This or That?
It was going to be a tough few months in the Gonzalez household. Dad had lost his job, and Mom was only working part-time. when their parents broke the news, the kids were a bit worried about the change. But Mom explained that sometimes life is tough and that by working together, they'd get through it. Everyone was going to pitch in so that Dad could look for work and Mom could apply to work full time. The kids promised to help with more chores, and the whole family committed to eating more meals at home to save money. Together, they'd make it through.
What is the the overall theme of the paragraph?
THIS: Families love each other no matter what.
THAT: Together, families can survive hardships.
Together, families can survive hardships.
Greta pumped herself up, whispering, "I can do this!" as she read over the essay prompt again. She had gotten a really bad grade on her last essay and the one before that. So, she had asked for extra help from her teacher and was now working through a rewrite of her essay. Greta remembered how she had struggled with math last year and how she had never given up. Finally, she had gotten an A+ on the last math test of the year. "I can do this again," she thought to herself.
Theme: You must ________ when facing life's challenges.
persevere
be resilient
Whispers rippled throughout the classroom as the new kid, Landon, walked through the door. He was wearing all black, and his hair was spiked with gel. Later, at lunch, Landon sat down at a table alone. The other kids in the class felt nervous about talking to him because he looked kind of scary. But, cheerful David, who was the class extrovert, went over and sat beside him. The other kids in the class were surprised to see that Landon and David were soon laughing together. Over the next few weeks, the kids got to know Landon. They soon realized that his clothing preferences didn't make him scary after all.
THEME: Don't judge a person based on their looks.
True
Karen and Jessica were best friends, but they ran into trouble after Jessica let Karen borrow her bracelet. When Jessica asked Karen to give her the bracelet back, Karen said that she couldn't because her dog had chewed it up, ruining it. But, a few days later, Karen wore the bracelet to a basketball game. Jessica happened to be there too and asked about the bracelet. Karen answered guiltily that she had actually lost the bracelet and her dog hadn't ruined it. Jessica also noticed that Karen was wearing a bracelet on each wrist. But, Karen had told Jessica that she didn't have any bracelets, which is why she wanted to borrow one. All these lies made Jessica feel hurt, and she wasn't sure she could believe what Karen told her anymore.
Telling lies could hurt you in the end.
Be honest with your friends.
Be careful about who you are friends with.
Diego was very disappointed. His birthday had come and gone, but he hadn't gotten the phone he wanted for his birthday and was still stuck with a tablet. Instead, his parents had given him a cool new Lego set. They even explained that a new phone wasn't in the budget right now. But, he was so disappointed that he complained to his friend Tyler about not getting the gift he wanted. Tyler reminded Diego that his parents had spent the whole day with him. They had even taken him to the park and baked him a birthday cake. "I wish my dad would pay attention to me," Tyler said.
Be grateful for what you have.
Mrs. Finch looked frustrated. She was working on the scenery for the class play, but she had never been very good at drawing birds. Jonah's friend poked him in the ribs. "Hey, why don't you help Mrs. Finch draw the bird?" he asked as they painted the grass. Jonah had a natural gift for drawing, especially animals. So, inspired by his friend, Jonah offered to help Mrs. Finch with the drawing. Mrs. Finch was so grateful that Jonah shared his gift of drawing. They would finish the scenery on time after all!
THIS: Share your talents with others.
THAT: Learn from your mistakes.
Share your talents with others.
The worker ants worked tirelessly at building their hill. They built new tunnels and chambers without stopping until the project was nearly finished. Just then, a dog ran through the area and stepped on their hill. However, the ants didn't despair. Instead, they kept right at it and repaired the damage. Another day, rain made some of the tunnels collapse. The ants never gave up and patiently worked on their home so that it was always in good condition.
Theme: You can overcome ________ if you're patient and work hard.
challenges
adversity
struggles
setbacks
Today was the day for group presentations in Mrs. Edwards' class. When it was Jenny's group's turn to present, her group members all stood up. Jenny nervously cleared her throat before speaking, "Mrs. Edwards, I'm sorry. I forgot to bring my group's poster that we worked on together. Please don't give my group members a bad grade. It was my fault."
"That's very mature of you, Jenny," Mrs. Edwards replied. "Why don't we save your presentation for tomorrow?
THEME: Projects are easier to complete with other people.
FALSE
Jasmine was busy making a birthday cake for her mom. She was in a bit of a hurry, so she mixed up the ingredient baking powder with baking soda when she was putting the ingredients together. Eagerly, she watched the cake in the oven. Why didn't it rise? She didn't want to give her mom a flat birthday cake. Worried, Jasmine looked at the recipe again and finally noticed her mistake. She had to start all over again to make a cake that rose properly.
Pay attention to the details or little things.
Ruby was in excruciating pain. Breaking her leg was the most painful, scary thing that had ever happened to her. Even though she had a cast on now, she still felt really bad. The worst part was that her cheer captain had called to see how she was doing and instead of cheering her up, she was made that Ruby wouldn't be able to compete in next week's competition! Then, Ruby say balloons coming through the doorway! It was her best friend Allison and a few other members of her cheer squad who had come to visit her.
True or False: You can find friendship in unexpected ways.
TRUE
Isabella knew she had to work fast if she wanted the party to start on time. But there was so much cleaning to do, and the decorations were still waiting to be hung up. When her soccer team sailed through the door, she breathed a sigh of relief. "We're here to help," the team captain said. Isabella assigned tasks to everyone, and they were done within 20 minutes. They had plenty of time to spare before the other guests arrived.
THIS: If you work as a group, you can accomplish more.
THAT: To have a good friend, you must be a good friend.
If you work as a group, you can accomplish more.
Kevin was excited to pass out the holiday cards he had made for each of his neighbors. A short time after delivering the cards, he got one back in his family's mailbox. Inside, the card read "Thanks for the card, Kevin. It really meant a lot since I don't have family in the area." Kevin told his mom about the card from the neighbor. She gave him a hug and said, "See? By being kind, you never know who you'll touch in a special way."
Theme: Treat others with ________. You never know what someone is going through.
kindness
Paul was nervous about starting school this year. His family had just moved from another state and everything was new. His first day in his new class wasn't great, and he missed a lot of things about his old school and classmates. But, over the next few months, he slowly made friends, and things got better. Before he knew it, he loved his new school and neighborhood.
THEME: Time does not always make things better.
FALSE
There was once a small squirrel who lived in a large forest. One day, the squirrel was running through the forest collecting acorns when she heard two bears talking in hushed voices. Then, one of the bears howled as if in pain, prompting the squirrel to run over to the bears to see what was wrong. "You stay out of the way," said the first bear. "We're trying to get this thorn out of his paw. There's no way a tiny squirrel could help." The squirrel bravely spoke up and suggested that her small fingers and nails might be perfect for getting the thorn out. Seeing that they weren't making any progress, the bear finally let the squirrel give it a try. She quickly pulled out the thorn to the bear's relief.
Be kind to everyone, including those who you may not like or be around a lot.
Mrs. Johnson's class was planning an end of the year party. The children all had different ideas about what to bring. Allie suggested bringing a pinata. Darren said that he could bring a vegetable tray with carrots from his garden. Sarah and Rebecca, who loved sports, said they'd organize some games to play. Mrs. Johnson told the class that the party sounded like lots of fun thanks to all the the unique ideas everyone had.
THEME: Different ideas makes people ________ in their own ways.
Unique