Find the Topic

1
Find the Topic

• The topic is the key
• to the passage.

2
What is the topic?

• The something an author chooses to write about
  is called the topic.
• The topic is who or what the author is writing
  about.
• The topic is always a word, a phrase, or a name.
• It is never written as a sentence.

What talk show hosts do when theres no topic.
3
How do we find the topic?

• Ask yourself, Who or what is the paragraph
  about?
• Use any titles, special words, and graphics to
  help you.
• Accurately finding the topic is the key to the
  main idea.

What it is all about is the topic.
4
What else is the topic?

• The topic is called the subject or the subject
  matter.
• Determining the topic is the important first step
  in comprehending any paragraph that you read.
• Finding the topic is not a new skill for you
• When you walk up to a group of friends who
  are talking, you listen a minute to figure who or
  what theyre talking about. In other words, you
  determine the topic of the conversation.
• FACT You are already good at determining the
  topic in life now learn to do it in reading.

5
What indicates the topic?

• 1. Look for it in the heading or title.
• 2. Look for words in special print, such as
  bold, italics, or coloror some combination, such
  as bold italics.
• 3. Look for repeated words in a paragraph.
• 4. Look for something mentioned at the beginning
  of the paragraph and then referred to throughout
  the paragraph by pronouns or by other words.

6
What is the passages topic?

• Although funeral customs in England and America
  are similar in many respects, they also differ
  significantly in other ways. In both countries,
  preparation of the body occurs at a funeral home,
  a funeral service is usually held in a church or
  chapel, and burial is in a cemetery. However, the
  custom of embalming is not the same. In the
  United States, treating a corpse with
  preservatives is routine. In England, though,
  that procedure is rare. Other pre-funeral customs
  differ, too. In America, mourners to go to the
  funeral home a day before the actual burial for a
  "wake," a ritual in which people pay their
  respects to the deceased and to his or her
  family. At the wake, the body is laid out in a
  coffin, and mourners go look at it. In England,
  however, there is no pre-funeral wake. The
  funeral director places the body in a chapel, and
  people can go see it if they like. Finally, the
  actual funeral service differs slightly. The
  services in both countries typically involve
  hymns and prayers, but those in England last only
  about fifteen minutes. American funeral services
  are usually much longer.

There is no title or special print words, but is
a key word repeated?
7
Which key word is repeated?

• Although funeral customs in England and America
  are similar in many respects, they also differ
  significantly in other ways. In both countries,
  preparation of the body occurs at a funeral home,
  a funeral service is usually held in a church or
  chapel, and burial is in a cemetery. However, the
  custom of embalming is not the same. In the
  United States, treating a corpse with
  preservatives is routine. In England, though,
  that procedure is rare. Other pre-funeral customs
  differ, too. In America, mourners to go to the
  funeral home a day before the actual burial for a
  "wake," a ritual in which people pay their
  respects to the deceased and to his or her
  family. At the wake, the body is laid out in a
  coffin, and mourners go look at it. In England,
  however, there is no pre-funeral wake. The
  funeral director places the body in a chapel, and
  people can go see it if they like. Finally, the
  actual funeral service differs slightly. The
  services in both countries typically involve
  hymns and prayers, but those in England last only
  about fifteen minutes. American funeral services
  are usually much longer.

Is there a good reason why the word funeral is
used nine times?
8
What is the topic sentence?

• Although funeral customs in England and America
  are similar in many respects, they also differ
  significantly in other ways. In both countries,
  preparation of the body occurs at a funeral home,
  a funeral service is usually held in a church or
  chapel, and burial is in a cemetery. However, the
  custom of embalming is not the same. In the
  United States, treating a corpse with
  preservatives is routine. In England, though,
  that procedure is rare. Other pre-funeral customs
  differ, too. In America, mourners to go to the
  funeral home a day before the actual burial for a
  "wake," a ritual in which people pay their
  respects to the deceased and to his or her
  family. At the wake, the body is laid out in a
  coffin, and mourners go look at it. In England,
  however, there is no pre-funeral wake. The
  funeral director places the body in a chapel, and
  people can go see it if they like. Finally, the
  actual funeral service differs slightly. The
  services in both countries typically involve
  hymns and prayers, but those in England last only
  about fifteen minutes. American funeral services
  are usually much longer.

• English and American funerals
• International burial customs
• Funeral services here and there

9
What is the passages topic?

• Scientists predict that global warming will have
  dramatic effects on the environment. One effect
  is already here. All around the world, the rocky
  deposits known as coral are dying, and many
  experts believe that global warming is the cause.
  Thomas Goreau, president of the Coral Reef
  Alliance, says 90 percent of the coral in
  Indonesia is already dead, and worse is yet to
  come because sea temperatures will climb to
  record highs next year. When water temperatures
  get too high, coral starves and bleaches. Mr.
  Goreau says only the central Pacific region shows
  no bleached coral. Sri Lanka, New Guinea and
  Japan are all seeing signs of massive bleaching
  in the coral reefs surrounding their shores. Fish
  need coral for shelter. If the coral disappears,
  so do the fish in the area bad news for the fish
  industries, the economies they support, and the
  consumers they supply.

