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Basic high school English class ( but could be regular division jr. high)

TOPIC - Out of the Dust

by Linda Pont, Kewanee, Illinois

TIME - 10 days+

KEY TOPICS - Dust Bowl/Depression, Grief, Characterization, Forgiveness

TOTAL - 210 points

*everyone must do

GRADING SCALE - 210 -189 =A, 188 -168 = B, 167 -147 = C, 146 - 126 = D

Day One - computer lab - 20 pts.maximum - choose one

_____author biography

_____Dust Bowl

_____the Great Depression

_____Franklin Delano Roosevelt

_____New Deal

_____Newbery winners

Day Two - video - 20 pts. max - choose one

_____answer questions

_____chronological order of events

_____quote comments

_____letter

Day Three - video continues

Day Four - Winter 1934 pp. 3-33 - 25 pts.max - choose 2 or 3

_____one paragraph summary (10 pts.)

_____character collage (15 pts.)

_____question sheet #1 (10 pts.)

__*__vocab worksheet #1(10 pts.)

_____window display - rules of dining (15 pts.)





Day Five - Spring 1934 - pp.37-51 30 pts.max - choose 2 or 3

_____unemployment graph (10 pts.)

_____journal entry (10 pts.)

__*__vocab worksheet #2 (10 pts.)

_____question sheet #2 (10 pts.)

_____stages of grief worksheet (20 pts.)

_____FDR bulletin board (20 pts.)

Day Six - Summer 1934 - pp.55-84 - 20 pts. max- choose 2

_____compare/contrast (10 pts.)

_____Bulletin board images (10 pts.)

__*__vocab workshee #3 (10 pts.)

_____question sheet #3 (10 pts.)

_____paragraph summary (10 pts.)

Day Seven - Autumn 1934 - pp.87-95 - 30 pts.max - choose 2 or 3

_____image poster (15 pts.)

_____wind erosion (20 pts.)

_____dust pneumonia poster (15 pts.)

__*__vocab worksheet #4 (10 pts.)

_____questions #4 (10 pts.)

_____paragraph summary (10 pts.)

Day Eight - Winter 1935 - pp. 99-149 - 25 pts.max - choose 2 or 3

_____character cube (15 pts.)

_____forgiveness discussion(15 pts.)

__*__vocab worksheet #5 (10 pts.)

_____questions #5 (10 pts.)

_____paragraph summary (10 pts.)

Day Nine - Spring 1935 - pp.153-189 - 25 pts.max - choose 2 or3

_____Billie Jo's timeline (15 pts.)

_____question sheet #6 (10 pts.)

_____paragraph summary (10 pts.)

_____the Baby connection (15 pts.)

Day Ten - Summer 1935 - pp. 193-227 - 15 pts.max - choose 1

_____Apple Recipes (20 pts.)

_____Dust Bowl music (15 pts.)

_____Memories of the Dust game (15 pts.)

B-Lit III

Out of the Dust unit

option explanations

Day One

Websearch preview - To prepare for reading the novel, Out of the Dust, you will do some research on a topic related to the book. You can choose whatever one you want, but you can't do the same topic as the person sitting next to you in the lab.

Day Two

Today you will watch a video entitled Surviving the Dustbowl. You have your choice of the following activities to earn your points today:

Answer questions - answer the questions as you watch the videos

Chronological order of events - watch the video and fill in the timeline of the events described

Quote comment - Answer one of the following questions on a separate sheet of paper in a paragraph of 8-10 sentences. Your paragraph should have an opening sentence and a closing sentence and give at least one example from the movie to support your thoughts.

A. "I felt I was becoming a slave to the land. But I held on to the thought

that this land had to be stopped from blowing. Often I was so full

of dust that I drove blind, unable to see even the radiator cap on my

tractor or hear the roar of the engines. But I kept driving on and on,

by guess and instinct. I was making my last stand in the Dust Bowl."

If you had been a part on one of these farm families during the '30's,

do you think you would have wanted to stay on your farm or leave?

Why or why not? What would you lose by leaving? What would you

gain?

B. At the end of the film, farmers are talking together about the future.

One is hopeful that people will start taking care of the land differently.

Another says, "Don't fool yourself...It's just not in our blood to play a

safe game." What does the farmer mean? Why do you think farmers

might have been unwilling to change their farming practices once the

rains returned?

