Book Study Out of the Dust: Synopsis

We've recently finished a seven week study on Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse.  For your convenience here is a list of links for each week's study.

Week 1:

http://3blessings.blogspot.com/2011/09/book-study-out-of-dust-week-1.html

Week 2:

http://3blessings.blogspot.com/2011/09/book-study-out-of-dust-week-2.html

Week 3:

http://3blessings.blogspot.com/2011/10/book-study-out-of-dust-week-3.html

Week 4:

http://3blessings.blogspot.com/2011/11/book-study-out-of-dust-week-4.html

Week 5:

http://3blessings.blogspot.com/2011/11/book-study-out-of-dust-week-5.html

Week 6:

http://3blessings.blogspot.com/2011/11/book-study-out-of-dust-week-6.html

Week 7:

http://3blessings.blogspot.com/2011/11/book-study-out-of-dust-week-7-overview.html

Book Study: Out of the Dust Week 7 Overview and Celebration

We're Done!  This has been a great season of learning about The Dust Bowl, The Depression and the 1930's.  I hope each one of our students has taken something special and memorable from this study.

In class we completed the Overview from Progeny Press.

To celebrate the completion of our study, we gathered for dinner and movie at our home.  We ate roasted chicken and potatoes, salad, bread, candied carrots (Kit Kittredge style), apples (of course, since they were a memorable part of our study) and many desserts.

I'm sure by now, you can all guess what we watched for our movie...The Grapes of Wrath.  The perfect movie to finish off a study on the Dust Bowl.  Henry Fonda looked so young!

Some of the students from our class

Moms

What a great evening and a great study!

The next study we have is Number The Stars by Lois Lowry.  Until then...Read On!

Book Study: Out of the Dust Week 6

This week we finished the book.  Oh how I'm going to miss Billie Jo.  She's becoming such a literary friend.  I really want to know what happened to her and her family. Before we think that far ahead, let's discuss what happened in the sections Summer 1935 & Autumn 1935.

Review Study Guide questions from Progeny Press.

Bring a large map of the United States to class and let students map out Billie Jo's journey when she ran away from Oklahoma to Flagstaff, Arizona.  Estimate how long this journey would have taken.

Discuss Riding The Rails.

http://www.livinghistoryfarm.org/farminginthe30s/water_07.html

Discuss the migration from the Dust Bowl area west.  At one point, approximately 7,000 migrants were coming to California per month.  One of my favorite sites for learning about this migration is:

http://www.livinghistoryfarm.org/farminginthe30s/water_06.html

Here are some additional links:

http://faculty.washington.edu/gregoryj/dust%20bowl%20migration.htm

http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/afctshtml/tsme.html

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/dustbowl/

http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/features/x780393334/Dust-Bowl-truck-a-look-back-at-history

http://www.taftmidwaydriller.com/features/x780393334/Dust-Bowl-truck-a-look-back-at-history

Take the time to watch the many living history vidoes available at this site.  Here is one.

http://www.livinghistoryfarm.org/farminginthe30s/movies/thompson_water_06.html

This photo is forever etched in my memory.

http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=library+of+congress+photos+dust+bowl&view=detail&id=5D3D5490BF9EC61BBACD95D02FA348FDDDBDA428&first=31&FORM=IDFRIR

For this class I checked out MANY books from the library on the Dust Bowl, The 30's and the Depression.  Allow time in class for kids to look at the photos and visually capture the hardship of the era.

Bible Verses for Summer 1935 & Autumn 1935

Matthew 6:14-15

   ¹⁴ For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. ¹⁵ But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

Mark 11:25

²⁵ And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.”

2 Corinthians 2:5-11

Forgiveness for the Offender

 ⁵ If anyone has caused grief, he has not so much grieved me as he has grieved all of you to some extent—not to put it too severely. ⁶ The punishment inflicted on him by the majority is sufficient. ⁷ Now instead, you ought to forgive and comfort him, so that he will not be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. ⁸ I urge you, therefore, to reaffirm your love for him. ⁹ Another reason I wrote you was to see if you would stand the test and be obedient in everything. ¹⁰ Anyone you forgive, I also forgive. And what I have forgiven—if there was anything to forgive—I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, ¹¹ in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.

