Severe Weather/Drought
Kendra Soule
Synopsis of the Book
Out of the Dust is a John Newbery Medal winner. It is a lyrical free verse novel that tells the story of Billie Jo, a young girl who lives in the harsh reality of the Oklahoma panhandle during the 1930s Dust Bowl. Despite the constant dust storms and the struggle to help her family survive, Billie Jo is happy with her life. But a tragic accident changes things forever. As she tries to escape her painful memories and injuries, Billie Jo flees on a freight train, leaving the dust behind. But Billie Jo has not realized the dust is a part of her, and she must learn to forgive her father and most of all herself. Set against the backdrop of the Dust Bowl and the hardships faced by prairie living, the novel is a testament to the power of hope and the triumph of the human spirit.
Science Connections
This book tells the story of life during the Great Depression. Oklahoma experienced severe drought, dust storms, tornadoes, in addition to soil erosion from over farming. This left the habitants with poor soil, no water and drought like conditions. This story can provide real life experience for living through this and be compared with how life was like, how it used to be, and how life is now in present day. Lessons can be adapted to show how people accepted this life and/or what they did to adapt and prepare. During Drought conditions habitants often have to leave their homes, go without food or water, these are all side effects of the dust bowl and drought today. .
Teaching Connections
This book can be used as a vocabulary lesson, as a ‘real’ experience for students to be able to write about or as a book group project on the tragedy of the Dust Bowl and how people survived it. Out of the Dust tells the story of the sequence of events that led to the erosion of the soil, affecting the water cycle and creating dust storms and ecological disaster. Review with students that when the grassland was plowed up for farming, the soil became more exposed and vulnerable to erosion and could not hold water as well. For an introduction to understanding the dust bowl, read other poems or stories. have groups work together, using facts from the book and additional resources to create a diagram that shows the chain of events that led to the dust storms, and measures that helped the storms end. Have students present their findings and discuss what lessons we can learn from the Dust Bowl.
Resources
Come on, Rain! by Karen Hesse
The Year of the Dust by Albert Marrin
Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain by Verna Aadema
21 century Challenge!
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Kendra,
ReplyDeleteI have to say I am pleasantly surprised by your book choice. I believe most of us chose children's books, but this book is extremely enlightening. I remember reading this book in grade school, and the story stuck with me. We are very fortunate to have never experiences such a disaster. While we have lived through countless hurricanes and tornados, the damage could have been worse. However, I hope that we humans learn something new after each disaster, and prepare ourselves one step further. I pray there never be a disaster agian, but I'm not so sure that prayer can be answered.