• Through class discussion, assist students’ comprehension by asking guiding questions and taking note of students who display confusion or uncertainty. [IS.22 - Struggling Learners and ELL Students]
• Monitor the small group discussions and offer assistance in reviewing definitions of literary terms, pointing out relevant portions of the text, and encouraging input of prior knowledge. [IS.23 - All Students]
• The questions may be assigned in flexible grouping based upon student needs or assigned as an individual assessment and turned in as an exit ticket.

Focus Question: How do setting, conflict, and character relate to theme? [IS.12 - Struggling Learners]

Begin the lesson by asking students to picture themselves alone in a remote setting, such as the desert or the heart of a forest. [IS.13 - Struggling Learners] Tell them they have only a lunch and some matches with them. Ask, “What do you feel? How will you survive?”  (Possible responses: fear or desperation, although students with scouting or backpacking experience might express some confidence because of their knowledge.)

Say, “Nature can be very powerful and people cannot always solve problems caused by nature.” Ask students to free-write about an experience in which they had to deal with the forces of nature. [IS.14 - Struggling Learners] Ask volunteers to share their experiences.

Part 1

Before reading “To Build a Fire” by Jack London, introduce the setting. Say, “This story takes place in the late 1800s in the Yukon— the farthest western Canadian territory, which borders Alaska. The climate there is Arctic and the population is sparse, even today.” You may wish to show visuals, such as the picture and map listed in Related Resources. [IS.15 - Struggling Learners]

As students read the story, ask them to pay particular attention to how the man and the dog react to the challenges of the setting. [IS.16 - Struggling Learners]

After students finish reading the story, give each a copy of the worksheet on setting, conflict, and theme (L-L-1-3_Setting, Conflict,and Theme.doc). Ask students to work in small groups to complete page 1 of the worksheet. Say, “Write several important details about the setting in the first column. [IS.17 - Struggling Learners] In the second column, describe the conflicts faced by the characters. In this story, consider the dog a character.”

Have groups use the completed worksheets for a class discussion of the story.

• Setting: remote wilderness, no sun, extreme cold, 75 below zero, several feet of snow and ice, frozen streams;
• Conflict:

o   Man: surviving extreme cold, trying to light a fire and keep it going, avoiding frostbite, keeping dry, staying alive

o   Dog: survival, staying warm, obeying man, finding fire

Part 2

Ask students to turn to page 2 of the worksheet. Say, “Now let’s see how the setting and conflict relate to the theme of the story. We’ve determined that the story’s setting creates conflicts for the man and the dog. Their approaches to dealing with these conflicts are vastly different. How does the dog respond to the extreme cold?” (Possible answers: relies on his instincts to survive, knowing what he has to do and when) “How does the man respond?” (Possible answers: at first thought that the temperature did not matter; has some practical knowledge, including the advice from the man from Sulphur Creek, but little understanding; makes decisions he regrets, but always feels that he could somehow fix things.) Help students see that the contrast between the man’s use of knowledge and the dog’s use of instinct are integral to the story’s theme.

Write the following equation on the board/interactive whiteboard:

Setting + Conflict = Theme

Have students complete the page 2 of the Setting, Conflict, and Theme worksheet (L-L-1-3_Setting, Conflict,and Theme.doc). [IS.18 - Struggling Learners] Say, “The theme is the answer to an equation adding together setting and conflict. What are some possible themes of the story?” (Possible responses: Nature is more powerful than humans. No matter how much knowledge they have, people cannot subdue nature. People have fewer instincts than animals have. A little knowledge is a dangerous thing. Nature should be respected.)

Part 3

End the lesson with a discussion of point of view and its relevance to theme. [IS.19 - Struggling Learners] Remind students of the following:

• Third person limited point of view reveals events through the perspective of a single character.
• Third person omniscient point of view relates events from a perspective that sees into the thoughts and feelings of all characters and may offer additional information relevant to the story.

Ask, “What point of view is used in ‘To Build a Fire’?” (third person omniscient) If students have difficulty determining the point of view, [IS.20 - Struggling Learners] reread paragraph three, which gives outside information about the man, and paragraph six, which gives views from the dog’s perspective. In addition, the narrator gives a number of facts, such as the exact temperature reading, something neither the newcomer nor the dog knows.

Ask, “Why did the author choose this point of view?” [IS.21 - Struggling Learners] (Possible responses: It allows readers to understand the seriousness of the situation; it gives information about the man that shows his lack of understanding; it shows the relationship between the dog and the man and thus the contrast between knowledge and instinct.)

Say, “From the very beginning the narrator foreshadows the stark conclusion of the story. The narrator suggests the theme in paragraph three—man’s ‘frailty as a creature of temperature,’ and ‘man’s frailty in general.’ Imagine how different the story would be if narrated from the man’s point of view.” Point out that the omniscient narrator is able to put all the pieces of theme together in a dramatic way.

Extension:

• Students who are ready to move beyond the standards can do one of the following activities:

o   rewrite parts of “To Build a Fire” from a first person point of view or from the dog’s point of view.

o   highlight foreshadowing throughout the story and write a short paper discussing its importance to theme.

• Students who need an additional opportunity for learning might benefit from watching a video such as Into the Wild or Cast Away, both of which feature a man alone fighting for personal survival. Have them complete the Setting, Conflict, and Theme worksheet based on the video (L-L-1-3_Setting, Conflict,and Theme.doc). Discuss answers in small groups.