After setting his alarm clock for PM instead of AM, Eric woke up late for school. In his haste, he forgot to pack a lunch or bring lunch money. Eric did not mind much at first because he figured that he could eat some of his friends' food. During lunchtime, Eric explained his situation to the people at his lunch table. His friends were sympathetic to his cause. But they had only packed lunches for themselves, not Eric. Katie offered Eric a small bag of carrots. "Yuck! I hate carrots. Thanks anyway," Eric said as he declined Katie's offer. Chuck offered Eric his milk, to which Eric responded, "Is that skim milk? Ewww... I hate skim milk. Does anyone have any chocolate milk?" Some people at the table did have chocolate milk, but they did not want to give their milk to Eric. To break the silence, Ben offered Eric half of his egg salad sandwich. Again Eric refused quite rudely, "Egg salad is gross. Doesn't anyone have anything good for me?" But that was the last offer that Eric would receive that day. What is the theme of the story?



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



2. Tommy wanted a skateboard badly. Sometimes he would stay after school just to watch the older boys do tricks on the stairs. Tommy thought that it looked like so much fun to grind down rails and kickflip over gaps. He imagined performing jaw-dropping tricks on the landmarks he passed on his way home. After months of saving money and begging his grandma, Tommy finally got a skateboard. With a beaming grin across his face, Tommy ran to his driveway and tried one of the tricks that he had imagined. As Tommy put his first foot on his skateboard, the skateboard slid out from under him and he fell on his butt. Tommy broke out into tears. That was the last time that Tommy rode a skateboard.

What is the theme of the story?



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