Teaching Theme
NOT AN EASY THING TO DO
•Wasn’t taught how to do this as a student
•Students need to reach end of text – wide
range of achievement levels makes difficult to
read anchor texts
•Students need to have liked the text
•Is a complicated process involving the
combination of several skills – analyze text
& cite evidence
Not Easy, But So Worth It
Walk Two Moons
by Sharon Creech
ELA Aim: How can we
determine one of the themes
of Walk Two Moons?
Warm Up: List three important events
that take place in Walk Two Moons.
Warm Up Answers
What a theme is NOT
• A theme is NOT what the book was about
• When discussing what the book was about you
are dealing with its subject.
Examples of subjects (nonthemes) include:
• Sal goes on a road trip with her
grandparents
• Phoebe is on a mission to find her mother,
who has mysteriously disappeared
• A father struggles to get back on his feet
after his wife dies
A theme can be defined as…
… the opinion the author has about a
topic or issue that people can relate to
• This definition is kind of vague, right?
Some examples of themes
include:
• Maintaining healthy relationships is a worthwhile
endeavor
• Society has a major influence on the course of people’s
lives
• Overcoming adversity requires certain traits like courage,
determination and intelligence
• Okay, but how do I arrive at these conclusions?
• STILL VAGUE?
What steps do I need to take to
determine the theme?
Step 1: Brainstorm a few “big ideas” from the
story/passage
Step 2: How does the main character(s)
change from the time the story begins
to the end
Step 3: Based on the changes that happened throughout
the story, and the big idea you came up with, what
opinion does author have about that big idea or issue?
What steps do I need to take to
determine the theme?
Step 1: Brainstorm a few “big ideas” from
the story/passage
– Big ideas are issues or topics that everyone
can relate to, whether man or woman, young
or old, Jew or Gentile, Puerto Rican or
Dominican
– Examples: CONFLICT, FORGIVENESS,
FRIENDSHIP, ADULTHOOD,
INDEPENDENCE
STEP 2: CHANGE
• One of the keys to figuring out theme comes in
looking for a change that takes place within the main
character(s) of a story.
• Have the thoughts, actions and/or feelings of the
main character changed over the course of the story?
If so, how?
OR
• Has the main character changed because of the
events that have taken place in the book?
How do I figure out the theme of
a story?
Step 3: Based on the big idea you came up with,
and the changes that happened throughout the
story, what might be a possible opinion that the
author has about that big idea or issue?
Let’s return back to some
examples of theme
• Maintaining healthy relationships is a worthwhile
endeavor
• Society has a major influence on the course of people’s
lives
• Overcoming adversity requires certain traits like courage,
determination and intelligence
• Okay, but how do I arrive at these conclusions?
• STILL VAGUE?
Read Aloud
• “Holden and Pops” by Evan Gerlachen
TEACHER MODEL – “Holden and Pops” by
Evan Gerlachen
CHARACTER
HOLDEN
BEGINNING OF
STORY
Assumes Pops
would not be
interested in the
games he plays,
and is intimidated
by technology
TURNING POINT
Takes mom’s
advice and
becomes more
open-minded
toward Pops
END OF STORY
Holden learns
something new
and interesting
about Pops
THEME:
Assuming things about people may stop us from really knowing them
Group Work: Directions
• The class will be divided into four groups: Gooseberries,
Blackberries, Maple Trees & Tulips
• Each group will be assigned one of the messages that
Mrs. Partridge left on the Winterbottom family’s porch
throughout the book
• Each group will use that quote, along with the knowledge
of key events from Walk Two Moons to come up with a
theme.
• In order to help you come up with the theme, complete
each of the three steps you have been given on the
worksheet.
• If you need help, please raise your hand, and I will be
happy to assist.
SHARE OUT
GOOSEBERRIES: “Don’t judge a man until
you’ve walked two moons in his moccasins.”
Pg.51
BIG IDEA:
CHARACTER
BEGINNING OF
STORY
TURNING POINT
SAL
THEME:
END OF STORY
BLACKBERRIES: “Everyone has his own
agenda.” Pg.60
BIG IDEA:
CHARACTER
BEGINNING OF
STORY
TURNING POINT
SAL
THEME:
END OF STORY
MAPLE LEAFS: “In the course of a lifetime,
what does it matter?” pg. 105
BIG IDEA:
CHARACTER
BEGINNING OF
STORY
TURNING POINT
Phoebe
THEME:
END OF STORY
TULIPS: “We never know the worth of
water until the well is dry.” Pg. 198
BIG IDEA:
CHARACTER
BEGINNING OF
STORY
TURNING POINT
Phoebe
THEME:
END OF STORY
INDEPENDENT WORK
SHORT RESPONSE DIRECTIONS: Based group
work exercise you did today, write a
paragraph that does the following:
• Identifies one of the themes of Walk Two
Moons
• Uses evidence from the graphic organizers
and book to help explain why
• Uses appropriate language, correct grammar
and punctuation
Homework
• Think about the way you determined one of the
themes of Walk Two Moons in class today
• Your assignment for tonight will be to choose
one of your favorite songs, listen to that song,
and then determine what the theme of that song
is take
• Be sure to take the same steps you took today in
class to help you figure out the theme
• I will collect your homework tomorrow in class.