Page 6 - e-Modul Bhs INggris MPK

It is important to find main ideas when reading. Main ideas help readers
remember important information about the topic.The main idea of a paragraph
tells the idea of the paragraph. The idea tells what all or most of the sentences
are about. The other sentences in the paragraph are called details. Details
describe or explain the main idea. To find the main idea in a reading text you
can consider the following actions:

1. Summarize the Passage. After you've read the passage, summarize it in
one sentence that includes the gist of ever idea from the paragraph. A
good way to do this is to pretend you have just ten words to tell someone
what the passage was about. You'd have to think broadly, so you could
included every detail in just a short statement.
2. Look for Repetition of Ideas. If you read through a paragraph and you
have no idea how to summarize it because there is so much information,
start looking for repeated words, phrases, ideas or similar ideas. Read
this example paragraph:

A new hearing device uses a magnet to hold the detachable
sound-processing portion in place. Like other aids, it converts
sound into vibrations. But it is unique in that it can transmit the
vibrations directly to the magnet and then to the inner ear. This
produces a clearer sound. The new device will not help all hearing-
impaired people - only those with a hearing loss caused by
infection or some other problem in the middle ear. It will probably
help no more than 20 percent of all people with hearing problems.
Those people who have persistent ear infections, however, should
find relief and restored hearing with the new device.

What idea does this paragraph consistently repeat? A new hearing
device. What's the point about this idea? A new hearing device is now available
for some hearing-impaired people. And there is the main idea.

Now, choosing a main idea from a set of answer choices is different than
composing a main idea on your own. The writers get tricky and will give you
distractor questions that sound a lot like the real answer! So be sure to avoid
making these 3 common mistakes when you're selecting a main idea on a
multiple-choice test.

Main Idea Mistake #1: Choosing an Answer That's Too Narrow

Let's say you read a passage about Leonardo da Vinci's genius. Several
paragraphs talk about his sculpting, charcoal drawings, and paintings. Other
paragraphs mention his science skills and foresight into mechanical engineering.
If you select an answer that only details his sculpting, drawings and paintings,
then your choice is too narrow: it only uses part of the information from the
passage. How to Avoid the "Too Narrow" Mistake: Be sure to choose an answer
that encompasses every major idea in the passage, not just a few.

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