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    Handout Reading IV-5-6

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    allysazheria
    The passage provides information about identifying and answering main idea questions when reading comprehension passages. It outlines that main idea questions can generally be identified by asking about the topic or subject of the passage. The answer is often found in the first sentence of each paragraph and looks for a common theme. To answer, the first lines of each paragraph should be read to find the topic sentence and check that it reflects the overall main idea.

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    Handout Reading IV-5-6

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    allysazheria
    37 views2 pages
    The passage provides information about identifying and answering main idea questions when reading comprehension passages. It outlines that main idea questions can generally be identified by asking about the topic or subject of the passage. The answer is often found in the first sentence of each paragraph and looks for a common theme. To answer, the first lines of each paragraph should be read to find the topic sentence and check that it reflects the overall main idea.

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    Handout Reading IV-5-6

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    The passage provides information about identifying and answering main idea questions when reading comprehension passages. It outlines that main idea questions can generally be identified by asking about the topic or subject of the passage. The answer is often found in the first sentence of each paragraph and looks for a common theme. To answer, the first lines of each paragraph should be read to find the topic sentence and check that it reflects the overall main idea.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    37 views2 pages

    Handout Reading IV-5-6

    Uploaded by

    allysazheria
    The passage provides information about identifying and answering main idea questions when reading comprehension passages. It outlines that main idea questions can generally be identified by asking about the topic or subject of the passage. The answer is often found in the first sentence of each paragraph and looks for a common theme. To answer, the first lines of each paragraph should be read to find the topic sentence and check that it reflects the overall main idea.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    of 2

    158 READINGCOMPREHENSION

    The following charl outlines the kev information that you should remember about
    main idea questions.

    MAIN IDEA QUESTIONS


    HOW TO IDENTIFY What is the topic of the possage?
    THE QUESTION What is the subject of this passage?
    What is the main idea of the passageT
    What is the author's main point in the passage?
    With what is the author primarily concerned?
    Which of the followinq would be the best title?

    WHERE TO FIND The answer to this type of question can generally be determined
    THE ANSWER by looking at the first sentence of each paragraph.

    HOW TO ANSWER
    '1. Read the first line of each paragraph.
    THE QUESTION
    2. Look for a common theme or idea in the first lines.
    3. Pass your eyes quickly over the rest of the passage to check
    that you really have found the topic sentence(s).
    4. Eliminate any definitely wrong answers and choose the best
    answer from the remaininq choices.

    TOEFL EXERCISE 1: Studv each of the passages, and choose the best answers to
    the questions that follow. In this exercise, each paragraph is follorved bv rrlo main
    idea, topic, or title questions so that voll can practice this type of question. On
    the TOEFL test, one passage u,ould probably not have trvo such questions because
    thev are so similar.

    PASSAGE ONE (Qtrcstions 1*2)


    Most of the ice on the Earth, ciose to 90 pelcent of it, is covering the surface of the
    continent Antarctica. It does not snow very much in Antarctica, but vnhatever snow does
    fall remains and grorvs deeper and deeper. In some areas o{'Antarctica, the ice has perhaps
    been around for as much as a million vears ancl norv is more than two miles deep.

    1. The main iclea of the passage is that 2. 'f he best title for the passage is
    (A) the Earth is a cold planet (A) Snorvfall in Antarctica
    (B) most of the Earlh s ice is found in (B) The Ic1' Earth
    Antarctica (C) The Cold, Cold Snor,r,
    (C) it snows more in Antarctica than (D) The Cattses of Antarctica's Ice
    in anv other place on E,arth Pack
    (D) Antarctica is onlv trvo nriles rvide
    but is 90 oercent ice
    READING COMPREHENSION t)v

    PASSAGE T1,l!O (Que.stiorts 3-4)


    'fhe ertrenlelv hot irncl htrmid weather that occurs in the Unitecl States in
    Julv ancl
    August is commonh'called the "dog da1''s" o[ sumrner. This name comes from the star
    Sir-ir.rs, u'hich is knt>rt'n as the Dog Star. Sirius is the brightest visible stzr4 and in the hot
    Lirte summer monlhs it rises in the east at approximately the same time as the Sun. As
    (.5) ancient people sar,u'this star rising r,iith the Sun u,hen the rveather was at its hottest,
    thev be'lieved tl"rat Sirius rt'as tlre cause of the additional heat; ther,'belier-ed that this
    bright star added i1s heat to the heat of the Sun, and these tu,o together macle summer
    u'eathc-r' .so unbearabl', hot.

    3. The topic of this passage is 4. The main idea of this passage is that
    (A) horv dogs like to plzw'dr"rring the (A) the name for the sunrmer davs
    sunlffler carne fror-n Sirius, tlre Dog Star
    (B) the callses ol'hot and hrrmid (B) dogs generallv prefer hot sumnrer
    r,'u,eathet' cla.\,s
    (C) rvhv the hot sumlner dar.s are (c) the l-rottest da'us occur- in the
    knon'n as the "dog davs" sllmmer because oltthe
    (D) the davs that dogs pr-efer movements of the Strn and
    stars
    (D) Sirir.rs rises at almost the same
    time as the Sun during the
    sunlmer rrronths

    PA.SS.IGE THREE (Questions 5-6)


    The term "primitive art" has been used in a varietv of r,r,al,s to describe rvorks ancl
    stvles rlf at't. One 'u'n'al that this term has been usecl is to describe the earlv pc.riocl u,itlrin
    the development of a cet'tain st1'le of art. Another \\'av that this term has been usecl is to
    Line dc'scribe at'tists rvho hale rcceivecl little professional training and u,ho demonstrate a
    (5) nontraditional naivete in their u'ork.
    A u'onderfttl example' of this second trpe of primitive artist is Grandma Moses, l,lrc->
    spent all herr Iifc living on a farm and wnrking at tasks normallv associated rvith t'arnr
    liFe. She did not begin paintir-r-e until she reached the age of ser,entv-sir. rvhen she
    sr,i'itched to painting ll-om embloiderv because the ar-tl'rritis in her hands macle
    (10) embroiden'too difficult. Totalh'without formal education in art, she began creating
    panclranlic images of everydav life on the farm that have achieved international fame.

    5. The strbject of this passage is 6. Which of the {ollou'ing best expresses


    (A) an example of one of the 11,pes of the main idea of the passage?
    primitive art (A) Grandma Moses spent her life on
    (B) Grandma Mosesi life on the t-arm a farnr.
    (C) horv primitive art differs from (B) Art critics cannot come to anv
    formal art agl'eement on a definition of
    (D) Grandrna Moses's prinriti vc primitir,'e ar-1,.
    Ii festr4e (C) Grandma Moses is one tvpe of
    plirnitive artist because of hcr
    lack of for-mal trnining.
    (D) Manv arlists rc.cciver little
    prolcss ion:il training.

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