TEAS key ideas and details: the six reading skills ATI tests, with examples
Written and reviewed by Brittany Scott, BSN, RN, CCM · 4 min read · Updated November 2026
Short answer
Key Ideas and Details is the TEAS 7 reading category that checks whether you understood what a text says: summarizing, inferring, following directions, finding facts, reading charts and putting events in order. ATI's content outline gives it 15 of the 39 scored reading questions, about 10% of the whole test.
What ATI puts in this category
ATI's TEAS 7 content outline lists six objectives under R.1 Key Ideas and Details: summarize a multi-paragraph text, make inferences and draw conclusions about a text's purpose and meaning, demonstrate comprehension of written directions, locate specific information in a text, analyze and apply information from charts, graphs and other visuals, and interpret events in a sequence.
As of November 2026, ATI's exam details page lists the reading section at 45 questions in 55 minutes, with 6 of those unscored. The other two reading categories are Craft and Structure with 9 scored items and Integration of Knowledge and Ideas with 15. So Key Ideas and Details ties for the largest share of reading points.
A common mix-up about what belongs here
Working out a word's meaning from context is not a Key Ideas and Details skill. ATI files it under Craft and Structure, objective R.2.2, alongside fact versus opinion and author's purpose. If your practice report flags vocabulary in context, study it as part of that smaller category.
Inference is the reverse case. It appears twice in the outline: R.1.2 asks you to infer a text's purpose and meaning, and R.3.1 under Integration of Knowledge and Ideas asks you to use evidence from the text to make predictions and draw conclusions. Practicing inference therefore pays off in two categories at once, which together hold 30 scored items.
Main idea and summary questions
A summary answer has to cover the whole passage, not its most memorable sentence. Try this test on each option: does it fit the first paragraph and the last one? Wrong answers are usually a true detail from one paragraph or a claim broader than anything the passage supports.
Worked example. A three-paragraph passage explains that hospital hand hygiene audits started in one unit, spread to the whole hospital after infection rates fell, and now include visitors. The option saying audits began in one unit is a detail. The option saying hand washing prevents all infections goes beyond the text. The best summary says the audit program grew from one unit to the whole hospital and its visitors because early results were good.
Inference questions without guessing
An inference is a conclusion the text supports but never states. The safe rule is that you should be able to point to the sentence that makes your answer likely. If an option needs outside knowledge or a feeling about the topic, it is probably a trap.
Worked example. A notice says the clinic's evening hours end next month because two nurses retired and the clinic could not fill their positions. Which is most likely true? Staffing caused the change is supported. The clinic is closing is not; only evening hours end. Patients were unhappy with evening care is never mentioned, so it cannot be inferred.
Directions, facts, charts and sequence
Directions questions reward reading every step in order before acting. A typical item gives a list of steps such as start with a word, swap two letters, then remove the last letter, and asks for the result. Write each intermediate result on your scratch sheet instead of holding it in your head.
For locate questions and visuals, go back to the passage or chart and find the exact line, label or axis value before you look at the options. For sequence questions, mark time words such as before, after, then and finally, because the order in the text is not always the order in which events happened.
Sources
ATI TEAS Version 7 Content Outline (ATI, 2022). R.1 objectives, 15 scored Key Ideas and Details items (10%), Craft and Structure 9 with R.2.2 context, Integration 15 with R.3.1 inference
ATI TEAS exam details. Reading section has 45 questions, 6 unscored, 55 minutes
ATI Help: What is in the ATI TEAS study manual?. Official study guide reading unit covers Key Ideas and Details, Craft and Structure, Integration of Knowledge and Ideas
Common questions
What is key ideas and details on the TEAS?
It is one of three TEAS 7 reading categories. ATI's outline gives it 15 scored questions covering summaries, inferences, written directions, locating information, reading charts and graphs, and event sequence.
How do I find the main idea on a TEAS passage?
Pick the option that fits every paragraph, not just one. Reject answers that repeat a single detail or claim more than the passage says. Checking each choice against the first and last paragraph is a quick filter.
How are inference questions asked on the TEAS?
They usually ask what is most likely true, what the author suggests, or what can be concluded. The correct answer is not stated outright but is backed by a specific sentence. ATI tests inference in both Key Ideas and Details and Integration of Knowledge and Ideas.