ELC 501: BLENDED LEARNING WEEK 4

Stated Main Idea

Implied Main Idea
Major and Minor Supporting
Details
Types of Support
Students will be able to:
 identify the stated main ideas and, major or
minor supporting details in texts

 construct the implied main ideas of texts

 recognise and evaluate types of supporting

details (examples, illustrations, definitions, facts,
opinions, statistics, reasons, testimonies, research
findings, observations, descriptions,
explanations, steps or procedures, comparison
or contrast, narratives and personal
experiences)

 distinguish facts from opinions

Stated Main Idea :
 A sentence found in the reading passage
which states the topic and the main point
or points being made about that topic.

 Also referred to as the TOPIC SENTENCE

 General enough to summarise the details in

the text

 Does NOT contain the specific details and

does NOT provide examples.
LOCATING THE TOPIC SENTENCE OF
PARAGRAPHS

I. At the beginning of the paragraph

II. The second sentence of a
paragraph
III. In the middle of the paragraph
IV. At the end of the paragraph
 Implied Main Ideas :
 Express the particular point the author is trying to make
about a subject

 Indirectly state information in the paragraph

 Require the reader to consider the information given and

draw conclusion as to what the main idea might be.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IilfIagSko
 PRACTICE
 https://bconline.broward.edu/shared/CollegeReadiness/Re
ading/U03_MainIdea/U03_MainIdea3.html

 https://prezi.com/nf2cdgkx35h9/implied-and-stated-main-
idea/

 https://www.slideshare.net/hbcarroll/implied-main-
idea?next_slideshow=1

 http://highered.mheducation.com/sites/0073123587/stude
nt_view0/chapter8/topic_and_stated_main_idea_multiple-
choice_exercise.html

 https://bconline.broward.edu/shared/CollegeReadiness/Re
ading/U03_MainIdea/U03_MainIdea12.html

 http://highered.mheducation.com/sites/0073123587/stude
nt_view0/chapter9/supporting_details__exercise_1.html
MAJOR & MINOR SUPPORTING DETAILS

 When the Stated Main Idea sentence has

been identified, the other sentences in the
text are the supporting ideas.
 These major and minor roles are
determined by the depth of the
elaboration of the topic.
 If the elaboration directly supports the
Stated Main Idea, then it is a major
supporting detail
 If the elaboration contains a specific
information e.g. an example, then it is a
minor supporting detail
MAJOR & MINOR SUPPORTING DETAILS

The number of supporting

details may vary depending
on the needs of the topic
discussed
The supporting details can
be further classified as
major and minor ideas
 The Main Idea is highest in terms of
importance followed by the Major Idea.

 The Minor Idea is the least important idea in a

text.
MAIN
IDEA

MAJOR MAJOR MAJOR

IDEA IDEA IDEA

Minor Minor Minor Minor Minor Minor

Idea Idea Idea Idea Idea Idea
COMPARISON OF MAJOR AND MINOR IDEAS

Major Ideas Minor Ideas

• Have direct link to the main • Have indirect link to the

idea sentence. main idea sentence.

• Provide essential • Provide non-essential

information. information.

• Explain the main idea. • Illustrate the major ideas.

• Tend to be independent of • Tend to depend on other

other sentences in the text. sentences in the text.
EXAMPLES :
Sentences
The need for bilingual customer
assistance workers in the United States
can vary depending on what area of
the country a company serves.
In general, Spanish is the most
frequently requested language due to
the fact that there are more than 40
million Latinos and the population is
still growing.
However, there is an increasing need
for Chinese and Vietnamese on the
West Coast
At the managerial level, if a company
requests that a candidate needs to
have foreign language skills, Western
European languages, such as French
and German, remain desirable.
Japanese is requested at times
Level Explanation
Main Sums up the ideas in the
text
Major Has direct link to topic
sentences by considering
the country in general : all
area(s) of the country
Major Has direct link to topic
sentences by providing
another specific ‘area of
the country’
Minor Digresses from focus: text
is not about language for
different levels of work
Minor Is dependent on previous
sentences
 TYPES OF SUPPORT: FACTS
VS. OPINION
 Up to this point, we have acquired the skills of:-

* figuring out the topic

* identifying the topic sentence

* identifying major and minor supporting details

* constructing implied main idea

 In order to classify the supporting details of a text, we have to be

able to differentiate fact-based supporting details from opinion-
based supporting details.
 FACT VS. OPINION
FACT OPINION

Any information that can be Any information that

verified by represents

• Research
• Observation • Someone’s view
• Experimentation • Belief
• Experience • Judgement

(any information that can be

proven) (any information that cannot
be proven)
 Tips in Differentiating
between a Fact and Opinion
Notes : Facts may be presented through expert
testimonies and research findings, while opinion may
be in the form of theories, predictions and
recommendation.

