Grasping the Main Idea Hide Tools
The first thing you must be able to do to get at the main idea of a paragraph is to identify the topic - the subject of the
paragraph. Think of the paragraph as a wheel with the topic being the hub - the central core around which the whole wheel
(or paragraph) spins. (A) Your strategy for topic identification is simply to ask yourself the question, "What is this about?" Keep
asking yourself that question as you read a paragraph, until the answer to your question becomes clear.(B) Sometimes you can
spot the topic by looking for a word or two that repeat. Usually you can state the topic in a few words. (9 Let us try this topic-
finding strategy. (D) Reread the first paragraph on this page - the first paragraph under the heading Grasping the Main Idea
Ask yourself the question, "What is this paragraph about?" To answer, say to yourself in your mind, "The author keeps talking
about paragraphs and the way they are designed. This must be the topic - paragraph organization. Reread the second
paragraph of the same section. Ask yourself "What is this paragraph about?' Did you say to yourself, "This paragraph is about
different ways to organize a paragraph? That is the topic. Next, reread the third paragraph and see if you can find the topic of
the paragraph. How? Write the topic in the margin next to this paragraph. Remember, getting the main idea of a paragraph is
crucial to reading
When a paragraph contains two main ideas, it should be divided into two paragraphs. Choose the letter at the point where the
passage should be divided.