Reading Comprehension Main Idea

Respuesta correcta: A) Fishing is central to Punta Verde, but the town must now control it because the sea is giving less than before.

• A) Fishing is central to Punta Verde, but the town must now control it because the sea is giving less than before.Correct! The text contrasts how important fishing has been with the new limits that overfishing has forced, and that is what the whole passage is about.
• B) The harbour of Punta Verde is the busiest one in the region.No. The text never compares this harbour with any other harbour, so calling it the busiest in the region is not stated.
• C) Boats should not be allowed to leave the harbour at all.No. The council limits how many boats may leave, which is a restriction but not a total ban, so this option overstates the text.
• D) Three generations of families have disagreed about fishing methods.No. The text says families have worked with boats for three generations and reports no disagreement at all, so this claim invents a conflict.

Respuesta correcta: B) A group of volunteers cleans the beach and the results are visible in the return of the turtles.

• A) Sea turtles are endangered animals all over the world.No. The turtles appear as evidence of the cleaning work; their status worldwide is never discussed.
• B) A group of volunteers cleans the beach and the results are visible in the return of the turtles.Correct! The text describes an action by volunteers and its measured result, and both halves belong to the main idea.
• C) Plastic bags should be banned in every country by law.No. The text proposes no legal change and never mentions a ban in any country.
• D) The beach on the eastern shore is the most beautiful one nearby.No. The eastern shore is named as the nesting site, but no comparison of beaches appears anywhere in the passage.

Respuesta correcta: C) Sharing a recipe freely allowed a group of neighbours to start their own businesses.

• A) The bakery on Calle Sol failed because of its sourdough bread.No. The bakery closed, but the text never blames the sourdough; the link it draws is between the free recipe and the new bakeries.
• B) Sourdough bread is the most profitable product in the town.No. No profit figures or comparisons of sales appear anywhere in the passage.
• C) Sharing a recipe freely allowed a group of neighbours to start their own businesses.Correct! The text links one act of generosity to a concrete outcome for the neighbours, which is the whole point of the passage.
• D) Neighbours should never give away recipes for free.No. The text shows that giving the recipe away worked well, so it gives no advice against sharing.

Respuesta correcta: D) Students asked for better access to books and the request was answered with a mobile library.

• A) The mountain school is too far from any town for buses to help.No. Buses are never discussed; the obstacle described is the distance students have to walk to reach a library.
• B) Walking two hours is the best exercise for growing students.No. The text reports what students did while waiting and never praises the walk as exercise.
• C) Mobile libraries are cheaper than building new public libraries.No. There is no cost comparison between mobile libraries and public buildings anywhere in the passage.
• D) Students asked for better access to books and the request was answered with a mobile library.Correct! The passage follows a problem, a request and its result, and the result is what makes the story worth telling.

Respuesta correcta: A) Roasting coffee close to where it grows improves its quality and its price.

• A) Roasting coffee close to where it grows improves its quality and its price.Correct! Both benefits mentioned in the text follow from one practice, roasting near the farm, and that is the central point.
• B) Coffee is grown only in the mountains of the interior.No. The mountains are named as one growing area, but the text never says they are the only place coffee is grown.
• C) Farmers in the interior do not know how to roast coffee.No. The passage links roasting near the farm to a better aroma and price; it never says farmers cannot roast coffee.
• D) Aroma is more important than price for coffee buyers.No. The text lists aroma and price as two separate gains and expresses no preference between them.

Respuesta correcta: B) Giving the street a local identity through murals stopped the graffiti for good.

• A) Graffiti is a serious problem in large cities everywhere.No. The graffiti problem is described only in this one street; the text draws no conclusion about cities in general.
• B) Giving the street a local identity through murals stopped the graffiti for good.Correct! The passage connects one community action to a lasting change, and the murals are what made the difference.
• C) The murals were painted by professional artists from abroad.No. No painters or artists are mentioned at all, so their origin or profession cannot be described.
• D) The residents argued about who should pay for the repainting.No. The text reports the group repainting the street with no mention of any disagreement over payment.

Respuesta correcta: C) A short daily reading routine improves both clarity of speech and confidence in performance.

