Grade 6 · Reading Stories: Theme and Character · Making Meaning from Fiction
Finding the Theme of a Story
Learn the difference between topic and theme, and prove a theme statement with evidence from the text.
Learning objectives
- Explain the difference between a topic and a theme
- State a theme as a full sentence about life
- Support a theme statement with two pieces of textual evidence
Common Core ELA alignment
RL.6.1
Cite textual evidence to support analysis of what a literary text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text. Grade 6 emphasis: work with a single text or clear pairing, with teacher-modelled evidence and summary.
RL.6.2
Determine a theme or central idea of a text and analyse its development over the course of the text; provide an objective summary. Grade 6 emphasis: work with a single text or clear pairing, with teacher-modelled evidence and summary.
W.6.9
Draw evidence from literary or informational texts to support analysis, reflection and research. Grade 6 emphasis: work with a single text or clear pairing, with teacher-modelled evidence and summary.
MYP criteria
- Criterion A — Analysing
- Criterion C — Producing text
ENGAGE
One story, two readers
Two students read the same short story. One says it is about a boy and a dog. The other says it is about learning that loyalty costs something. Both are right about different things: one named the topic, the other named the theme.
Think about it
- Which answer tells you what happens, and which tells you what the story means?
- Think of a film you love. What is its topic in two words, and what does it teach in one sentence?
EXPLORE
Read: The Crow and the Pitcher (Aesop)
A crow, half dead with thirst, came upon a pitcher which had once been full of water. When the crow put its beak into the mouth of the pitcher, it found only a little water left inside, and the water was too low to reach. The crow tried and tried, and at last gave up in despair. Then a thought came. The crow took a pebble and dropped it into the pitcher. Then it took another pebble and dropped that in. Slowly the water rose, until at last the crow was able to drink and save its life.
Notice
Nothing in the fable says the words patience or persistence. The theme is built from what the crow does, not from what the narrator tells you.
Think about it
- What is the topic of this fable in three words or fewer?
- Which sentence shows the crow changing its approach?
- Write a theme statement that begins: This story shows that...
EXPLAIN
Topic, theme, evidence
A topic is what a text is about. It is usually one or two words: friendship, courage, jealousy. A theme is what the text says about that topic. A theme is always a full sentence and it is true beyond the story itself.
| Topic (a word) | Theme (a sentence about life) |
|---|---|
| Persistence | Small repeated efforts can solve a problem that looks impossible. |
| Friendship | Real friendship is tested when it becomes inconvenient. |
| Fear | Naming a fear out loud makes it smaller. |
Proving a theme
- Find the moment where a character changes, decides or learns.
- Quote a short phrase, not a whole paragraph.
- Explain in your own words how the quotation supports your theme statement.
Common mistake
A theme is not a moral order such as Never give up. Write a statement about how the world works: Steady effort can succeed where sudden strength fails.
MYP_PRACTICE
Criterion A task
Write one paragraph of 120 to 150 words identifying a theme of The Crow and the Pitcher and supporting it with two quotations.
- Sentence 1: state the theme as a full sentence.
- Sentences 2 to 4: quote and explain your first piece of evidence.
- Sentences 5 to 6: quote and explain your second piece of evidence.
- Final sentence: link the theme to a situation outside the story.
EXIT_TICKET
Before you close this lesson
Think about it
- Write the theme of the last book you read as one sentence.
- Which was harder: finding the theme or proving it? Why?
Interactive practice · theme builder
Theme statement builder
Combine a topic with a claim about life, then test it against the text.
Check your answer
Sentence frames
Pick a topic
Your answer
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Key vocabulary
- Theme
- The message about life that a story shows, written as a full sentence.
- Topic
- What a text is about, usually said in one or two words.
- Textual evidence
- A short quotation or detail from the text that proves your point.
- Objective summary
- A short retelling of the key events with no opinions added.
Practice questions
0/3 correct
Level 1 · Criterion A
Which of these is a theme statement rather than a topic?
Level 2 · Criterion A
Which quotation best supports the theme that repeated small actions can solve a big problem?
Level 3 · Criterion A
A student writes: The theme is that the crow was thirsty. What is the main problem with this answer?
MYP criterion tasks
Level 4 · Criterion C
Rewrite The Crow and the Pitcher in 80 words so that the theme becomes Giving up too early costs you. Which details would you change?
Reflect & track
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