Two or More Main Ideas is a free printable Grade 5 English worksheet on matching each main idea to the detail that supports it, aligned to Common Core standard RI.5.2. It prints 2 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions that each ask different questions, so no two students in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.
Set 1 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.
1.Write the letter of the detail that supports each main idea.
Canals suited heavy goods
Standard gauge was inherited, not chosen
Coffee spread through meeting places
Sleep cleans the brain
A.Fluid washes waste proteins away at night
B.Early rails copied the wheel spacing of colliery carts
C.Coffee houses opened in the 1650s for news and argument
D.One horse could pull thirty tons by boat
2.Write the letter of the detail that supports each main idea.
Bees are vital to farming
Vaccines train the immune system
Old London Bridge helped the Thames freeze
Tea spread through one company's trade
A.The body makes antibodies against a harmless piece of a germ
B.Many fruit crops need bees to carry pollen
C.The East India Company controlled it for two centuries
D.Its wide piers slowed the water almost to a standstill
LessonPrint · RI.5.2 · Set 1 · free to copy for classroom use
Answer key — Two or More Main Ideas
Set 1. Prints on its own sheet.
1.1. Canals suited heavy goods — D (One horse could pull thirty tons by boat) 2. Standard gauge was inherited, not chosen — B (Early rails copied the wheel spacing of colliery carts) 3. Coffee spread through meeting places — C (Coffee houses opened in the 1650s for news and argument) 4. Sleep cleans the brain — A (Fluid washes waste proteins away at night)
2.1. Bees are vital to farming — B (Many fruit crops need bees to carry pollen) 2. Vaccines train the immune system — A (The body makes antibodies against a harmless piece of a germ) 3. Old London Bridge helped the Thames freeze — D (Its wide piers slowed the water almost to a standstill) 4. Tea spread through one company's trade — C (The East India Company controlled it for two centuries)
Questions about Two or More Main Ideas
What does the Two or More Main Ideas worksheet cover?
It practices matching each main idea to the detail that supports it — 2 questions for Grade 5, all on Common Core RI.5.2: Find two or more main ideas, show their support, and summarize. The instruction to students is “Write the letter of the match next to each one”, and the answer key follows on the next sheet.
Which Common Core standard does Two or More Main Ideas practice?
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.5.2 — RI.5.2, under Reading: Informational Text for Grade 5. The published standard reads: “Determine two or more main ideas of a text and explain how they are supported by key details; summarize the text.” The worksheet assesses that standard rather than a paraphrase of it.
What age or grade is this worksheet for?
Two or More Main Ideas is written for Grade 5, typically ages 10-11. It is one of the sheets on RI.5.2, so it suits any student working at that standard — including older students revisiting it and younger ones working ahead.
Does Two or More Main Ideas come with an answer key?
Yes. All 2 answers are generated from the same problems as the questions, so the key cannot drift out of step with the sheet. It starts on a fresh sheet of paper, after the questions, so it is not handed out with the class by accident.
How many different versions of Two or More Main Ideas can I print?
25 — one per student, and all 25 ask different questions. Set 1 downloads the whole class as a single PDF. Every version is fixed to its own address, so a sheet printed today holds the same problems when you reopen it next week.
Is Two or More Main Ideas free to print and photocopy?
Yes. Two or More Main Ideas, its answer key and its 25 versions are free to print and photocopy for your own class, with no account, no email capture and no subscription at the download step. Please do not resell them or republish them as your own.
Is there a lesson plan to teach RI.5.2?
Yes — “Two Main Ideas and a Summary” is a 40-minute Grade 5 plan for RI.5.2, timed section by section, with the misconceptions to expect and an exit ticket. Two or More Main Ideas is the practice that follows it.
More practice for RI.5.2
Find two or more main ideas, show their support, and summarize.
Teaching this next? Two Main Ideas and a Summary is the 40-minute plan for it, with the misconceptions to expect.