Little Things

by Ebeneze Cobham Brewer

Little drops of water,

Little grains of sand,

Make the mighty ocean

And the pleasant land.

Thus the little minutes,

Humble though they be,

Make the mighty ages

Of eternity.

"Little Things" shares a message with readers. Which choice best represents that message?

Mr. Pig and Mr. Dog were hanging out at the food court of the animal shopping mall. Mr. Pig was eating a huge feast of pizza and drinking a large jug of fruit punch and Mr. Dog was watching him eat. "Hey, Mr. Pig. If you give me a slice of your pizza, I'll let you have the next bone I find." Mr. Pig declined, even though it hurt his stomach to eat the last three slices of pizza. "I'm sorry, Mr. Dog," Mr. Pig said, "but I paid for this pizza and it's all mine." Mr. Dog sighed and waited for Mr. Pig to finish, and then they left the animal mall together. On the way out, a hunter spotted them and gave chase. Mr. Pig normally could have escaped the hunter but since he was weighed down by such a large meal, Mr. Pig collapsed and the hunter killed him. Mr. Dog easily escaped. Later that night while returning to the scene, Mr. Dog caught the scent of something delicious and began digging around a trash can. He found a large ham bone with lots of meat and marrow still stuck to the bone. Mr. Dog happily ate.

What is the theme of the story?

Which of the following sentences might be the theme of a story?

Which of the following would make the best theme for a short story?

In literature, a purpose of THEME is:

Themes can be found in all genres. Movies also have themes. The book The Lion King was made into a movie. In both the book and in the movie, a possible theme might be:

In literature, we define THEME as:

When Can You Start?

Carolyn and Tina were hired to organize and paint their neighbor's shed. A great deal of stuff had accumulated in Mrs. Bosco's shed over the years. While Tina talked to Mrs. Bosco, Carolyn began sorting items into two piles: things that worked and things that were garbage.

"Mrs. Bosco, you're going to love what we're going to do with the shed," Tina was saying. "You won't even recognize it when we're done."

"I'm sure it will turn out very nicely, Tina," Mrs. Bosco said.​​​​​​​

"I'm thinking of installing a tool rack. What do you think?"

"Thanks, but that's not necessary."

"Have you ever thought about adding a window box?" Tina asked.

As they were talking, Carolyn hauled bags of trash to the curb. She took it upon herself to clear out rotten firewood, rusted gadgets, leaves, and dirt.

"Hey, Carolyn," Tina said. "I'm going to pick up some extra supplies at the hardware store. I'll be back soon."

While she was gone, Carolyn found a couple gallons of blue paint and some brushes on a back shelf. The inside of the shed was now clean and organized. Carolyn went to work painting the outside—a peaceful, quiet task. An hour later, she heard Mrs. Bosco in the yard on her cell phone, talking to Tina.

"Like I said, Tina, we don't need more shelves in the shed. Why don't you come back now?"

Sighing, Mrs. Bosco approached Carolyn. "Thank you. You seem to understand that I hired you to get a job done, not come up with add-ons I didn't ask for," she said. "Your sister is nice, but without you, it doesn't seem like anything would ever get done."

She paid Carolyn a generous amount, and the painting was nearly finished by the time Tina returned in the afternoon.

Which of the following best describes the main theme or lesson of the story?

Diving In

It was a hot day at the beach, so why did the ocean feel like ice? Carol wanted to cool off, but she had only managed to wade in up to her ankles. Her feet were nearly numb from the cold water.

"Wow, it's freezing today," said her sister, Pauline. They stood side by side, half-shivering in the water and half-baking in the sun.

Carol noticed the windsurfers in the distance. Of course, she thought. They're wearing wetsuits. But then she saw an old man swimming nearby, wearing only his trunks and a swim cap. A few more courageous heads bobbed up and down in the chilly sea.

