OOTD Quiz 6,7

Think about Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse to answer this question.

Look at the photograph by Dorothea Lange and read the poem "Migrants." Then answer the questions that follow.

_{Dorothea Lange's photo of a Missouri family of five in the vicinity of Tracy, California, 1937.}

Migrants

We’ll be back when the rain comes,
they say,
pulling away with all they own,
straining the springs of their motor cars.
Don’t forget us.

And so they go,
fleeing the blowing dust,
fleeing the fields of brown-tipped wheat
barely ankle high,
and sparse as the hair on a dog’s belly.

We’ll be back, they say,
pulling away toward Texas,
Arkansas,
where they can rent a farm,
pull in enough cash,
maybe start again.

We’ll be back when it rains,
they say,
setting out with their bedsprings and mattresses,
their cookstoves and dishes,
their kitchen tables,
and their milk goats
tied to their running boards
in rickety cages,
setting out for
California,
where even though they say they’ll come back,
they just might stay
if what they hear about that place is true.

Don’t forget us, they say.
But there are so many leaving,
how can I remember them all?

April 1935

_{Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse}

Part A

Which theme statement could be shared by both the poem and the photograph?

• Once you reach your destination you will forget about your suffering.

• People are willing to suffer many hardships in exchange for a new life. 

• It is difficult to leave friends and family behind when you move.

• It is natural for people to want to travel in order to explore the world.

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Part B

Which detail from the photograph best supports the answer to Part A?

Responses

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• The woman is alone and must be missing her family and friends.

• The baby is able to explore a whole new world in the dust while his family travels.

• The baby’s father will probably return soon with help.

• The positions of the people and their car suggest the car has broken down.

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Think of the essay “Farming in the 1930s: Okies” by Bill Ganzell to answer this question.

Read the excerpt and answer the questions that follow.

       As the “double whammy” of drought and depression deepened on the Great Plains, more and more farmers gave up or were forced off of their land . . . 
       Some went to cities. But many decided to head west. In fact, during the 30s hundreds of thousands left the plains for the West Coast. So many migrated from Oklahoma that they were dubbed “Okies” in the popular press. For years, California, Oregon and Washington had been growing. Many who were pushed off of the plains were pulled west because they had relatives who had moved to the coastal areas. And the boosters of California had advertised that the state offered a perfect climate and an abundance of work in the agricultural industry.
_{“Farming in the 1930s: Okies” by Bill Ganzell}

Part A

Which statement describes a connection between the essay and the novel Out of the Dust?

• The narrator of the novel watched as many of her neighbors left their homes for California.

•  The narrator of the novel’s family was forced off their land by the bank.

• The main characters in the novel wanted to move to California but did not have relatives there.

• The main characters in the novel were the “Okies” mentioned in the essay.

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Think of the essay “Farming in the 1930s: Okies” by Bill Ganzell to answer this question.

Read the excerpt and answer the questions that follow.

       As the “double whammy” of drought and depression deepened on the Great Plains, more and more farmers gave up or were forced off of their land . . . 
       Some went to cities. But many decided to head west. In fact, during the 30s hundreds of thousands left the plains for the West Coast. So many migrated from Oklahoma that they were dubbed “Okies” in the popular press. For years, California, Oregon and Washington had been growing. Many who were pushed off of the plains were pulled west because they had relatives who had moved to the coastal areas. And the boosters of California had advertised that the state offered a perfect climate and an abundance of work in the agricultural industry.
_{“Farming in the 1930s: Okies” by Bill Ganzell}

Part B

Which detail from the essay best explains why people are moving?

• “So many migrated from Oklahoma that they were dubbed “Okies” in the popular press.”

•  “. . . the boosters of California had advertised that the state offered . . . an abundance of work in the agricultural industry.”

•  “. . . during the 30s hundreds of thousands left the plains for the West Coast.”

• “For years, California, Oregon and Washington had been growing.”

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Think of the article “USDA Photographer Rescues Destitute Farm Workers” by Gwen Gilbert to answer this question.

Read the excerpt and answer the question that follows.

Dorothea Lange achieved something astonishing, something that was not only about starving pea-pickers, but beyond that, something about motherhood itself. Here was an image of every mother’s anguish, in all times and places, whether coming from drought, flood, famine, or war. Lange later said, “what surprises me is that when they present this story of agricultural labor, people don’t really see the big story which is behind it, which is the story of our natural resources.”

What did Dorothea Lange mean when she said “What surprises me is that when they present this story of agricultural labor, people don’t really see the big story which is behind it, which is the story of our natural resources”?

• People see farmers suffering but not the cause of it.

• People see a mother and her baby but not their suffering.

• People see how crops are grown but not the destruction from the dust storms.

• People see what happened to the farms but not what happened to the people.

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Think of Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse to answer this question.

Which two statements best describe the changes that Billie Jo undergoes during the course of the novel?

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•  She starts out feeling sad about her mother and later becomes angry. 

• She goes from being an unskilled beginner to being a truly talented pianist.

• She learns how important it is to forgive both herself and other people.

• She falls in love but later realizes she has made a mistake.

• She recognizes that she can’t run away from her home and the people she loves.

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Read the excerpt from "Finding a Way" from Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse, and then respond to the prompt that follows.

I wipe dust out of the roasting pan,
I wipe dust off Ma’s dishes,
and wait for Daddy to drive in with Louise,
hoping she’ll stay a little later,
a little longer,
waiting for the day when she stays for good.

She wears a comical hat, with flowers,
in December,
and when she smiles,
her face is
full enough of springtime, it makes
her hat seem just right.
She brings apples in a sack,
perfect apples she arranges
in a bowl in the shelf,
opposite the book of poetry.
Sometimes, while I’m at the piano,
I catch her reflection in the mirror,
standing in the kitchen, soft-eyed, while Daddy
finishes chores,
and I stretch my fingers over the keys,
and I play.
_{Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse}

How do these final two stanzas of the novel contribute to the reader’s understanding of how Billie Jo has changed? Write a paragraph that answers this question, and include text evidence to support your answer.

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