About Theme
Theme Topics 1
Theme Topics 2
What is the Theme?
100
What is Theme?
The lesson or message of the story
100
These stories have characters that trust one another and remain loyal throughout the story
Friendship
100
These stories have characters that are brave enough to overcome a fearful or difficult situation or accept a challenge
Courage
100
Julia wanted to become a doctor for as long as she could remember.  In college when her friends were out at the mall or going out with friends, Julia spent all of her time studying.  At graduation, Julia graduated with honors and was offered a job shortly after.  What is the theme?
Hard work pays off


You will be rewarded for hard work.

200
Can theme be just one word?
No.  The idea needs to be formed into a sentence.
200
These stories have characters that are friendly, generous, and considerate of others' feelings.
Kindness
200
These stories have characters that accept and respect the differences and beliefs of others
Acceptance
200
Growing up, Sally always wanted to be like her older sister Mary.  Mary always got better grades, was better at sports, and seemed to even be prettier.  Sally spent alot of time in the family's garden feeling sorry for herself.  Then one day Mary needed help on a science project about plants.  Due to all of her time in the garden, Sally knew alot of her time in the garden, Sally knew alot about plants and was able to help Mary with the project.  Sally was shocked that she was better at something than her sister.  What is the theme?
You should accept yourself for who you are
300
Name a strategy you can use to determine the theme of a story

Think of the most common themes that are found in stories


300
These stories have characters that learn that it is best to always tell the truth
Honesty
300
These stories have characters that learn in the end it is best to be happy or satisfied with what you have and not want more than you need
Appreciation/Greed
300
A monkey put his hand into the jar of cookies.  He grasped as many as he could possibly hold, but when he tried to pull his hand out, he was prevented from doing so because the opening of the jar was too narrow.  Unwilling to lose the cookies, and yet unable to withdraw his hand, he began to cry.
If you are greedy, you might get nothing
400
Theme is the _____________________,moral or message of a story
lesson
400
These stories have characters that keep trying and never give up even when things do not work out at first
Perseverance/Determination
400
These stories have characters that work together to complete a task or reach a goal 
Cooperation
400

A CROW perishing with thirst saw a pitcher, and hoping to find water, flew to it with delight. When he reached


it, he discovered to his grief that it contained so little water that he could not possibly get at it. He tried


everything he could think of to reach the water, but all his efforts were in vain. At last he collected as many


stones as he could carry and dropped them one by one with his beak into the pitcher, until he brought the water


within his reach and thus saved his life. 


Aesop's Fable

If at first you don't succeed, try again

Persistence pays off

500
Name 3 strategies you can use to determine theme of a story

Identify the story elements/problem and effects

Look for repeated words and ideas

Look for the lesson learned

500
These stories have characters that avoid trouble by being prepared and ready for any situation
Preparedness
500

 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.

Don't judge a book by it's cover
500

In a field one summer's day a Grasshopper was hopping about, chirping and singing to its heart's content. An


Ant passed by, bearing along with great toil an ear of corn he was taking to the nest. "Why not come and chat


with me," said the Grasshopper, "instead of toiling and moiling in that way?" "I am helping to lay up food for


the winter," said the Ant, "and recommend you to do the same." "Why bother about winter?" said the


Grasshopper; we have got plenty of food at present." But the Ant went on its way and continued its toil. When


the winter came the Grasshopper had no food and found itself dying of hunger, while it saw the ants distributing


every day corn and grain from the stores they had collected in the summer. Then the Grasshopper knew. 


Aesop's Fables

Work now, play later

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