• Quick retrieval from earlier learning (Central ideas in complex texts; Why did the author include this detail?). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
• Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.

1. Is the proposed answer correct? Many people assume that deserts are lifeless. In fact, a single square metre of desert soil can contain thousands of tiny organisms. What is the function of the first sentence? → it describes a specific desert (yes, it is correct / no, it is not correct) → no, it is not correctPrompt: Ask: what would be lost if this detail were removed?
2. Urban foxes are often seen as pests: they tip over bins and wail at night. Yet studies suggest they also control rat populations and rarely pose a danger to people. Understanding their role may help cities manage them more humanely. Which choice best states the central idea? (Rats are a growing problem in cities. / Urban foxes have benefits as well as drawbacks, which should shape how cities treat them. / Foxes tip over bins. / Foxes are dangerous and should be removed.) → Urban foxes have benefits as well as drawbacks, which should shape how cities treat them.Prompt: What is the WHOLE text mostly about, not just one part?
3. Is the proposed answer correct? Scientists studying the Arctic fox noticed something odd: one fox had walked more than 3,500 kilometres in 76 days, from Norway to Canada. What is the main purpose of the specific figures? → to compare Norway and Canada (yes, it is correct / no, it is not correct) → no, it is not correctPrompt: Ask: what would be lost if this detail were removed?

• Read the first lines of a short text aloud and ask what students predict will happen and why.
• Share the objective: Main idea of a short academic text (SAT). Read the success criteria together.

• Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
• Example: For decades, researchers assumed that octopuses, being solitary, had little need for complex social behaviour. However, divers off the coast of Australia have recorded groups of gloomy octopuses living together, sharing dens and even signalling to one another by changing colour. These observations suggest that octopus social life may be richer than once believed. Which choice best states the main idea of the text?
• Step 1: The main idea is the central claim the whole text supports; details are evidence for it.
• Step 2: The text sets up an old assumption and presents evidence against it.
• Step 3: So the answer is: New observations challenge the view that octopuses have little social behaviour.
• Answer: New observations challenge the view that octopuses have little social behaviour.
• Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.

• Do these together. Students try each step on whiteboards before you reveal it.
• Use the hints as prompts rather than giving the answer.

1. The poet Lucille Clifton wrote in short lines, often without capital letters, using everyday words. Some readers have mistaken this style for simplicity. Many critics argue that her plain language was a deliberate choice that made complex ideas about family, history and survival feel immediate and personal. Which choice best states the main idea of the text? (Clifton never used capital letters in any of her letters. / Clifton's plain style, sometimes mistaken for simplicity, is better understood as a deliberate and powerful choice. / Short lines are easier to write than long ones. / Critics never agree about poetry.) → Clifton's plain style, sometimes mistaken for simplicity, is better understood as a deliberate and powerful choice.Prompt: Which choice covers the WHOLE text, not just one detail?
2. Before the printing press, books were copied by hand, which could take months. Printing made books far cheaper and faster to produce, helping ideas spread across Europe. Which choice best states the main idea of the text? (Copying by hand was a popular hobby. / Books took months to read. / Europe had few books. / The printing press made books cheaper and helped ideas spread.) → The printing press made books cheaper and helped ideas spread.Prompt: What is the text mostly about?

• Students work on the student sheet. Circulate and check the first two answers of every student early.
• Students who finish: write a question of their own for a partner, with the answer.

The 6 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.

• Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.

1. Many people believe that the 'five-second rule' protects food dropped on the floor. In an experiment, scientists dropped foods onto surfaces contaminated with bacteria and measured how much transferred. Bacteria reached wet foods like watermelon in under a second, though dry foods such as sweets picked up fewer bacteria over time. Which choice best states the main idea of the text? (An experiment shows bacteria can transfer to dropped food almost instantly, especially to wet foods. / Scientists enjoy dropping food. / Watermelon is healthier than sweets. / Floors are always clean enough to eat from.) → An experiment shows bacteria can transfer to dropped food almost instantly, especially to wet foods.Prompt: Which choice covers the WHOLE text, not just one detail?
2. Before the printing press, books were copied by hand, which could take months. Printing made books far cheaper and faster to produce, helping ideas spread across Europe. Which choice best states the main idea of the text? (Books took months to read. / Europe had few books. / Copying by hand was a popular hobby. / The printing press made books cheaper and helped ideas spread.) → The printing press made books cheaper and helped ideas spread.Prompt: What is the text mostly about?

Free online practice with hints and printable worksheets for this skill: eurekami.com/english/grade-11.