Author's Purpose and Main Idea Worksheet
Francis Scott Key, a lawyer negotiating an important prisoner exchange during the War of
1812, was the accidental poet of our national anthem when he hastily jotted down "Defense
of Fort McHenry," after watching twenty-five hours of bombardment. The flag flying over Fort
McHenry had survived the night from the "twilight's last gleaming" to the "dawn's early light."
The resilience and endurance of that flag was Key's inspiration. Today, the national anthem
is played at every sports event, including the Olympics, and asks the same question every
time it is sung: Does the flag still wave over the land of the free and the home of the brave?"
Instructions: Read the question and highlight the academic vocabulary in the question, then
read the selection and answer the questions.
1. Which sentence best states the main idea of the paragraph?
A The words to the national anthem remind us of the characteristics of America.
O B The national anthem is a song of war and should not be sung at sports events.
By