Israel caught the pass and ran towards the end zone like his life depended on it. He dodged and jumped over the opposing players who were coming towards him like heat guided missiles. Israel was 5 yards from the end zone and could see someone coming at him from the side. As the opponent dove towards him, Israel did a front flip into the end zone. He turned towards the score board and what he saw made his heart jump for joy. 21-18. They did it! Not only were they undefeated, they are now state champions. Israel triumphantly lifted the ball above his head. Despite the numerous obstacles he had last season, he had broken all of his school's rushing yards this year. Israel unconsciously rubbed his knee and thought back to the preseason game last year when he blew out his knee, had surgery, and spent months in rehab wondering if he would ever take the field again. He could almost feel the pain he had experienced. There were times he was close to giving up, but he pushed through by visualizing a moment just like this one. His teammates finally made it to the end zone to celebrate with him. As they lifted him up on their shoulders, he smiled out at the crowd cheering for them and held the football up in victory. Which of the following is most likely a theme of the passage?

"Mom! Mom! Mom!" Lola yelled with excitement as she burst through the front door. "I got the part! I am the lead in our school's rendition of High school Musical! I can't believe I beat out Makenzie. She has been the lead in every play since 4th grade." Lola could just see herself on stage, under the lights, singing for the packed auditorium. This was her dream come true. "That's great, honey!" Her mom exclaimed as she hugged her tight. Her stepdad, David, gave her a fist bump. Lola handed off all of the information and blathered on about practices, costumes, and cast parties. She noticed her mom no longer had the same energy as before. "Aren't you excited for me, mom?" Lola asked. "Yes, of course. But this paper says the performance is Friday, May 6th," mom commented. "Yeah. So," Lola replied. Her mom sighed, "Honey. That's your dad's wedding. You can't miss it." "What?!" Lola grabbed the paper and then sat down dejectedly on the couch. She knew her mom was right, but she was so disappointed she had to pass up this opportunity. "Fine," Lola replied. "I will let Mrs. Atkins know on Monday. I guess Makenzie will once again be the lead of something." When Lola arrived to school on Monday morning, everyone was congratulating her on the role. It felt good to have all of the attention on her. She decided to at least go to the first practice and see what it felt like to be the lead of something. Well, one practice turned to two, which turned into a week, which led to a month. Lola told her mom she was helping out backstage so she could still be involved, but in actuality, she was continuing with her role as if she would be the one on stage. Lola felt guilty as the weeks ticked by, but she didn't know how to stop this snowball from rolling. Finally, the week before dress rehearsals, Lola pulled Mrs. Atkins aside and told her the truth. To say she was disappointed in how Lola handled the situation was an understatement. "Don't think I will forget this when it is time for auditions next year," Mrs. Adkins said as she walked away. At that moment, Lola knew she threw away any opportunity she had at landing the lead role again. Which of the following is most likely the theme of the passage?

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.

What is the theme of the story?

Themes are about universal topics. For example, a topic could be compassion, relationships or fate. A theme is often stated as a judgment about one of these topics. For example, a theme about the topic of relationships could be "relationships teach you important lessons."

Which of the following could be the theme of a story?

Marta was stumped. She had turned the details of the case over and over in her head, trying to figure out the answer. The suspect had somehow entered the store, stolen the artwork and exited without leaving any trace or fingerprints. Marta paced, her movements matching her storm of thoughts. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed the new technological device she had been given to use, which she'd been avoiding like the plague. "I wonder…" she thought.

Hesitantly, Marta typed the details of the case into the device's keyboard. It whirred and spat out a list of similar cases and how they'd been solved. Reading through the information, Marta was amazed. She had been pondering for hours, but 30 seconds with this device, and she could find answer! With new respect, she rushed off.

Which detail from the passage provides the best clue that a theme of the story is "technology can have good effects"?

Wind whipped at Vanessa, Mo and Jaime's faces as they trudged up the mountain. "Do you have the ice samples?" Vanessa questioned Mo again. "Why don't you carry them the rest of the way?" he responded irritably. Mo was digging into his backpack to retrieve the samples when suddenly, a gust of wind snatched them out of his hands, sending them tumbling down the mountain."

