Question

identifying theme
name: sarah johnson
directions: determine what the theme is for each story and explain your answer. remember, a theme is a lesson or message in the story. write in complete sentences.

1. katie clean invited messy missy to her house to work on their biology project, but katie clean had no idea what a visit from messy missy entailed. first of all, it was raining and messy missy neither bothered to take her boots off nor thoroughly wiped them on the doormat. then messy missy ate a bag of hot chips on katie clean’s white bedspread without asking, and messy missy is a sloppy eater, so hot chip powder got all over the bedspread. katie clean tried to be polite and ignore messy missy’s sloppy behavior, but then messy missy threw her chip wrapper on the floor. offended, katie clean pretended that she was sick and asked messy missy to leave. the next day katie clean asked the teacher if she could work by herself. after explaining her situation, the teacher allowed katie to work alone. messy missy would have finished the assignment by herself, but she spilled grape soda all over her assignment.

what is the theme of the story?

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

1. money mark was born rich. he never had to work a day in his life and he got everything handed to him on a silver platter. when he was six, money mark wanted to go to a basketball game. his father paid the starting five of the bulls and celtics to play a private game of nerf - ball in money mark’s bedroom. when money mark turned thirteen, he wanted to start a band. his father hired the rolling stones to play with him every saturday at the family’s private concert hall, though his family was never there. by the time he was twenty - one, money mark was bored with life. he was surrounded by a bunch of possessions that he didn’t appreciate and money mark could find nothing new or exciting in his life. despite his vast wealth, money mark never found happiness. penny petal was born poor. her family hardly had anything to eat, but they loved each other. penny petal appreciated every thing she got. when she was six, her father walked her around the united center before the bulls played the celtics. she was excited by the crazy fans and feeling in the air. she looked forward to the day that she could see a real game. when she was thirteen, she learned to play the buckets. she was an extremely talented musician, a natural percussionist, and everyone on the block loved the rhythms that poured from her palms. by the time she was twenty - one, penny was a successful businesswoman. now she had everything that she had ever dreamed of and she truly loved to share her wealth and happiness with her family who supported her through all of the hard times.

what is the theme of the story?

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

Explanation:

Question 1

To determine the theme, we analyze the story: Katie invites Messy Missy for a project, but Missy’s messy behavior (not wiping boots, eating on bedspread, littering) offends Katie. Katie then works alone, and Missy ruins her own assignment due to carelessness. The lesson relates to the consequences of being messy and inconsiderate.

We compare Money Mark (born rich, gets everything easily but is bored/unhappy) and Penny Petal (born poor, appreciates small things, works hard, becomes successful and happy). The contrast shows wealth alone doesn’t bring happiness, but appreciation and hard work do.

Answer:

Theme: Being messy and inconsiderate can lead to negative consequences.
What leads to this belief?: Messy Missy’s sloppy actions (not wiping boots, eating on the bedspread, littering) upset Katie, causing Katie to work alone. Later, Messy Missy spills soda on her own assignment, showing her messiness led to a negative outcome.

Question 2