Lesson Plan: The Flaming Sky

Essential Questions

• How do disasters affect the course of history? 
• Why is it important to tell the stories of accidents and tragedies?

Literature Connection

• Novel: I Survived the Hindenburg Disaster, 1937 by Lauren Tarshis
• Nonfiction: Means of Transport That Changed the World by Tom Velcovsky

Preview Text Features (15 minutes)

Guide students to locate the article. Preview the text features by asking the following questions:

• Read the article’s title and subtitle (the text beneath the title) and look at the big picture. Why do you think the author chose to call the article “The Flaming Sky”? In the picture, is it really the sky that’s on fire? Sample answer: The phrase “the flaming sky” is dramatic. The sky isn’t really in flames; it’s the flying machine that’s burning. But the thought of the sky in flames is scary and draws the reader in. 
• Look at the map titled “The Path to America” and read its caption. Where did the Hindenburg start its journey? What ocean did it cross? Where did it end its journey? The Hindenburg started its journey in Frankfurt, Germany. It traveled across the Atlantic Ocean and ended its journey in Lakehurst, New Jersey.
• Look at the photo captioned “A Fancy Ride” and read its caption. What’s happening in this photo? What about this photo would you say is fancy? The photo shows travelers in a dining room, having meals and chatting. Everyone seems to be wearing formal clothes—suits for the men and a nice dress for the woman. The tables are set with white tablecloths and decorated with flowers, adding to the fancy look of the room. Additionally, we learn from the caption that the walls were covered in silk wallpaper, which is also fancy.

Preview Vocabulary (10 minutes)

• Point out the vocabulary box. Read the words (tragedy, gourmet, flammable, ignited, jerked) aloud and discuss their definitions.
• Play the Vocabulary Slideshow.

Make a Plan for Reading

Before students start to read, walk them through a reading plan:

• Set a purpose for reading by telling students that they will find text evidence in “The Flaming Sky” that supports ideas about how the Hindenburg disaster occurred.
• Point out the Pause and Think boxes. Tell students they can check their understanding of what they’ve read by answering these questions.
• Tell students that as they finish each section, they should think about how the text features on the page (e.g., photos, captions, and section headings) relate to what they’ve just read.
• Point out the activity at the end of the article and tell students they’ll complete it after reading. Encourage them to keep the Think About It! question at the bottom in mind as they read.

Guide students to read the article. Once they understand it well, discuss the following close-reading and critical-thinking questions.

Close-Reading Questions (20 minutes)

• Reread the first section. What were two reasons Werner Franz felt lucky to work on the Hindenburg? (point of view) Reasons include that Werner found it exciting to have a job on a famous and fancy zeppelin; the Hindenburg made German people, like Werner, feel proud at a difficult time; having a job helped his family, since his dad was out of work; and each trip took Werner far from Germany’s troubles. 
• Reread the section “The Joy of Zeppelins.” Why might people have preferred to cross the Atlantic Ocean by zeppelin rather than by ship in the 1930s? (compare and contrast) Making the trip by zeppelin was faster and fancier. By ship, the trip took 5 to 10 days. On the Hindenburg, the trip took two-and-a-half days, and the passengers stayed in fancy rooms, ate good food, and enjoyed beautiful views.
• In the section “No Choice,” which details help you understand how stressful Werner’s experience was? (text evidence) Details include that Werner heard the explosion and saw a wall of fire; he was thrown backward, almost into the flames; he was soaked by water from a burst tank; and he had to make the difficult decision to jump out of the zeppelin, not knowing how high up he was or whether he would survive the fall.
• What effect did the Hindenburg explosion have on zeppelin travel? How did the disaster affect Werner? (cause and effect) People around the world saw the explosion because it was caught on film. As a result, people stopped traveling by zeppelin. Werner felt lucky and grateful to have survived. Throughout his life, he appreciated his escape.

Critical-Thinking Question (10 minutes)

• In this article, the author tells the story of the Hindenburg through the experience of Werner Franz. How does this affect the reader’s understanding of what the Hindenburg meant to people at the time? How would the article be different if Werner’s story weren’t included? (author’s craft) Learning about the Hindenburg disaster through Werner’s story makes the event come alive in the reader’s mind. What might otherwise be a dry list of facts, dates, and technical details becomes very much a human story. We can put ourselves in Werner’s shoes and imagine his experience—the feeling of excitement at the chance to work on the zeppelin followed by the nightmare-like escape from the burning wreck. 

• Have students work in pairs to complete the Spotlight Skill Workout: Text Evidence activity. As a class, discuss students’ answers and the Think About It! question.
• Have students work independently to complete our Central Idea and Details Skill Builder, available in higher- and lower-level versions. (Click here to view all your Skill Builders for this article.)
• Writing prompt: Imagine that you are Werner, on the Hindenburg, writing in your journal before the tragic day that would change air travel forever. In a one-page entry, write your thoughts and feelings about being on this famous flying machine. Use details from the story, as well as your own imagination, to explain what it’s like to be part of the zeppelin’s crew.