What is the Main Topic? Activity
This main topic activity has 1st and 2nd grade students read short articles and match cards to find the main topic and the focus of each paragraph. Answer key included.
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About this resource
Description
Finding the main topic is one of the first big steps in reading for meaning, and this main topic activity gives 1st and 2nd grade students a hands-on way to practice it. Students read short nonfiction articles, decide what each whole article is all about, and then find the focus of every paragraph.
The What’s the Main Topic? pack includes three original articles about sea turtles, apples and pumpkins, each with three numbered paragraphs and a big picture. Students match a Main Topic card to each article and a Paragraph card to each paragraph, then record their answers on the Main Topic Map. A few extra cards fit no article, so students must read closely instead of guessing. Use it at a reading center, in a small group, or with a partner.
What’s Included
- A colorful cover and a How to Use page
- Three short articles with numbered paragraphs
- 12 Paragraph cards and 4 Main Topic cards
- A Main Topic Map recording sheet
- A 2nd grade practice worksheet: read a text about penguins and answer three questions
- Answer keys for the Main Topic Map and the practice page
Why This Main Idea Activity Helps Kids
First, students learn the difference between the main topic of a whole text and the focus of one paragraph, a skill they will use in every nonfiction book. Second, sorting cards keeps young readers active and talking about what they read. Third, the extra cards that match nothing teach students to check their thinking against the text.
Ideas for Teachers and Parents
Read a nonfiction picture book aloud and stop after each page to ask what that page is mostly about. Have students write their own three-paragraph article about a favorite animal and trade with a partner to find the main topic. Use this main topic activity again later in the year as a quick review.
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