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Summarize to Identify the Main Idea

Tags

ELA: Reading K-8 Strategy

Skills

Flexible Thinking Organization Working Memory Verbal Reasoning Verbal Memory Abstract Reasoning

Summarize to Identify the Main Idea

If your student struggles to identify the main idea

Teach It!

  1. Objective: Students will develop their comprehension skills when they are given extra practice summarizing what they read.
  2. Model and Practice: a) Start with a simpler, shorter text so students develop confidence and the task feels manageable. Let students choose how they summarize: verbally, in writing, bullet points, or by drawing a picture. The emphasis should be on understanding, not on writing mechanics. b) Summaries should highlight the main idea and key details that supported the main idea. c) Model how to sequence the details in chronological order. d) Support students who might be losing the main idea by getting bogged down in too many details. Offer strategies on how to prioritize details as needed. e) Give advance notice if you will expect students to summarize. Encourage them to highlight or use sticky notes as they read to flag the information they will use in their summaries.

Why It Works (the Science Of Learning)!

Have students reflect on what they read in a structured way to help them think through what they understood, what they might have found unclear, and what was most important. Structuring their understanding for simpler texts will help them use structure when they read more complex material independently. This is called Generative Learning and has been shown to be highly effective for spatial as well as verbal tasks (Source: Fiorella and Mayer (2016))