Find Theme and Summarize

Determine a theme from details and create or identify an objective summary of a story, drama, or poem.

How the lesson starts: Find Theme and Summarize

The Story Juicer
Meet Blendo, a robot who runs a juice stand with a twist. He doesn't squeeze oranges. He squeezes stories! First out comes the theme: the story's big message about life.
Topic or theme?
Here's a story. Tali gets a unicycle, practices every day, and rides a whole lap. The topic is what it's about, in a word or two: unicycles. The theme is what it teaches about life, as a sentence: practice helps you improve.
Let's find the theme
Blendo reads Tali's story. What happens? She falls, practices every day, and rides a lap. What changes? She gets better. What lesson fits anyone, even without a unicycle? Practice helps you improve. Watch out: unicycles is just the topic!