Compare stories and articles to pyramids, saying that the point of the pyramid is like the key idea of the passage, the middle of the pyramid is like the supporting ideas that reinforce the key idea and the base of the pyramid is like the details that reinforce the supporting ideas. Draw a pyramid on the board to illustrate this.
Divide students into groups of four, and give each group four expository paragraphs or short newspaper articles, one for each student. Have students read their passages to themselves, and write down what they think are the key idea and the supports.
Have the students trade their passages around until each student has read and taken notes on each passage.
Tell the groups to discuss the passages and the main ideas they chose. Each group should attempt to reach a consensus about each passage. If they disagree about a passage, they should note all the answers they cannot rule out.
Draw a pyramid on the board, and have a group share their answers about one of the passages. Write the group's choice of main idea in the top of the pyramid and their supports beneath it. Ask if they remember any specific details that belong in the base of the pyramid, and write them inside the drawing if they do.
Ask the class if everyone agrees that this version of the main idea pyramid makes sense. Do these supports reinforce this main idea? If the students have chosen the wrong key idea, discuss as a class which of the supports might actually belong in the top of the pyramid.
Write both possible answers beside the pyramid if the group could not agree, and discuss as a class which answer fits best in the top of the pyramid. Discuss which ideas support which other ideas.
Erase the pyramid when you have finished discussing the passage, and move on to the next group. Discuss one passage from each group, or more than one if you need to reinforce the concept further.