Tag Archives: theme

E9 AGENDA 10/27: Flash Fiction

  1. Discuss Flash Fiction
  2. Practice sentence combining

HOMEWORK:  Do your homework by hand.  Do not type your homework. 

  • Write the answers to this sentence .Sentence Combining Worksheet in the NOTES section of your binder.  Complete exercises A, B, C.
  • Go to paragraph 1 of your Flash fiction story.  On a separate sheet, rewrite the paragraph– make it shorter by combining sentences.
  • Write paragraphs 2-3 of your flash fiction story, keeping in mind that your story must be short yet powerful.  As you write, combine sentences that can go together.

E9 AGENDA 9/29: The Lady or the Tiger

  1. Read Stockton’s – The lady or the tiger
  2. Fill out a plot worksheet

HOMEWORK:  Answer the following questions.  Type them in a word document with a proper heading.

Type a one paragraph reaction to the story, answering the following questions within the paragraph:

  1. What do you think the princess chose, the lady, or the tiger?  Why?
  2. What would you choose and why?
  3. How do you feel about this story and its cliff-hanger ending?  Why do you think the author did not tell you what happened at the end of the story?

 

E9 AGENDA 9/25: All Summer in a Day Movie

  1. Watch the movie: “All Summer in a Day”
  2. After watching, answer the following questions
    1. In what ways are the movie and the story different?
    2. Why was the plot of changed in some places in the movie?
    3. If you could make a movie for this story, what are some things you might do different?
    4. In the movie, Margot sees a spot of sunlight through the door.  Why was this changed in the movie, and what meaning does it have?
    5. At the end of the movie, all the children hold flowers then they give them to Margot.  What sort of meaning might this have?
    6. What do you like better, the story or the movie?  Why?

YouTube Link (In case movie below does not work)

HOMEWORK:  Read the following

 

E9 AGENDA 9/22: All Summer in a Day and Characters

  1. Discuss plot & theme in All Summer in a Day
  2. Powerpoint: All About Characters
  3. Read about the different types of characters and characterization

HOMEWORK:  Watch the Animated Short, “Dustin.”  Do the following on a piece of paper (Don’t forget your heading):

  1. Write a theme and prove it
  2. Create a plot chart
  3. Discuss who the antagonist, protagonist are.  Which characters are round or flat?

 

E9 AGENDA 9/21: All Summer in a Day

  1. Review homework – theme and plot in “Paperman”
  2. Read “All Summer in a Day” by Ray Bradbury

HOMEWORK:  Fill out the Plot Theme Worksheet

  1. Create a plot chart for “All Summer in a Day”
  2. Write down three topics contained in “All Summer in a Day”
  3. Convert those topics into themes by turning them into compound sentences.
  4. Find contextual evidence: Choose one of your themes.  For that theme, write THREE quotes from the story that prove that this theme exists in the story.

 

How to find Theme in a Story

How do you know if it’s a theme?

  1. It can apply to anyone in the world, not just the characters in the story.  The theme must not mention specific characters or situations, it must be a general statement.
    • “Batman and Robin are great friends and they fight crime together well because of their friendship” is not a theme because it’s too specific.
    • “Friendship at work makes work more pleasant” is a theme because it can apply to anyone.
  2. The theme must be a lesson or moral of some kind, even if you don’t agree with it.
    • “Women are evil, but they hide it well” is a lesson that you might not agree with, but it’s the writer’s opinion and counts as a theme.
  3. The theme must not be a single word, but a complex idea.
    • “Love” is not a theme
    • “Love has the power to heal even the deepest hurts” is a theme because it’s a complex idea
  4. The theme must not be simplistic, it must be a complex idea that is not necessarily obvious.
    •  “Love is a good thing” is too simple, but “Love is a good thing, but it can sometimes hurt,” is a theme.
  5. It is not obviously stated in the story.  You must figure it out on your own.
  6. You must be able to find contextual clues (evidence) in the story that prove that this theme exists in the story.  If you cannot find evidence, then it’s not a theme.

How do you find the theme of a story?

  1. Come up with a list of topics that relate to the story
    • Love
    • Gifts
    • Happiness
  2. Turn your topics into complex sentences.  The sentence must have at least two parts to it to keep it from being too simple or obvious:
    • “Black cats are evil” is too simple to be a theme
    • “Black cats are evil, but they are capable of good, sometimes’ has two ideas and is complex enough to be a theme.
  3. Find contextual evidence within the story– in other words, skim the story looking for parts of the story that relate to your sentence.   If you cannot find anything, then re-write your theme so that it aligns with the story better.  Here are a few types of contextual clues:
    • Find something that a character says
    • Find something that the character does
    • Find something that the narrator or author says
    • Find something that is repeated in the story– a word, a phrase, an object or action.  This is likely to be evidence of a theme

E9 AGENDA 9/19: Finding Theme

  1. Review what theme is
  2. Yesterday’s homework: theme sentences, compound
  3. What is contextual evidence?
  4. How do you figure out what the theme of a story is?
  5. Gift of the Magi theme activity

HOMEWORK: Look at the link in item 4 above.  Then, On a piece of paper:

  1. Write down three topics for The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin.
  2. Convert those topics into themes by turning them into compound sentences.
  3. Find contextual evidence: Choose one of your themes.  For that theme, write THREE quotes from the story that prove that this theme exists in the story.