Themes/ Main Idea - LAR

Question 1

What is this stated central idea?

Answer 1

Non-fiction authors often state the central idea early in a work.

Ex: Adopting a grown-up dog is better than adopting a puppy.

Question 2

What is the implied central idea?

Answer 2

When the author suggests, or imply, the central idea.
Readers can connect supporting details to determine that idea.

Ex: when a person adopt a grown dog from a shelter, he or she knows what the dogs personality is like etc.

The example paragraph about the dog does not state the central idea. All sentences however state the advantages of adopting a grown-up dog

Question 3

What are the 4 factors of a theme?

Answer 3

Acronym: FCMM (Found, Complete, Must, More than)

– Found in fiction
– Complete sentence
– Must be universal
- More than one theme can be found in the story

Question 4

What are the 4 factors of a central/main idea?

Answer 4

– Found a non-fiction
- complete sentence
– Usually non-– universal
– Typically one Central/main idea for the text as a whole, but each paragraph or section can also have its own Central/main idea as well

Question 5

What is the one thing that theme and Central/main idea have in common?

Answer 5

They both are a complete sentence.

Question 6

What is a central idea?

Answer 6

The central idea, also known as the main idea, is the key point in a work of nonfiction.

A central idea is directly stated, then supported, or explained, with details.

Other times, the central idea is implied, or suggested.

You can figure out an implied central idea by identifying what the supporting details have in common.

Many nonfiction works have only one central idea, which is supported by a main idea in each PARAGRAPH.

A paragraph’s main idea is usually stated in a TOPIC SENTENCE, which is often the FIRST SENTENCE of a paragraph.

Just as each paragraph supports the central Idea, KEY DETAILS SUPPORT TOPIC sentence of EACH PARAGRAPH.

And works of nonfiction, authors provide details that support their central ideas. Each paragraph or section might support its own central idea. These ideas, in turn, develop the central idea of the entire work.

Question 7

What is a text feature?

Answer 7

1. Part of books/articles
2. Helps the readers find information easily
3. Provides the reader with more information
4. Helps organize information so that the reader can see what is important

Question 8

Name the 8 examples of text features?

Answer 8

1. Title
2. Table of contents
3. Special print
4. Glossary
5. Photographs/illustrations
6. Charts, graphs and/or diagrams
7. Captions
8. Headings/subheadings

Question 9

What is a title?

Answer 9

The name of the book or article. It often provides an idea of what the main topic will be.

Question 10

What is a Heading/subheading?

Answer 10

These divide a text into sections. They can sometimes indicate what the main idea of the section will be, and are usually bolded in order to stand out.

Question 11

What is a table of contents?

Answer 11

It gives the heading and beginning page number for every section of a book.

Question 12

What is special print?

Answer 12

When a word is bold, italics or underline, it is an important word for the reader to know.

Question 13

What is a glossary?

Answer 13

Similar to a dictionary, the glossary helps readers define words from a book.

Question 14

What are photographs/illustrations?

Answer 14

These visuals are meant to show what something looks like. This is done in order to help the reader gain a better understanding of the main topic.

Question 15

What are charts, graphs and or diagrams?

Answer 15

These visual aids are meant to help the reader organize information and understand what the writer is saying.

Question 16

What are captions?

Answer 16

Words next to or below a picture that tell what the image is or what it’s about. They help the reader understand information that may or may not be in the text.

Question 17

What is a theme?

Answer 17

A broad, universal stating about life or humanity that the author conveys to the reader.

• what is the author trying to say to the reader?
  – Broad: big idea
• universal: something most people can experience
  – Humanity: what makes us human
  – Conveys:??

Question 18

What are examples of themes?

Answer 18

Examples of theme:
Friendship can help individuals prosper
Easy solutions usually have drawbacks
One’s perception cannot always be trusted
Courage gives people the power to stand up for themselves

Question 19

How do you find a theme?

Answer 19

• Identify a ——— can help you develop a theme
• A topic is a subject or concept that is focused on a text. Usually one word (example bullying, wealth, love, hate, greed, compassion, religion). In literature, topics are typically abstract concepts
• Focus on a topic that appears in a literary work, then consider what message the author is trying to convey about that topic.

Example:
Topic: love
Theme: love is a distructive force

Question 20

What is the topic?

