Informational Texts Part 1

Informational Texts Part 1

Identifying the Main Idea and Supporting Details

When you identify the main idea, you identify the most important part of a text. Think of it as the text’s heart. Everything relies on it, no matter the text’s length.

Finding a text’s main idea isn’t as hard as it seems. When scanning a text, ask yourself, “What is the most important thing the author is saying?” If you can answer that question, you’ve discovered the main idea.

All supporting details do what their name suggests – they support the main idea. If you’ve ever written a five-paragraph essay for a class, these are the details you add in the body paragraphs.

HINT: In a nonfiction text, the main idea usually appears somewhere in the first paragraph. The author may spend the entire paragraph detailing the main idea, or it might exist as a one-sentence thesis statement.

Rephrasing and Summarizing Information

When you rephrase something, you put it in your own words. The HiSET Language Arts: Reading test may ask you which answer choice rephrases a paragraph or the entire text’s main idea.

Once you’ve identified the main idea, rephrasing it shouldn’t be too hard. Just compare the answer choices to your first impression of the main idea. A little practice should train you to find the right answer choice.

A summary is similar to a rephrase, but the difference is length. Summaries are much shorter. Ever discussed with a friend what happened in your favorite movie or TV show? If so, you’re already a master at summarizing.

Identifying Cause and Effect

Every effect has a cause, so when you read an informational text, ask yourself the following questions:

  • Why did this happen?
  • What was the effect?

HINT: In a nonfiction text, there may be one cause with many effects, or many causes with one effect. Identifying them can help you discover relationships among ideas.

Comparing and Contrasting Information

You compare two or more things when you describe how they are similar. You contrast two or more things when you describe how they are different.

This is a relatively easy skill, as it is something you do just about every day. Think of going clothes shopping. You compare pairs of pants that have a similar price because you don’t want to overspend. However, you contrast them by their different colors and put back those that don’t suit your unique tastes.