• A) Children should never be asked to perform in public.No. The text only says performing in public becomes less frightening; it never tells schools to forbid performances.
• B) Ten minutes is the ideal length for every school activity.No. Ten minutes is the length of the reading routine itself; the passage never calls it ideal for other activities.
• C) A short daily reading routine improves both clarity of speech and confidence in performance.Correct! The text links a small daily habit to two separate benefits, which together make up the central claim.
• D) Schools that ignored the routine had worse results in every subject.No. Schools that did not introduce the routine are compared on results in general, not on every school subject.

Respuesta correcta: D) Young residents brought the old cinema back to life as a place the community uses.

• A) Cinema buildings are not worth saving in small towns.No. The text shows the cinema being reused successfully, so it never argues that such buildings are worthless.
• B) The town square needs more parking spaces for visitors.No. The square is named only as the location of the cinema; parking is never mentioned.
• C) The original seats of the cinema were of very poor quality.No. The seats are said to have been restored, which says nothing about their original quality.
• D) Young residents brought the old cinema back to life as a place the community uses.Correct! The passage describes a long abandonment, the rescue of the building and the return of people to it, which is one complete idea.

Respuesta correcta: A) Tasks based on personal experience reduce copying because they cannot be found ready made online.

• A) Tasks based on personal experience reduce copying because they cannot be found ready made online.Correct! The text sets up a cause and then gives the reason one type of task avoids the cause, and that is the whole argument.
• B) The internet is a bad influence on students everywhere.No. The text does not condemn the internet; it points at the kind of task that invites copying.
• C) Thinking through answers is always slower than searching for them.No. How long thinking takes compared with searching is never mentioned in the passage.
• D) Homework should be banned from all subjects in school.No. No recommendation to stop setting homework appears anywhere in the text.

Respuesta correcta: B) Collecting rainwater on the school roof has reduced the school's water costs.

• A) Rain is more common in Puerto Rico than in other islands.No. The passage never compares rainfall in Puerto Rico with that of other islands.
• B) Collecting rainwater on the school roof has reduced the school's water costs.Correct! The text follows one change in the water system and the measurable saving it produced, which is the central point.
• C) The school needs a new roof before the next rainy season.No. Nothing suggests the roof is damaged or needs replacing; the change concerns the water system below it.
• D) Two tanks are not enough to store water for a whole school.No. The text states that the two tanks have been enough to cut the bill every month, so this claim contradicts it.

Respuesta correcta: C) The park signs were removed but the community kept putting them back.

• A) Botanists should never work in public parks.No. The botanist's work in a park is never questioned or criticised in the passage.
• B) The main park has more than thirty trees.No. Thirty trees received signs, but the text never states how many trees the park contains.
• C) The park signs were removed but the community kept putting them back.Correct! The passage contrasts the removal of the signs with the community response, and the persistence of the residents is the point.
• D) Wooden signs last longer than metal signs in parks.No. Replacing the signs within a week shows the opposite of not caring about the trees.

Respuesta correcta: D) A simple phone call before admission removed the difference in waiting time between patients.

• A) Patients who live alone should not be allowed to have visitors.No. The text says nothing about restricting visitors for patients who live alone.
• B) Long waits in hospitals are caused only by staff shortages.No. Staff numbers are never mentioned as a cause of the longer waits.
• C) Hospitals in this region receive more patients in winter than in summer.No. The passage never compares the number of patients in winter with the number in summer.
• D) A simple phone call before admission removed the difference in waiting time between patients.Correct! The text presents one observation and one action, and reports that the action worked, which is the whole argument.

Respuesta correcta: A) Planting native shrubs brought a measurable recovery to the bird population.

• A) Planting native shrubs brought a measurable recovery to the bird population.Correct! The text links one action to a measured recovery, and the count of three times as many species is the evidence for it.
• B) Native shrubs are easier to care for than other plants.No. Nothing in the text compares how easy the native shrubs are to care for with other plants.
• C) The hills above the town are closed to walkers today.No. The text describes walking paths along which people stroll, so the hills are plainly not closed.
• D) Bird populations never recover once they have fallen.No. The survey reports three times as many species after the planting, which directly contradicts this claim.

Respuesta correcta: B) Allowing advance booking turned a rarely used resource into a heavily used one.