If we lose those, this was all for nothing!" Vanessa cried. The wind roared angrily, churning flakes of snow that had newly begun to fall. How far had the samples gone? The three scientists stared at each other in horrified silence."

I'll go back for them," Jaime spoke up quietly.

Vanessa and Mo looked at Jaime. He was the smallest and youngest of the group, barely strong enough to carry his large backpack.

"I'll go," he said louder.

Which sentence from the passage provides the best clue that a theme of the story is "Courage can be found in the people you least expect it"?

R2: Tony walked out of the shopping mall with his arms full of bags and the sun shining on him. As he approached his car, he started awkwardly feeling around his pockets with his arm full of bags. He did not find what he was looking for so he transferred the bags on one arm to the other arm, which already had bags. Tony had a lot of bags on one arm. He still couldn't find what he was looking for. Now he dropped the bags and plunged both hands desperately into all the pockets on his jeans. With a look of despair, Tony ran to his car. He tried to open the door, but it was locked. Then he saw something on the passenger seat of the car. He stopped looking and pulled his phone out of his pocket.

Why did Tony get so frantic?

R2: Tony walked out of the shopping mall with his arms full of bags and the sun shining on him. As he approached his car, he started awkwardly feeling around his pockets with his arm full of bags. He did not find what he was looking for so he transferred the bags on one arm to the other arm, which already had bags. Tony had a lot of bags on one arm. He still couldn't find what he was looking for. Now he dropped the bags and plunged both hands desperately into all the pockets on his jeans. With a look of despair, Tony ran to his car. He tried to open the door, but it was locked. Then he saw something on the passenger seat of the car. He stopped looking and pulled his phone out of his pocket.

What does Tony see on the passenger seat?

R2: Tony walked out of the shopping mall with his arms full of bags and the sun shining on him. As he approached his car, he started awkwardly feeling around his pockets with his arm full of bags. He did not find what he was looking for so he transferred the bags on one arm to the other arm, which already had bags. Tony had a lot of bags on one arm. He still couldn't find what he was looking for. Now he dropped the bags and plunged both hands desperately into all the pockets on his jeans. With a look of despair, Tony ran to his car. He tried to open the door, but it was locked. Then he saw something on the passenger seat of the car. He stopped looking and pulled his phone out of his pocket.

Why was Tony getting on the phone?

Macey's mom noticed that she was squinting as she read her book, which was only a few inches away from her face. She scheduled a doctor's appointment for the next week, and when the doctor said Macey needed glasses, she tried on every single pair in the office. After spending an hour looking at glasses, mom suggested that perhaps she should sleep on it and come back and decide in the morning. Macey agreed, but she kept talking about the pros and cons of each pair all night long. 

What can you infer about Macey?

Many breeds of dogs are used for work. In many cultures dogs are used to herd sheep. The dogs keep the flock from being attacked by animals such as wolves. They also keep sheep from wandering off. Sheepdogs are known for their loyalty and gentleness. Based on your reading of the text, you can infer that ___________.

"I hate the idea of having all those people out there watching me...I just don't like it when I'm around so many people. I wish I just could hide somewhere," whispered Violet.

Which TWO pieces of evidence from the sentence show that violet is shy?

Tiffany held her breath as her teacher returned the math test the class had taken last week. Tiffany had not studied very hard or long for the test, and she was worried about her grade.  Her teacher handed Tiffany her test. Tiffany groaned and put her head down on her desk.

Which TWO pieces of evidence show that Tiffany did not get a good grade on her test?

As I walked in the door, I was amazed at the beautiful colors and smells. I knew it would be hard to decide what I would buy with my $3. The chocolate truffles looked delicious, but they were expensive. The jelly beans were not only cheaper, but so colorful! With so much to choose from, I knew I would be here a long time.

What clues from the text help the reader know that the main character is in a candy store?