Common Themes
characters showing care and love
love
caring
compassion
friendship
Always tell the ___________.
What is truth.
Money Mark was born rich. He never had to work a day in his life and he got everything handed to him on a silver platter. When he was six, Money Mark wanted to go to a basketball game. His father paid the starting five of the Bulls and Celtics to play a private game of Nerf-ball in Money Mark's bedroom. When Money Mark turned thirteen, he wanted to start a band. His father hired the Rolling Stones to play with him every Saturday at the family's private concert hall, though his family was never there. By the time he was twenty-one, Money Mark was bored with life. He was surrounded by a bunch of possessions that he didn't appreciate and Money Mark could find nothing new or exciting in his life. Despite his vast wealth, Money Mark was never satisfied. What is the theme?
What is money can't buy happiness.
Money is not everything.
What is the difference in theme and main idea?
Theme is the lesson message or moral of a story. It relates to everyone
Main Idea is the most important point of the story and what the story is mostly about.
Jasmine was sitting in Mr. Bridges office. She was sobbing uncontrollably. "But I didn't do anything! It wasn't my fault," she said. Jasmine was in Mr. Bridges office at least three times a week for misbehaving in class. What character trait best describes Jasmine? a. excited b. annoyed c. afraid
What is annoyed.
characters working together to achieve a goal
what would a common theme be?
Working together
Working together can solve a problem
________ your loved ones. _______ work pays off.
What are cherish and hard.
Answers may vary slightly.
Tammy and Sammy were both students in Mr. Morton's reading class. Mr. Morton wasn't too strict about deadlines, and Sammy took advantage of that. He did all of his homework in his other classes but never bothered to complete Mr. Morton's reading assignments, figuring that he could complete them later. Tammy, on the other hand, completed each assignment Mr. Morton assigned the night that he assigned it. She had to stay up a little later, but she didn't want to get a penalty for turning in her reading work late. Tammy knew reading was a core subject and that she had to keep "C" average for the entire year or she would have to go to summer school. When the end of the quarter came, Tammy and Sammy had both planned on going to the Enchanted Castle amusement park, but Mr. Morton called Sammy's mother, and she grounded Sammy until he turned in all of his work. That weekend was horrible for Sammy. He stayed up until 2:00 AM each night and still couldn't complete all of the assignments. The whole while, Tammy had a great time eating pizza at Enchanted Castle, watching movies late at night, and enjoying her weekend free of stress and pressure. At the end of the quarter, Sammy was lucky to squeak by with a "C" minus in reading while Tammy earned an "A." Sammy still hasn't learned his lesson and probably won't complete this activity either.
What is the theme?
a. Do the best you can in school
b. Work hard, play hard.
c. Complete all your assignments to achieve success.
What is b. Work hard, play hard.
Katie hated reading out loud in class. Reading was hard for her, and every time she had to read, she felt so embarrassed when she couldn’t figure out words. At the end of the school year, Katie decided she didn’t want to be embarrassed any more. Katie read books all summer. She read to her family, her friends, and her toys. She read inside her house, outside of her house, and when she was riding in the car. Katie read mysteries, joke books, and nonfictions books. On the first day of third grade, Katie was chosen to read out loud. Even though she was nervous, she did her best. "Wow!" her teacher exclaimed. "You are a wonderful reader!" Katie beamed with pride!
What is the theme of the story?
A. Reading is fun.
B. Reading is easy.
C. Practice helps you get better.
D. You should not be nervous in your classroom.
C. Practice helps you get better.
James looks forward to reading his favorite comic books everyday after school and on the weekends. He asked his mother if he could volunteer at the public library on the weekends to help sort the children's books.
How would you describe James?
a. independent
b. enthusiastic
c. curious
What is b. enthusiastic.
characters dealing with loss, death or the fear of losing a loved one
What would a common theme be?
loneliness or loss
Do not judge someone by their looks. Judge a person based on their _______________.
What is character or personality.
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?
a. Watch out for danger
b. Treat others the way you want to be treated
c. It is better to share than to be greedy.
What is c. It is better to share than to be greedy.
It was John’s first day at a new school. When he walked into his new classroom, he looked around at his new classmates. He saw a boy with red hair, just like his big brother. John thought to himself, "My big brother is a bully, and that boy looks just like him! I am going to stay far away from him!"
At lunch, John sat a table all by himself. Suddenly, the red haired boy from his class walked up. John began to shake in fear. "Hi! My name is Ron. Do you mind if I sit with you?" the boy asked.
John smiled shyly and answered, "Okay." John and Ron quickly became good friends.
What is the theme of the story?
A. The first person you see is probably going to be your best friend.
B. It is good to be friends with someone if their name rhymes with yours.
C. Boys with red hair are very friendly.
D. Do not judge people by how they look.
D. Do not judge people by how they look.
What is an antonym for the character trait attentive? a. eager b. capable c. uninterested
what is c. uninterested
- - - - - is not everything.
What is money.
Money is not everything.
Theme cannot include two components. What are these two components?
What are the characters and character actions.
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 to needy children.
What is the theme?
What is be thankful for what you have in life.
Megan was walking home from school one sunny afternoon. A man stopped her and said, "Can you please help me find my puppy?"
Megan really wanted to help the man, but she knew all about stranger safety. She thought for a moment, and answered, "My mom and I would love to help you!"
Megan ran home, and told her mom what had happened. Together, they searched with the man until he found his lost puppy.
What is the theme of the story?
A. Be careful so you do not lose your pets.
B. It’s nice to help others, but your own safety is most important.
C. You should always run home from school.
D. Strangers are always mean.
B. It’s nice to help others, but your own safety is most important.
Ray sends his sketches to the local newspaper weekly in hopes that his sketch will be published for the comic section. After he has completed his homework, he watches tutorials on how to incorporate new designs into his sketches. How would you describe Ray? a.determined b. discouraged c. happy
What is a. determined
It can apply to any story, person, or culture. It is the lesson, message, or moral of a story.
What is theme.
There can only be one theme in a story. True or False.
What is false. There can be multiple themes in a 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.
What is the theme?
a. Cutting corners comes at a cost; do things right the first time.
b. Take shortcuts in life.
c. Do things right the first time to enjoy your friends and family.
What is a. cutting corners comes at a cost; do things right the first time.
Even though they were sisters, Suzie and June were nothing alike. If Suzie wanted to jump rope, June wanted to play hopscotch. If June wanted to watch soap operas, Suzie wanted to watch talk shows. Tensions rose to the point that the girls could no longer stand one another's company. It seemed that they had nothing in common, until the day that progress reports came out. While riding the bus home from school, the girls�startled by how upset the other looked�realized that they were both failing a subject. Suzie was failing math and June was failing reading. Since both girls wanted to pass their classes, they got to talking and agreed to help one another. So everyday after school for the next few weeks, Suzie tutored June in reading and then June tutored Suzie in math. By the time report cards came were distributed, Suzie and June were passing all of their classes. The girls were delighted, but their mother was happiest of all. Not just because her daughters passed their classes, but because they had learned to be good sisters.
What is the theme?
a. It is better to work together; two heads are better than one.
b. Treat your friends and family members with respect.
c. Persevere; hard work pays off.
What is a. It is better to work together; two heads are better than one.
The message that is in the story or the lesson that relates to everyone.
What is theme.