"Okay, that's it," Pauline said. "I'm doing it." She took a deep breath, ran into the surf, and dived into a large, breaking wave. She emerged farther out, a big grin on her face.

Carol inched forward. As she did, her shins, then her knees, and then her thighs stung from the cold. She noticed that her feet felt okay now, but when the water touched her stomach, she shrieked. The breakers now splashed water across her back and shoulders.

"It's too cold!" Carol shouted. "I'm going back!"

Then she froze. She saw a big wave approaching. There was no time to turn back; she was in too deep. She watched with dread as the crest swelled above her head. She closed her eyes and dunked beneath the wave.

A freezing sensation enveloped her for an instant, but then she felt fine. Refreshed, even.

Finally, she swam out to her sister.

Which of the following best describes the main theme or lesson of the story?

Self-Portrait

Alia was dismayed to find herself in the drawing studio. She had been sick with the flu during the week when everyone else got to pick their classes. She had hoped for Astronomy or Marine Biology, but they were full by the time she got to choose. She loved everything about science, from the way it used facts and formulas to how it revealed the basic nature of things. But art was so . . .un-scientific.

The first class project was self-portraits. Some students were drawing self-portraits using mirrors. Others were working from photographs. Alia glanced at the incomplete sketches, feeling like a cat in a dog show.

The teacher came up to Alia's easel and sat next to her.

"Every portrait begins with a circle," he said. "Then you create a series of lines."

To demonstrate, he drew a group of small, quick portraits. He began each one with a circle, some straight lines, and a triangle to determine where the eyes, nose, and chin should go. Alia had never thought about it, but the features of everyone's face were in the same spots.

Hesitantly, Alia began her own self-portrait. She drew the basic form of a head, the way she had been shown. From there, she used lines to plot the features of her face. The process took patience and precision. She had to take note of each detail. One wrong measurement could throw off the whole portrait.

Alia was surprised by the structure and discipline involved in drawing a portrait. Measuring, studying details, revealing the basic nature of something—it reminded her of what she loved about science.

Which of the following best describes the main theme or lesson of the story?

The Puddle

Marco was frustrated. It was another rainy day in the city. His paintbrushes and easel sat in the dreary light of the gray morning.

On his wall hung his best paintings: an apple orchard with red fruit and bursting autumn colors; a beach under a blue sky, the ocean sparkling in the summer sun. He fondly recalled painting each scene.

Last week, Marco had been painting the flower garden in the park when the rain started. His canvas of pink blossoms was now leaning against the back of the easel in his apartment, half-finished, waiting. The thick clouds and pouring rain showed no sign of leaving.

Later that morning, as Marco gazed out the window, something small caught his eye: a puddle in the street reflected the neon sign of a storefront. After studying the puddle, Marco set up his easel by the window. Instead of seeing a simple, gloomy blur, Marco noticed that the puddle captured not only the neon sign but also the steel-colored sky and a leafless tree branch.

Marco noted the richness of the paint colors as he mixed different grays. Bright orchards and sunny beaches were a familiar challenge, but there were no sharp contrasts in the dark, watery world in that puddle. It was hard at first, but Marco's brushstrokes grew more confident as the morning wore on. Soon he had developed the right techniques for creating the misty shadows and fuzzy neon light.

Hours passed before Marco realized how immersed he was. After he had finished the scene and the paint had dried, he hung the canvas on his wall. The new painting added depth to his collection, and even more depth to his pride as an artist.

Which of the following best describes the main theme or lesson of the story?

The Presentation

"For the final exam, instead of a written test, everyone will be required to give a ten-minute presentation on one of the science topics we covered this year," Mr. Marx announced.

Angela felt her stomach twist into anxious knots. When Mr. Marx passed around a sign-up sheet, Angela chose the topic of tadpoles, but also made sure she picked the very last time slot for presentation days. She wanted to put as much distance as possible between now and the moment she would have to speak in front of the class.

