Reading: Key Ideas and Details
What this domain tests
Key Ideas and Details questions ask you to find what a passage says explicitly, to infer what it implies, and to summarize it without distortion. The core skills are main-idea identification, supporting-detail location, and cause-effect or sequence reasoning.
Concepts to master
- Main idea vs. topic: the topic is what the passage is about; the main idea is the claim the author makes about that topic. A passage about honeybees (topic) may argue that colony collapse threatens crop yields (main idea).
- Stated vs. implied: stated details are directly in the text; implied details follow from evidence but are never printed. Inference must be small and defensible, not creative.
- Evidence hierarchy: examples support a claim; a claim does not support an example. Distinguish the author's point from the illustrations used to prove it.
- Sequence and causation: watch transition words (because, therefore, however, meanwhile) that signal logical relationships.
Traps to expect
- True but off-topic choices - a statement may be factually correct yet not answer the question asked.
- Overreach - answer choices that go further than the passage (always, never, proves) are usually wrong.
- Detail-as-main-idea - a single vivid example is offered as the whole point.
- Reversal - cause and effect swapped, or a sequence scrambled.
Rule of thumb
Before reading the choices, state the main idea in your own words in one sentence. Then pick the choice closest to your sentence. For detail questions, locate the line and read one sentence before and after it - answers often depend on surrounding context.
Worked example
Passage: "After the city added two bike lanes, downtown shop owners feared lost parking. Six months later, foot traffic rose 18 percent and several shops reported stronger weekend sales." Question: What is the main idea? A choice saying "bike lanes are popular everywhere" overreaches; "shop owners feared lost parking" is only the setup. The correct main idea is that the bike lanes did not harm, and may have helped, downtown business.