Theme R.1.2 and Central Idea R.2.2

In a piece of narrative text, what is the "theme"?

• What the story is about

• The topic of the text

• A message the author is trying to get across to the reader

• Where and when the story happens

What is a question you can ask yourself when identifying theme?

• What message is the author trying to send?

• What are the main character's traits?

• What is the climax?

Which of the following is an example of THEME?

• Carry your laptops with two hands at all times.
• Cereal is the healthiest food you can eat.
• You can severely break your leg while crossing the street.
• Life is short; make the most of it.

What is the main idea of the following paragraph?

Julia’s report card reflected poor grades. She felt she would get in trouble, so she hid her report card from her parents. When her parents discovered what her grades were, they grounded her for trying to hide the truth.

• Julia's report card reflected poor grades.

• Julia was worried that she would get in trouble, so she hid her report card from her parents.

• Julia's parents discovered that she was hiding her poor grades from them.

• Julia got in trouble not for poor grades but for trying to hide the truth.

Which of the following quotes supports the theme: "Being afraid can prevent us from doing what we are really capable of in life."?

• "Due to her fear of public speaking, Anna passed up the opportunity to speak at a national conference.”

• "Sonya stepped back from the edge since she felt a little queasy when she looked down.”

• "Ming's mother, and graphic designer, traded her time with our neighbor, Mr. Phillips, a music teacher, so he could get quality piano lessons.”

• "Joanna smiled and burst out laughing when Chip started dancing in the middle of the crowded store. She loved how is was not scared of making a fool out of himself.”

Which of the following is an example of a theme?

• Connor overcame his obstacles with a change in mindset.

• Sally took a bad situation and made the most of it.

• Thankful

• People's decisions are often an indication of their true character.

What is theme?

• Message about life that the author expresses

• Sequence of events

• Main events

• Time, location, and mood of a story

Themes are universal because...

• all humans share common experiences

• the entire universe enjoys them

• authors add them to make the writing more interesting

• the stories go on forever

What is one of the themes of Abuela Invents the Zero?

• a. Older people are wiser than younger people.

• b. Never ignore your grandmother.

• c. Mind your mother and respect your father.

• d. Be kind and consider other people's feelings.

In the story "The Monkey's Paw" What piece of dialogue helps develop the theme “be careful what you wish for because you just might get it?

• “Well why don’t you have three, sir?”

• “And did you really have three wishes granted?”

• “The first man has his three wishes, yes…I don’t know what the first two were, but the third was for death.”

• “That’s how I got the paw.”