Recognize the distinction
A reading passage is an organized act of explanation or argument. An example may be memorable without being the main point. Build a short map describing the author's purpose and how each part advances it: introduce a view, identify a limit, offer evidence, distinguish cases, or propose a qualified alternative. Use your own short description rather than copying every sentence.
Choose a method
For a main-point question, choose the option that covers the whole passage at the right level of generality. A true detail can be too narrow; an appealing generalization can be broader than the author's claim. For a function question, ask what the referenced material does in the argument, not merely what topic it mentions.
Worked contrast
The seed-bank passage does not simply recommend gardens instead of storage. It argues that the two approaches protect against different failures. Details about viability and record keeping explain why preserving varieties requires more than one action. A choice saying storage always guarantees survival ignores the passage's explicit limitations.
Transfer and check
Practice writing a one-sentence map before reading the choices. After answering, point to the passage language supporting each part of the chosen main point. For transfer, change the subject from seeds to archives and ask whether the same complement-versus-replacement distinction remains. The map should guide close reading, not replace it.
Original foundation reading selection (shorter than a full official passage): City seed banks are often praised as insurance against the disappearance of plant varieties. Storage, however, is only one part of preservation. Seeds from some species lose viability quickly, and even long-lived seeds must eventually be grown so that fresh seed can be collected. Growing plants in a single garden also exposes them to a limited range of conditions. A network of community gardens can therefore complement a central seed bank: gardens maintain living populations under varied conditions, while the bank provides a reserve when a garden fails. This arrangement requires careful records so that varieties are not confused. Neither storage nor cultivation alone removes every risk, but the two approaches protect against different failures. Which statement best expresses the central point?
- Read the whole selection, including its qualifications.
- Seed storage and distributed cultivation can complement each other in preserving plant varieties.
- The detail 'Some stored seeds lose viability quickly.' helps develop that central point but is narrower than it.
Compare the other answer choices
This summary changes or overstates the position actually developed in this selection; it is not the passage-wide qualified main point.
This summary changes or overstates the position actually developed in this selection; it is not the passage-wide qualified main point.
This summary changes or overstates the position actually developed in this selection; it is not the passage-wide qualified main point.
This summary changes or overstates the position actually developed in this selection; it is not the passage-wide qualified main point.
Try it, then explain it.
Complete a short set without looking at the example. After each answer, explain which evidence or rule supports your decision and why the alternatives do not fit.
Sources & authorship
Original Slope explanations and examples. References support the concepts; they are not the source of copied questions. Independent educator review is pending.
Reading Comprehension skills