How do you find the central idea?

By asking the speaker to repeat all main ideas after he or she is done speaking

by identifying the topic, medium, and supporting sentences

by looking at notes kept by a peer who uses highlighting

by listening carefully to pauses the speaker uses when speaking

The central idea is the central, unifying element of the story, which ties together all of the other elements of fiction used by the author to tell the story. The central idea can be best described as the dominant impression or the universal, generic truth found in the story.