Determining Themes and Central Ideas

Lesson 8: Determining Theme or Central Idea

Open Ended

What is the theme of the cartoon on the previous slide?

Open Ended

What is the central idea of this portion of the story?

Multiple Choice

What sentence below best expresses a theme of this story?

• Knowledge can help a person overcome fears.

• Friends stand by you even when times are tough.

• Dogs only bark at people who act scared.

• Confidence does not help people solve problems.

Multiple Choice

In this story, the narrator's feelings are clues about the story's central idea. Which sentence from the story shares an important detail about the author's feelings?

• "last summer, we went to a theme park and I went on about fifty rides."

• "Our sixth-grade class had studied Mount Rushmore, and a visit there sounded really boring."

• "This summer, my parents planned a trip for us to visit Mount Rushmore."

• "I've seen statues of famous people before."

Multiple Choice

Which of the following sentences best states a theme about human behavior as described in "Rushmore"?

• People often dread situations that turn out to be fine or even fun.

• What is pleasing to one person may be disappointing to another.

• We should always do what we can to make the best of a difficult situation.

• Memories of great times in the past can help us through boring times in the present.

Multiple Select

Select two pieces of evidence from "Rushmore" that support your answer to question 2. Check the boxes of your two choices.

• "planned a trip for us to visit Mt. Rushmore"

• "and a visit there sounded really boring"

• "As we drove to the airport"

• "the size of the carvings is astonishing"

• "We drove about 30 miles"