Greetings From Mars

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parts. Students should verbalise their reasoning. They can confirm their predictions after reading the story. Answers Worksheet 1 (Text Parts for Teacher): Para.
E L P

AM

S

Level 3.0 Book 1 - Fiction Worksheets 1. Story Elements Organiser 2. Story Elements Organiser 3. Plot Profile 4. Terrestrial Timeline 5. Cats technique 6. Record of Oral Reading (Also available on CD) Main Objective w Narrative structure Supporting Objectives Activate prior knowledge Make predictions Monitor comprehension Challenging the author’s assumptions At a Glance Before Reading Story rebuilding CATS During Reading Story elements Plot profile Teacher’s choice Transformations Fix-up: rereading After Reading Reader’s theatre Critical thinking Mulitmodal design Extension and Enrichment Picture timeline

Greetings From Mars Introduction Book Summary In this science fiction short story, Sam receives an unwanted gift through a family tradition of gift swapping. The gift holds the secret to a strange phenomenon that appears to be extra-terrestrial. Main Objective – Narrative structure The main objective of this unit is for students to learn the organisational structure of a narrative text. For this objective, students will • identify character, setting, plot, conflict, and resolution of a story • sequence events and chart rising and falling action. Supporting Objectives Supporting objectives of this unit are for students to activate prior knowledge, make and check predictions, and monitor their understanding of a narrative text structure. Text Type – Science Fiction Students will also learn about science fiction as a text type. They will discuss and identify the distinguishing features of this genre. Before Reading Story Rebuilding This activity aims to focus students’ attention on the organisational structure of narrative text. Copy and enlarge Worksheets 1 for the teacher. Demonstrate to the class how to rearrange the story parts in a logical order. Think aloud about why the segments go together: The third paragraph tells us the where story takes place – a picnic. It introduces the characters – Sam and his cousins. So this could be the first part of the story. Continue to think aloud through another example. Then begin to draw on the students’ contributions. Ask, “Which paragraph will make sense here? Why?” After modelling, provide students with copies of Worksheets 2. Organise students to work in small groups to rearrange the story parts. Students should verbalise their reasoning. They can confirm their predictions after reading the story.

Answers Worksheet 1 (Text Parts for Teacher): Para. 3, 1, 4, 2 Answers Worksheet 2 (Text Parts for Students): Para. 2, 4, 1, 3

CATS

CATS & Preview the book using the CATS technique.

Cover, Author, Title, Skim

C

What do the front and back covers tell us about the book?

A

What do we know about the author and his or her other works?

T

What does the title suggest the book may be about?

S

Skim the text. Notice the layout of the text and any pictures, diagrams, maps and charts. Now make your prediction.



Worksheets 5 CATS Technique

Activate Prior Knowledge

Discuss distinguishing features of science fiction

Make Predictions

Explain what CATS stands for. Tell students that this book is a type of story called science fiction. Explain that science fiction narratives include an antagonist who possess supernatural powers, but who also has some human qualities. Science fiction involves science in a fantastical way. For example, science fiction may feature space aliens, other worlds, or futuristic technology. Prompt students to point out from the cover and the title examples of science fiction. Think aloud: This is a drawing of an alien with laser beam eyes. Aliens are usually in science fiction books. By looking at the cover, what else can I see is in the story?” (e.g. laser beams) Discuss the author and the title Greetings from Mars. Skim through the book together for visual clues to make predictions about the story. Prompt students to point out examples of science fiction in the illustrations. Encourage students to activate prior knowledge, such as facts about Mars or stories about aliens. Then have students predict what the book will be about. Following this discussion, students demonstrate their independent thinking about the text by completing Worksheets ## (CATS). Encourage students to use the CATS technique in their own reading. Teaching Tip One of the best ways to determine the reading levels of your new class is to complete a running record during a one-onone reading conference with students. Use Worksheet## Record of Oral Reading as students read a page of text from Greetings from Mars. For more on running records, see the section “Reading Assessment”.

Legend: & = Text type focus

During Reading Worksheets 1&2: Table of Story Elements

Story Elements & Familiarise students with the elements of narrative structure using the following table on a whiteboard. Setting

when and where the story takes place

Characters

who is in the story

Plot

what happens in the story and why

Problems/ conflicts, dangerous events, threats to the main Complications characters Resolution Worksheets 1&2: Story Elements Organiser Worksheets 3: Plot Profile Worksheets X Transformations

Teachers’ Choice Transformations During the reading of the story, stop at selected places in the text and ask students to sketch their mental image. Do not show the illustrations, but think aloud: I can see a picture in my mind of the alien’s evil, red eyes piercing through the darkness in the cupboard. Draw what you can see as I read the next part of the story. When the students have drawn each image, they discuss their drawings in pairs. Students can recreate their images after conferring with one another, and as you reread each section.

