Identifying Themes: Island of the Blue Dolphins

In this activity, students will identify a theme of the novel, and support their choice with details from the text. One theme is friendship, and another is violence.

Friendship

Karana makes an unlikely friend in Rontu, the leader of the wild dogs who killed her brother. Another example is Karana befriending Tutok, a descendent of the Aleutians who killed her father. A third example is Karana becoming friends with wild dogs, a sea otter, and birds.

Violence

Chief Chowig and the other men are massacred by Captain Orlov and the Aleuts. Another example of violence is Ramu being attacked and killed by wild dogs. The last example is when Karana decides that she will not kill any other animals.

Student Instructions

Create a storyboard that identifies themes in Island of the Blue Dolphins. Illustrate instances of each theme and write a short description below each cell.

1. Click "Start Assignment".
2. Identify the theme(s) from Island of the Blue Dolphins.
3. Create an image for an example that represents this theme.
4. Write a description of each of the examples.