Understanding and inferenceMain and supporting ideas
Reading for understanding involves identifying the writer’s main points, the purpose of the text and the intended readership. Inference is when the reader deduces facts or opinions in the text.
The main ideas are the most important points of what you read. As you are reading you should think about the general message that is being expressed.
Some people find highlighting or jotting down key words and phrases helps them to identify main ideas. Be careful to mark only what is most important - don’t highlight everything!
Supporting details are facts, ideas and examples used to explain and develop the main ideas. Supporting details help us to understand key points.