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1st grade · English Language Arts · Unit 11 of 19

Think It Through

Main idea, details and clues

What your child practices

Reading a short story, finding the main idea and details, and using clues to work out what is not said.

New York State Learning Standards learning standard: 1R1; 1R2 · finding the main topic and using details in a text

How we explain it

Children can open this short lesson before they practice.

  1. Details are small facts in the story.
  2. Look back at the words to find them.
  3. Use clues to guess what will happen next.

Example: Priya gets the dog’s leash. What will she likely do next? A leash is for taking a dog on a walk. She will take the dog outside. Answer: take the dog outside

Think It Through in New York

In the New York State Learning Standards, this is unit 11 of 19 in 1st grade English Language Arts, after Kinds of Sentences and before Messages All Around.

Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.

Source: New York State Education Department (NYSED)

Sample questions

A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.

  1. Question 1

    What did Ravi do?

    Ravi's sister was crying.

    Her balloon floated up into the sky.

    Ravi gave her a big hug.

    • He popped a balloon.
    • He hugged her.
    • He ran away.

  2. Question 2

    How did Ravi most likely feel?

    Ravi's sister was crying.

    Her balloon floated up into the sky.

    Ravi gave her a big hug.

    • angry
    • kind and caring
    • bored

  3. Question 3

    Why was Ravi's sister crying?

    Ravi's sister was crying.

    Her balloon floated up into the sky.

    Ravi gave her a big hug.

    • She was hungry.
    • Her balloon floated away.
    • She lost her shoe.

  4. Question 4

    What is the main idea?

    Lena filled the bowl with seeds.

    She hung it from the tree.

    Soon a chickadee came to eat.

    • Lena feeds the birds.
    • Lena plants a tree.
    • Lena goes to bed.

  5. Question 5

    What do we know about the chickadee?

    Lena filled the bowl with seeds.

    She hung it from the tree.

    Soon a chickadee came to eat.

    • It is afraid of Lena.
    • It likes seeds.
    • It is sleepy.

  6. Question 6

    Where did Lena hang the bowl?

    Lena filled the bowl with seeds.

    She hung it from the tree.

    Soon a chickadee came to eat.

    • on a fence
    • in a tree
    • on a door

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