CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.2
The Standard
Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea.
Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts · Reading Standards for Informational Text
What This Standard Means
Students need to read an informational text, figure out the big point the author wants them to understand, and retell the details that matter most. They also need to explain why those details belong, not just list interesting facts.
Mastery looks like a student saying, “The author mostly teaches that bees help plants grow,” then naming facts about pollination, flower visits, and food crops. Students often get stuck picking a topic instead of a main idea, choosing tiny facts, or copying the first sentence without checking the whole text.
Ways to Teach It
- Hands-on activity: Give students three article strips and have them sort sentence cards into main idea, supporting detail, and extra fact piles.
- Prompt: After reading a short passage, write, “The main idea is ___ because the text says ___, ___, and ___.”
- Quick assessment: Use a one-paragraph article and ask students to circle the main idea sentence and underline two supporting details.
- Real-world connection: Read a school lunch menu note or weather alert and ask what the main message is and which details prove it.
Plan a Lesson for CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.2
Generate a complete lesson plan aligned to this standard, with objectives, activities, and materials. Free, no account needed.
Related Standards
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.1.2
Identify the main topic and retell key details of a text.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.CCRA.R.2
Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.2
Determine the main idea of a text and explain how it is supported by key details; summarize the text.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.5.2
Determine two or more main ideas of a text and explain how they are supported by key details; summarize the text.