Research
Can be findings, Strong
FACTS
verified Statistics, Support
Testimonies
Information
and Expert Strong
supporting Opinion Support
details
Cannot Non-expert
be OPINION Opinion,
verified Weak
Author’s
Support
personal
opinion
We can further classify facts and opinions into
the following specific types.

Specific types of fact Specific types of opinion

Geographical facts Judgements

Historical data Possibilities

Scientific fact Predictions

Legislations Recommendations

Measurements Theories
The following contextual clues can help us determine whether
a statement is an opinion:

 Adjectives (judgement word), e.g. beautiful, significant

 Adverbs (judgement word), e.g. loudly, slowly

 Future tense, e.g. will, is going to, shall

 Possibilities, e.g. may, could, probably, might

 Recommendations, e.g. should, it is recommended that

 Opinion signposts, e.g. in my opinion, it appears to me that,

seems, looks like

 Determine whether the statement is a
fact or an opinion
Statement Fact or Reason/Clue
Opinion
The most immediate and significant
threat to ocean is overfishing.

Despite the alterations to the way

fisheries are managed, there is little
ground for optimism.

About 77% of all fish stocks are now

either fully or over-exploited.

Fishermen are bringing home smaller

and smaller catches despite
technological advances.
 OTHER TYPES OF SUPPORT
Passage Type of support
Nobel Laureate Dr. Otto Warburg revealed that most disease is caused •Expert testimony
by insufficient level of oxygen in the body. His studies showed that if •Research findings
you deprive a cell 35% of its required level of oxygen for 48 hours, the statistics
cell is likely to become cancerous.

Lack of oxygen is not only the underlying cause of cancer but is also •Scientific fact

the cause of most diseases. According to the pathologist Dr. Rudolf •Expert opinion
Virchow, viruses, microbes, germs and harmful bacteria do not cause (judgement word
‘often’)
disease but are often mistaken as the cause of a disease because
their presence coincides with the presence of that disease. The natural •Scientific fact

habitat of pathogens is diseased tissue which is brought about by

oxygen deficiency.

As the primary physical cause of all diseases is linked in one way or •Personal opinion

another to oxygen deficiency, practising breathing techniques that -judgement word

supply the body with abundant amounts of oxygen can prevent ‘abundant’
-possibility word ‘can’
cancer and other diseases.
 Fill in the blanks with the following:
Definition, Example, Explanation,
Opinion, Facts
No Supporting Details Types of Supporting
Details
a) Rather than focusing on illness or specific parts of the body, this
ancient approach to health considers the whole person and how he
or she interacts with his or her environment. It emphasizes the _______________
connection of mind, body, and spirit (Paragraph I).

For example, when an individual is anxious about a history exam or a

b) job interview, his or her nervousness may result in a physical reaction
such as a headache or a stomach ache (Paragraph II). _______________

The line represents all possible degrees of health. The far left end of
c) the line represents premature death. On the far right end is the
highest possible level of wellness or maximum well-being. The centre _______________
point of the line represents a lack of apparent disease (Paragraph
III).

No matter what their current status of health, people can improve _______________
d) their level of well-being (Paragraph IV).

Harmful substances or lack of needed building blocks in the body

e) can result in imperfect cells, unable to do what is required to keep
that person healthy (Paragraph V) _______________

The U.S. Centres for Disease Control and Prevention report that the
f) key factors influencing an individual's state of health have not
changed significantly over the past 20 years. Quality of medical
care is only 10%. Heredity accounts for 18% and environment is 19%. _______________
Everyday lifestyle choices are 53% (Paragraph IV).
FURTHER PRACTICE AND EXERCISES

 https://www.palmbeachstate.edu/slc/Documents/suppo
rting%20details%20hints.pdf

 http://study.com/academy/lesson/implied-main-idea-
definition-examples.html

 https://www.reference.com/education/major-minor-
supporting-details-805e50516fad418e

 http://content.nroc.org/DevelopmentalEnglish/unit03/Fo
undations/major-and-minor-supporting-details.html