Main Idea and Details Worksheets
Third graders find main ideas that aren't stated in the first sentence, choose the best title for a passage, and tell supporting details apart from true-but-off-topic ones. The umbrella test does the work: the main idea must cover everything underneath.
By grade
What students need to know
The main idea is what the whole passage is about, in one sentence. The details are the smaller facts that back it up.
This skill runs from 2nd grade through 5th grade. Pick a grade above for level-matched sentences, teaching notes, and worksheets.
Main Idea and Details across the grades
2nd Grade
The main idea is the one big thing a passage teaches; the details are the smaller facts that support it. Second graders read a short passage and pick the sentence that tells what the WHOLE thing is about, then match details to the job they do.
3rd Grade
Third graders find main ideas that aren't stated in the first sentence, choose the best title for a passage, and tell supporting details apart from true-but-off-topic ones. The umbrella test does the work: the main idea must cover everything underneath.
4th Grade
Fourth graders find the main idea of a passage where several paragraphs each add a different piece, and tell a supporting detail apart from one that is true but off the point. The main idea is the claim every paragraph works to support, stated in a full sentence.
5th Grade
Fifth graders determine a main idea that the author never states outright, then explain how specific details build toward it. They learn that a summary keeps the main idea and its key support while dropping the interesting-but-minor facts.