5th Reading (5.8A, 5.10D)

One theme of the story is “Honesty is the best policy.” Which of the following best explains what this theme means.

• When you are honest, you are rewarded for telling the truth. By not being honest, you may end up worse off than you were when you started.

• Being honest isn't that important if you meant to do good. Telling lies to others protects them.

• Honesty always gets you what you want, so you should always tell the truth so that you can have everything your heart desires.

What would be another good theme for this story?

• The god Mercury can get you what you want.

• Pretend to lose something so you can get something better.

• Working hard and telling the truth has its rewards.

• You can never recover from a lie.

The message or lesson that the author wants you to learn from the story is called the

• thesis
• summary
• theme
• plot

A story can have more than one theme.

• true
• false

Where can a reader find the theme?

• It stated directly in the text.
• A character tells you.
• The reader must understand what the character has learned.
• Books or movies do not have themes.

Explain why honesty is important, using the story “Mercury and the Woodman” by Aesop as an example. Be sure to include text evidence to support your response.

In paragraph 2, the Woodman is described as being “in despair.” How does this metaphor help you understand the Woodman’s feelings about losing his axe?

In paragraph 1, the description of the Woodman cutting down a tree near the edge of a deep pool creates a vivid image. What senses are being appealed to in this description, and how does it help set the scene?