Finding main idea 10 ppsx

L
ike an architect designing a building, a writer must have a blueprint—a plan for how he or she will
organize the passage. So far in this section, we’ve looked at several ways that authors may organize
their information and ideas:
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Lesson 6: Chronological order. Ideas are arranged in the order in which they occurred (or in the order in
which they should occur).
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Lesson 7: Order of importance. Ideas are arranged in order of increasing importance (least important idea
to most important idea) or in order of decreasing importance (most important idea to least important idea).
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Lesson 8: Compare and contrast. Ideas are arranged so that parallel aspects of item A and item B are com-
pared and contrasted either in block style (AAAABBBB) or point-by-point style (ABABABAB).
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Lesson 9: Cause and effect. Ideas are arranged so that readers can see what event or series of events caused
something to take place or what effect an event or series of events had.
LESSON
Being
Structurally
Sound: Putting
It All Together
LESSON SUMMARY
Today’s lesson pulls together what you’ve learned in Lessons 6–9 and
gives you more practice in discerning the structure of a reading
passage.
10
81

Practice
Although writers often rely on one particular structure
to organize their ideas, in many cases, writers use a

combination of these structures. For example, a writer
may want to compare and contrast the causes of World
War I and those of World War II; or a writer may want
to describe, in chronological order, the events that led
to (caused) the failure of the computer system. Thus,
today we will look at how writers may combine these
strategies. In addition, we’ll continue to strengthen
your reading comprehension skills by including strate-
gies from the first week:
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Finding the facts
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Determining the main idea
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Defining vocabulary words in context
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Distinguishing between fact and opinion
Practice Passage 1
Begin with the following paragraph. Read it carefully,
marking it up as you go. Then answer the questions
that follow.
If any of the terms or strategies on the
previous page seem unfamiliar to you,
STOP. Please take a few moments to
review whatever lesson is unclear.
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82
There were several reasons behind our decision to move to Flemington. The first
occurred about 18 months ago when Mark and I decided to start a family. We
were living in a one-bedroom apartment and we knew that we wanted to move

into larger quarters before we had a baby. We began to look at houses. Then,
much sooner than expected, I got pregnant. Soon after that, Mark’s company
announced that they were relocating to Flemington, which was in a less expen-
sive part of the state, about 90 miles south of us. Mark’s company had been good
to him, and they were one of the few around with excellent benefits, family-
friendly policies, and a child-care center on site. With a baby on the way, these
things were imperative for us. Since I ran my graphic arts business from home,
I wasn’t bound to any particular place, so we began looking at real estate in Flem-
ington and also did some research on their school system as well as the overall
community. We were very excited about what we found—reasonable housing
costs, great schools, and a lively town. Mark then accepted the relocation offer
and we found a beautiful old Tudor house. We’ll be moving about a month before
the baby is due. Let’s hope she doesn’t decide to come early.
1. Which two organizational strategies does this
writer use?
a. chronological order
b. order of importance
c. compare and contrast
d. cause and effect
2. Imperative means
a. trivial, unimportant.
b. luxurious, lavish.
c. pressing, crucial.
3. What prompted the initial decision to move?
4. What happened after the initial cause set things
in motion?
a.
b.
c.
d.

e.
f.
Answers
1. a, d. The writer tells you the causes, in the order of
which they occurred, that resulted in her move to
Flemington.
2. c. The sentence before the one that uses the word
imperative is describing the attractive family-
friendly benefits that Mark’s company offers. And
since we know that the writer is pregnant, it would
make sense that these benefits would be pressing
or crucial for her, as opposed to the other two
options.
3. The decision to begin a family sparked the initial
desire to move.
4. After the writer and her husband decided to start
a family, the following events occurred in this
order:
a. They began to look at houses.
b. The writer got pregnant.
c. Mark’s company announced plan to relocate.
d. The couple began researching real estate,
schools, and community life in Flemington.
e. Mark accepted the relocation offer.
f. They found a house.
How did you do? Were you able to see how each
cause led to an effect, and how that effect caused some-
thing else to happen (another effect)? If you missed any
of the questions, here’s what you should do:
IF YOU MISSED: THEN STUDY:

