Activities

1. Classify a text according to genre.
   
   
2. Define theme.
   
   
3. Identify author’s intent or purpose.
   
   
4. Distinguish between a theme and a topic/subject.

5. Explain how chapters, scenes, and stanzas are organized to unfold the events in the text.
   
   
6. Describe the characteristics of various genres.
   
   
7. Identify and explain the author’s perspective and point of view. 

8.  Determine a common theme for a set of texts across genres.
   
   
9. Compare and contrast stories in the same genres on their approaches to similar themes and topics.

Answer Key/Rubric

1. Student can define genres and match a story to the appropriate genre.  Genres might include adventure, mystery, fantasy, historical fiction, realistic fiction, science fiction, and others.  Student uses characteristics of the story matched to characteristics of the genre to identify the primary genre of a story.
   
   
2. Student provides a definition of the literary term theme.  A theme is an idea that the writer repeats throughout his/her work in multiple ways. It is most often up to the reader to discover the theme of the story; it is rarely explicitly stated. The theme is not the same as the subject of a story. A subject is a topic that is a foundation of a story.
   
   
3. Student identifies the author’s intent or purpose in a story. Possible purposes might include: to reveal a conflict, to draw attention to an issue or event, to predict the future, or to understand the past.
   
   
4. Student is able to distinguish between a theme and subject/topic of a story.  Likely there is a connection between the two.  A theme is an idea that the writer repeats throughout his/her work in multiple ways while a subject is a topic that is a foundation of a story.  For example the subject may be “crime” while the theme is “crimes cannot be hidden.”
   
   
5. Student investigates and explains how text structures that divide text into smaller sections (such as chapters, scenes, and stanzas) are used within the text to create order. Possible orders might be time, topic, cause/effect, or problem/solution.
   
   
6. Student describes common characteristics of various genres.  Common genres and their traits might include:
   
   
   1. Mystery - May include strangeness, the unknown, a puzzle that needs to be solved, solving a crime, or investigating something.
   2. Adventure - Story likely has a hero and a villain.  Survival is always in question.  Action is a vital part.
   3. Historical Fiction - Set in a historical period.  Based around a historical event.
   4. Fantasy - Contains elements that aren’t real. Characters may have magical powers or be talking animals.  May be set in a mystical or medieval time period.
   5. Realistic Fiction - Story takes place in a modern setting. Characters are realistic and events could happen.
   6. Science Fiction - Story may involve technology or something futuristic. Often involves partial truths.
      
      
7. Student can identify the author’s perspective and point of view.  Evidence from the story is provided that supports the stated perspective and point of view.
   
   
8. Student recognizes a common theme found in multiple texts of different genres.  As a student completes readings over an extended period of time, common themes are recognized.
   
   
9. After reading many stories, student compares and contrasts stories in the same genre in regards to their approaches to similar themes and topics.  The student should have the opportunity to read multiple stories of the same genre and evaluate the stories of the same genre to find what is different and similar among their themes and topics.