Generalize
Fourth Grade
Unit 3 Week 5
By Kristi Waltke
A generalization is a broad statement
or rule that applies to many
examples.
 A clue word such as all, most, always,
usually, or generally signals that an
author is making a generalization.


A generalization can be valid (logical) or
faulty (wrong) depending on the number
of examples on which it is based and on
how logical and careful the thinking is.
Read the two generalizations.
Decide which generalization is
valid. The other statement is
faulty.
Which generalization is
valid?
A
rain forest is almost
always hot and wet.
Animals in stories about
the rain forest are
always scary.
Which generalization is
valid?
 The
birds of the Amazon
rain forest usually prefer the
understory.
 The understory of the
Amazon rain forest is
generally dark.
Which generalization is
valid?
 Usually
authors who use
animals as characters are
only trying to entertain.
 An author will often use
animal characters in a story
to teach something
important to people.
Which generalization is
valid?
 Cutting
down one tree
never has an effect on an
ecosystem.
 Cutting down one tree
effects all the animals that
depend on the tree for
different reasons.