Central Idea
What is central idea
The main focus of the text
The essential ideas that help you understand the passage
What the passage is mostly about
What is theme?
The lesson/moral of the story
What does the R and A in RACES stand for?
Restate and Answer
Detest:
Everyone else at the party wanted garbage pizza but Tim because he detested vegetables.
Hated, dislikes, does not like
Sarah really wanted to be in the Olympics, it was her dream. She practiced every day after school for three hours to perfect her skill. Eventually, Sarah went on to win a gold medal in the Olympics.
Practice makes perfect
Hard work pays off
Don't give up on your dreams
There are 3 steps to identifying and writing the central idea... what is the first thing you should include?
The title of the passage/article/poem/ etc.
Oftentimes, where is the theme of the story revealed? Beginning, middle, or end?
The end
What does the C in RACES stand for and how do you introduce it in your response?
Cite evidence
"According to the text..."
"The text states..."
"In the text it says..."
Alter:
Grandpa didn't know that Suzie was coming along on the fishing trip, and now he had to alter his plans
change
Identify the central idea:
Dolphins are mammals that live in the ocean. Mammals are different than fish, reptiles or birds. As a mammal, dolphins breathe oxygen, even though they live in water. Because they are mammals, a dolphin mother gives birth to a live baby, unlike reptiles and birds who lay eggs. A dolphin mother also feeds her baby milk like other mammals.
Dolphins are mammals that live in the ocean
There are 3 steps to identifying and writing the central idea... what is the second step?
Include the summary action word (*Shows, describes, explains, discusses, lists, explores, illustrates, teaches, compares, states)
True or False: A story can have more than one theme in it.
True
What does the E in RACES stand for and how do you introduce that in your response?
Explain
"This shows..."
"This proves..."
Remorse
As Tommy walked home with the money he had stolen from the church in his pocket, powerful feelings of remorse bubbled in his stomach
regret, guilt
Identify the theme:
A monkey challenged a frog to race up the tree. The monkey challenged the frog because she was so small and he thought he could easily beat her. The frog jumped right over the money and quickly won the race.
Don't judge a person by their looks
Don't judge a book by its cover
There are 3 steps to identifying and writing the central idea... what is the third step?
Writing the central idea statement itself (the big picture/main focus of the text)
True or False: Theme is the main focus of the story
False
What does the S in RACES stand for? How would you introduce your summary statement?
Summarize
"To sum up..."
"In conclusion..."
"In summary..."
Inquiries:
When the other moms heard about how Simone had won the baking competition, her email was flooded with inquiries about her award winning muffin recipe
questioning, asking for more info
Identify the central idea:
Before clocks were made, people kept track of time by other means. In ancient Egypt, people used a water clock. Water dripped slowly from one clay pot into another. People measured time according to how long it took one pot to empty and the other one to fill. Candle clocks were common during the Middle Ages. As such, when a candle burned, marks on its side showed about how much time had passed. A final ancient way to measure time was the sundial, which used the movement of the sun across the sky. The shadows moving across the face of the sundial showed the current time.
Before clocks were made, people kept track of time by other means.
True or False?: Central idea and theme are the same thing! EXPLAIN WHY
False: central idea is the main focus of the text and theme is the lesson/moral learned
Identify the theme:
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, 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 at Mark's house. When 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, Mark was bored with life. He was surrounded by a bunch of possessions that he didn't appreciate and Mark could find nothing new or exciting in his life. Despite his vast wealth, Mark was never satisfied.
Money can't buy happiness
True or False: After you put a quote in your response for text evidence, you don't always need to explain it.
FALSE!!!
Uninhabitable:
The flood caused toxic molds to grow on the walls of our old house and now it is uninhabitable.
can't live there, unlivable
Identify the theme:
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.
Don't be greedy
Be grateful for what you have/are given