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Primary 3 · English · Literacy

Main idea and supporting details

Identifying what a paragraph is mostly about and the details that support it in short informative texts.

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These lessons were written around Australian Curriculum strands and matched to Singapore levels by age (Primary 1 is the first year of primary school). They are not aligned to MOE syllabuses or the PSLE, so check them against the syllabus your child is working towards.

Learning goals

Learners will

  • Identify the main idea of a paragraph in a short informative text.
  • Find the supporting details that tell more about the main idea.
  • Tell the difference between a detail that supports the main idea and one that does not belong.

Success looks like

  • I can say what a paragraph is mostly about in one sentence.
  • I can find at least two details that support the main idea.
  • I can spot a sentence that does not fit the main idea.

The big idea

Informative texts are organised into paragraphs. Each paragraph has a main idea: the one big thing it is mostly about. The other sentences are supporting details that give facts, examples or reasons about that main idea.

A useful picture is a table. The main idea is the tabletop, and the supporting details are the legs that hold it up.

Read this paragraph: 'Bees are very busy insects. They fly from flower to flower collecting nectar. They carry pollen on their legs back to the hive. Inside the hive, they turn nectar into honey. Some bees even guard the entrance to keep out intruders.'

The main idea is in the first sentence: bees are very busy insects. Every other sentence is a supporting detail that shows how busy bees are. A sentence that states the main idea is called a topic sentence. It is often, but not always, the first sentence.

To find the main idea, ask:

  • What is this paragraph mostly about?
  • Which sentence do all the others tell more about?
  • Could I give this paragraph a short heading?

Be careful not to choose a detail as the main idea. 'Bees carry pollen on their legs' is true, but it is only one part of the paragraph. The main idea should cover the whole paragraph.

Worked examples

Finding the main idea

Read: 'The community garden needs care every week. On Monday, volunteers water the plants. On Wednesday, they pull out weeds. On Friday, they check for ripe tomatoes.' What is the main idea?

  1. Ask: what are all the sentences about? Looking after the garden.
  2. Find the sentence the others tell more about: the first one.
  3. Check: watering, weeding and checking tomatoes are all ways of caring for the garden.

Answer: The community garden needs care every week.

Listing supporting details

List the supporting details in the garden paragraph.

  1. Leave out the topic sentence.
  2. Detail 1: On Monday, volunteers water the plants.
  3. Detail 2: On Wednesday, they pull out weeds.
  4. Detail 3: On Friday, they check for ripe tomatoes.

Answer: Watering on Monday, weeding on Wednesday and checking tomatoes on Friday: three supporting details.

Spotting a detail that does not belong

Which sentence does not belong? 'Dogs can be very helpful. Some dogs guide people who cannot see. Others help farmers round up sheep. My cousin has a green bike.'

  1. The main idea is that dogs can be very helpful.
  2. Guiding people and rounding up sheep are both ways dogs help.
  3. A green bike has nothing to do with helpful dogs.

Answer: 'My cousin has a green bike.' does not support the main idea.

Practice check

Have a go, then check your answers. Each answer comes with an explanation.

  1. 1.What is the main idea of the bee paragraph?
  2. 2.Which sentence is a supporting detail in the bee paragraph?
  3. 3.What would be the best heading for the garden paragraph?
  4. 4.Where is the topic sentence often found in a paragraph?
  5. 5.The main idea is 'Dogs can be very helpful.' Which detail does NOT support it?
  6. 6.In the bee paragraph, what do bees turn nectar into? Type one word.
  7. 7.How many supporting details are in the garden paragraph? Type a number.
  8. 8.In the bee paragraph, what do bees carry on their legs? Type one word.
Answer guide for parents

  1. What is the main idea of the bee paragraph?

    Bees are very busy insects. — Every sentence tells more about how busy bees are.

  2. Which sentence is a supporting detail in the bee paragraph?

    They fly from flower to flower collecting nectar. — Collecting nectar is one example of how busy bees are. 'Bees are very busy insects' is the main idea itself.

  3. What would be the best heading for the garden paragraph?

    Caring for the garden — The whole paragraph is about the weekly care of the garden.

  4. Where is the topic sentence often found in a paragraph?

    at the start — The topic sentence is often the first sentence, although not always.

  5. The main idea is 'Dogs can be very helpful.' Which detail does NOT support it?

    My neighbour's car is blue. — A blue car has nothing to do with dogs being helpful.

  6. In the bee paragraph, what do bees turn nectar into? Type one word.

    honey — 'Inside the hive, they turn nectar into honey.'

  7. How many supporting details are in the garden paragraph? Type a number.

    3 — Watering, weeding and checking tomatoes are the three supporting details.

  8. In the bee paragraph, what do bees carry on their legs? Type one word.

    pollen — 'They carry pollen on their legs back to the hive.'

Watch out for

  • Choosing an interesting detail as the main idea. The main idea must cover the whole paragraph, not one part.
  • Thinking the main idea is always the first sentence. It often is, but sometimes it comes at the end, or the reader has to put it into their own words.
  • Thinking every sentence in a paragraph must be important. Sometimes writers include a detail that does not belong, and good readers notice it.

Tips for parents

  • After reading a paragraph together, ask your child to tell you what it was mostly about in one sentence.
  • Use two highlighter colours: one for the main idea, another for the supporting details.
  • Practise with real-life texts such as a recipe introduction or a museum sign.

Go further

  • Cover the headings in a non-fiction book, read a section and invent your own heading. Then compare with the real one.
  • Write a paragraph about a favourite animal with one topic sentence and three supporting details.
  • Write a paragraph with one sneaky detail that does not belong, and challenge a family member to find it.

About 40 minutes

Make a lesson planAssign to my child

You'll need

  • The two paragraphs below, printed or copied out
  • Two highlighters or coloured pencils in different colours
  • A short non-fiction book or magazine article

Key words

main idea
What a paragraph is mostly about.
supporting detail
A fact or example that tells more about the main idea.
paragraph
A group of sentences about one idea.
topic sentence
A sentence, often the first, that states the main idea of a paragraph.
informative text
Writing that gives facts and information about a topic.
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