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Symbolism In Out Of The Dust

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Dr. Cheryl Steele--A "Goddess" of Teaching In previous articles, I’ve written about the importance of connecting with teenagers long after they have been ‘officially’ yours. Perhaps they were in your charge when they were in middle school or junior high, and now, they are in senior high, they have graduated high school, or maybe have gone on to graduate college, get married and have children of their own. Regardless of any of those landmarks (as significant as they may be), still recognizing your kids from when they were early teenagers can be extremely empowering to them. I was blessed enough to have a PERFECT example of such an adult who was one of my mentors in my early adolescence. She kept in touch with how I was doing after graduation …show more content…

Billie Jo endures trials many of us cannot even imagine, far beyond dealing with the complications of the Dust Bowl. She even tries to leave the situation, but [SPOILER ALERT!] she realizes she belongs back home with her father. As the novel ends and Billie Jo’s life moves on along with her father’s life, Billie Jo makes a profound observation for any 15-year-old: “I am because of the dust.” The dust represents ALL of the unfortunate realities of Billie Jo’s past, but she is finally able to recognize them not with resentment, but with appreciation that she would not be the person she is without those difficult experiences. What 15-year-old do you know who has that kind of …show more content…

In the last two years, both Kansas and Missouri have passed laws prohibiting some drivers from texting and driving at the same time, while some of the other laws prohibit every driver from texting while behind the wheel. These different laws (proposed and/or passed) have provided much debate. For instance, “Missouri's current law against texting while driving only applies to those drivers who are 21 or younger. The law was put in force in 2009 and was the result of a quickly composed legislative compromise” (“Texting While Driving Debate… “ 1). The laws against texting while driving for those 21 and younger are completely valid; however, these same laws are completely valid for those of us over the age of 21, if not more so. As teen mentors, we must serve as examples for our kids. One of those pertinent examples is showing that we are not addicted to our cell phones. When I took a group of kids to a presentation held by one of the survivors of the tragedy at Columbine High School in Littleton, CO, I insisted that my kids turn OFF their phones. They responded with, “We have them on vibrate…” NO! I told them that they are not doctors, police officers or clergy members; they are not on call 24/7, and they must respect the speaker and the topic by turning OFF their cell

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Character Analysis Of Billie Jo In The Book 'Out Of The Dust'

454 Words | 2 Pages

In out of the dust, Billie Jo and her father suffer from a lot of loss and grief. Billie Jo’s father loses his wife and son and Billie Jo loses her best friend, Livie when she moves to California to get out of the dust. Billie Jo also loses the ability to play the piano for a little while because of her hands being burnt from the fire. They learn to overcome these hardships by living without the things they lost. They also learn to have a stronger relationship with each other and bond more.

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Billie Jo Character Analysis

393 Words | 2 Pages

At fourteen years old, Billie Jo living in Joyce City, Oklahoma with her mother and father during the Great Depression during the 1930’s. Billie Jo and her parents struggled to live their lives during the Great Depression, because The Dust Bowl destroyed many crops, and Billie Jo’s family were farmers. Her father, a wheat farmer, works what’s left of the farm and her mother spends her time cleaning the house. While her mother being pregnant, Billie Jo does her best to make her mother proud. Suddenly a horrific accident happened, Billie Jo’s mother gets burnt really bad due to kerosene left next to the stove, and catching on fire.

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Symbolism In Out Of The Dust

427 Words | 2 Pages

Symbolism uses symbols to represent ideas or qualities, such as loss, grief, or pain. This idea is of utmost importance because, in the novel Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse, two symbols show the suffering of Billie Jo and Daddy. Hence, the author uses symbolism to explain the loss in Billie Jo’s and Daddy’s lives, using the gaping hole that daddy digs and the missing cranberry sauce. Primarily, Billie Jo’s symbol for suffering loss was the cranberry sauce, as it represents her loss of her mother.

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Symbolism In Out Of The Dust By Karen Hesse

645 Words | 3 Pages

Loss is defined as losing someone or something, such as losing a person in life. This idea is significant because both the characters in the novel are impacted by the loss of someone. In Out of the Dust, a historical fiction novel by Karen Hesse, the author uses symbolism to display the fact that Billie Jo and Daddy are greatly affected by Ma’s death. For instance, in the climax of the story Ma got burned by fire so badly she died after giving birth to a son who did not survive as well. This impacted the rest of her family in a myriad of ways.

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'Word To Youth: Texting, Driving Don T Mix'

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934 Words | 4 Pages

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