Out of the Dust

Use this activity to engage all types of learners, while requiring that they refer to and incorporate details from the text over the course of the activity.

“Out of…”

In this activity, students will reflect on challenges they have overcome and positive activities that help them.

Billie Jo faces losing her mother and baby brother, getting burned herself, surviving the Dust Bowl, and experiencing the Great Depression. At the end of the novel, she begins to heal, emerging “out of the dust.” One activity that helps Billie Jo heal is playing the piano. Although all of us are different, we all face and/or have faced difficult times or choices. Take some time to reflect on a challenge you have faced and what helped you overcome it.

• Free write/journal:

o What were you coming “out of”?

o How did this experience affect you?

o What activity or activities helped you as you faced this challenge?

o If you have not experienced such a challenge, write about a character you have read or learned about or seen in media (a movie, for example) who has overcome a challenge.

• Find or create an artifact to represent the healing activity(ies).
• Share your artifact and as much as you want to about the healing activity(ies).

After the activity, and once you’ve had a chance to hear from your peers, consider this question in a journal entry: How did this activity add to or alter your understanding of Billie Jo?

Teaching Suggestion: As this activity may bring up unpleasant emotions for some students, it might be an opportunity to reinforce class expectations about respect and supporting each other. Based on your knowledge of the class, perhaps students are not required to share their challenges with each other, just their healing activities. Brainstorming examples of healing or reflective activities may be helpful as well: yoga, sports, music, art, therapy, etc. Students could present through individual presentations highlighting their skills, share in group discussions, or participate in a gallery walk, for example. Consider encouraging students who particularly struggle with reliving/writing about their unpleasant experiences to complete the activity with a fictional or historical character in mind.

Differentiation Suggestion: For students who are interested in and/or particularly talented in the visual or musical arts and/or students who struggle with written expression, in lieu of the written portion of this activity, consider allowing these students to create an original artistic or musical piece representing their experience and either share details about it with the class or with you in a more private setting.

Alternate Activity: Students who may not feel comfortable participating in the “Out of…” activity might consider the following alternative.

“Be the Change”

Students create an action plan to effect positive change for a particular group or cause in an attempt to help build resiliency by working to improve their environment.

Billie Jo’s innate resilience drives her decisions throughout the second half of the novel. In addition to being boosted in ourselves, resiliency can be inspired in others, across groups, and within communities through actions, service, and volunteerism.

Think of a quick action you can take today to make the class/school/community better.

• Draft your plan.
• Take that action.
• Document any outcomes of your action, whether in others or yourself.
• Reflect on the action you took and share the results with your class.

Teaching Suggestion: Resilience is a focus of this unit; evidence exists linking volunteerism with improved resilience and positive outcomes for teens. This activity can encourage students to see the benefits for themselves of working to increase resiliency in others. Students might find it helpful to brainstorm, as a group or class, some actions people could take. Students sharing the outcomes of their actions/action plans could take the form of a discussion, gallery walk, or journal reflection, for example. Consider sharing the following or similar resources to further support students in these endeavors:

• This article from the American Psychological Association details strategies to help teens develop resilience—strategies that include helping others and expressing yourself.
• This 8-minute video of a TEDx Talk features a 13-year-old detailing her experiences of and perspective on why it is important for kids to volunteer.
• This article from DoSomething lists 8 volunteer opportunity ideas for teens.