Identifying Key Details in Informational Text
Identifying Key Details in Informational Text Objective: Students will learn to ask and answer questions about key details in a text to demonstrate understanding, directly addressing Common Core standard 1.RI.3.
Learning Objectives
- Understand what key details are in an informational text.
- Practice asking questions about the text to find important information.
- Answer questions about the text to show understanding.
Materials Needed
- Short informational text suitable for 1st grade (e.g., a simple article about animals or plants)
- Pencils
- Worksheet with questions about the text
- Chart paper or whiteboard
Key Vocabulary
- Informational Text
- A type of writing that gives facts about a real topic.
- Key Details
- Important pieces of information that tell us more about the main idea.
- Question
- A sentence we ask to learn more or check understanding.
Detailed Activities
Read and Discuss Informational Text
- Read the selected informational text aloud to the student.
- Pause to explain any new vocabulary or concepts.
- Ask the student to think about what important details they heard.
Ask and Answer Questions
- Work together to write simple questions about the text on chart paper or whiteboard.
- Encourage the student to answer the questions using information from the text.
- Discuss why these details are important to understanding the topic.
Worksheet Activity
- Provide the student with a worksheet containing questions about the text.
- Have the student answer the questions independently or with support as needed.
- Review answers together and discuss any mistakes or misunderstandings.
Parent & Instructor Notes
- Encourage your child to listen carefully to the text and think about what details help explain the topic.
- Help your child by modeling how to ask questions like ‘Who?’, ‘What?’, ‘Where?’, ‘When?’, ‘Why?’, and ‘How?’ about the text.
- Be patient and offer support during the worksheet activity, praising effort and progress.
Assessment Questions
- What is the main topic of the text?
- Can you tell me two important details from the text?
- Why do you think these details are important?
Extension Ideas
- Have your child draw a picture illustrating one of the key details from the text.
- Explore a related informational text on a similar topic and repeat the question and answer activity.
- Create a simple fact book using several key details from different texts read together.
Frequently Asked Questions
Try breaking the text into smaller parts and discuss each part separately. Use guiding questions to help focus on important information.
Look for short texts with clear pictures and simple language about a topic your child is interested in, such as animals, plants, or weather.
Teacher’s Guide
Common Misconceptions:
- Students may confuse key details with the main idea; emphasize that key details support the main idea.
- Students might give answers based on memory rather than the text; encourage referring back to the text.
Scaffolding Ideas:
For Struggling Students:
- Use shorter texts with clear pictures.
- Provide multiple choice questions to support answering.
- Allow verbal responses instead of written for assessment.
For Advanced Students:
- Encourage writing their own questions about the text.
- Use longer texts with more complex information.
- Have them compare key details from two different texts on the same topic.
Pacing Recommendations:
- Spend about 15 minutes reading and discussing the text.
- Spend 15 minutes on asking and answering questions together.
- Spend the last 15 minutes completing and reviewing the worksheet.
Standards
- 1.RI.3 — Ask and answer questions to help demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.
Printable Worksheet
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