how the problems are solved

During shared or guided reading of the story, focus students’ attention on the story elements. Stop at various points to ask, for example, “Who is the main character?” “What are the two main settings in the story?” “What was the first (second, third) problem in the story?” After reading the story and introducing the terms, provide students copies of Worksheets 1&2 (Story Elements Organiser) to demonstrate their understanding. Compare answers with the original text. Plot Profile & During a shared or guided reading of the story, students can selfmonitor their comprehension by creating a plot profile of the main events as they occur. Provide students copies of Worksheet 3 (Plot Profile). Provide time for students to consider each event in the plot and determine its level of excitement. The excitement level can then be plotted onto the grid to create a profile of the plot, including its problems, climax and resolution. Encourage students to compare their profiles and discuss any differences. Fix-Up Strategies During shared reading, stop at several difficult sentences in the story and model how to reread sentences or an earlier part of the story to help understand the new sentences. Think aloud, “I didn’t understand that part, so I’m going to read it again.” After rereading the section, explain what you have learned, “Now I understand that the ball works like a magnifying glass when the sun shines through.” During guided reading, encourage students to do this on their own when they encounter difficult sentences. Good readers use fix-up strategies to understand what they read, hear or view.

After Reading Greetings from Mars Readers’ Theatre Cast of Characters: Sam, Mum, cousins, narrator and the “spaceman” (pantomime shooting lasers out of eyes) Scene 1: At the picnic Kids swamp presents. Scene 2: At home Mum discovers burned pants and blames Sam. Scene 3: At home Mum and Sam discover the truth about the spaceman.

Extension and Enrichment Terrestrial Timeline Worksheet 4

Beginning Guide students to create a picture timeline of main events in the story with a carefully chosen label under each picture.

Intermediate and Advanced Use notes to create a detailed, visual timeline of main events with several sentences summarising the events under each picture.

Readers’ Theatre In small groups, students rewrite a part of Greetings from Mars as a play script for 3–5 characters, including a narrator. Students will demonstrate their ability to retell the story creatively, while adding their own interpretation of the mood, characters and events. After planning, drafting and editing their scripts, students should rehearse their performances. The plays should be presented as expressive reading with minimal movements. Perform the readers’ theatre to an audience, such as another class. Critical Literacy Extra-Terrestrial Thinking Discuss the following questions in small groups before sharing as a whole class. • Why do you think the author might have written “Greetings from Mars”? • From what perspective is the story written? (eg child, parent) • For whom is the book written? What tells you this? • Does Greetings from Mars remind you of other books, movies, or TV shows? Why? • What does the book suggest about families (or brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers)? • Are all family members mentioned in the book? Why? • How does the book make you feel? Why? • Do you think the author believes in the existence of aliens? Why? • Do you agree with the author’s perspective of aliens? Why? Multimodal Design Crystal Ball Crystal Ball helps readers to draw on explicit and implicit information from a text to make predictions about the storyline. After reading the story, speculate about future developments in the plot. Students should decide what happened to Sam’s fiery-eyed alien in the back of the dark cupboard, and express this using a short story. Multimodal texts have images, words, sounds, gestures, spatial layouts, or digital elements that are combined to communicate a message. Create multimodal texts by publishing the stories with clever images using desktop publishing software. Present them to a real audience through the school website or newsletter.

Greetings From Mars Worksheet 1 ����������������������� Story Parts for Teacher

# “I’d like the slime ball,” said Jackie. She dashed across the circle and took the ball from Sam’s hands. She gave him a baby doll in return.

“Don’t worry,” said Kylie. “I’ll take the doll.”

When Sam had a picnic with his cousins, they always played the present-swapping game. Everyone swapped a present with someone else. You had to move fast because Uncle Bob timed it with his stopwatch. The game was fun, but sometimes you didn’t get the present you wanted.

“Waaah!” went the doll. “Rats,” thought Sam. “Who needs a baby doll?”

Deep End: ‘Greetings From Mars’ Worksheet 1 © XXXXXXXXX, 2007 www.erapublications.com

Greetings From Mars Worksheet 2 ������������������������ Story Parts for Students

# Sam stared at the pants. A hole the size of a CD had been burned into the material.

When Sam arrived home, his mother was waiting for him. The look on her face made his heart skip a beat.

“But I didn’t … I never ….” The words stuck in his throat.

“You’re in big trouble, young man,” said Mum, holding up Sam’s new pants. “It’s lucky you didn’t burn the house down!”

Deep End: ‘Greetings From Mars’ Worksheet 2 © XXXXXXXXX, 2007 www.erapublications.com

Greetings From Mars Worksheet 3 ������������ Plot Profile Name

Date

Exciting

Calm

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Beginning

List main events in order: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Deep End: ‘Greetings From Mars’ Worksheet 2 © XXXXXXXXX, 2007 www.erapublications.com

8 Ending

Event 2

Event 3

Event 4

Name

Deep End: ‘Greetings From Mars’ Worksheet 2 © XXXXXXXXX, 2007 www.erapublications.com

Words

Images

Event 1

Worksheet 4 Terrestrial �������������������� Timeline

Greetings From Mars Date Event 5