SSAT Middle Level Reading : Recognizing the Main Idea in Narrative Science Passages

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for SSAT Middle Level Reading

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Example Questions

Example Question #11 : Recognizing The Main Idea In Narrative Science Passages

Adapted from A Catechism of Familiar Things: Their History and the Events Which Led to Their Discovery by the Benziger Brothers (1881)

Twilight is the light from the first dawning of day to the rising of the sun; and again between its setting and the last remains of day. Without twilight, the sun's light would appear at its rising, and disappear at its setting, instantly; and we should experience a sudden transition from the brightest sunshine to the most complete obscurity. The duration of twilight is different in different climates; and in the same places it varies at different periods of the year.

This passage is primarily concerned with __________.

Possible Answers:

explaining the differences in duration of twilight in different parts of the world

defining how twilight is experienced by people

highlighting the importance of twilight

providing a coherent and comprehensive definition of twilight

ridiculing the ancient worship of sunlight

Correct answer:

providing a coherent and comprehensive definition of twilight

Explanation:

In this passage, the author is merely defining what exactly twilight is. It seems to be written as an introductory article for children who are first learning about the subject. The author briefly mentions how people experience twilight and how it is different in different parts of the world, but these are both part of the author’s attempts at “providing a coherent and comprehensive definition.” There is no mention of the ancient worship of sunlight, nor does the author particularly focus on highlighting the importance of twilight.

Example Question #12 : Recognizing The Main Idea In Narrative Science Passages

Adapted from "Some Strange Nurseries" by Grant Allen in A Book of Natural History (1902, ed. David Starr Jordan)

Many different types of animals employ one of two strategies in raising their young. Certain animals, called “r-strategists,” turn out thousands of eggs with reckless profusion, but they let them look after themselves, or be devoured by enemies, as chance will have it. Other animals, called “K-strategists,” take greater pain in the rearing and upbringing of the young. Large broods indicate an “r” life strategy; small broods imply a “K” life strategy and more care in the nurture and education of the offspring. R-strategists produce eggs wholesale, on the off chance that some two or three among them may perhaps survive an infant mortality of ninety-nine per cent, so as to replace their parents. K-strategists produce half a dozen young, or less, but bring a large proportion of these on an average up to years of discretion.

Which of these extracts best captures the main idea of this passage?

Possible Answers:

"K-strategists produce half a dozen young, or less, but bring a large proportion of these on an average up to years of discretion"

"Large broods indicate an “r” life strategy"

"R-strategists produce eggs wholesale, on the off chance that some two or three among them may perhaps survive an infant mortality of ninety-nine per cent, so as to replace their parents"

"Many different types of animals employ one of two strategies in raising their young."

"Other animals, called “K-strategists,” take greater pain in the rearing and upbringing of the young"

Correct answer:

"Many different types of animals employ one of two strategies in raising their young."

Explanation:

The main idea of this essay is that there is a direct correlation between the number of offspring a species generally produces and the type of life strategy that species employs. This idea is really only captured in the first sentence, ""Many different types of animals employ one of two strategies in raising their young." Another sentence might be better if it compared both r-strategists and K-strategists, but the other four answer choices are less succinct and direct, and usually only make half the author’s point.

Example Question #11 : Main Idea, Details, Opinions, And Arguments In Narrative Science Passages

Adapted from "Rain and Snow" by John Tyndall in Wonders of Earth, Sea, and Sky (1902, ed. by Edward Singleton Holden)

At the equator, and within certain limits north and south of it, the sun at certain periods of the year is directly overhead at noon. These limits are called the Tropics of Cancer and of Capricorn. Upon the belt comprised between these two circles, the sun's rays fall with their mightiest power, for here they shoot directly downwards and heat both earth and sea more than when they strike slantingly. When the vertical sunbeams strike the land, they heat it, and the air in contact with the hot soil becomes heated in turn. But when heated, the air expands, and when it expands, it becomes lighter. This lighter air rises through the heavier air overhead.

When the sunbeams fall upon the sea, the water is warmed, though not so much as the land. The warmed water expands, becomes thereby lighter, and therefore continues to float upon the top. This upper layer of water warms to some extent the air in contact with it, but it also sends up a quantity of aqueous vapor, which being far lighter than air helps the latter to rise. Thus both from the land and from the sea we have ascending currents established by the action of the sun.

The primary function of this passage is __________.

Possible Answers:

define the limits of the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn

explain the history of the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn

explain how rising currents are caused by the position and power of the sun

describe the sun’s position in relation to the Tropics and the equator

define how the Earth’s rotation around the sun affects the intensity of the seasons

Correct answer:

explain how rising currents are caused by the position and power of the sun

Explanation:

The primary function of this passage is to explain how “ascending currents” are “established by the actions of the sun.” This is clear from the manner in which the author spends the entirety of the passage building up to the concluding sentence, which ties the rest of the passage together. It is an instruction in how to understand the cause of “ascending” or “rising” currents.

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