• What are the key words in this passage?

• Why is Mister Goreau quoted?

• Are temps, coral, and fish linked?

10
Which key words are repeated?

• Scientists predict that global warming will have
  dramatic effects on the environment. One effect
  is already here. All around the world, the rocky
  deposits known as coral are dying, and many
  experts believe that global warming is the cause.
  Thomas Goreau, president of the Coral Reef
  Alliance, says 90 percent of the coral in
  Indonesia is already dead, and worse is yet to
  come because sea temperatures will climb to
  record highs next year. When water temperatures
  get too high, coral starves and bleaches. Mr.
  Goreau says only the central Pacific region shows
  no bleached coral. Sri Lanka, New Guinea and
  Japan are all seeing signs of massive bleaching
  in the coral reefs surrounding their shores. Fish
  need coral for shelter. If the coral disappears,
  so do the fish in the area bad news for the fish
  industries, the economies they support, and the
  consumers they supply.

1. What does warming do to coral? 2. What does
coral do for fish? 3. With less coral, will there
be more fish?
11
What is the topic sentence?

• Scientists predict that global warming will have
  dramatic effects on the environment. One effect
  is already here. All around the world, the rocky
  deposits known as coral are dying, and many
  experts believe that global warming is the cause.
  Thomas Goreau, president of the Coral Reef
  Alliance, says 90 percent of the coral in
  Indonesia is already dead, and worse is yet to
  come because sea temperatures will climb to
  record highs next year. When water temperatures
  get too high, coral starves and bleaches. Mr.
  Goreau says only the central Pacific region shows
  no bleached coral. Sri Lanka, New Guinea and
  Japan are all seeing signs of massive bleaching
  in the coral reefs surrounding their shores. Fish
  need coral for shelter. If the coral disappears,
  so do the fish in the area bad news for the fish
  industries, the economies they support, and the
  consumers they supply.

Why isnt the first sentence the topic
sentence? Is it too narrow, or too broad?
12
What are the key words?

• Current research suggests that traditional
  beliefs about what makes for a happy and
  satisfied life are not correct. Financial
  security, a happy marriage, and a large circle of
  friends assist contentment. Still, the biggest
  contributor to personal happiness seems to be
  personality. In fact, in one of several studies
  conducted at Wesleyan University, personality
  proved to be the central factor in attaining
  happiness. When researchers James Conley and
  Richard Marsh tracked the lives of 600 men and
  women, they discovered that subjects happy at
  twenty tended to be happy at forty, even in those
  cases where life had been very difficult. The
  miserable at twenty tended to unhappy and
  dissatisfied as they got older. Even those whose
  lives had been showered with recognition and
  rewards were still basically unhappy with their
  lives. Similar findings concerning the connection
  between happiness and personality have been
  reported by researchers working at the National
  Institute of Mental Health and at the University
  of California at Berkeley.

There is no title or special print words, but is
a key word repeated?
13
Here are the key words.

• Current research suggests that traditional
  beliefs about what makes for a happy and
  satisfied life are not correct. Financial
  security, a happy marriage, and a large circle of
  friends assist contentment. Still, the biggest
  contributor to personal happiness seems to be
  personality. In fact, in one of several studies
  conducted at Wesleyan University, personality
  proved to be the central factor in attaining
  happiness. When researchers James Conley and
  Richard Marsh tracked the lives of 600 men and
  women, they discovered that subjects happy at
  twenty tended to be happy at forty, even in those
  cases where life had been very difficult. The
  miserable at twenty tended to unhappy and
  dissatisfied as they got older. Even those whose
  lives had been showered with recognition and
  rewards were still basically unhappy with their
  lives. Similar findings concerning the connection
  between happiness and personality have been
  reported by researchers working at the National
  Institute of Mental Health and at the University
  of California at Berkeley.

Why are happy, happiness, and personality
repeated?
14
What is the topic sentence?

• Current research suggests that traditional
  beliefs about what makes for a happy and
  satisfied life are not correct. Financial
  security, a happy marriage, and a large circle of
  friends assist contentment. Still, the biggest
  contributor to personal happiness seems to be
  personality. In fact, in one of several studies
  conducted at Wesleyan University, personality
  proved to be the central factor in attaining
  happiness. When researchers James Conley and
  Richard Marsh tracked the lives of 600 men and
  women, they discovered that subjects happy at
  twenty tended to be happy at forty, even in those
  cases where life had been very difficult. The
  miserable at twenty tended to unhappy and
  dissatisfied as they got older. Even those whose
  lives had been showered with recognition and
  rewards were still basically unhappy with their
  lives. Similar findings concerning the connection
  between happiness and personality have been
  reported by researchers working at the National
  Institute of Mental Health and at the University
  of California at Berkeley.

Why isnt the first sentence the topic sentence?
15
Ways to find the topic

• Figure out the key words in a passage.
• Find the entire topic it may have parts.
• The heading is not the exact topic.
• Headings can sometimes be misleading.
• Headings and special print help with finding the
  overall topic of long passages.
• We must find the topic before we can find the
  main idea.
• We must find the main idea before we can
  summarize or outline passages.