The setting of a story is the location and time, or the where and when. Settings often play a crucial role almost as is the case in the book Return to Sender where the Cruz family moved from Mexico to North Carolina to Vermont. In this activity, students can map the different settings in the book in a storyboard and include illustrations and descriptions. They should be sure to explain how each setting affected the characters and story.
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Due Date:
Objective: Create a storyboard identifying the different settings in the book Return to Sender.
Student Instructions:
Begin by asking students to share examples from Return to Sender where the setting shaped what the characters did or felt. Guide the discussion by pointing out specific locations (like Vermont or Mexico) and asking how each influenced choices, challenges, or emotions. Encourage students to connect setting to real-life experiences for deeper understanding.
Work with your class to make a large anchor chart for each major setting in the story. List key details about each place and describe how it impacted the characters. Let students add sticky notes with their own observations or questions to make the chart interactive and engaging.
Divide students into groups and assign each a real-world setting featured in Return to Sender (e.g., rural Vermont, Mexican towns). Have them research facts and cultural aspects about their setting and share findings with the class. This helps students connect fiction to reality.
Ask students to choose a character and write a short journal entry about living in one of the story’s settings. Prompt them to describe the sights, sounds, and feelings of that place, and how it affects their actions. This activity deepens empathy and setting analysis.
The setting of Return to Sender includes several locations: the Cruz family moves from Mexico to North Carolina and then to Vermont. These places and the time period deeply influence the story’s characters and events.
Students can create a storyboard that maps out each setting from the book. For every location, they should add illustrations and write brief descriptions explaining how that setting impacts the characters and plot.
The setting is crucial in Return to Sender because it shapes the characters’ experiences and drives the story. Each location brings unique challenges and changes, highlighting themes like migration and adaptation.
A setting map activity asks students to identify and illustrate each major location in a story, then describe how these settings affect the characters. This helps students better understand the story’s context and themes.
Use storyboards to visually map settings, encourage discussion about how each place changes the characters, and connect the settings to real-world themes like migration. This makes the lesson more engaging for middle schoolers.