Chapter 3: The Ancient Israelites

Main Idea
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Main idea
Finding the Main Idea
Main ideas are the most important ideas in a paragraph,
section, or chapter. Supporting details are facts or examples
that explain the main idea. Read the following paragraph from
Section 1 and notice how the author explains the main idea.
The main idea is identified for you. The supporting details are
highlighted in color.
Often, the first sentence
in a paragraph will contain
a main idea, and
supporting details will
come in following sentences.
However, main
ideas can also appear
in the middle or at the
end of a paragraph.
Through trade, the
Phoenicians spread ideas
and goods. One of their
most important ideas was
an alphabet, or a group of
letters that stood for
sounds. The letters could
be used to spell out the
words in their language.
—from page 85
Supporting
details