Colossians 3:13

¹³ Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

I really like how the book ended.  Billie Jo has grown up a lot.  She's forgiven her dad and herself.  She has hope for her tomorrow, despite the fact the dust has not yet stopped blowing.  She has found her home.



Next week we will go over the Overview of the story.  I like to end each book study with a celebration of completion!  Until then...Read on!

Book Study: Out of the Dust Week 5

Time is flying by so quickly as we continue to explore the era of the Dust Bowl, Depression and the 1930's.  This week in our study, Karen Hesse mentions the Lindbergh baby and the Dionne Quintuplets.  We will discuss both events in detail.

Begin class discussion by reviewing study guide questions from Progeny Press study guide Spring 1935.

There are SO MANY opportunities for further education in this section.  A couple areas of further study could be, but are not limited to, are:

Skin Cancer: "Skin"
The Immigrants Who Settled in the Dust Bowl Area: "Migrants"
Black Sunday: "Blankets of Black"
Freak Show: "The Dionne Quintuplets"
Government Assistance to Farmers in Panhandle: "Help From Uncle Sam"
How Does Hope Affect Our Outlook: "Hope" & "Hope Smothered"
Dinosaurs of the Panhandle Area: "Old Bones"

I decided to focus our limited time on the history of the Lindbergh Kidnapping, The Dionne Quintuplets, and Black Sunday.

In the story the Lindbergh baby and baby Franklin are contrasted with the baby left in community.  I'm so impressed by the community in this book!  Even though they have little or nothing, they continue to give to those in need.  Discuss compassion and giving in this community.  Brainstorm ways students can also give.

One idea I came across is making pillowcase (homemade) dresses for an orphanage in Haiti sponsored by Art Projects for Kids.  As of today, I haven't done this project with our class, but we have done it here at home.  Here is our result:

Lindbergh Baby Kidnapping

During our limited class time we discussed the disappearance, media attention, and investigation of the kidnapped Lindbergh baby.  Interestingly enough, Norman Schwarzkopf Sr. was the lead investigator at the onset of the case.  This is a gruesome and disturbing piece of history.  My heart is so saddened for the Lindbergh family.  The story gripped the nation at the time as Charles Lindbergh was a hero of the era.  Depending on the age of your children and/or students you may need to limit the exposure to the information.

Here are some links for further reading on the case:

http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/history/famous-cases/the-lindbergh-kidnapping/the-lindbergh-kidnapping

http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/famous/lindbergh/index_1.html

Dionne Quintuplets

We also spent class time learning about the Dionne Quintuplets.  After learning about them I continued to be awed at the fact that they were IDENTICAL quintuplets!  That's just downright amazing!  It is disturbing how they were treated as a "Freak Show."

I have to share the Dionne Quintuplets and I share the same birthday!  That made learning about them even more interesting!

Learn more about the quintuplets at:

http://www.quintland.com/

http://articles.cnn.com/1997-11-19/us/9711_19_dionne.quints_1_quints-emilie-and-marie-sisters?_s=PM:US

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dionne_quintuplets

http://particle.physics.ucdavis.edu/bios/Dionne.html

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/roadshow/fts/wichita_200803A12.html

Black Sunday

Lastly we discussed Black Sunday.  Based on the photos of the era, like the people living through it, I would have thought it the Apocalypse.  The devastation occurring during the Dust Bowl reminds me so much of the plagues experienced in the Book of Exodus.  Ironically, the dust blackened the sun and blew all the way to Washington D.C.  Coincidentally, this was also time Hugh Hammond Bennett was testifying before Congress regarding Soil Conservation Legislation. The Soil Conservation Act was passed before year's end.

http://www.srh.noaa.gov/oun/?n=blacksunday

http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1583.html

http://www.livinghistoryfarm.org/farminginthe30s/water_02.html

http://www.perryton.com/black.htm

http://www.srh.noaa.gov/oun/?n=blacksunday

There's so much to learn, and so little time!  Until next week...Read On!

Book Study: Out of the Dust Week 4

In week 4, we're now about half way through our book study.  Life is still extremely hard for Billie Jo.  Hardship, devastation and death continue to be part of life for the people of Cimarron County.

Review Study Guide questions from Progeny Press Autumn 1934 and Winter 1935.