• A) Most students prefer using their phones rather than library computers.No. Nothing is mentioned about phones or about which device students prefer.
• B) Allowing advance booking turned a rarely used resource into a heavily used one.Correct! The passage presents a change in how the room could be used and the sharp rise in use that followed, which is the central point.
• C) The library should buy more computers in the future.No. The text reports a rise in use after bookings were allowed, not a need for more machines.
• D) Students cannot learn to plan their study in advance.No. The passage describes the opposite of this claim: students now arrive knowing exactly when a machine will be free.

Respuesta correcta: C) The community lunch survived a loss of volunteers by changing the food rather than the guests.

• A) Community centres should never depend on volunteers for meals.No. The text shows the programme continuing successfully, so it does not advise against relying on volunteers.
• B) Forty people is the maximum a community centre can serve.No. No capacity limit is discussed; forty is simply the usual number of guests served.
• C) The community lunch survived a loss of volunteers by changing the food rather than the guests.Correct! The passage turns on a choice made under pressure and the outcome of that choice, which is the whole idea.
• D) The volunteers left because they disliked the menu served.No. Nothing in the passage suggests the volunteers disliked the menu they were helping to serve.

Respuesta correcta: D) Students took responsibility for correcting an outdated map by measuring the real changes on the ground.

• A) Maps of the island are difficult to keep accurate.No. The text shows one map being corrected successfully, so it does not argue that maps are hopeless to keep accurate.
• B) The north coast road should never have been rebuilt.No. The road was rebuilt and the students accepted it; the passage criticises no one for that decision.
• C) The school entrance is in the wrong place on the map.No. The students added the side streets themselves, which shows the opposite of thinking them unimportant.
• D) Students took responsibility for correcting an outdated map by measuring the real changes on the ground.Correct! The text focuses on what the students did to fix the map and how they did it, which is the point of the passage.

Respuesta correcta: A) Understanding an environmental problem changed how the students organised their school fair.

• A) Understanding an environmental problem changed how the students organised their school fair.Correct! The text links an explanation to a change in behaviour, and that is the whole argument of the passage.
• B) Reusable cups are cheaper than plastic bottles in every country.No. Price is never given as a reason for the change from bottles to reusable cups.
• C) Landfills in the region are full and cannot take more waste.No. Nothing is said about how full landfills are or whether they can take more waste.
• D) The school should stop organising fairs altogether.No. The text reports that the fair went ahead using reusable cups, so it gives no advice against holding it.

Respuesta correcta: B) Talking openly about mistakes, rather than changing the training, was what the coach believes turned the season around.

• A) Six losses in a row are enough to end a team's season.No. The text shows the team improving after those losses, not a season ending because of them.
• B) Talking openly about mistakes, rather than changing the training, was what the coach believes turned the season around.Correct! The passage contrasts what the coach did not change with the one change she credits, and that belief is the central point.
• C) The coach changed the training routine at the start of the season.No. The coach is explicit that she changed almost nothing about the training, so no training change is claimed.
• D) Players should never discuss their mistakes with the coach.No. The text describes players discussing their mistakes aloud, which is the opposite of this option.

Respuesta correcta: C) Extending the market opening time by an hour brings more customers at little cost.

• A) Sunday markets are more important than weekday markets.No. The text says nothing about the market hall operating on weekdays at all.
• B) Small traders cannot afford to stay open later than they do.No. Traders are described as selling more thanks to the extra hour, so they are not held back by cost.
• C) Extending the market opening time by an hour brings more customers at little cost.Correct! The passage weighs a small cost against a clear gain for the traders, and that balance is what the text is about.
• D) The council should close the market hall on Sundays.No. The council pays very little for the change, so nothing in the text argues for closing the hall.

Respuesta correcta: D) Making a film gave residents a way to talk about their past, and the method is now being extended.

• A) The high school has the best film equipment in the region.No. The text says only that the high school helped; no equipment or comparison with other schools appears.
• B) Most residents of the town had unhappy childhoods.No. The passage describes childhoods that were never spoken about, not childhoods that were unhappy.
• C) Filmmaking is easier than writing local history.No. Nothing in the text compares filmmaking with writing local history.
• D) Making a film gave residents a way to talk about their past, and the method is now being extended.Correct! The passage describes a method that worked and is now being copied, and both facts form one connected idea.