Build Mastery: Main Idea
From FreeReading
| Lesson Type: | Build Mastery |
| Grade: | K, 1, 2, 3 |
| Group Size: | Individual, Pair, Small Group |
| Length: | 15 minutes |
| Goal: | Given a book, students will determine its main idea by asking themselves questions about its content. |
Materials: Fictional leveled readers, copies of the Questioning: 5W’s graphic organizer (print here) for each student
What to Do
Prepare
Make copies of the Questioning: 5W’s graphic organizer for each student. Make a large version of the Questioning: 5W’s graphic organizer on the board or chart paper.
Model/Instruct
1. Explain the lesson.
Today we will apply what we have learned about finding the main idea to a book. You will choose a leveled reader and complete a chart while you read.
2. Show your students how to complete the Questioning: 5W’s graphic organizer.
You will fill in the boxes for each of the five W questions: Who, When, Where, What, and Why. In the Who? box, you will write who is important in your book. In the When? box, you will write when your book takes place. In the Where? box, you will write where your book takes place. In the What? box, you will write what is going on in your book. In the Why? box, you will write why the important thing in your book is happening.
After you have filled in the boxes, write the main idea at the bottom of your paper.
Practice
3. Students read the book and complete the Questioning: 5W’s graphic organizer.
4. Make sure that students have chosen appropriate leveled readers and monitor their completion of the graphic organizers.
5. Discuss how using the five W’s helps determine the main idea. Ask students questions like:
Now that you have thought about the five W’s, what do you think the overall idea of this book is? What is this book about? What is the main idea of this book?
Adjust
For Advanced Students:
Ask these students to add an additional box with the question How? on their graphic organizers. After they complete the worksheet, encourage them to think about the helpfulness of the How? box in determining the main idea.
For Struggling Students:
These students may need explicit instruction to connect the five questions to the main idea of the book. Encourage them to use the five questions to think about the overall idea of the book. You can pair them with other students who read the same book and ask them to share their thoughts about the main idea with a partner.
For ELL Students:
These students may need help understanding the five questions. Make sure students understand what information to record in each box before they think about the main idea of the book.
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