After reviewing questions, explain the disease of dust pneumonia to the students. We learned this past week that a couple residents of the community died of dust pneumonia.  What were the causes?  How were the lungs affected?  What were the symptoms?  Can it be cured?  What did the people of the Dust Bowl area do to try to limit the inhalation of the dust?

Here are some links on Dust Pneumonia for further research:

http://www.greenville.k12.sc.us/beream/students/0607/shb_project/index_files/student_web_site/index_files/Page369.htm

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/dust-pneumonia.html

http://www.rmpbs.org/panorama/index.cfm/entry/574/Dust-pneumonia,-the-brown-plague

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dust_pneumonia

http://www.ehow.com/about_5144944_symptoms-dust-pneumonia.html

This week I also introduced the students to two popular songs of the 1930's.  The songs "Bye Bye Blackbird" and "Stormy Weather" were both mentioned in this section.  We listened to the songs over and over prior to introducing the students to them.  I had hoped to have the kids envision Billie Jo listening to the words of "Stormy Weather"  while the dust blew outside her home.

I sensed Karen Hesse chose these two songs specifically for their popularity and their lyrics.  If you listen to the lyrics, you can imagine why these songs appealed to Billie Jo.

I purchased both songs on iTunes and played them for the class.  Although the music was not overly stimulating with drumbeats and synthesizers, as the students are used to, I reminded them without the music of the 30's we wouldn't have the music we have today.

Here's the song in a video.  I chose the version from River Runs Through It by Mark Isham.  Here's the music. Disregard the Sacramento content of the video and enjoy the music.

Bye Bye Blackbird

Pack up all my care and woe,
Here I go,
Singing low, 
Bye bye blackbird,
Where somebody waits for me,
Sugar's sweet, so is he,
Bye bye 
Blackbird!

No one here can love or understand me,
Oh, what hard luck stories they all hand me,
Make my bed and light the light,
I'll arrive late tonight,
Blackbird bye bye.


Stormy Weather

Don't know why 
There's no sun up in the sky 
Stormy weather 
Since my gal and I ain't together 
Keeps raining all the time 
Life is bare 
Gloom and misery everywhere 
Stormy weather 
Just can't get my poor old self together 
I'm weary all the time 
Every time 
So weary all of the time 
When she went away 
The blues walked in and then they met me 
If she stays away 
That old rocking chair's bound to get me 
All I do is pray 
The lord above will let me 
Just walk in that sun again 
Can't go on 
Everything I had is gone 
Stormy Weather 
Since my gal and I ain't together 
Keeps raining all the time 
Keeps raining all of the time 


Poor Billie Jo, so down!  The lyrics of the songs reflect our dear friend's sorrowful life.

Bible Verses –Out of the Dust Autumn 1934 & Winter 1935

Philippians 4:4-7

 ⁴ Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! ⁵ Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. ⁶ Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. ⁷ And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:11-13

¹¹ I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. ¹² I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. ¹³ I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

1 Timothy 6:6-8

 ⁶ But godliness with contentment is great gain. ⁷ For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. ⁸ But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.

Until next time...Keep Reading!

Book Study: Out of the Dust Week 3

Week 3- Spring 1934 and Summer 1934

Last week we introduced an art project, self-portraits.  In our hour long class, many students were only able to make it through the drawing of the face, so we  will continue working on this project this week at the end of class.

Review assigned Out of the Dust Study Guide pages from Progeny Press.  

This was a really tough week for readers.  Learning of the devastating accident Billie Jo's family experienced created a heaviness for the class.  I had one student tell me while her mom was reading, she began to cry.  Crying is a good thing.  As readers we're grieving along with the character.  In a sense, we've come to know and have grown attached to Billie Jo.  We've gotten a sense of the hardships she experienced with her family in Oklahoma during the 1930's.  It was difficult to read of yet another difficult time for this young girl.

Through reading a chapter like this the door is opened for discussion on dealing with unexpected accidents, death, and grief.  As an additional activity, students may research the grieving process more thoroughly.  This discussion also invites readers to examine the way the different characters handled the situation:  Billie Jo, her dad, the ladies who came to help.

Because of the heaviness of this week, I decided to make something that would lighten the mood a bit before students left the class.

Billie Jo talks of apples just about every week.  This week we learned of her mother's apple trees failing due to the harsh dust storms and weather.  Since it is apple season, I made Apple Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze  (recipe following) and gave each student a copy of the recipe.  

