Try It

Read the Science Wire article, “Making Waves: How Wind Whips Up the Perfect Swell Opens a new window. Open the link and read the entire article through once to get a sense of what the article is all about. Then reread the article as you complete the drag and drop activity below, or complete the alternative fill-in-the-blank activity. (This alternate activity is provided for students using keyboard only or screen readers.) Identify the central ideas and key details from different sections of the text that can be used to develop a summary. Note that you will identify the central idea for the text as a whole on the next page.

Did you notice a relationship between the central ideas and key details that you identified in the activity above? Determine which key details support particular central ideas. Click Show Answer to see if you are correct.

Now that you have had some practice with central idea, review this skill on the next page.