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Theme

Page history last edited by Wendy Rooney 3 years, 5 months ago

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What’s the Theme? The theme of a story is its big idea. It’s a message, lesson, or universal truth that goes beyond the literal events of the story. In other words, it’s an idea that applies to people in general—not just the characters in the story. An author doesn’t usually come right out and tell you what the theme is; as a reader, you need to infer it. A story can have more than one theme.

 

 

 

Teaching Theme Vs. Main Idea

Many students have difficulty differentiating between the main idea and the theme. The theme is the underlying message that the author wants to convey, whereas the main idea is what the story is mostly about. 

 

Finding the Theme

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4qME64SkxM

 

Theme - Khan Academy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAu3e5GZo4k

 

How to ID Theme in Your Story

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAu3e5GZo4k

 

 

Theme - BrainPop

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RecVd-6g-IY

 

 

Finding Theme in Your Story -McGraw - Aesop

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXPbijjMnV8

 

 

 

 

http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/lesson_images/lesson800/theme.pdf -  The Literary Element of Theme

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4qME64SkxM - Finding the THEME

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8muSkXjPHE - Theme - Disney - Cinderella

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RecVd-6g-IY - Theme - Star Wars - Brain Pop

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhEU3EF4jvM&list=PLvXg7TzijvVWP7O2HBH6XY-eFSQg8iEZc - Disney Film Clips - Theme

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvKzyYy6qvY&list=PLGniCcA0UBfEa6j7ZljW_lceQM83kU_94 - Theme in Movie Clips

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXPbijjMnV8 - Theme in Aesop's Fables - Cartoon

 

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3PJkPsW8_M - Theme in Songs

 

https://www.scholastic.com/content/dam/teachers/blogs/angela-bunyi/migrated-files/identifying_theme.pdf - Identifying Theme - Scholastic PPT

 

 

 

https://prezi.com/9uiflfi3pikg/how-to-identify-a-theme-in-four-steps/ - Theme -  Prezi

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXPbijjMnV8 - Theme in Aesop's Fables

 

 

 

Theme chart - great for reading notebook. Also a great way to get ready for a book report 

 

 

Theme Anchor chart and ideas for teaching themeTeaching Themes, Theme Anchor Charts, Common Core Writing, Languages Art, Theme Anchors Charts, Theme Charts, Anchor Charts Theme, Common Cores, 720 960 Pixel

 

THEME VS MAIN IDEA 

 

The theme is the underlying message that the author wants to convey, whereas the main idea is what the story is mostly about.

 

 

 

Teaching Theme vs. Main Idea

 

Theme & Plot Video - https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/teaching-themes

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9H6GCe7hmmA - Theme - You Tube

 

https://www.flocabulary.com/unit/theme/ - Theme - Flocabulary

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3PJkPsW8_M - Theme in Songs

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.paterson.k12.nj.us/11_departments/language-arts-docs/resources/Reading%20Resources/Story%20Elements/Theme/Theme.pdf - Theme Worksheets

 

Working with Theme:

 

  • Use Annotation: Have students annotate a text with details, quotes, and other “golden lines” that highlight the theme.
  • Tweet the Theme: Laura Robb, reading specialist and author of Differentiating Reading Instruction, loves Twitter’s concise format. Assign students to sum up the theme in 140 characters or less.
  • Record Reader Responses: Writing responses to the essential question from a unit’s start to finish will help you see how students develop their ideas.
  • Reflect: Have students reflect in writing and discussion on what the theme means to them and how understanding of the theme has changed based on their readings.
  • Look for Additional Themes: Using a story that students are familiar with, have them identify and support a theme that’s different than the one you’ve already studied.
  • Listen for Theme: In reading conferences with students, train yourself to listen for specific details and examples about theme. The more students are understanding, the better they’ll be at answering questions like “What does the author want you to remember?”

 

 

Studying themes can be tough for students. Here are 6 ways to assess if your students are getting it.:

 

 

 

Theme anchor chart. Help students learn about the theme of a story. For more anchor charts visit: https://www.pinterest.com/eclearning/elementary-anchor-charts/

 

 

Common Themes in Literature

 

 

Common_themes

 

Picture 9

 

 

https://www.quia.com/rr/934941.html - QUIA - Theme in LIterature

 

https://www.weareteachers.com/tag/fairy-tales/- Fairy Tails & Theme

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9H6GCe7hmmA&disable_polymer=true - Teaching Theme - Youtube

 

 

 

Yes, even teachers get overwhelmed trying explain 365 different ways.  This will be a great anchor chart in the class.   Check out the website - great ideas.

 

 

 

Finding The Message—Grasping Themes in Literature: This teacher blog post has lesson ideas for teaching theme, lists of book by theme, and a graphic organizer.

 

Thematic Essays

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQYdhioelJ0 - Theme Essay - Youtube

 

http://yanaenglish.weebly.com/sample-thematic-essay-the-hunger-games.html - Thematic Essay - The Hunger Games

 

https://web.jerichoschools.org/hs/teachers/lfischer/writing/thematic_essay_outline.pdf - Thematic Essay Outline - Jericho PS

 

https://www.lcsd.wednet.edu/page/704 - Literary Essays - Analysis

 

 

 

Theme - Identifying in Literature

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKjw-bQdBY8 - Writing a Theme  Statement

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXPbijjMnV8 - AESOP - ID Theme

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3_Bb9wGObY - Finding Theme in Literature

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8muSkXjPHE - Theme

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9H6GCe7hmmA - Theme

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MSPO194N0OU - Finding Theme in Stories

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3PJkPsW8_M - Theme in Songs

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GTr1XaTqHD4 - Theme - Schmoop

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JizzEzcuK98 - Disney Theme

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RecVd-6g-IY - Brain Pop

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2LXmhPD3iA - Finding Theme in a Story

 

 

 

 

 

https://www.ereadingworksheets.com/free-reading-worksheets/theme-worksheets/ - Theme Worksheets

 

 

Writing a Thematic Essay

 

https://web.jerichoschools.org/hs/teachers/lfischer/writing/thematic_essay_outline.pdf

 

 

 

 

 

Themes and Conflict in Children’s Stories

 

 

Types of children's wants:

 

  • They want acceptance by their peers.
  • They worry about their position in the family and how the family functions.
  • They are concerned about their physical growth: their size, their looks, etc.
  • They are striving for a positive self-image, their own view of themselves.
  • They wonder what the future will hold (their own, society, and the world)

 

Themes found in children’s books include:

 

  •  New baby 
  • learning something new
  • participating in a new activity
  • going to a new place
  • losing something  
  • Moving
  • First day of school
  • New friends vs. old friends
  • Change
  • Our differences
  • Feeling sad
  • Different kinds of families and homes
  • Seasons
  • Bedtime
  • Bath time and getting dressed
  • Sharing
  • Using your words instead of hitting
  • Holidays
  • Cultures and religions
  • adventures
  • getting lost and finding your way home
  • going to bed
  • fighting
  • being brave
  • sharing
  • telling the truth
  • friendship
  • thinking of others before yourself
  • explaining how you feel
  • learning to spell, add, tie shoes, ride a bike, etc.
  • how to resolve arguments
  • disappointment

 

 

 

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