theme

Andrew worked all summer mowing yards. In the fall he raked leaves. He saved his birthday money. When he was sixteen Andrew bought a car with his earnings. His friends were jealous at first, but they remembered how hard he had worked.

• Teamwork is important

• Andrew is great at saving money

• Work is hard, but you do get rewards

Chris was walking home from the park when he saw an old man drop his wallet. His friends saw Chris pick it up and they told him to keep it. Without hesitating, Chris ran and gave the old man his wallet back. He offered Chris a reward but Chris said no. He didn't need a reward to do what was right.

• People should offer to reward you for being honest

• Honesty is the best policy

• Chris should have kept the money and given back the wallet

Steven loved to play basketball. He went to the park everyday to shoot hoops. His friends would ask him to play video games, or hang out, or even play football with them.He always politely declined. Steven had a dream to play pro basketball. Years later, his friends were not surprised when he was drafted by the NBA.

• Teamwork is great

• You should always be honest and tell the truth

• Do not let yourself be distracted from following your dreams

One day in class, Hannah forgot to bring a pencil. She didn't usually sit by Valerie, but since Mrs, Durden changed their seats. Valerie kindly offered Hannah her extra pencil. Soon after, Valerie left her jacket on the playground and went back to get it. She was disappointed to see it was gone. When she walked back into class, Valerie saw her jacket in her chair. Hannah had picked it up for her.

• Always let your friends borrow your pencils

• If someone does something nice for you, you should do something nice for them too.

• Valerie and Hannah are nice and help each other

BONUS!!!

You can get clues about a story's theme from

• setting of the story

• lesson the character learns

• the way a character looks