Confinement – – Not always bad?

In 1937, dust storms hit Kansas, Colorado, Oklahoma, Texas and New Mexico. People actually tasted dirt when they ate their food. Homeowners plugged window sills and door frames. They hung wet sheets over windows and doors. Dust clouds blocked the sun.

Exercise 1: Read about the “dust bowl.” Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath, Jerry Stanley’s Children of the Dustbowl, and Timothy Egan’s The Worst Hard Time: The Untold Story of Those Who Survived THe Great American Dust Bowl are good choices. 2. Write a short story or poem about a character in this time period and setting. 3. Write about confinement. Have you ever been forced to stay at home due to weather or another event? How have you used your time? Has it ever been a good experience? You can choose a personal narrative or another form to write about the issue of confining a person to one space.