Lesson 21: Sequence of Events with the Historical Fiction piece "Tucket's Travels"

The Target Skill in this lesson is Sequence of Events

Concept Question: What marks the beginning and end of an event?

From Journeys:
Sequence of Events  As you read “Tucket’s Travels,” look for words and phrases that help you determine the sequence of events.  For example, words such as first, last, until, before, and after can signal the order in which events happened. Use a graphic organizer like this one to record events from the selection and to analyze how the scenes fit together to provide the overall structure.

Writers of historical fiction often structure their plots as a sequence of events. They present the events in chronological order, or time order. This structure helps clarify the relationships between events. One event leads to another, and excitement builds until the story reaches its conclusion.

To indicate the sequence of events, authors may use signal words and phrases such as last night, then, now, and later. Look back at page 644. In the sentence “They reached the trees just as the edge of the clouds caught up with them,” the phrase just as tells you that the two events happened at the same time.

As you track the sequence of events, keep in mind that this story contains a flashback. Which part of the text interrupts the story’s main action to describe events that happened at an earlier time? How does this scene affect the story’s structure?

Genre:

Historical fiction is a story set in the past. It contains characters, places, and events that actually existed or happened, or that could have existed or happened. 

As you read, look for:

     - a setting that was a real time and place in the past

      -details that show the story took place in the past

Context: The Oregon Trail

The Oregon Trail was a 3,490km long wagon route that began in Independence, Missouri and ended in the Oregon Territory which was part of the newly bought Louisiana Purchase (1803). The Trail was traveled by Americans seeking a new life in the west between 1811 and 1840.  The Oregon Trail, in the early 1800s, was a very dangerous and difficult journey and many people died along the way.

American children who went to elementary school in the 1990s have a special memory playing the Oregon Trail computer game, a game that was found on many school computers.

The Original Oregon Trail game was an MS-DOS (the Microsoft OS that came before Windows) game.  Click the link below to play that version.

Play MS-DOS Version

But the version most American kids remember and love is the Macintosh Plus version, since most schools had Macintosh Plus computers.

Play Macintosh Plus Version

Spelling List 18 – Unit 5 Lesson 21

Word	Verb Root	Part of Speech	Definition
instinctively		adv.	Do automatically without needing to think about it; do by instinct
undoubtedly		adv.	Certainly; for sure; without any doubt
cholera		n.	A disease that causes serious diarrhea, dehydration, and death if not treated
bargain		n./v.	n. A deal or agreement; something bought for a cheap, discounted price   v. To negotiate and agree upon a price
mirage		n.	An illusion caused by heat that creates the appearance of water in the distance
bareheaded		adj./adv.	Having one’s head uncovered; without covering one’s head
factor		n.	A fact or influence that helps to cause a result or outcome
vain		adj.	Producing no results; useless; pointless
salvation		n.	Something that saves someone from death or a terrible situation
pace		n.	Speed of walking, running, or moving