Lighting the Past, Circuits of Change

Learning Goals & Products

Learning Goals

Students will be able to analyze censorship, conformity, memory, and questioning in Fahrenheit 451 as interconnected themes that shape how people think and act.

Students will be able to conduct and synthesize interviews with senior citizens, elementary students, and community members to identify patterns in lived experiences related to reading, voice, and access to ideas.

Students will be able to compare and interpret text evidence and interview evidence to define an evidence-based problem statement about censorship and shared knowledge.

Students will be able to design, build, and test lanterns using parallel and series circuits to model how electrical systems work.

Students will be able to justify circuit design decisions by explaining trade-offs between parallel and series arrangements using test data and model results.

Students will be able to collaborate to refine a shared exhibit station that communicates research findings, novel themes, and circuit symbolism to an authentic audience.

Students will be able to communicate their learning through oral presentation and reflection that explains how user feedback, peer critique, and self-assessment changed their thinking.

Products

individual

User Interview Portfolio and Circuit Prototype Brief

Each student submits a research portfolio with interview notes, quote analysis, and a one-page synthesis of patterns across the three stakeholder groups. The portfolio also includes a labeled prototype brief for an individual lantern concept with a sketch, circuit plan, and explanation of how the design responds to user insights and Fahrenheit 451 themes.

team

Pages, Voices, and Light Exhibit Station with Working Lantern and Live Presentation

Teams create a shared problem statement, a higher-fidelity lantern solution, and an exhibit station that combines interview clips, text evidence, and a live circuit demonstration. The presentation explains how student research shaped design choices, trade-offs, and the final message for community visitors.

Rubric

Competency Progression Rubric Competency-first rubric

Category	Learning Goal	Stage 1	Stage 2	Stage 3	Stage 4
Deeper Learning Competencies	Critical Thinking & Problem Solving	I can develop a focused question about Fahrenheit 451 and my community (or adapt a teacher-provided question) and use it to guide short research and simple notes that point to answers or solutions I’m testing I can identify a few credible sources (e.g., interviews, text evidence) and state how each source helps me understand censorship, conformity, memory, and questioning.	I can narrow or broaden my inquiry as I learn by revising my question and explaining why my new focus better fits the problem I’m solving I can synthesize information from multiple sources by comparing what the novel, interviews, and research say, then I can write a clear claim that connects evidence to my theme-based purpose for the exhibit and lantern design.	I can generate and justify an increasingly specific research question and plan the steps of my investigation to solve a complex, authentic problem (linking themes to lived community voices and engineering choices) I can evaluate and integrate sources (text evidence plus interview clips and research) to resolve tensions between perspectives, then I can revise my claim and design explanations based on what the evidence shows.	I can independently design and conduct a more sustained research-and-design process that tackles a complex problem with a clear rationale for my methods and sources I can critically synthesize multiple perspectives into a coherent, nuanced solution—explaining how specific evidence supports my final theme connections and how my parallel/series circuit choices reflect those ideas—while adjusting my approach using feedback and data from testing.
Deeper Learning Competencies	Collaboration	I can collaborate with my group by taking a clear role, meeting basic deadlines, and using group norms to listen, share ideas, and complete assigned parts of our exhibit (interview questions, circuit tasks, or text/theme supports).	I can co-design and coordinate with my group by negotiating roles, using feedback from peers/teacher to revise our plan, and making sure our contributions connect to our driving inquiry and exhibit station goals.	I can collaborate strategically by facilitating shared decision-making (e.g., assigning responsibilities for interviews, evidence use, wiring/testing, and presentation segments), resolving disagreements productively, and synthesizing group ideas into a coherent exhibit plan.	I can lead collaborative learning independently by organizing teamwork with a shared workflow, integrating multiple sources and perspectives into a unified station narrative, and revising in response to feedback while ensuring equitable participation and high-quality public presentation readiness.
Deeper Learning Competencies	Effective Communication	I can share my learning clearly in short segments by speaking or reading a prepared script and using specific novel quotes and interview responses when explaining a theme for our exhibit station I can communicate with audience-friendly pacing and volume and maintain focus during the rotating station presentations.	I can present a coherent station explanation that connects claims about censorship, conformity, memory, and questioning to multiple sources (text evidence and at least two community interview perspectives) I can collaborate to revise my script based on feedback so my message is easier to understand and more persuasive for visitors.	I can deliver an engaging, well-organized public presentation that synthesizes evidence across sources and explains how community voices deepen or complicate the novel’s ideas I can communicate with empathy by accurately representing interviewees, responding to audience questions, and coordinating roles within my team so demonstrations and spoken reflections flow smoothly.	I can independently refine my communication for a high-quality public audience by tailoring language, structure, and delivery to the exhibit purpose and format (live circuit demo + spoken reflection + QR/video clip) I can synthesize multiple sources to answer the essential question and clearly justify how my group’s design choices represent themes, using feedback to improve clarity, credibility, and impact over time.
Deeper Learning Competencies	Content Expertise	I can use focused questions to conduct short research and collect evidence (quotes, interview clips/notes, and text evidence) that I connect to one or more themes from Fahrenheit 451 (e.g., censorship, conformity, memory, questioning).	I can conduct a sustained, organized research process to answer a self-generated or refined question, choosing reliable sources and recording relevant notes that show clear understanding of the topic and themes.	I can synthesize multiple sources (novel passages plus community interviews and other materials) to form a well-supported claim about what happens when people stop reading, sharing, or questioning, and I can revise my evidence selection to strengthen accuracy and relevance.	I can independently deepen my inquiry by narrowing/broadening my research as needed, integrating and interpreting evidence across sources to produce a sophisticated explanation (and exhibit-ready content) that demonstrates strong understanding of how the themes connect to real community experiences.
Deeper Learning Competencies	Self Directed Learning	I can use a focused, teacher-supported research question to gather sources (interviews, quotes, and text evidence) and I can record what I learn in an organized way so I can find it later during my project.	I can narrow or broaden my inquiry based on what I notice in sources, and I can synthesize evidence from interviews and Fahrenheit 451 to draft and revise a clear explanation that answers the essential question.	I can independently plan and carry out a short research process using a self-generated sub-question, track my progress with checkpoints, and revise my thinking by integrating multiple sources to make a stronger claim.	I can lead my own learning by monitoring quality and relevance of sources, selecting the best evidence across interview clips and text, and consistently refining my product and final research synthesis to solve the inquiry problem in a way that shows deep understanding.