Identifying the Main Idea Flashcards
7 cards from real OSSLT practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Identifying the Main Idea flashcards as text
A short story follows a teenager who struggles to join a sports team, fails twice, but persists and succeeds on the third try. What is the main idea?
Answer: Persistence in the face of failure leads to eventual success.
The repeated failure and ultimate success convey the story's central message about the value of perseverance.
A passage has five sentences. Four discuss benefits of reading, and one mentions the cost of books. What is the main idea?
Answer: Reading has many advantages worth celebrating.
Four of the five sentences support benefits of reading, so that is the dominant and central idea of the passage.
An OSSLT reading selection about a scientist ends with: 'Her discoveries changed medicine forever.' How does this sentence function in the passage?
Answer: It restates or reinforces the main idea as a conclusion.
A strong concluding sentence often restates the main idea, summarizing the significance of everything discussed.
A graphic text is a poster showing steps for hand-washing with brief labels. What is the main idea of this graphic text?
Answer: Proper hand-washing technique involves specific sequential steps.
The poster's purpose is to teach the correct procedure for hand-washing, which is the central idea conveyed by the steps and labels.
Which answer choice would be too broad to serve as the main idea of a short passage about recycling plastic bottles?
Answer: Environmental responsibility is important for everyone.
A statement about all of environmental responsibility is too general to be the main idea of a passage specifically about recycling plastic bottles.
A passage about Canadian winters describes heavy snowfall, road closures, and school cancellations. What is the main idea?
Answer: Severe winter weather significantly disrupts daily life in Canada.
All three details—snow, road closures, and school cancellations—illustrate how winter weather disrupts normal routines.
A student reads a passage and writes: 'This passage is about dogs.' A teacher says the summary is too vague. What should the student add?
Answer: What specific point about dogs the passage is making
A useful main idea statement identifies the topic AND what specific claim or point the passage makes about that topic.