The Bible verses from this week covered everything from speaking words of encouragement to a Biblical view on conservationism and environmentalism.  They are as follows:

Bible Verses for Out of the Dust Spring and Summer 1934

Proverbs 11:9

 ⁹ With their mouths the godless destroy their neighbors,
   but through knowledge the righteous escape.


Proverbs 12:25
 ²⁵ Anxiety weighs down the heart,
   but a kind word cheers it up.


Proverbs 16:24
 ²⁴ Gracious words are a honeycomb,
   sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.


Proverbs 17:9
 ⁹ Whoever would foster love covers over an offense,
   but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends.


Proverbs 17:22
 ²² A cheerful heart is good medicine,
   but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.


Genesis 1:28-30 

²⁸ God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
    ²⁹ Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. ³⁰ And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so.

Psalm 8:6-8

⁶ You made them rulers over the works of your hands;
   you put everything under their^[a] feet:
⁷ all flocks and herds,
   and the animals of the wild,
⁸ the birds in the sky,
   and the fish in the sea,
   all that swim the paths of the seas.

Leviticus 25:1-7

The Sabbath Year

 ¹ The LORD said to Moses at Mount Sinai, ² “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When you enter the land I am going to give you, the land itself must observe a sabbath to the LORD. ³ For six years sow your fields, and for six years prune your vineyards and gather their crops. ⁴ But in the seventh year the land is to have a year of sabbath rest, a sabbath to the LORD. Do not sow your fields or prune your vineyards. ⁵ Do not reap what grows of itself or harvest the grapes of your untended vines. The land is to have a year of rest. ⁶ Whatever the land yields during the sabbath year will be food for you—for yourself, your male and female servants, and the hired worker and temporary resident who live among you, ⁷ as well as for your livestock and the wild animals in your land. Whatever the land produces may be eaten.

Leviticus 26:34

³⁴ Then the land will enjoy its sabbath years all the time that it lies desolate and you are in the country of your enemies; then the land will rest and enjoy its Sabbaths.


2 Chronicles 36:21

²¹ The land enjoyed its sabbath rests; all the time of its desolation it rested, until the seventy years were completed in fulfillment of the word of the LORD spoken by Jeremiah.

Matthew 18:21-22

The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant

 ²¹ Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”

 ²² Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.^[a]


Mark 11:25

²⁵ And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.”

Colossians 3:13
¹³


Matthew 7:1-4
¹ “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. ² For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
   ³ “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? ⁴ How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?


Ecclesiastes 9:11
 ¹¹ I have seen something else under the sun:
   The race is not to the swift
   or the battle to the strong,
nor does food come to the wise
   or wealth to the brilliant
   or favor to the learned;
but time and chance happen to them all.


Luke 13:1-5

Repent or Perish

 ¹ Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. ² Jesus answered, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? ³ I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. ⁴ Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? ⁵ I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.”

Apple Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze
Makes 9 X 13 Cake

Apple Cake Ingredients:


3 cups all purpose flour
2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
4 eggs
1 cup canola oil
2 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups finely chopped apples
1/2-1 cup pecans or walnuts, chopped (optional)

Brown Sugar Glaze:

1 cup packed light brown sugar
6 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoon heavy cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease an 9 X 13 rectangular pan  Set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.  Stir with a whisk to mix everything together.

In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs until light in color and foamy.  Add the oil and vanilla and mix well.

Add egg mixture to dry ingredients and stir until flour disappears.  Do not over mix.  Add apples and nuts (if using).

Pour batter into prepared pan.  Bake 40-45 minutes, or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean.

After removing cake from oven, make glaze.

Brown Sugar Glaze

Combine brown sugar, butter, vanilla, and heavy cream in saucepan.  Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until the mixture comes to a gentle boil. Cook 3-5 minutes.

Spoon hot glaze over the hot-from-the-oven cake.  Let the glazed cake cool completely before serving.

Book Study: Out of the Dust Week 1

Encouraging the reading of great books has become a personal mission since I became a mom.  I was not an enthusiastic reader as a child or young adult.  I can't exactly pinpoint why I didn't like to read, I just didn't.  I knew I should like it, but I never developed a love for the written word until I had children. Our kids only know me as a reader.  They have a hard time even imagining that I didn't like to read.  I'm grateful they've only known me as a lover of books.

