Unit/Lesson Plan Title: Out of The Dust
Primary Subject
Integrated Subjects
Grade Level(s)
Length of Unit
Research Sources
Science
ELA, Social Studies, Math
5th Grade
Two Weeks
Elementary Science with Vernier Book
The History Channel: Dust Bowl
http://www.history.com/topics/dust-bowl
Wessels Living History Farm
http://www.livinghistoryfarm.org/farminginthe30s/water_02.html
“Out of the Dust” by Karen Hesse
Unit Summary
Students will read the book “Out of the Dust” by Karen Hesse.
They will learn what life was like during the 1930’s and the Dust
Bowl. Students will use a variety of inquiry based activities to
discover why the dust bowl happened and how to prevent it from
happening again. Students will gain knowledge of the water
cycle and weather.
Key Vocabulary
water cycle
evaporation
condensation
precipitation
runoff
transpiration
biotic
abiotic
wind speed
wind direction
precipitation
temperature
air pressure
rain gauge
wind vane
thermometer
NC Essential Standards For
Science
5.P.2 Understand the interactions of matter and energy and the
changes that occur.
5.P.2.1 Explain how the sun’s energy impacts the processes of the
water cycle (including, evaporation, transpiration, condensation,
precipitation and runoff).
5.E.1 Understand weather patterns and phenomena, making
connections to the weather in a particular place and time.
5.E.1.1 Compare daily and seasonal changes in weather
conditions (including wind speed and direction, precipitation, and
temperature) and patterns.
5.E.1.2 Predict upcoming weather events from weather data
collected through observation and measurements.
5.E.1.3 Explain how global patterns such as the jet stream and
water currents influence local weather in measurable terms such
as temperature, wind direction and speed, and precipitation.
Commor Core Standards for
Mathematics
5.NBT.5 Fluently multiply multi‐digit whole numbers using the
standard algorithm.
5.NBT.7 Add, subtract, multiply, and divide decimals to
hundredths, using concrete models or drawings and strategies
based on place value,properties of operations, and/or the
relationship between addition and subtraction; relate the strategy
to a written method and explain the reasoning used.
Common Core Standards for RL.5.1 Quote accurately from a text when explaining what the
ELA & Literacy
text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.
RL.5.2 Determine a theme of a story, drama, or poem from details
in the text, including how characters in a story or drama respond
to challenges or how the speaker in a poem reflects upon a topic;
summarize the text.
RL.5.4 Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are
used in a text, including figurative language such as metaphors
and similes.
RL.5.5 Explain how a series of chapters, scenes, or stanzas fits
together to provide the overall structure of a particular story,
drama, or poem.
RF.5.3a Use combined knowledge of all letter-sound
correspondences, syllabication patterns, and morphology (e.g.,
roots and affixes) to read accurately unfamiliar multisyllabic
words in context and out of context.
RF.5.4b Read grade-level prose and poetry orally with accuracy,
appropriate rate, and expression on successive readings.
Essential Questions
How does the Sun’s energy impact the Earth?
What is the water cycle and how is it essential to the Earth?
What causes daily and seasonal weather?
How do seasonal changes affect daily weather?
How do global factors influence local weather conditions?
In what ways do weather conditions in one area or region
influence the weather conditions in another area or region?
What factors influence weather and climate on a global scale?
How are weather and climate interconnected?
Materials & Resources
Safety Requirements
Activities/Procedures
 Essential Question
 Explore/Engage
 Explain
 Elaborate (Inquiry)
 Evaluate
Elementary Science Vernier Book
“Out of the Dust” by Karen Hesse
Promethean Board
Document Camera
Soil
Boxes
Plastic Wrap
Grocery Store flyers
Rulers
Calculators
Science Notebooks
Dust Bowl Photographs
Vernier LabQuest
Temperature Probe
Cup of Cold Water
Cup of Warm Water
ClassScape
Computers
Teacher Supervision
Day 1: Students will take a pretest on the Water Cycle and
Weather using ClassScape. Teacher will introduce the novel “Out
of the Dust” by Karen Hesse. Students will discuss with the
teacher what they know about the Dust Bowl. Students will
watch a video about the Dust Bowl from PBS.
http://www.pbs.org/kenburns/dustbowl/. As a class we will begin
reading “Out of the Dust” by Karen Hesse.
Day 2: The students will review what they have learned about the
dust bowl. They will relate that information to the water cycle.
The students will draw a water cycle diagram and discuss with
partners how the drought that caused the dust bowl and the water
cycle are related. The class will continuing reading “Out of the
Dust”.
Day 3: The class will read “Out of the Dust”. They will discuss
what the weather is like in the story. The students will use the
Veriner LabQuest and complete the activity “Learning to Use a
Temperature Probe” from the Elementary Veriner LabQuest
Book.
Day 4: The class will read “Out of the Dust”. After reading and
discussing the story, the students will create two houses. They
will use gift boxes, plastic wrap, and soil. They will make two
houses. One with soil and one without. The students will use the
labquest to measure the temperature. They will discuss the
temperature difference between the house covered in soil and the
one without soil.
Day 5: Students will continue reading “Out of the Dust”.
Students will use laptops and explore the website Wessels Living
History Farm.
http://www.livinghistoryfarm.org/farminginthe30s/water_02.html.
They will discuss with partners what life would have been like to
live during the dust bowl. They will make connections about
weather factors and the water cycle that contributed to the dust
bowl.
Day 6: Students will continue reading “Out of the Dust”. They
will complete an integrated math activity. They will use grocery
store flyers to find the ingredients to bake an apple cake. They
will identify the cost of purchasing these items now and find out
the difference in cost from the 1930’s.
Day 7: Students will continue reading “Out of the Dust”. They
will use pictures from the dust bowl. Students will place
themselves in the picture and write a story or prose about what
they are experiencing during the dust bowl.
Day 8: Students will complete “Out of the Dust”. Students will
identify weather tools. They will think about what weather tools
may have helped the farmers identify when the next dust storm
would happen.
Day 9: Students will review “Out of the Dust” by Karen Hesse.
Students will use the drought maps on the Dought Monitoring
website. They will look for data that will support that a dust bowl
could or could not happen again in the future.
Day 10: Test on the Water Cycle and Weather using ClassScape.
Accommodations for
Differentiated Instruction
Students will be placed in small leveled reading groups.
More time will be allowed for experiements.
Students will work with partners.
Cross Curricular
Integration
Students will read “Out of the Dust” by Karen Hesse.
Students will complete a writing activity placing themselves in
the
1930’s. They will write in narrative or prose format.
Students will use a variety of math skills to see the difference in
the cost of goods during the 1930’s and 2012-2013.
Created by
Email
Supporting Documents
Students will create or view timelines of events during the 1930’s
to identify what led up to the dust bowl.
Ashleigh Bryant
bryantaa@rss.k12.nc.us
LabQuest Lab Directions, Dust Bowl Pictures