Answer 20

A subject or concept that is focused on in a text. Usually one word (example: bullying, wealth, love, hate, greed, compassion, religion). In literature, topics are Typically abstract concepts.

Question 21

What are 5 rules for a theme?

Answer 21

1. complete sentence, not just one word.
2. Does not mention specific character names or events
3. Don’t use first or Second person (Third person only)
4. Not common saying/cliché (the grass is always Greener)
5. A theme is not a lesson or instruction. The author is telling us something, but not what to do about it. Example “always try to be a good friend” would be an instruction, while “friendship helps people become stronger” is a theme

Question 22

Describe the authors purpose

Answer 22

Use the acronym PIECE for different types of general purpose:

Persuade
Inform
Entertain
Compare
Express

know general purpose versus specific purpose

Know how to find the authors purpose of given a passage (think of what details are given to you, how are they presented

To understand an author’s specific purpose, ​ask these questions​.

● What kind of details am I given?
● How are the details presented?
● Why does the author present these details this way?

When identifying a work of fiction’s theme, we begin by identifying a topic found in that work. Since a theme must be universal, we focus on identifying topics that are universal ideas/concepts, such as love, pride, beauty, envy, communication, etc.

Topic
What kind of details?
How are they Presented?
Why?
General Purpose
Specific Purposeo

Question 23

Know what the differences are between the main Idea and topic

Answer 23

Main idea- the main points in a work of non fiction

Topic-a subject or concept that is focused on in a text

Question 24

Know what the differences are between main idea and supporting details

Answer 24

Main idea- the main points in a work of non- fiction

Question 25

Know how a theme is different from a topic

Answer 25

Theme- found in fiction must be a complete sentence must be universal
There can be more than one theme in a story

Topic-a subject or concept that is focused on in a text

Question 26

What is the difference between main idea and topic?

Answer 26

In nonfiction the key point is the main idea. The topic is the topic sentence of each paragraph which supports the main idea 💡

Question 27

What is the difference between main idea and supporting details?

Answer 27

The supporting details support the topic sentences of the paragraphs that support the central idea.

Question 28

1. A fir-tree said boastingly to the Bramble, “You are useful for nothing at all; while I am everywhere used for roofs and houses.” The Bramble answered: ‘You poor creatures, if you would only think about the axes and saws which are about to cut you down, you would have reason to wish that you had grown up a Bramble, not a Fir-Tree.”

What happens in the story that leads you to believe this?

Answer 28

1. Popularity has its drawbacks.

Because the fir tree was in demand, he was killed.

Question 29

2. A monkey put his hand into a jar of cookies. He grasped as many as he could possibly hold, but when he tried to pull out his hand, he was prevented from doing so by the neck of the cookie jar. Unwilling to lose the cookies, and yet unable to withdraw his hand, he burst into tears and bitterly lamented his disappointment.

What happens in the story that leads you to believe this?

Answer 29

2. Greed can lead to one’s downfall.

If the monkey had just taken one cookie at a time, he could have enjoyed them.

Question 30

3. Joe and Doug led the journalism club. While Joe was generally regarded as a better writer than Doug, Doug was invaluable to the publication for his investigative skills. Together, they had uncovered a scandal in the cafeteria that had been dubbed “Horsemeat-Gate.” Due to Joe and Doug’s compelling story, interest in the high school paper grew. Joe was even interviewed by the local paper. During the interview Joe spoke at length about all he had done to write the story. He failed to mention Doug’s involvement. Doug felt slighted and confronted Joe, but Joe asserted that he was the main writer of the story and therefore deserved the credit. Shortly after
   the blowout, Doug left the journalism club. The people of the town were interested in the high school paper, but without Doug’s knack for finding good stories, the quality of the paper diminished and so did interest in the paper. Now that his popularity surge had ended, Joe had more time to think. He reasoned that they’d still be on top of the world if Doug hadn’t been so stubborn and selfish.

What happens in the story that leads you to believe this?

Answer 30

3. The desire for attention can be a corruptive force.Joe doesn’t credit Doug for his involvement in the story, which leads to the declining quality of the newspaper. If Joe gave Doug credit for his contributions to the paper, both students would have a productive working relationship, and the paper would still be a success. Joe still doesn’t admit his wrongdoing at the end and acknowledge his mistakes, showing how the desire for attention has corrupted him.