Angela began having trouble sleeping at night. She dreamed of failing the final exam not because she didn't know the material, but because she froze and forgot her speech. Every classmate's presentation she watched meant she was one step closer to having to present herself.

When the day arrived, Angela couldn't eat breakfast, and she had to get through math and history before science. She couldn't concentrate at all.

Her heart pounded as Mr. Marx called her name. She gathered her notecards with shaking hands and slowly walked to the front of the room.

"Tadpoles," she began, "are frogs or toads at the beginning of their life cycle."

Whew, she thought. The first sentence came out.

Then, something happened that she did not expect at all. She relaxed. Once she began, the words flowed out. She could see Mr. Marx start to smile and nod encouragingly. After weeks of dreading this moment, she couldn't believe how quickly the presentation passed.

"So," she said brightly, after her presentation concluded. "Does anyone have any questions about tadpoles?"

Which of the following best describes the main theme or lesson of the story?

Callie's Gift

Callie opened a letter she got in the mail. It was an invitation from the parents of her friend Michael. They were throwing him a surprise birthday party in a banquet hall at the Helmsley, the most expensive hotel in town. Callie wanted to get Michael the perfect gift. At first, her plan was to make him homemade magnets using cut-outs from the superhero comics they both loved. But that wouldn't work anymore. Obviously, a fancy party called for a fancy present.

One day in class, she saw him checking the time, which gave her an idea. A watch! There were lots of expensive watches. It would be the ideal gift.

Callie went to a jewelry store to pick one out. She swallowed hard when she paid for it. The watch cost nearly all the money she'd saved from her part-time job. Even the glossy paper she wrapped it in cost more than regular paper. However, she was relieved that she had gotten an appropriate gift.

The night of the party, Callie invited some of the other guests to hang out at her house beforehand. It was fun to see everyone in formal attire. But something unexpected happened when people started comparing birthday gifts.

Richard had gotten Michael a squirt gun, the kind they had played with as kids. Molly had made Michael a big card. And Jasmine had baked a batch of Michael's favorite cookies.

Suddenly, Callie imagined Michael as he opened the presents. She could picture his warm smile as he unwrapped the squirt gun, the card, the cookies. Then she pictured the confused look on his face when he saw the expensive watch. Callie recalled the price she had paid, and she blushed.

Luckily, she still had the receipt. She put the wrapped box in her room before leaving with her friends. Her gift would be late, but at least it would be special.

Which of the following best describes the main theme or lesson of the story?

Barry liked playing board games, but he hated losing. He hated losing so much that he would do whatever it took to win, even bending or breaking the rules. He'd steal money from the bank and hide it under the couch cushions. He'd skip spaces while he was moving around the board. He'd shortchange others money that they were owed and argue with them about it. Barry's techniques were effective. He did win most of the games that he played, but the people whom he played with were his friends and family, and it didn't take too long until they caught on to Barry's tricks. They tried to tell Barry to stop cheating. They said that the game wasn't any fun when he cheated, but he didn't listen. He continued with his treacherous style of gameplay, until nobody would play with him anymore. Barry may have won a lot of games, but at what cost?

What is the Theme?

What is the Theme?

Once a cat was in a hurry. She ran across the street without looking. She narrowly escaped being hit by a car.

It was Sean's first day at a new high school. Most of the students had been nice to him, until he got into gym class. The coach had assigned two captains, Mike and Malik, and they were picking teams from the boys in Sean's class. As Mike and Malik made their picks, it became pretty clear to Sean who was popular and who was not. Since Sean was short for his age, Mike and Malik just assumed that Sean could not play basketball. As Mike and Malik's choices dwindled, Sean still remained amongst an ever-slimming pool of struggling athletes. Now there were only two students left: Sean and another kid who seemed nice but was reading a book. Mike and Malik joked about who was going to get stuck with whom, and then Mike made his last pick. It was not Sean. Sean sighed and reluctantly joined Malik's team. As soon as the game began, Mike became aware of the error that he had made. Sean quickly stole the ball from him and ran it back for a layup. "The new kid got lucky," Mike remarked, but it soon became clear that Sean had more going for him than luck. What Sean lacked in height, he made up for in speed, and he continued to dominate the action on the court for the remainder of the game. With Sean's blazing speed and crazy crossovers, Malik's team devastated Mike's, and that was the only time that Sean would be last pick at that high school.