Letter - write a letter from one of the following points of view: a farmer who is a member of the "Last Man Club," a mother nursing a child sick with dust pneumonia, or a healthy child watching the adults cope with the disaster. Your letter (to whomever you wish) must be one side of one page minimum.

Day Three

video continues

Day Four

One paragraph summary - write a one-paragraph summary of the major events in this section. (8-10 sentence minimum)

Character collage - using pictures and words cut out of magazines create a collage of images to describe Billie Jo. You may use the small poster paper.

Question sheet - answer the questions for this section in complete sentences. The sheet is found in the basket.

Vocab worksheet - read through the definitions for each vocab word and then choose which word works best in each sentence. This sheet can be found in the basket.

Window Display (rules of dining) - following Billie Jo's mom's rules of dining in the Dustbowl, create a window display demonstrating this. Your display should contain the visual image and a written image displaying these rules. You may do this assignment with another person.

Day Five

Unemployment Graph - getting the worksheet from the basket concerning startling statistics on unemployment, answer the questions about the graph.

Journal entry - Create a journal entry as if you were a child living in the Dust Bowl. Describe your experiences of living on a farm with your family in all that dust. How does it look, feel, taste, sound, and smell? This entry should be 1 page minimum. A good effort here could be used for your portfolio.

Vocab worksheet - read through the definitions for each vocab word and then choose which word works best in each sentence. This sheet can be found in the basket.

Question sheet - answer the questions for this section in complete sentences. The sheet is found in the basket.

Stages of Grief - Find this worksheet in the basket and follow the directions to complete it.

Day Six

Compare/contrast - Using the Venn diagram worksheet in the basket compare your life to Billie Jo's. Choose from the following points of comparison to put on your chart: community, family life, economic status, friend. You must choose at least 3 to include on your chart.

Bulletin Board Images - Using pictures found on the Internet, choose 5 pictures which you think best describe the Depression and/or the Dust Bowl.

Vocab worksheet - read through the definitions for each vocab word and then choose which word works best in each sentence. This sheet can be found in the basket.

Question sheet - answer the questions for this section in complete sentences. The sheet is found in the basket.

One paragraph summary - write a one-paragraph summary of the major events in this section. (8-10 sentence minimum)

Day Seven

Image Poster - Using the large sheet of poster paper, choose a scene from the book that you think is important and make a poster. You can draw pictures, cut pictures from magazines, use pictures from the internet, use symbols, or any combination. Somewhere on your poster you should provide a brief explanation of why this scene is important.

Wind Erosion - Working with one or two other class members you will create an example of wind erosion to demonstrate to the class. The instructions to accomplish this task can be found in the basket. You must demonstrate this to the class on Day Ten.

Dust Pneumonia Poster - Using a small or large piece of poster paper and the handout found in the basket, create an informative poster explaining what dust pneumonia is. Include pictures and facts concerning this illness.

Vocab worksheet - read through the definitions for each vocab word and then choose which word works best in each sentence. This sheet can be found in the basket.

Question sheet - answer the questions for this section in complete sentences. The sheet is found in the basket.

One paragraph summary - write a one-paragraph summary of the major events in this section. (8-10 sentence minimum)

Day Eight

Character Cube - Following the instructions on the handout in the basket, create a character cube for Billie Jo, her mom, or her dad.

Forgiveness discussion - forgiveness is one of the major themes in the book. Participate in a discussion on this idea to earn these points.

Vocab worksheet - read through the definitions for each vocab word and then choose which word works best in each sentence. This sheet can be found in the basket.

Question sheet - answer the questions for this section in complete sentences. The sheet is found in the basket.

One paragraph summary - write a one-paragraph summary of the major events in this section. (8-10 sentence minimum)

Day Nine

Billie Jo's Timeline - Taking the important events from Billie Jo's life create a timeline showing when these events happened. You should choose an event from each of the sections of the book.

The Baby Connection- there is an interesting connection between the babies in this story. Find out what that is by participating in this discussion today.

Vocab worksheet - read through the definitions for each vocab word and then choose which word works best in each sentence. This sheet can be found in the basket.

Question sheet - answer the questions for this section in complete sentences. The sheet is found in the basket.

One paragraph summary - write a one-paragraph summary of the major events in this section. (8-10 sentence minimum)

Day Ten

Apple Recipes - See me to make a recipe containing apples that you would be willing to share with the class tomorrow.

Dust Bowl music - listen to the songs on tape and answer the questions found in the basket

Memories from the Dust game - you can play this game with one, two, or three other class members to review before the test.