Question 1 Lessons 6 and 9
Question 2 Lesson 3
Question 3 Lesson 9
Question 4 Lesson 9
Practice Passage 2
Now try the passage on the next page. Again, read it
carefully, marking it up as you go, and then answer the
questions that follow.
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83
There are several changes in the procedure for employees who wish to apply for
vacant positions within the company. These changes make it much easier for in-
house employees to fill vacancies that occur.
First, the most important difference is that employees will now be notified
of all available positions before the positions are advertised for the general pub-
lic. Accordingly, all in-house candidates will be interviewed before we see any out-
side candidates, and we will offer the job to outside candidates only if no current
employees are able to fill the position.
Second, under the new procedure, in-house employees can be hired even
if they don’t meet all job requirements. Under our old policy, in-house employ-
ees had to meet all job qualifications in order to obtain the vacant position. Now,
however, employees who have proven themselves dedicated to the company
will be hired for a vacant position even if they are lacking some minor qualifi-
cations; training will be provided.
A third change involves recommendations. From now on, employees do not
need to be recommended for an in-house position before they apply. Instead,
employees may apply as soon as they are aware of the vacancy. The remaining pro-
cedures and policies (those regarding increase in pay, interview procedure, and
hiring approval) remain the same.
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84
5. Which two organizational strategies does this
writer use?
a. chronological order
b. order of importance
c. compare and contrast
d. cause and effect
6. The author organizes his ideas in order of
a. decreasing importance (most important to
least important).
b. increasing importance (least important to
most important).
7. Underline the sentence in this passage that
expresses the main idea.
8. The sentence you underlined is a(n)
a. fact.
b. opinion.
Answers
5. b, c. The author uses order of importance in com-
paring the old procedure to the new one.
6. a. The author organizes his ideas in order of
decreasing importance. He starts with the most
important change (“First, the most important dif-
ference is . . .”) and moves downward to the second
and third most important changes.
7. The sentence that expresses the main idea of all
four paragraphs is the second sentence in the first
paragraph: “These changes make it much easier
for in-house employees to fill vacancies.”Although
the first sentence tells us what all the paragraphs

will be about (the changes in the procedure), it is
the second sentence that expresses an opinion—
how the author feels about this subject—and
therefore, it is the main idea.
8. b. This sentence expresses an opinion, not a fact.
There have indeed been changes—that is a fact—
but whether those changes make things easier for
most employees is debatable. There may be some
things about the old procedure that we don’t know.
Perhaps, for example, they opened the job to both
in-house employees and the general public at the
same time, but they interviewed all in-house
employees first anyway. Because of our limited
information about the old procedure, we cannot
accept the idea that the change is better as fact.
If you missed some of these questions, now it’s up
to you to figure out which lessons to review.
Practice Passage 3
Now it’s your turn. In this exercise, you’ll take a para-
graph that is organized one way—by cause and effect—
and add another structure: order of importance.
Here’s what you should do: Reread the two para-
graphs about mandatory school uniforms. Decide
which author you agree with most. Then, look carefully
at the effects the author predicts. Which effect do you
think is most important? Which is least important?
Rank these effects in order of importance. Then, decide
whether you want to start with the most important
idea and end with the least important, or vice versa,
start with the least important idea and end with the

most important. Finally, put it all together in a para-
graph in the space provided.
Paragraph A
Mandatory school uniforms are a bad deci-
sion for our district. If students are required to wear
a uniform, it will greatly inhibit their ability to
express themselves. This is a problem because dress
is one of the major ways that young people express
themselves. A school uniform policy also directly
violates the freedom of expression that all Americans
are supposed to enjoy. Consequently, young people
will doubt that their basic rights are protected, which
will affect their larger outlook on civil liberties. Fur-
thermore, school uniforms will interfere with the
wearing of certain articles of religious clothing, and
this will create tensions among certain religious
groups that can lead to feelings of discrimination. In
addition, school uniforms will place an undue finan-
cial burden on many low-income families who may
not have the money to spend on new uniforms every
year, especially if they have several children. Finally,
school uniforms will negate one of the most
important concepts we can teach our children—
individuality. When push comes to shove, we’d all be
better off choosing individuality over uniformity.
Mandatory school uniforms are a step in the wrong
direction.
Paragraph B
Mandatory school uniforms will have a
tremendously positive impact on our district. If stu-

dents are required to wear a uniform, it will greatly
inhibit gang behavior since they will no longer be
able to wear gang colors. As a result, schools will
experience an overall decrease in school violence
and theft. Since violence is one of the major concerns
that parents, teachers, and students raise about our
district, this change will be welcomed with open
arms. In addition, school uniforms will instill a
much-needed sense of discipline in our student
body, and discipline is something that is, unfortu-
nately, in short supply in our school district. Also,
students dressed in uniforms will feel a strong sense
of community with their peers, which will lead to a
more harmonious school environment. Finally, if
students were wearing school uniforms, adminis-
trators and teachers would no longer have to be
clothing police, freeing them to focus on more
important issues than whether someone is wearing
a dress that is too short or a T-shirt with an inap-
propriate message. You can make our schools a bet-
ter place by supporting mandatory school uniforms.
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85
1. Rank the ideas of the paragraph you have chosen
in order of their importance to you.
2. Now write a paragraph, choosing whether to put
the ideas in the order of increasing importance
or decreasing importance.
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86

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Look again at the passages you read in Lessons 1–5. What structures do you notice at work in those
paragraphs?
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As you read (and write) during the next few days, be aware of the structure of each paragraph you come
across. Try to identify the author’s strategy; try to use different strategies in your own writing.
Skill Building until Next Time