Summarizing Central Ideas in The Dark Game, Part 1 Instruction Active
Identifying the Central Idea
Tyt
What is the central idea of the paragraph?
Another thing that changed very little in the years
between the wars was the means of obtaining military
intelligence. Although the use of photography and the
telegraph brought some technological advances, the craft
of spying on the enemy's army still relied on fieldwork.
For the most part, intelligence was gathered in simple
ways. Prisoners of war and deserters were interrogated,
The Union army was always interested in hearing what
runaway slaves had to report.
-The Dark Game,
Paul Janeczko
Technological advances made a difference in the
craft of spying
Interrogations are an important way to obtain
information
The Union army gathered stories from runaway
slaves,
Intelligence was often gathered in simple ways,
such as relying on fieldwork
Previous Activity
USIS

Read this passage: many manufacturers prefer plastic as a material for containers because it can be molded into many shapes. but plastic is not very strong. it must be fused with glass or steel for strength. it is also not very durable. even the strongest plastic can break under enough pressure. the biggest disadvantage to using plastic is that it does not decompose. while plastic can be recycled, doing so is tedious and difficult. while it may be more expensive and difficult to work with, aluminum is a much stronger building material with far greater tensile strength. it conducts electricity because it is metal. best of all, aluminum is very easy to recycle. even if it is thrown away, it decomposes much more quickly than most manufacturing materials. how does the compare-and-contrast organizational pattern of the passage support the author's purpose? a. the passage gradually leads up to the point about decomposition to inform the reader about the importance of recycling plastics. b. the passage lists the advantages and disadvantages of each material to make a case for the use of plastic and not aluminum in containers. c. the passage begins with a description of plastic's problems in order to call attention to the good qualities of aluminum. d. the passage shows the superiority of aluminum in order to make a case for the production of stronger plastics.