As I reflect back on my childhood, to be completely honest, other than cookbooks and craft books, I rarely remember reading.  Is that sad or what?  I remember doing book reports or term papers, and even summer reading programs, but I wasn't excited about the reading.  In fact, I have to make a shocking confession...  for the term papers and book reports, I rarely read the books.  This news completely surprises our kids, but it's the truth.  Yikes!  I wonder how in the world I managed to write about something I knew nothing about?  This is very sad.

I do have a few favorites my parents read to me over and over and over again.  The bindings are falling apart and these books were loved.

Some of my favorites from childhood.  I shared these books with my class.  Hop on Pop was signed on the inside cover, "To my little girl, Kimmy- From Daddy Feb '69" 

I guess the good news is although I didn't read assigned material or great fiction, I did read those recipes and have become a great cook because of my love for cookbooks.  There is always a silver lining.

Today, as I read books like, Anne of Green Gables, Tom Sawyer, The Secret Garden, Little House on the Prairie or Roald Dahl aloud to our kids I am transported to other times and places hanging on the edge of my seat wondering, "What will happen next?"  After our reading time, our kids beg, "One more chapter, please!"  I really do love that!  I want them begging for more great literature.

It is my heart's desire that our kids develop a LOVE for reading that I failed to embrace as a child. Therefore, I read to our littles daily and encourage reading through book clubs.

This year, I'm teaching two Book/Unit Study Classes at a local homeschool network.  One class is focused on picture books for grades 1-4 and the other class is for students grades 4-8.

In the older class, our first book study is on Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse.  I follow study guides by Progeny Press.  I've done a number of their studies and appreciate the critical thinking, comprehensive analysis, and in-depth study they offer, all with a Christian perspective.  I'm going to share what we're doing in class as a resource if you're interested in doing a book study at home or with a group.

Out of the Dust: Week 1

Prior to first class meeting, assign the following as pre-class activities:

To better understand the time period of this book have five students research and give a brief description of the following pre-reading activities.  Each child only needs to find out information on their specific assigned activity (these activities are found in the Progeny Press Study Guide).


1.)  The Great Depression. What was the Great Depression? What years did the U.S. experience the Great Depression? What major economic event contributed to the Great Depression? Do you know anyone who lived through the Great Depression? If so, ask them how their family survived the Depression, how they lived, what they ate, what they wore. Did the Great Depression affect him/her throughout the remainder of his/her life? Be prepared to share what you find.

2.)  Who was Franklin Delano Roosevelt? What was The New Deal?

3.)  What was the Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC)? What was the purpose of the CCC?

4.)  What is the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA)?

5.)  During the Great Depression, many families lost their entire savings. Research the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). Be prepared to explain to the class (group) what the FDIC is. After doing your research, do you think banks could fail in the same way today?

Discuss student findings during the first class meeting.

Introduction to the book:

Author:  Introduce students to Karen Hesse.  A great interview is found at Scholastic.com.  Highlight portions of the interview pertaining to Out of the Dust.

History:  Give description of the Dust Bowl for students to better understand the time period.  I read The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan in preparation for the class.  This book is well-written, descriptive and engaging.  It was hard to put down.  Reading it made me realize how strong and determined the people of that era were. 

The dust storms that terrorized the High Plains in the darkest years of the Depression were like nothing ever seen before or since. Timothy Egan’s critically acclaimed account rescues this iconic chapter of American history from the shadows in a tour de force of historical reportage. Following a dozen families and their communities through the rise and fall of the region, Egan tells of their desperate attempts to carry on through blinding black dust blizzards, crop failure, and the death of loved ones. Brilliantly capturing the terrifying drama of catastrophe, Egan does equal justice to the human characters who become his heroes, “the stoic, long-suffering men and women whose lives he opens up with urgency and respect” (New York Times).

Geography: Identify states on U.S. map most hard hit by The Dust Bowl. Give students map of the United States .  Have them locate Oklahoma's panhandle.  Locate Cimmaron County.  Cimmaron County is the only county in the United States which borders four states.  Take a look at Cimmaron County's population numbers. Note highest population and year, and current population.  Discuss the peak and why population has dwindled.

Assign first section of book- Winter 1934.  Students will need to finish assigned pages prior to the next class meeting.