word or two. The main idea is a full sentence about what the author says about that topic.
- Topic: Volcanoes
- Main idea: Volcanoes can be destructive, but they also create new land and rich soil.
To turn a topic into a main idea, ask: “What is the author saying about this topic?”
Finding the main idea
When it is stated
Often the main idea is in a topic sentence, usually the first or last sentence of a paragraph. Headings and titles also give strong hints.
When it is implied
Sometimes the main idea is implied, meaning not stated directly. Then you must:
- List the important details.
- Ask what they have in common.
- Write one sentence that covers all of them.
The Arctic fox’s fur turns white in winter. The snowshoe hare grows big, furry feet. Polar bears have a thick layer of fat.
Implied main idea: Arctic animals have special features that help them survive the cold.
What is a theme?
A theme is the message about life that a story teaches. It is not about the characters only; it is about people in general.
- Not a theme: Lily learns to share her toys. (That is the plot.)
- A theme: Sharing with others brings happiness.
Themes are universal. They apply to many people, times and places. That is why very different stories can share the same theme.
Common themes
- Friendship is more valuable than winning.
- Honesty is the best policy.
- Hard work leads to success.
- Be proud of who you are.
- Kindness can change people.
- Greed leads to trouble.
Topic word vs. theme statement
Friendship is a theme topic. A theme statement is a full sentence: True friends stand by you in hard times.
How to find a theme
Themes are almost always implied. Use these questions:
- What problem does the main character face?
- How does the character respond and change?
- What does the character learn by the end?
- What does the author want me to learn about life?
Then write a sentence that could apply to anyone, not just the character.
Example: The Tortoise and the Hare
- Problem: the slow tortoise races the fast hare.
- What happens: the hare brags and naps; the tortoise keeps going.
- Lesson: the steady tortoise wins.
- Theme: Slow and steady effort can beat talent without effort.
Supporting details
Supporting details prove or explain the main idea or theme.
- In informational text: facts, statistics, examples, definitions and reasons.
- In stories: key events, character actions, dialogue and changes that show the theme.
Not every detail is important. Ask: “Does this detail help prove the main idea or theme?” If not, it is an interesting detail but not a supporting one.
Worked example: informational text
Bees are important to people and the planet. When bees travel from flower to flower, they carry pollen, which helps plants make fruits and seeds. About one third of the food we eat depends on pollinators like bees. Bees also make honey and beeswax. Sadly, bee populations are shrinking because of habitat loss and pesticides.
- Topic: Bees
- Main idea: Bees are important to people and the planet.
- Supporting details: they pollinate plants; a third of our food depends on them; they make honey and beeswax.
- The last sentence about shrinking populations is related, but it introduces a new idea that the next paragraph probably develops.
Worked example: story
Jayden wanted to win the science fair so badly that he copied a project from the internet. He won first prize, but every time he looked at the ribbon he felt sick. Finally, he told his teacher the truth. She was disappointed, but she let him enter next year with his own project. That project only won third place, but Jayden was prouder of it than anything.
- Theme: Honest work is more satisfying than winning by cheating.
- Supporting details: he felt sick looking at the ribbon; he confessed; he was prouder of his honest third place.
Common mistakes
- Giving the topic instead of the main idea. Bees is not a main idea.
- Choosing a detail as the main idea. Bees make honey is too narrow.
- Writing a plot summary instead of a theme. Themes are about life, not just the story.
- Writing a theme that is too specific. Jayden shouldn’t cheat at science fairs should become Honesty matters more than winning.
- Making up a theme with no evidence. Support it with details from the text.
Try it yourself
- Topic, main idea or detail? Penguins cannot fly. / Penguins. / Penguins are birds well adapted to cold oceans.
- Write the implied main idea: Recycling saves trees. It reduces garbage in landfills. It saves energy used to make new products.
- A story tells about a girl who is teased for her unusual clothes but keeps wearing them, and later others start copying her style. What is a possible theme?
Answers: 1. Detail; topic; main idea. 2. Recycling helps protect the environment. 3. Be true to yourself, even when others disagree.
Study tip
After reading, write the main idea or theme on a sticky note and list three supporting details under it. If you cannot find three, your main idea may be too narrow or too broad.
Quick recap
- The topic is the subject; the main idea is what the author says about it.
- A theme is the life lesson of a story, stated as a full sentence.
- Main ideas and themes can be stated or implied.
- Supporting details prove or explain the main idea or theme.
- Themes are universal and must be supported with evidence.