The Hunger Games

Lesson Plan:

In this lesson we will identify, discuss, and write about themes in The Hunger Games.

Theme is sometimes a difficult to grasp, but it is essential to development in literary

analysis.

Remind students that the theme of a story is the central message or idea. It says something
about life, or about being human. Theme is what makes literature compelling and
significant to readers.

1. Ask students to list topics from the text.

2. Make a master list on the board with student input. You will end with a list that looks
something like the following:

• survival
• strength
• loyalty
• suffering
• identity
• authority
• human nature
• civility vs. savagery

4. Write the following formula on the board: Topic + Insight = Theme

5. Students should copy this formula into their notes. Stress that theme is more than just
topic.

6. Explain that theme is different from a moral. It doesn’t state what people should or
should not do. Instead, it says something about what it means to be alive. A moral might
be as follows: look before you leap. While the theme from the same story might be as
follows: people are often impulsive and hedonistic.

7. Select one of the topics to use as an example with the class. Ask them what the story
says about this topic. What is the author’s message? Discuss.
Theme Statements
1. Write the following on the board:

Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games shows that strength…

2. Ask your students to copy it down and finish the sentence.

3. The finished product is a theme statement. Tell your students to use this structure when
writing theme statements.

4. Have students share their theme statements on strength with the class.

5. Students must now select another topic to write a theme statement for.

6. When they are finished, call on students to share their statements with the class and
check for understanding.

7. Students must now add two reasons or examples to their theme statements. This can be
done in point form.

Ex. Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games shows that there are many different forms of
strength.

• Rue scores receives a high score from the Gamemakers and shows that she is a
worthy competitor in the arena.
• Katniss is much smaller than most of the other Tributes, yet she wins the Hunger
Games.

8. Call on students to share their reasons.