The main idea is the most important point or message in a paragraph or passage. It's like the big picture that all the details support. When reading, it's important to figure out what the author is trying to tell you overall.
Details are the facts, examples, or descriptions that explain or support the main idea. They make the main idea clearer and help you remember the story.
Understanding the main idea and details helps you summarize information, answer questions, and understand what you read better.
When reading a news article, the headline is often the main idea, and the story gives details. When your teacher explains a science concept, the main idea is the lesson, and the experiments and facts are the details.
A passage about recycling explains how it helps the planet (main idea) and gives facts about saving trees and animals (details).
An article about basketball tells you it's a fun sport (main idea) and describes the rules and famous players (details).
The main idea is the big message; details support it.