[electronic music]
- Norby, have you seen my mouse doll?
- Uh-uh. - Have you seen my Barbie doll?
Well, have you seen my Care Bear?
- Look, Mandy, I haven't seen any of your dolls.
What do you want them for anyway?
- I'm collecting 'em so I can organize 'em in groups.
You know, all the animal dolls together,
all the people dolls together. - Guess what?
I'm doing the same thing with words
that you're doing with your dolls.
- Doesn't look like it. - Look,
I have all these different sentences about badgers.
Some about what they look like or about where they live
and stuff like that.
Except they're all jumbled together.
I have to try and organize them into paragraphs
and give a heading to each paragraph.
- Mandy: What are you doing that for?
- It's for Mrs. Framish.
She says it'll help us to understand the main ideas
of what we're reading.
- Well, my main idea is to find my dolls, and...
and I think we're about to have another adventure.
- I think you're right.
- My children. - Hey, it's my mouse doll!
- Yours, is it?
I found it in Tween Worlds.
The space between our two worlds.
My children, you must hasten at once to the land of Mojuste.
That fiend Thorzuul is again hatching an evil plot
to rule both our worlds.
Hurry, hurry!
- Well? - Well?
- Let's go!
- Lexor: Hurry, my children!
Thorzuul is at it again. [Thorzuul laughs]
Our planet is in grave danger!
Hurry!
There is no time.
Hurry!
[Thorzuul laughs]
My children, there is no time to lose.
You must hasten to Mojuste at once.
[Thorzuul laughs]
[blast sounds] Hurry, hurry!
You must hurry.
I'm in grave danger.
Hurry!
[Thorzuul laughs]
[shimmer]
- Where are we? - I don't know.
But from looks of that picture,
I'd say Thorzuul's office would be a good guess.
- Excellent guess.
Welcome to my humble headquarters.
- Mandy: [gasps] My mouse doll!
Where did you get-- I mean, Lexor had--
- Norbert: What did you do to Lexor?
- The old fool? - Norbert: Holy camoley!
- Not so fast, my pretty.
This doll is mine now, and if you ever want to see it again,
and you don't want to end up like your friend there,
then you'd better look in that envelope
before I get really nasty!
- Now what? - Read them.
- Norbert: "They're always served for dinner."
- Mandy: "I like them better than Brussels sprouts."
- Norbert: "Turnips are my favorite food."
- Mandy: "Sometimes I have a chocolate turnip sundae
for dessert too."
Ick.
- Norbert: This stuff doesn't make sense.
- Exactly!
And if you ever want to see Lexor or your doll again,
put them in order so they do make sense.
You have five minutes. [laughs evilly]
- This stuff doesn't make sense, you know.
- I know, but I think it's just like a table and its legs.
- Now you don't make sense.
- Remember, I was telling you
that I was putting words into groups
like you were grouping your dolls?
- We've been spending a lot of time putting words into groups,
and you're all becoming very good at grouping.
Let's use what you know about grouping
to help you read and understand paragraphs better.
A paragraph is about one main idea
followed by supporting details.
The details add to the main idea.
To help you understand that better,
try to imagine that a paragraph is like a table.
The legs are supporting details
and the tabletop is the main idea.
The details support the main idea
just the way the legs support the tabletop.
Now, let's look at these four sentences on the board.
We're going to put them in order so that we have one main idea
followed by supporting details.
As you read the sentences,
see if you can find one sentence
that tells what the entire paragraph is about.
Have you all finished reading?
Okay.
Did anyone find a sentence
that tells what the entire paragraph is about?
Jason?
- I think it's "We have two goldfish."
- All right, let's put it in our main idea space
and test it against the other sentences.
Does this sentence say something about this sentence?
Angie? - Not really.
It tells about two different things, goldfish and turtles.
- Right, so this can't be our main idea, can it?
Each sentence must say something about the main idea sentence.
Does anyone else have an idea about a sentence
that tells what the entire paragraph is about?
Norbert?
- I think it's "We have many pets in our classroom."
- Well, let's put it at the top and test it, shall we?
Does this sentence say something about the sentence at the top?
Mary? - I think it does.
The first sentence says that
we have many pets in our classroom,
and the second one tells what one of those pets are.
Goldfish. - Good, Mary.
So, this sentence is a supporting detail of this one.
Let's look at the next sentence
and see if it's a supporting detail.
Is it?
Jason? - I think it is
because it tells about another pet we have in our classroom,
the turtle. - Good, Jason.
So, this is a supporting detail of our main idea, isn't it?
How about the third sentence?
Is this a supporting detail of this sentence?
Angie? - Yes, it is.
It tells about some more pets that are in the classroom.
- Good, Angie.
So, we all agree this is our main idea
and these are the supporting details.
Let's read our paragraph again
and see if it makes more sense this time
than it did the first time we read it.
Angie, will you read for us please?
- "We have many pets in our classroom.
"We have two goldfish.
"We also have a spotted turtle.
We have two gerbils as well."
- Thank you, Angie.
Now, our paragraph makes more sense, doesn't it?
We can understand it better.
It's almost time to leave, but before we have to go,
who can tell me what kinds of sentences are there
in paragraphs?
Jason? - There is a main idea sentence
and supporting detail sentences.
The main idea tells what the paragraph is about,
and the supporting details tell about the main idea.
- Very good, Jason, and all of you.
Now, you know what to look for in a paragraph.
I'm going to give you some homework to practice this.
Take your reading books out.
On page 98, there's a story with many paragraphs.
I'd like you to look for the main idea of each paragraph,
and then find the supporting detail sentences.
We'll talk about that.
- So, first we have to try and find the main idea sentence,
and then we can make this whole paragraph make sense.
Hmm, let's try this one.
- Mandy: "They're always served for dinner.
I like them better than Brussels sprouts."
- Well, the second sentence
tells us something about the first one,
but it doesn't say what "they" are.
- Let's try this one.
- Norbert: "Turnips are my favorite food.
I like them better than Brussels sprouts."
- Mandy: It tells us something about them.
- Norbert: "They're always served for dinner.
Sometimes I have a chocolate turnip sundae for dessert too."
They're all supporting details!
- Let's tack 'em right to the map.
[gentle music]
- Time's up!
Wha-- My map!
What have you done to my map?
- Norbert: Read 'em and weep.
- Thorzuul: "Turnips are my favorite food.
I like them better than Brussels sprouts."
[mumbles]
Why, why, that's impossible!
You've got it right! - It was easy.
We just figured out which sentence was the main idea
and which were the supporting details.
- Now, don't forget your end of the bargain.
- You mean I have to give back Mousie?
Oh. - And don't forget Lexor.
[shimmer]
- Oh, he escaped into the Tween Worlds.
- Speaking of escaping...
- Bye!
- In unison: Home. [shimmer]
- That's it.
They've defeated me for the last time.
It's no more Mr. Nice Guy!
Milkbreath!
[electronic music]