Lesson 8 | Fahrenheit 451 | 10th Grade English

Lesson Overview

Objective

Analyze how Vonnegut and Nguyen use rhetorical appeals to advance their arguments on censorship.

Readings and Materials

Essay: “My Young Mind Was Disturbed By a Book. It Changed My Life” by Viet Thanh Nguyen

Lesson Notes

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Letter: “I Am Very Real” by Kurt Vonnegut

Lesson Notes

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Resource: Rhetorical Appeals Graphic Organizer (G10, U1, L8)

Lesson Notes

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Lesson Map

Introduce themes of technology in Ray Bradbury's novel Fahrenheit 451 and reflect on one's personal technology habits.

Materials

Screen Time and Social Media Stations Activity (G10, U1, L1)
“Americans Check Their Phones an Alarming Number of Times Per Day”
“Virginia students speak out on school cell phone bans”
“Changing to a Flip Phone changed my Life”
“What is Technology Addiction?”
“Social media's impact on our mental health and tips to use it safely”

Standards

RI.9-10.1RI.9-10.2RI.9-10.7

Lesson

Analyze how Ray Bradbury uses figurative language, characterization, and imagery to convey his central message about technology in the short story "The Pedestrian."

Materials

“The Pedestrian”
Language Sensitivity Analysis Handout (G10, U1, L2)

Standards

RL.9-10.2RL.9-10.3RL.9-10.4

Lesson

Analyze how Bradbury uses the characterization of Montag and Clarisse to introduce larger ideas about this society.

Materials

Fahrenheit 451 pp. 1–7 — "Part 1: The Hearth and the Salamander"

Standards

RL.9-10.2RL.9-10.3RL.9-10.4

Lesson

Analyze Clarisse and Mildred as literary foils and how Bradbury uses them to introduce ideas about technology.

Materials

Fahrenheit 451 pp. 8–28 — "Part 1: The Hearth and the Salamander" (cont.)
Mildred v. Clarisse Graphic Organizer (G10, U1, L4)

Standards

RL.9-10.2RL.9-10.3RL.9-10.4

Lesson

Analyze how events and descriptive details show a development in Montag's character.

Materials

Fahrenheit 451 pp. 29–49 — "Part 1: The Hearth and the Salamander" (cont.)

Standards

RL.9-10.3RL.9-10.4

Lesson

Identify the main arguments in Beatty's speech and argue one's own views on censorship.

Materials

Fahrenheit 451 pp. 50–65 — "Part 1: The Hearth and the Salamander" (cont.)
Beatty's Speech Graphic Organizer (G10, U1, L6)

Standards

RL.9-10.2RL.9-10.3

Lesson

Explore a text set on book banning to determine one's own views of censorship in public schools.

Materials

Book Banning Text Set (G10, U1, L7)
First Amendment of the United States Constitution
“Board of Education, Island Trees Union Free School District No. 26 v. Pico”
Censorship by the Numbers
“Banned in the USA: The Growing Movement to Censor Books in Schools”
“Book Bans: Should Parents or Other Adults Be Able to Ban Books from Schools and Libraries?”
“Americans' Views on Book Restrictions in U.S. Public Schools 2024”
“Meet The Brave Students Who Fought Back Against Pennsylvania School District Book Ban”
“The Banned Books Project: Ray Bradbury, 'Fahrenheit 451'”

Standards

RI.9-10.2RI.9-10.7

Lesson

Analyze how Vonnegut and Nguyen use rhetorical appeals to advance their arguments on censorship.

Materials

“My Young Mind Was Disturbed By a Book. It Changed My Life”
“I Am Very Real”
Rhetorical Appeals Graphic Organizer (G10, U1, L8)

Standards

RI.9-10.2RI.9-10.4RI.9-10.6RI.9-10.8

Lesson

Analyze how Plato uses symbolism to convey ideas about ignorance and knowledge.

Materials

Allegory of the Cave

Standards

RL.9-10.2RL.9-10.4

Lesson

Analyze how Bradbury uses imagery and figurative language to characterize Faber and his relationship with Montag.

Materials

Fahrenheit 451 pp. 67–89 — "Part 2: The Sieve and the Sand"
Faber Graphic Organizer (G10, U1, L10)

Standards

RL.9-10.3RL.9-10.4

Lesson

Analyze how two key scenes reveal Montag's conflicting personalities at the end of Part 2.

Materials

Fahrenheit 451 pp. 89–106 — "Part 2: The Sieve and the Sand" (cont.)

Standards

RL.9-10.3RL.9-10.4RL.9-10.5

Lesson

Writing

Unpack a writing prompt and use a graphic organizer to gather evidence in preparation for a two-paragraph response.

Materials

Fahrenheit 451 — "Part 2: The Sieve and the Sand"
Argumentative Writing: Literary Analysis Paragraph Rubric (G10, U1)
Montag's Transformation Graphic Organizer (G10, U1, L12)

Standards

RL.9-10.1RL.9-10.3W.9-10.1W.9-10.5

Lesson

Writing

Outline a two-paragraph response, including a strong topic sentence, evidence, analysis, and a concluding statement.

Materials

Fahrenheit 451 — "Part 2: The Sieve and the Sand"
Argumentative Writing: Literary Analysis Paragraph Rubric (G10, U1)
Two Paragraph Outline
Montag's Transformation Graphic Organizer (G10, U1, L12)

Standards

W.9-10.1W.9-10.5W.9-10.9

Lesson

Writing

Draft and revise a two-paragraph response analyzing Montag's transformation in "The Sieve and the Sand."

Materials

Fahrenheit 451 — "Part 2: The Sieve and the Sand"
Argumentative Writing: Literary Analysis Paragraph Rubric (G10, U1)
Two Paragraph Outline

Standards

W.9-10.1W.9-10.5

Lesson

Analyze Montag's thoughts, feelings, and behavior during the climactic scenes of the novel.

Materials

Fahrenheit 451 pp. 107–128 — "Part 3: Burning Bright"

Standards

RL.9-10.3

Lesson

Examine how social media platforms can use algorithms to influence society.

Materials

“What to Know About Meta's 'Political Content' Limit—and How to Turn It Off on Instagram”

Standards

RL.9-10.2

Lesson

Analyze how Bradbury uses symbolism and imagery to convey important ideas.

Materials

Fahrenheit 451 pp. 130–148 — "Part 3: Burning Bright" (cont.)

Standards

RL.9-10.3RL.9-10.4

Lesson

Analyze how the imagery and symbolism Bradbury uses at the end of the novel contribute to important themes.

Materials

Fahrenheit 451 pp. 148–158 — "Part 3: Burning Bright" (cont.)

Standards

RL.9-10.2RL.9-10.4

Lesson

Assessment

Socratic Seminar

Engage in a summative Socratic Seminar about the larger themes and ideas of Fahrenheit 451, supporting arguments with strong and thorough textual evidence.

Materials

Fahrenheit 451 — full text

Standards

SL.9-10.1SL.9-10.1.aSL.9-10.1.bSL.9-10.1.cSL.9-10.1.dSL.9-10.4

Lesson

Assessment

Performance Task

Read and annotate nonfiction resources, using a graphic organizer to identify similarities and/or differences between the issue discussed in the resources and how it is depicted in Fahrenheit 451.

Materials