ISEE Upper Level Reading Comprehension

A comprehensive guide to mastering reading comprehension skills for the ISEE Upper Level exam.

Understanding Passage TypesMain Idea and Supporting DetailsInference and Drawing Conclusions
Author’s Purpose and ToneVocabulary in ContextAnalyzing Structure and Organization
Applying Comprehension in SchoolComprehension Beyond the ClassroomPreparing for Group Discussions
Active Reading TechniquesTime Management on Test DayElimination and Guessing Strategies
Understanding Passag...Main Idea and Suppor...Inference and Drawin...Author’s Purpose and...Vocabulary in Contex...Analyzing Structure ...Applying Comprehensi...Comprehension Beyond...Preparing for Group ...Active Reading Techn...Time Management on T...Elimination and Gues...
Basic Concepts

Main Idea and Supporting Details

Finding the Heart of the Passage

Every passage has a main idea—the central point the author wants you to understand. Supporting details are facts, examples, or explanations that back up this main idea.

How to Find the Main Idea

  • Pay attention to the first and last sentences of paragraphs.
  • Ask yourself: "What is the author trying to tell me overall?"

Identifying Supporting Details

  • Look for sentences that explain, describe, or illustrate the main idea.
  • These are often found in the middle of paragraphs.

Why It's Important

Many questions on the ISEE ask about the main idea or ask you to distinguish between main ideas and supporting details.

Helpful Steps

  1. After reading, summarize the passage in your own words.
  2. List the facts or examples used to support the summary.

Examples

  • A passage arguing that recycling helps the environment will use statistics as supporting details.

  • If the story centers on a character learning a lesson, the lesson is the main idea.

In a Nutshell

Learn to identify the main point and how it's supported.

Key Terms

Main Idea
The central point or message in a passage.
Supporting Details
Facts, examples, or reasons that back up the main idea.
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Inference and Drawing Conclusions