Definitions
What is the theme of a story?
The message or moral of the story.
Tim hated his old baseball glove. He wanted to play with a new glove, but he didn’t have any money, so he decided to steal it. But when Tim got caught stealing the glove, his parents said he couldn’t play baseball all summer.
If you want something, you should work for it.
What should you never include in an objective summary?
Your opinion
How do the characters help us determine theme?
The things they do and say help us determine the lesson or moral of the story.
Write a summary for the passage.
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. Sammy did all his homework in his other classes. But he never bothered to complete Mr. Morton’s reading assignments. He figured that he could complete them later. Tammy, on the other hand, completed each assignment Mr. Morton had assigned every night. She had to stay up a little later, but she knew that reading was the most important subject. She knew that if she learned to read well, then she could teach herself anything. So she always worked hard in her reading class. When the end of the quarter came, Tammy and Sammy had both planned on going to the Magic Castle amusement park. They were both so excited. But then Mr. Morton called Sammy’s mother to report Sammy's grade. She grounded Sammy and that weekend was horrible for him. He stayed up until 2:00 AM each night, yet he still couldn’t complete all the assignments. Meanwhile, Tammy had a great time eating pizza at Enchanted Castle. After that she stayed up late and watched movies. She enjoyed her weekend free of stress and pressure. At the end of the quarter, Sammy was lucky to squeak by with a C minus. Tammy earned an A. Yet, Sammy still hasn’t learned his lesson. He may not complete this activity either.
Tammy and Sammy were in Mr. Morton's reading class. Tammy always did her work and turned it in on time while Sammy took advantage of Mr. Morton's leniency on late work. Toward the end of the quarter, Sammy could not get all his work in, so he could not go to the Enchanted castle.
What is a "main idea"?
What the story is mostly about.
In his sophomore year of high school, basketball legend Michael Jordan tried out for the varsity basketball team. But at five feet and eleven inches tall, the coach believed that Jordan was too short to play. The coach cut Jordan from the team. Jordan didn’t let this obstacle defeat him. In fact, it pushed him to work even harder. He trained vigorously and grew another four inches the following summer. The next year, Jordan made the varsity squad. He averaged 25 points a game and went on to become one of the greatest basketball players in history.
Hard work and persistence pays off in the end.
What is the difference between summary and main idea?
Summary included the main parts of the story. Main Idea is what it is mostly about in 10 words or less.
How does the setting help determine the theme?
It establishes the background information needed to learn about the characters.
Determine the Theme.
Kyle liked Lucy more than any other girl in the school, but he had an odd way of showing it. When she walked ahead of him in line, he kicked at her shoe. When she passed him on the school yard, he called her "Lucy the Loser." He even wrote a mean word on her homework during the bus ride to school. But what puzzled Lucy the most was receiving an invitation to Kyle's birthday party. Figuring that he was just planning a mean trick on her, Lucy decided not to go. As Kyle eagerly awaited Lucy's arrival, Lucy talked on the phone to Jacob. When Kyle finally realized that Lucy was not coming to his party, he was devastated.
Every action has a reaction that you are not always prepared for
Share your true feelings because you do not know how other will take your actions
What is the difference between theme and main idea?
Theme is the moral or lesson of the story. Main Idea is what the story is about.
All Victor ever wanted to do with his life was be a singer. He didn't pay attention in school, and he spent all his time at home listening to music and impersonating his idols. His mother tried to teach him the value of getting an education and having a backup plan. But Victor would respond the same way every time, "Mom, I won't need to know any of that boring old stuff when I'm famous. You'll see." There was one major problem with Victor's plan: he wasn't any good at singing. Victor enjoyed singing so much that he didn't notice the pained look on the faces of those who endured his singing. Some lied to him and said they liked his singing. Other people told him to find something else to do with his life. Victor accused those people of being "jealous haters" and ignored their advice. Soon Victor dropped out of high school to focus on his music career. The years passed and the doors never opened.
It is wise to have a back up plan.
You should listen to your family and friends when they are trying to be helpful.
After you have written your summary, what should you make sure you have included?
The main characters, setting, conflict, climax and resolution.
How does the conflict help determine the theme?
You usually learn from the problem in the story which is a lesson. (It may not always be the theme of the whole story)
Write an objective summary for the passage.
