Matching headings: find the paragraph's main idea
Stop matching words and start matching ideas. A method that avoids the most common heading traps.
বাংলায় সারাংশ (Bangla summary)
শব্দ নয়, অনুচ্ছেদের মূল ভাবের সঙ্গে হেডিং মেলানোর কৌশল।
By the end of this lesson you can
- Identify the main idea of a paragraph rather than its details
- Recognise distractor headings that repeat words from the paragraph
- Use elimination to finish the task faster
A heading summarises the whole paragraph
Each heading describes what the whole paragraph is mainly about. A heading that matches only one sentence or one example is usually a trap.
The main idea often appears in the first or second sentence, but not always. Some paragraphs begin with background and state their point at the end, after words such as however, yet or in fact.
Method
1. Read the list of headings first and note what kind of idea each one expresses: a problem, a cause, a solution, a comparison, a change over time.
2. Read one paragraph and, before looking at the list, say its main idea in five words or fewer.
3. Choose the heading that matches your summary in meaning. Be suspicious of a heading that shares an unusual word with the paragraph but not its message.
4. Cross out headings you have used. Leave difficult paragraphs until the end, when fewer headings remain.
Worked example
Paragraph: Early bicycles were heavy and dangerous, and few people owned one. By the 1890s, however, mass production had cut prices dramatically, and cycling clubs sprang up in almost every town.
Headings: (i) The dangers of early bicycles (ii) How cycling became popular (iii) The first cycling clubs
Answer: (ii). The paragraph moves from 'few people owned one' to clubs 'in almost every town' — its point is the change in popularity.
Heading (i) matches only the opening background, and (iii) matches one detail. Both repeat words from the paragraph, which is exactly what makes them tempting.
Guided practice
Choose the best heading for each paragraph.