Sample Activity 1:

Use linear arrays to represent shades of meaning between words or progression of a story line or character. Ask students to justify their answers. This sample activity shows how I might use a linear array to teach the words ignorance, contemplation, and enlightenment to high school freshmen. 

     Sample question: In Fahrenheit 451, how does Montag evolve from a state of ignorance into a state of enlightenment? How do the          people in Montag’s life reflect or influence his thinking?   

      Linear array:    Ignorance————–>Contemplation————->Enlightenment

     Sample student response:

               Ignorance                             Contemplation                              Enlightenment

          Mildred—>Montag early—>Firemen—>Montag middle—>Beatty—>Clarisse—>Faber—>Montag late

At the beginning of the novel, Montag appears to be ignorant of the world around him and of his own role in that world. Mildred serves a both as a reflection of his own ignorant state and as a representation of what is broken in his world. The appearance of Clarisse early in the novel represents a clear turning point for Montag, who observes the way she reflects his own light back to him. This is in stark contrast to Mildred, who is surrounded by cold, dark imagery. Clarisse is different from everyone that Montag knows: she is vibrant and curious about her world. As Montag interacts with Clarisse, he enters a state of contemplation. He calls in sick for work and begins to read his stolen books. Through his reading and challenging conversations with characters such as Beatty and Faber, he begins to make sense of the world as it truly is. By the end of the novel, the world as Montag knows it has been virtually destroyed and Montag sets out to build again. In his new state of enlightenment, Montag meets the philosophers who reflect his new understandings of the world and help him evolve from a state of contemplation to a state of action.

Sample Activity 2:

Introduce 4-6 vocabulary words through direct instruction at a point in the curriculum when the words can facilitate conversations about themes and characters in the novel. Create a poster or word wall for the vocabulary words and use them as often as possible discussions and activities. The point is not to memorize or test students’ word knowledge, but to create a language-rich environment that they will emulate. Use this same language on tests and assignments. Require students to understand the meaning of the vocabulary words and apply that understanding to themes and characters in the text.

Sample vocabulary questions for Fahrenheit 451: 

1. How has Clarisse shown her defiance against the dystopian world she lives in?
2. Why do you think Mildred feels so melancholy when we first meet her?
3. Do you think Beatty is an insidious person? Justify your response with examples from the novel.
4. Do you think Montag is too impetuous throughout the novel? Justify your answer with examples from the novel.