Worksheet for identifying supporting details in sentences.

Let’s go through each sentence pair and pick the one that gives a good reason or detail to support the main idea.

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1. The ice cream at the corner store is terrible.
→ “The kitchen has recently been renovated.” — This doesn’t explain why the ice cream is bad. Renovation might even make things better!
→ “The owner gave up on anyone.” — This suggests the owner stopped caring, which could mean they don’t try to make good ice cream anymore. That supports why it’s terrible. ✔

Answer: The owner gave up on anyone.

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2. Neighbor 1 is very well-behaved dog. *(Note: Probably meant “Neighbor’s dog”)*
→ “It never jumps up on anyone.” — Not jumping on people is a sign of good behavior. This directly supports the claim. ✔
→ “Neighbor 1 is very well-behaved dog.” — This just repeats the same thing — not a supporting detail.

Answer: It never jumps up on anyone.

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3. Gardening is very good for you.
→ “You get a lot of exercise walking in the garden.” — Exercise is healthy, so this supports why gardening is good for you. ✔
→ “Gardening is very good for you.” — Again, this is just repeating the statement — not a reason.

Answer: You get a lot of exercise walking in the garden.

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4. Kat’s birthday party was a lot of fun.
→ “Her parents were very strict.” — Being strict doesn’t usually mean fun — this weakens the idea.
→ “She played games and won prizes.” — Playing games and winning prizes sounds like fun! This supports the claim. ✔

Answer: She played games and won prizes.

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5. We spent all day fishing, counting. *(Probably meant “We spent all day fishing, catching…” or similar — but we’ll work with what’s given.)*
→ “I saw a really big fish swimming.” — Seeing a big fish while fishing makes the day more exciting and memorable — supports that it was worth spending all day. ✔
→ “I saw a really big fish swimming.” — Wait, both options are the same? Let me check again… Actually, looking closely, the second option says: “I saw a really big fish swimming.” — same as first? Hmm. Maybe typo? But since only one can be chosen, and seeing a big fish is a cool detail during fishing, it still works as support.

Actually — wait — re-reading:
Original says:
> 5. We spent all day fishing, counting.
> ___ I saw a really big fish swimming.
> ___ I saw a really big fish swimming.

That seems like a mistake in the worksheet. But if both lines are identical, then either would technically support — because seeing a big fish is an interesting event during fishing. So we’ll pick the first one (since it’s listed first).

But let’s assume it’s a typo and maybe the second was supposed to be something else — like “I caught nothing.” In that case, the first one is clearly better. Since we have to choose, and both say the same, we’ll go with:

Answer: I saw a really big fish swimming.

*(If this were real classwork, I’d ask the teacher about the duplicate line!)*

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6. Having a backyard pool is a lot of work.
→ “You must constantly monitor the water quality.” — Monitoring water quality takes time and effort — that’s hard work! Supports the claim. ✔
→ “Having a backyard pool is a lot of work.” — Just repeats the statement — not a reason.

Answer: You must constantly monitor the water quality.

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Final Answer:
1. The owner gave up on anyone.
2. It never jumps up on anyone.
3. You get a lot of exercise walking in the garden.
4. She played games and won prizes.
5. I saw a really big fish swimming.
6. You must constantly monitor the water quality.