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“UP IN FLAMES” 
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury 
Unit plan - 15 lessons 
Prepared by Ms. Sweers 
November 2016  

CLASSROOM: ​10th grade English language arts 

MAIN TEXT:​ ​Fahrenheit 451 ​by Ray Bradbury 
THEME: ​Knowledge vs. Ignorance
The power of written language has been studied by scholars, harnessed by writers, and 
feared by rulers throughout history. Every day we take for granted our ability to 
participate in the human exchange of ideas that has been censored in different societies 
and eras of the past. This unit is designed to guide students in discovering pthe 
significance of learning and literacy in their own lives so that they remain empowered 
and enlightened as opposed to the people living in the dystopian world depicted in 
Fahrenheit 451. ​By exploring this text as well as other works of nonfiction, poetry, short 
stories, and other sources, students will consider the effects of ignorance on society and 
tune into how those effects may be present in our own society today.  

CONCEPTS: ​What is censorship? How is it used as a way of control?

What is the main point of ​Fahrenheit 451?  
How are knowledge and ignorance at odds in this society? 
What are the major themes and symbols in ​Fahrenheit 451? 
How does Ray Bradbury use allusions to literature in the book? 
What is the relationship between books, human thought, and emotion? 

EQUIPMENT/TECH/PREP: 
Students and instructor will need a copy of ​Fahrenheit 451 ​and access to a computer with 
word processing software. The teacher will supply handouts with assignment overviews 
and supplemental reading material to each student: Introductory handout, “Allegory of 
the Cave,” “Dover Beach,” “Ecclesiastes 3,” “The Burning of the Books,” article on Nazi 
book burning, article on book burning of Qin Dynasty, “Most Challenged Books” list, 
reading checks, and essay rubric/prompts. 
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MODIFICATIONS: 

Modifications can be applied to class assignments and activities as needed for a diverse 
group of learners. Extensions on reading or writing assignments may be appropriate for 
students who are not at grade level. Scaffolding, such as reading guides, can be supplied 
to any student who struggles with the vocabulary or concepts in a text.  

UNIT GOALS
Short-term goals: 

1. Students will be able to define censorship and explain how governments and 
other authority figures have used it as a way of control. 
2. Students will demonstrate an understanding of the major plot lines, themes, and 
message of Bradbury’s ​Fahrenheit 451. 
3. Students will identify literary language and strategies (allegory, metaphor, 
allusion, symbolism, etc) in a written work that contributes to its message. 

Long-term goals: 

1. Students will draw connections between literature and current issues. 

2. Students will consider the viewpoint of the author in their interpretation of a 
literary work. 
3. Students will participate in respectful conversations about their ideas and present 
clear reasoning behind their perspectives. 
4. Students will make comparisons between different genres and authors tackling 
the same theme or topic. 

CONTENT STANDARDS:  
CE 1.1.1 ​Demonstrate flexibility in using independent and collaborative strategies for planning, 
drafting, revising, and editing complex texts.  

CE 1.1.2​ Know and use a variety of prewriting strategies to generate, focus, and organize ideas 
(e.g., free writing, clustering/mapping, talking with others, brainstorming, outlining, developing 
graphic organizers, taking notes, summarizing, paraphrasing).  

CE 1.1.5​ Revise drafts to more fully and/or precisely convey meaning—drawing on response from 
others, self-reflection, and reading one’s own work with the eye of a reader; then refine the text— 
deleting and/or reorganizing ideas, and addressing potential readers’ questions. 
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CE 1.1.6​ Reorganize sentence elements as needed and choose grammatical and stylistic options 
that provide sentence variety, fluency, and flow.  

CE 1.1.7 ​Edit for style, tone, and word choice (specificity, variety, accuracy, appropriateness, 
conciseness) and for conventions of grammar, usage and mechanics that are appropriate for 
audience.  

CE 1.2.2​ Write, speak, and visually represent to develop self-awareness and insight (e.g., diary, 
journal writing, portfolio self-assessment).  

CE 2.2.1​ Recognize literary and persuasive strategies as ways by which authors convey ideas and 
readers make meaning (e.g., imagery, irony, satire, parody, propaganda, 
overstatement/understatement, omission, and multiple points of view). 

CE 2.2.3​ Interpret the meaning of written, spoken, and visual texts by drawing on different 
cultural, theoretical, and critical perspective  

CE 3.1.1​ Interpret literary language (e.g., imagery, allusions, symbolism, metaphor) while reading 
literary and expository works.  

CE 3.1.2 ​Demonstrate an understanding of literary characterization, character development, the 

function of major and minor characters, motives and causes for action, and moral dilemmas that 
characters encounter by describing their function in specific works.  

CE 3.1.4​ Analyze characteristics of specific works and authors (e.g., voice, mood, time sequence, 
author vs. narrator, stated vs. implied author, intended audience and purpose, irony, parody, 
satire, propaganda, use of archetypes and symbols) and identify basic beliefs, perspectives, and 
philosophical assumptions underlying an author’s work.  

CE 3.1.5 ​Comparatively analyze two or more literary or expository texts, comparing how and why 
similar themes are treated differently, by different authors, in different types of text, in different 
historical periods, and/or from different cultural perspectives.  

CE 3.1.6​ Examine differing and diverse interpretations of literary and expository works and 
explain how and why interpretation may vary from reader to reader.  

CE 3.1.7​ Analyze and evaluate the portrayal of various groups, societies, and cultures in literature 
and other texts.  

CE 3.1.8​ Demonstrate an understanding of historical, political, cultural, and philosophical themes 

and questions raised by literary and expository works.  

CE 3.1.9 ​Analyze how the tensions among characters, communities, themes, and issues in 
literature and other texts reflect human experience.  

CE 3.1.10​ Demonstrate an understanding of the connections between literary and expository 

works, themes, and historical and contemporary contexts.   

 
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CE 3.2.4​ Respond by participating actively and appropriately in small and large group discussions 
about literature (e.g., posing questions, listening to others, contributing ideas, reflecting on and 
revising initial responses).  

CE 3.2.5​ Respond to literature in a variety of ways (e.g., dramatic interpretation, reader’s theatre, 
literature circles, illustration, writing in a character’s voice, engaging in social action, writing an 
analytic essay) providing examples of how texts affect their lives, connect them with the 
contemporary world, and communicate across time.   

ANTICIPATORY ACTIVITY: 

To students: Imagine all the books in the world were going to be destroyed, but each of 
you had a chance to sneak into a library and pick out one book to save. Which ones 
would you choose? Consider which books might be most important to society, which 
ideas and stories humanity can’t afford to lose. Work together, because as a group you 
get to pick out about twenty. Come up with a list as a class and craft a solid rationale 
behind your decisions. Oh- and you have ten minutes. Go! 

ASSESSMENT 
Formative: ​A reading quiz (attached) as well as several brief journal prompts and class 
activities that can be read/observed to assess the class’ understanding of and deeper 
thinking about the readings. 

Summative: ​A 2-3 page paper in response to one of the prompts supplied by the teacher 
(attached). Must include textual evidence from the main text, ​Fahrenheit 451, ​as well as 
at least one other source.