Which of Sean's character traits best helps to convey the theme?

A theme of this story is, "be thankful for what you have." Which aspect of the plot best contributes to the overall theme of the story?

Blaine opened up the present and began pouting. He screamed in a high-pitched voice, "This is Captain Thunder! I wanted Captain Lightning!" His mother looked at him with dismay and handed him another present, which he greedily opened. "Why did you get me a red hat? You know I like blue more," Blaine whined as he threw the hat across the room. His mother straightened her expression and squinted at him. Earlier she had hoped to take some pictures of this moment, but by now she had put away her camera. She sighed and handed him one more present in hopes that this year wouldn't be a total bust. Blaine huffed and opened it. "A Game Box 4000… wow. Where's the Game Box 5000 that I asked for?" His mother could bear his ingratitude no longer. The next time that Blaine returned from his father's house, he was shocked to find that all of these toys and gifts, along with many other of his things, had been generously donated.

Which sentence best illustrates the theme of this story?

Alan had very few responsibilities, but one of them was to clean his room. It did not take long, but Alan still didn't like doing it. One day Alan thought of a way to save some time. Rather than putting everything neatly back in its place, he decided to just throw all the stuff on the floor into his closet. His mom would think that he had cleaned his room, and it would only take a fraction of the time. Alan was pleased with himself for thinking of this brilliant idea. He figured that this would save a lot of time and energy. The next time his room got messy, he piled everything up in the closet and the pile grew. It grew and grew. Then Alan's friend Steve called. "Alan, everyone is playing baseball at the park. Do you want to play too?" Alan loved baseball. "That sounds great, Steve. I'll be right there." Alan went to grab his baseball mitt when he realized that it wasn't in its usual place. Alan thought to himself, I guess it's in the closet. When he opened up the closet door, he was faced with a huge, unnavigable mess, some of which poured out as he opened the door. Alan began digging through the pile in a frantic attempt to find his mitt. He dug and dug, and as he dug his room got messier and messier. Soon his room was the messiest that it had ever been, and he still hadn't found his mitt. Alan sighed in despair. By the time he found his mitt, the boys had long concluded their game and Alan had hours of cleaning ahead of him before he'd be allowed to leave.

A theme of this story is, "only offer help when you're ready." Which sentence best illustrates this theme?

"I like him so much, but I get the feeling that he doesn't like me anymore," Maria confided in her friend Cassandra. "Well, just break up with him," Cassandra replied. "Yeah, but it's not that easy…" Maria tried to explain. "Of course it is," Cassandra countered, and then she left to talk to Kirsty, leaving Maria puzzled. "What's up, Kirsty?" Cassandra asked. "I'm a little bummed out, Cassandra," Kirsty said. "If I don't pass math class, I'm not going to graduate." Cassandra smiled, "Oh, well that's easy." She continued, "Just do all of your homework and ace all of the tests and you'll pass," Cassandra answered smugly. Kirsty frowned, "Yeah, but you don't understand, Cassandra. I'm not good at math. It's very hard for me." Cassandra laughed, "Nonsense, Kirsty. Just do it." Kirsty replied, "Uh, yeah, thanks…" and Cassandra went on to talk to Jenny, who was crying. "What's wrong, Jenny?" Jenny wiped her tears away, "My dog died last night. I'm really sad about it." Jenny put her arm around her. "There, there, Jenny. It's ok. Just get over it," Cassandra said insensitively. Jenny gave Cassandra a cross look as she walked away. Cassandra felt really good about helping so many people with their problems today.