The little grey mouse that lived in my wall prospered for many days on nibbles of my lunch. I'd pack a meal before bed and, while I slept, he would take small bites of my lunch, which I left on the counter. He'd take a cracker crumble here, and a bread crumb there, but he wouldn't take too much and he'd always clean up after himself. Things were going quite well for him and I didn't even know that he existed, until he got sloppy. One night while I slept, he ate all my chips and left a big mess. When I awoke to this sight, I knew what had happened to my chips. The next night he returned for another snack. He found a nice, delicious piece of cheese... lightly balanced on a mousetrap. Now I don't have to share my chips anymore.
The mouse did really well for himself when he took small amounts here and there. The person left chips out and the mouse ate them all. The person decides to set a trap for the mouse which works.
What's the difference between "retelling" and "summarizing" a story?
A retelling is when you describe the story in complete detail from start to finish. A summary includes only specific details from the story.
Katie Clean invited Messy Missy to her house to work on their biology project, but Katie Clean had no idea what a visit from Messy Missy entailed. First of all, it was raining and Messy Missy neither bothered to take her boots off nor thoroughly wiped them on the doormat. Then Messy Missy ate a bag of hot chips on Katie Clean’s white bedspread without asking, and Messy Missy is a sloppy eater, so hot chip powder got all over the bedspread. Katie Clean tried to be polite and ignore Messy Missy’s sloppy behavior, but then Messy Missy threw her chip wrapper on the floor. Offended, Katie Clean pretended that she was sick and asked Messy Missy to leave. The next day Katie Clean asked the teacher if she could work by herself. After explaining her situation, the teacher allowed Katie to work alone. Messy Missy would have finished the assignment by herself, but she spilled grape soda all over her assignment. What is the theme?
Respect other people's property
3. Which of the following statements about summarizing is NOT true? a.The summary is what the text is mostly about. b.The summary is what all or most of the sentences are about. c.The summary is one small part in a sentence.
C
How does the climax of the story help determine the theme?
The climax is the most intense moment. In those moment is usually when the character comes to a realization about what they have been doing.
Determine the theme.
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 went home. On the bus the girls were startled by how upset the other looked. They 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 agreed to help one another. So after school for the next few weeks, Suzie tutored June in reading and then June tutored Suzie in math. By the time report cards were distributed, Suzie and June were passing all their classes. The girls were delighted, but their mother was happiest of all. Not just because her daughters had passed their classes, but because they learned to be good sisters.
Everyone can learn something from someone else.
When you write a summary, it must be written in the correct sequence of events. What does sequence mean?
Sequence means the order in which an event takes place.
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 OF THIS STORY?
Friends will help you out if you return the favor
Greed leads to despair in the end
Summarize this story- Zoe woke up in the middle of the night. She'd had a bad nightmare. She was so afraid that she could not fall back asleep. Zoe got out of bed and made her way through the dark hall to her big sister's bedroom. Her sister sighed sleepily when Zoe crawled in beside her. Zoe was asleep in just a few minutes.
answer: Zoe was asleep in her bed when she had a nightmare. After waking up, she made her way to her sisters room. She quickly fell back to sleep.
How does the resolution help determine the theme?
Determine the theme and objective summary for the text.
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 Mountain Boys 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. Nothing was new or exciting to him. Despite his vast wealth, Money Mark never found happiness. Penny Petal was born poor. Her family hardly had anything to eat, but they loved each other. Penny Petal appreciated every thing she got. When she was six, her father walked her around the United Center before the Bulls played the Celtics. She was excited by the crazy fans and feeling in the air. She looked forward to the day that she could see a real game. When she was thirteen, she learned to play the buckets. She was an extremely talented musician, a natural percussionist. Everyone on the block loved the rhythms that poured from her palms. By the time she was twenty-one, Penny was a successful businesswoman. Soon she had everything that she had ever dreamed of having. She loved to share her wealth and happiness with her family, who had supported her through the hard times.
Theme- You don't appreciate things as much if you don't work for them.
Objective Summary- Money Mark was born rich with everything he wanted handed to him. He had a hard time appreciating his life. Penny Petal was born poor and learned to appreciate what she had which allowed her to enjoy her life.