Determining Theme

What TOPIC or BIG SUBJECT is the author discussing in this passage?

Today was Friday and Mark knew that meant it was Fun Friday at school. All the students were allowed to participate in Fun Friday if they turned in their homework. Mark walked into class and open his backpack. He stared inside and froze. He had left his homework on the counter. He tried to think quickly, what could he say? He could tell Mr. Barnes that his little brother had thrown it away. He could tell him that he dropped it on the bus or he could say that he already turned it in and that Mr. Barnes must have lost it. "Where's your homework, Mark?" asked Mr. Barnes. Mark just hung his head, he couldn't tell a lie. "I left it at home", he said quietly.

• Friendship

• Perseverance

• Honesty

• Compassion

Theme should be a statement, not just one word.

• False

• True

Read the selection and determine the theme of the story.

Derek was doing his homework on his computer one night when he saw an ad banner for a free Gamebox 9000. He clicked on the ad with great interest and was taken to a webpage with details about the offer. It seemed simple enough. All he had to do was post some content to his social networking pages and complete a few offers. Derek didn't really approve of the content that he was required to share, but he really wanted the new Gamebox, so he shared the required links with all of his friends and family. Then Derek began completing the offers. According to the website, he had to complete three offers, and then he would get his Gamebox for free. So Derek started completing the offers in the first tier, which required him to create accounts on a bunch of websites that he had no interest in joining. The second tier required Derek to become a member at more websites and to get three of his friends to sign up to the program. Getting his friends (who thought the offer was a scam) to participate in the program was much harder, but Derek finally found three freshman who agreed to participate. Unfortunately, the third tier required him to sign up for satellite television service, change his phone service provider, and get approved for several credit cards. Derek finally did what he should have done from the beginning and walked away from these offers.

• Don't sign up for offers without your parents' permission.

• Everything that glitters is not gold.

• Something that seems too good to be true usually isn't true.

• Sometimes you win; sometimes you loose.

What is the theme of a story?

• the mood of the story

• The story's setting

• What the author wants to teach the reader

• What the narrator says in the story

Lucy is a superhero. There is an evil villain approaching Lucy's small-town of Gray. Lucy hears of this news, and she instantly begins training so she can defeat him.

What theme can we take away from this summary of a story?

• Friendship is important.

• Treat others how you would like to be treated.

• You must work hard to reach your goals.

Three butterflies notice an overturned honey pot. Two of the butterflies decide to land in the honey and start eating it. But the oldest butterfly stays back. The two butterflies tease the older butterfly, but then get stuck in the honey. What is the moral of this story?

• Overeating leads to illness.

• The first to try something gets rewarded.

• Some treats aren't worth risking your safety.

My best friend was having a party Friday night, but I also had a baseball game.  This was going to be a tough decision.  If I do not go to the game, I will let my team down.

• It's important to be loyal
• Your friends are the most important things in life
• Being good at sports is the best way to get friends
• it's important to never give up

Jess was not happy that she had to sit beside Ben. He was loud and silly, he talked all the time, and his desk was always messy. She promised herself that she would ignore him and never make contact. That is until one morning.. THUD! When Jess heard this loud noise, she looked up to see Ben had tripped over a chair that should have been pushed in. He was suddenly laying on the floor, and his papers were strewed everywhere. Jess rushed over to him. Despise Ben's obnoxious behavior, Jess helped him up and picked up all of his papers. "No worries, Ben, that chair was in your way," Jess said. That afternoon during recess, Ben thanked Jess for helping him. Jess realized that Ben was actually nice, and that she had never taken the time to get to know him. Jess and Ben had each found a new friend.

What problem did Jess face in this story?

• She was upset that Ben's desk was so messy.

• She was mad that her teacher wouldn't move her.

• She was not happy that she had to sit beside Ben.

Rachel was walking to the park when she noticed her neighbor picking up trash. Rachel stopped and helped her pick up all the trash.What is the theme?

• bravery
• kindness
• determination

Matthew was walking in the halls at school with his friends when he saw a little boy drop his lunch money. Matthew's friend said they should keep the money, but Matthew didn't feel that was the right thing to do. He returned the money to the boy.
What is the theme?

• honesty
• kindness
• team work