Understanding Key Ideas and Details in Informational Texts
Understanding Key Ideas and Details in Informational Texts Objective: Students will be able to explain how an author uses reasons and evidence to support particular points in a text, focusing on informational reading passages.
Learning Objectives
- Identify reasons the author gives to support points in the text.
- Find evidence in the text that supports these reasons.
- Explain how the reasons and evidence work together to help understand the topic.
Materials Needed
- A short informational passage (about 1-2 pages) appropriate for 4th grade
- Paper and pencil
- Highlighters or colored pencils
Key Vocabulary
- Informational Text
- A text that provides facts and information about a topic.
- Reason
- A statement that explains why the author believes something.
- Evidence
- Facts or details that support a reason or claim.
Detailed Activities
Read and Highlight
- Read the provided informational passage aloud with your child or have them read it independently.
- Ask your child to highlight or underline sentences where the author gives reasons for a point.
- Next, highlight or mark the evidence that supports these reasons.
Discuss and Explain
- Talk with your child about what reasons the author gave and what evidence supports those reasons.
- Ask your child to explain in their own words why the author included these reasons and evidence.
- Write down their explanations to reinforce understanding.
Drawing Conclusions
- Help your child summarize how the reasons and evidence help to understand the main topic of the passage.
- Encourage your child to think about why the author wrote the text and what they want the reader to learn.
Parent & Instructor Notes
- This lesson focuses on helping your child understand how authors support their ideas in informational texts.
- Encourage your child to ask questions about the text and think critically about the reasons and evidence presented.
- You do not need to be an expert on the topic—just guide your child’s thinking and discussion.
Assessment Questions
- Can you point out one reason the author gives in the passage?
- What evidence supports that reason?
- Why do you think the author included these reasons and evidence?
- How do these reasons and evidence help you understand the information better?
Extension Ideas
- Find another short informational text on a different topic and practice identifying reasons and evidence together.
- Create a simple chart with two columns labeled ‘Reason’ and ‘Evidence’ to organize information from texts.
- Encourage your child to write a short paragraph giving their own opinion and supporting it with reasons and evidence.
Frequently Asked Questions
Start by reading the passage together and asking guiding questions like ‘Why do you think the author said this?’ or ‘What fact supports this idea?’ Give lots of positive encouragement and practice with simpler texts.
Focus on helping your child find sentences that show cause and explanation, rather than the content itself. Supporting their thinking about reasons and evidence is most important.
Teacher’s Guide
Common Misconceptions:
- Children may confuse facts with opinions and need guidance distinguishing reasons from general statements.
- Students might think the first reason they find is the only one; encourage looking for multiple reasons and evidence.
- Some children may focus on retelling the story rather than analyzing the support behind ideas.
Scaffolding Ideas:
For Struggling Students:
- Use shorter, simpler texts with clear reasons and evidence.
- Work one-on-one or in small groups to practice identifying reasons before moving to evidence.
- Use graphic organizers to visually separate reasons and evidence.
For Advanced Students:
- Challenge students to find multiple reasons and different types of evidence (facts, examples, statistics).
- Have students compare how different authors support similar points.
- Encourage writing their own short informational passages with clear reasons and evidence.
Pacing Recommendations:
- Begin with reading and highlighting for about 15 minutes to build familiarity.
- Spend 15 minutes discussing and explaining reasons and evidence, encouraging verbal responses.
- Use the last 15 minutes for drawing conclusions and summarizing to reinforce learning.
Standards
- 4.RI.6 — Explain how an author uses reasons and evidence to support particular points in a text.
Printable Worksheet
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