Theme Main Idea

A woman risks her life to spy for the Union during the Civil War.

The sentence above is an example of a

• plot

• character

• main idea

• theme

As Tai strummed the guitar, Charlesa looked at her with pride. For so long, Tai's fingers had clumsily tripped over the strings, but now she played the song with ease. Getting to this point hadn't been easy for Charlesa, either. She sighed, trying to bury the memories of all the screaming tantrums Tai had thrown. Once, she nearly threw her guitar against a wall. But now when Tai smiled, the tune of "Sweet Home Alabama" floated out of the instrument, Charlesa smiled too. It had been worth it.

Which of the following is most likely a theme of the story?

• Playing a musical instrument is too much work.

• Hard work can bring great rewards.

• Friends shouldn't try to teach each other new things.

• It's ok to give up on yourself.

Billy is so excited to see you," he heard his mother shout into the phone. She always spoke louder on long-distance calls, as if raising her voice would help it travel across the Atlantic. "Aren't you, Billy?" she demanded. Billy slumped in his chair, pushing wrinkled peas around his plate. His suitcases stood at attention in the hallway, holding eight weeks worth of shirts, pants and socks. Suddenly a loud crash sounded. "Patches!" his mother shrieked. In the hallway, Patches the cat stood next to an overturned suitcase and the remnants of a shattered vase. As Billy's mother rushed to assess the damage, Patches sidled up to Billy, rubbing his face against Billy's leg. Billy reached down to stroke him, and Patches looked up, blinking his green eyes. He stared at Billy with his knowing look- a look that seemed to offer so much and ask for so little in return. Which of the following is most likely a theme of the story?

• Friendship is worth more than material goods

• You must confront your past

• Pets are more trouble than they're worth

• The love of a pet is unlike any other

What is the main idea of this passage? Jamar and Matthew were spending the last day of their summer vacation at Mighty Mountain Theme Park. They’d been looking forward to this day all summer! Jamar had been dreaming about riding on the Sky Dipper rollercoaster. Matthew couldn’t wait to play all the carnival games. As they were approaching the roller coasters, Jamar said, “Come on Matthew, let’s get in line for the Sky Dipper.” “Really?” Matthew replied. “I’m not a huge fan of rollercoasters. Let’s play the games instead.” “We can do that anytime. Come on, the line is short right now, let’s go.” Matthew’s heart began to race, his palms got sweaty, but he didn’t want to let down his friend. So, he got in line and before he knew it, he was plummeting down a gigantic hill in a rollercoaster car at record speeds. He was pretty sure his heart might come out of his chest, but halfway through the ride he began to have a little fun

• Matthew rides a rollercoaster even though he is really afraid.

• Matthew and Jamar go to the Mighty Mountain Theme Park.

• Matthew suggests they play games instead of ride rollercoasters.

What is the main idea of the passage? If there was one thing that Madeline loved to do, it was sing. She sang all day long. Each morning began with a song. She sang during her walk to work. She hummed tunes at her desk throughout her work day. Then, all evening long she sang along to music. While she had a job in an office, her real aspiration was to sing for a career. Recently, she scraped together her savings to work with a producer in a recording studio to create a demo of her music. Once it was complete, she made it her daily mission to send out the demo to everyone she could think of in the music industry. Unfortunately, the only thing she seemed to get in return were rejection letters. That didn’t stop Madeline, though. She simply made more copies of the demos and sent them out to more music executives. Of course, more rejections followed. That’s when she decided to audition for a singing contest. Even though the competition was tough, Madeline landed a spot in the contest. She was one step closer to her dream

• Madeline got a lot of rejection letters.

• Madeline saved her money to create a demo of her music.

• Despite rejection, Madeline kept trying and landed a spot in the contest.

What is the theme of the passage? If there was one thing that Madeline loved to do, it was sing. She sang all day long. Each morning began with a song. She sang during her walk to work. She hummed tunes at her desk throughout her work day. Then, all evening long she sang along to music. While she had a job in an office, her real aspiration was to sing for a career. Recently, she scraped together her savings to work with a producer in a recording studio to create a demo of her music. Once it was complete, she made it her daily mission to send out the demo to everyone she could think of in the music industry. Unfortunately, the only thing she seemed to get in return were rejection letters. That didn’t stop Madeline, though. She simply made more copies of the demos and sent them out to more music executives. Of course, more rejections followed. That’s when she decided to audition for a singing contest. Even though the competition was tough, Madeline landed a spot in the contest. She was one step closer to her dream

• Treat others the way you want to be treated.

• There is more than one definition of success.

• Follow your dreams no matter what.

Theme is the...

• contrast between what is said and what is actually meant.

• problem or challenge that a character is facing.

• life lesson communicated by the story.

• way that an author introduces and develops a character.

A ____________ theme requires inference. The details of the story will HINT at the theme, but it’s not obvious.

• Explicit

• Implied

A __________ theme is obviously stated or expressed

clearly. There is no room for confusion.

• Explicit

• Implied

What is the theme of this passage? Sam and Paul had a bit of a friendly rivalry in school. Of course, they competed over grades. In gym class, they also tried to be the best. In music, each boy tried to outdo the other. There didn’t seem to be anything that they couldn’t turn into a contest. So, it’s no surprise that Sam challenged Paul to a race after school on Friday. The race was to be from the school playground to the town library. Sam explained the route that they would need to take, Paul pretended to agree, but he had a plan. He knew about a shortcut down an alley behind the Town Hall. While the shortcut wasn’t on the route, Paul knew that winning would be worth it. Once the race began, and Paul let Sam get ahead of him so that he could sneak down the alley. When Sam passed the Town Hall, Paul made his move. He ran down the alley, but he was shocked to find a brand new metal gate at the end of the alley. He was stuck. He knew that he would have to go back the way he came, and that was going to eat up his time. When he finally backtracked and made it to the town library, there was Sam with a big grin on his face

• You can’t buy friends.

• The early bird gets the worm.

• Cheaters never win.