How to Identify Main Idea

What is the main idea?
The main idea of a paragraph is the most important statement which the writer has presented to explain the topic. This statement is supported by the majority of sentences in the paragraph.
Where do I find the main idea?
The main idea is usually stated in the first sentence. It may also be stated in the last sentence or in the middle of a paragraph. Sometimes the writers do not state the main idea directly. You have to read the whole paragraph to find the topic and ask yourself, 'What is the most important idea the writer is trying to explain with regards to the topic?'

How do I find the main idea?
Study the following examples and discussions. Then, practise doing exercises about finding the main idea.




Example 1
Tension and anxiety are obstacles to effective learning. The ability to relax is just as important to success in school as the ability to read. Anxiety can cause students to forget chapters that they might have read, to 'go blank' at quiz time, or to fail to meet deadlines and to complete assignments on schedule. Anyone can learn to rid himself or herself or tension by resting the body, breathing deeply, and relaxing for three to four minutes before a test.

Establishing the Main Idea

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What Is It?

An important task of reading comprehension is to determine the importance and meanings of individual words, sentences, paragraphs, sections, chapters, and entire texts. Readers decipher the meanings of words within sentences, of sentences within paragraphs, and so on. As readers begin to grasp main ideas, they better understand the purpose of the details—which further strengthens their understanding of those main ideas.

In understanding the concept of a "main idea," it is useful to distinguish between the following terms: topic, main idea, theme, topic sentence, and purpose.

The topic of a text is the subject, or what the text is about. A topic can be expressed as a noun or a noun phrase. Some examples of topics include recycling, mammals, trees of New England, and names.

An idea is what you say about a topic. Ideas, including the main idea, are expressed as sentences. If someone asks you to identify the main idea of a passage and you respond with a single word, you haven't said enough; you've probably just identified the topic. Some examples of main ideas include:

Recycling is expensive in the short term, but yields long-term savings.
All mammals are the same in certain ways.
The trees of New England are the most beautiful in the world.
It's no fun when someone makes fun of your name.

A theme is an idea that is repeated throughout a text or collection of texts. For example, "the importance of family in shaping identity" is a theme that can be found throughout literature.

A topic sentence is the term used to identify the sentence in a paragraph that contains the main idea. Conventionally, the topic sentence is the first sentence in a paragraph, but not always. It can be at the beginning, the middle, or the end. While some paragraphs don't really have an easily identifiable topic sentence, some have more than one. (Which is the topic sentence in this paragraph?) Nevertheless, topic sentences are useful in determining the relationship between main ideas and supporting details.

For example, consider the following:

All mammals are the same in certain ways. They all have lungs, hair or fur, and the ability to nurse their young.

These two sentences obviously bear an important relationship: the first carries the main idea while the second supplies details that support the main idea.

Finally, we often define purpose as "what the author is trying to say"—as if an author is never quite capable of saying what he or she means. The work of reading comprehension is best understood as a joint enterprise between author and reader. Authors can't communicate properly by themselves. They need readers to understand them.

An author's purpose—or even the main idea—is not always obvious and is often open to interpretation. An author is expected to do his or her best to construct text in a way that readers will understand, and except in the case of certain kinds of mystery novels, we trust that an author will not try to trick us.

In expository prose (non-fiction), an author typically tries to make his or her ideas clear and explicit. Still, we filter even the most direct messages through our own experiences, knowledge, beliefs, and understanding of the meanings of particular words.

Reading fiction is more subjective because main ideas are seldom stated explicitly and are often intentionally hidden, as when they are filtered through the persona of an "untrustworthy narrator" like Nabokov's Humbert Humbert in Lolita.

" BE SMARTER "

GOLONGAN DARAH

Di Jepang, ada penelitian ttg karakter seseorang lebih ditentukan oleh golongan darah daripada zodiak atau shio. Kenapa? Katanya, golongan darah itu ditentukan oleh protein-protein tertentu yang membangun semua sel di tubuh kita dan oleh karenanya juga menentukan psikologi kita. Benar apa tidak?

SIFAT SECARA UMUM :
A : terorganisir, konsisten, jiwa kerja-sama tinggi, tapi selalu cemas(krn perfeksionis) yg kadang bikin org mudah sebel, kecenderungan
Politik : " Destra "

B : nyantai, easy going, bebas, dan paling menikmati hidup, kecenderungan politik: "sinistra"
O : berjiwa besar, supel, gak mau ngalah, alergi pada yg detil, kecenderungan politik: "centro"
AB: unik, nyleneh, banyak akal, berkepribadian ganda, kecenderungan politik > tidak tercantum

BERDASARKAN URUTAN :
Yg paling gampang ngaret soal waktu :
1 B (krn nyantai terus)
2 O (krn flamboyan)
3 AB (krn gampang ganti program)
4 A (krn gagal dalam disiplin

YG PALING SUSAH MENTOLERIR KESALAHAN ORG :
1 A (krn perfeksionis dan narsismenya terlalu besar)
2 B (krn easy going tapi juga easy judging)
3 AB (krn asal beda)
4 O (easy judging tapi juga easy pardoning

