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Read Chapters 4-6; Complete Student Packet Worksheets for Chapters 4-6

Ask students to recall the elements of science fiction that were discussed in the Genre Lesson. Have students think about any sci-fi movies or TV shows they have seen. Ask student volunteers to describe the setting of the movies/TV shows, as you keep a list of setting details on chart paper or the board.

will explain that sci-fi texts are often set in a future place or time, or in a place or time outside of our universe or outside of our daily reality. The details about the setting in a sci-fi text are usually vivid so that the reader can picture the setting. I will read aloud Chapter 4 of A Wrinkle in Time. As I read, I will look for information about the setting. I will think about how each of the details I come across about the setting is different than or the same as our reality. I will compare and contrast the setting in this sci-fi book with the real world.

I will create a two-column chart and sort the details about the setting that I find in the book into the appropriate column. I will label one column “Different,” to contrast the sci-fi setting with the real world. I will label the other column, “Same,” and use it to keep a list of the details that I find about the setting that are similar to the real world.

For example, the description of the place where Meg, Calvin, and Charles find themselves can be compared with the reality of Earth because the field of grass is green and there are flowers, trees, and singing birds. I will write this detail under the “Same” column on my chart. On the other hand, I will record the elements of the setting that describe Mrs. Whatsit’s metamorphosis under the “Different” column because creatures like Mrs. Whatsit don’t exist in reality and in reality, people do not change into beasts or creatures. Note: See Elements of Setting Chart for an example chart.

Ask: "How can I compare and contrast the details about the setting in a science fiction text with the real world?" Students should answer that they should read the text while looking for details that describe the setting and think about how the setting in the sci-fi text is different than or the same as reality.

will read aloud sections or pages in Chapter 5. As we come across details that describe the setting, we will think about how these details are the same or different from reality. We will write these details in the appropriate columns on our chart. Note: Setting details appear when Meg looks around the planet they have landed on and in the Happy Medium’s cave. See Elements of Setting Chart for an example chart.

will reread Chapter 6 and look for details and descriptions of the setting. You will think about how these setting details are similar to or different than reality. You will record details that describe the setting in the appropriate column on the Setting Details page in your Student Packet. (See page 12 in the Student Packet.)