One of the most important themes in Cinder is that of Sacrifice. Which of the sacrifices in the story are willing, and which are unwilling? What different messages are sent by these two kinds of sacrifice? Which sacrifices are made for just one other person, and which are made on behalf of whole societies? Is either kind of sacrifice portrayed as more noble or important? What are some of the key messages about sacrifice Cinder conveys?

Teaching Suggestion: Students will likely be ready with examples of Cinder’s and Kai’s sacrifices. They can be encouraged to dig deeper, into other characters’ sacrifices. You might also prompt them to think of lost time, opportunities, connections, and other types of sacrifices that are more abstract. You might extend this discussion by asking when in the novel characters refuse to make sacrifices, how this indirectly characterizes them, and whether the novel draws any kind of line between appropriate and inappropriate times to make a sacrifice.

Differentiation Suggestion: Students with attentional and executive functioning issues may benefit from seeing these questions in a bulleted list rather than as a block of text. If you choose to have students respond in writing, English language learners, those with executive functioning issues, and those with difficulties with written expression may be more successful if allowed to provide their answers as key ideas arranged in a graphic organizer.