YG PALING BISA DI PERCAYA :
1 A (krn konsisten dan taat hukum)
2 O (demi menjaga balance)
3 B (demi menjaga kenikmatan hidup)
4 AB (mudah ganti frame of reference)

MENURUT SURVEY, GOL DARAH YG PALING DISUKAI UNT JADI TEMAN :
1 O (orangnya sportif)
2 A (selalu on time dan persis)
3 AB (kreatif)
4 B (tergantung mood)

KEBALIKAN NYA TEMAN YG PALING DISEBELIN/TIDAK DISUKAI ;
1 B (egois, easy come easy go, maunya sendiri)
2 AB (double standard)
3 A (terlalu taat dan scrupulous)
4 O (sulit mengala)

MENYANGKUT OTAK DAN KEMAMPUAN :
Yg paling mudah kesasar/tersesat
1 B
2 A
3 O
4 AB

YG PALING BANYAK MERAIH MEDALI DI OLIMPIADE OLAH RAGA:
1 O (jago olah raga)
2 A (persis dan matematis)
3 B (tak terpengaruh pressure dari sekitar. Hampir seluruh atlet judo, renang dan gulat jepang bergoldar B)
4 AB (alergi pada setiap jenis olah raga

YG PALING BANYAK JADI DIREKTUR DAN PEMIMPIN :
1 O (krn berjiwa leadership dan problem-solver)
2 A (krn berpribadi "minute" dan teliti)
3 B (krn sensitif dan mudah ambil keputusan)
4 AB (krn kreatif dan suka ambil resiko)

YG JADI PM JEPANG RATA2 BERGOLDAR;
1 O (berjiwa pemimpin)

MAHASISWATOKIYO UNIV PADA UMUMNYA BERGOL DARAH :
1 B
YG PALING GAMPANG NABUNG :
1 A (suka menghitung bunga bank)
2 O (suka melihat prospek)
3 AB (menabung krn punya proyek)
4 B (baru menabung kalau punya uang banyak)

YG PALING KUAT INGATAN NYA :
1 O
2 AB
3 A
4 B

YG PALING COCOKJADI MC :
1 A (kaya planner berjalan

MENYANGKUT KESEHATAN :
Yg paling panjang umur :
1 O (gak gampang stress, antibody nya paling joss!)
2 A (hidup teratur)
3 B (mudah cari kompensasi stress)
4 AB (amburadul)

YG PALING GAMPANG GENDUT ;
1 O (nafsu makan besar, makannya cepet lagi)
2 B (makannya lama, nambah terus, dan lagi suka makanan enak)
3 A (hanya makan apa yg ada di piring, terpengaruh program diet)
4 AB (Makan tergantung mood, mudah kena anoressia)

YG PALING GAMPANG DIGIGIT NYAMUK :
1 O (darahnya manis)

YG PALING GAMPANG FLU/DEMAM/BATUK/PILEK ;
1 A (lemah terhadap virus dan pernyakit menular)
2 AB (lemah thd hygiene)
3 O (makan apa saja enak atau nggak enak)
4 B (makan, tidur nggak teratur)

APA YG DIBUAT PADA ACARA MAKAN2 DI SEBUA PESTA :
O (banyak ngambil protein hewani, pokoknya daging2an)
A (ngambil yg berimbang. 4 sehat 5 sempurna)
B (suka ambil makanan yg banyak kandungan airnya spt soup, soto, baksodsb)
AB (hobby mencicipi semua masakan, "aji mumpung")

YG PALING CEPAT BOTAK :
1 O
2 B
3 A
4 AB

YG TIDURNYA PALING NYENYAK DAN SUSAH DIBANGUNIN :
1 B (tetap mendengkur meski ada Tsunami)
2 AB (jika lagi mood, sleeping is everything)
3 A (tidur harus 8 jam sehari, sesuai hukum)
4 O (baru tidur kalau benar2 capek dan membutuhkan)

YG PALING CEPAT TERTIDUR :
1 B (paling mudah ngantuk, bahkan sambil berdiripun bisa tertidur)
2 O (Kalau lagi capek dan gak ada kerjaan mudah kena ngantuk)
3 AB (tergantung kehendak)
4 A (tergantung aturan dan orario)

PENYAKIT YG MUDAH MENYERANG :
A (stress, majenun/linglung)
B (lemah terhadap virus influenza, paru-paru)
O (gangguan pencernaan dan mudah kena sakit perut)
AB (kanker dan serangan jantung, mudah kaget)

APA YG PERLU DIANJURKAN AGAR TETEP SEHAT :
A (Krn terlalu perfeksionis maka nyantailah sekali-kali, gak usah terlalu tegang dan serius)
B (Krn terlalu susah berkonsentrasi, sekali-kali perlu serius sedikit, meditasi, main catur)
O (Krn daya konsentrasi tinggi, maka perlu juga mengobrol santai, jalan-jalan)
AB (Krn gampang capek, maka perlu cari kegiatan yg menyenangkan dan bikin lega).

YG PALING SERING KECELAKAAN LALU LINTAS (BERDASARKAN DATA KEPOLISIHAN)
1 A
2 B
3 O
4 AB