4th Grade
Agriculture & Natural Resources Industry Sector
Agricultural Business
Life in a Farming Community (Learn about Rural Life) by Lizann Flatt
People first domesticated wild animals and plants more than 10,000 years ago. The first peoples of North America quickly learned to farm using hand- and animal-power. As technology developed, farming machines were invented. These helped develop farming in many regions of North America previously too difficult to cultivate. From 1840 to 1880, the state of Wisconsin became the breadbasket of America, and crop- and livestock-farming developed quickly. The village of Monticello, which is famous for its dairy farming and cheese, still revolves around this industry. This community of about 1,200 people is the focus of this book about life in a farming community.*
Wheat (World Commodities Series) by Garry Chapman and Gary Hodges
This text is part of a series that takes a broad-based look at some of the most important world commodities. After defining what a world commodity is, each text then goes into a more focused consideration of its particular commodity. This text, with its focus on wheat, provides an easy to read yet detailed explanation of the history of the use of wheat as a staple found in almost every meal around the globe. A beautifully illustrated timeline, followed by sections delineating where and how wheat is grown as well as how it is harvested provides additional background information. The text then shifts to a discussion of preparing the wheat for consumption and how wheat is actually traded through the various exchanges. A discussion about codes of practice and international politics focus helps readers understand the importance of subsidies as well as surpluses. Final sections about environmental and social issues; and other food commodities, the social issues section focuses on the connection between farming and poverty in third world countries. Excellent photos and graphics throughout further explain everything from the world's greatest exporters and importers to the impact of over-farming in various countries. This is a solid book and series for students looking for strong research materials and ideas for further study. Part of the "World Commodities" series. Reviewer: Jean Boreen, Ph.D. *
Work, Trade & Farming (Through the Ages) by Fiona Macdonald
With this new volume, you will be taken on an exciting journey into a visual history of theme of work and trade.*
Carver: A Life in Poems by Marilyn Nelson
This collection of poems assembled by award-winning writer Marilyn Nelson provides young readers with a compelling, lyrical account of the life of revered African-American botanist and inventor George Washington Carver. Born in 1864 and raised by white slave owners, Carver left home in search of an education and eventually earned a master’s degree in agriculture. In 1896, he was invited by Booker T. Washington to head
the agricultural department at the all-black-staffed Tuskegee Institute. There he conducted innovative research to find uses for crops such as cowpeas, sweet potatoes, and peanuts, while seeking solutions to the plight of landless black farmers. Through 44 poems, told from the point of view of Carver and the people who knew him, Nelson celebrates his character and accomplishments. She includes prose summaries of events and archival photographs. **
Children of the Dust Bowl by Jerry Stanley
The true story of the school at Weed patch Camp unfolds as it tells the plight of the migrant workers who traveled from the Dust Bowl to California during the depression. Families were forced to live in a federal labor camp and a school was built for the children. **
From Plant to Blue Jeans by Arthur L’Hommedieu
Describes the process of making blue jeans from the harvesting of cotton through the weaving of cloth and sewing the finished product. **
A New Coat for Anna by Harriet Ziefert and Anita Lobel
Anna's old coat is too small and thin, but there is no money for a new one. In fact, there are no coats for sale, anyway, because World War II has just ended, and manufactured goods, as well as food, are scarce. So Anna and her mother begin trading heirlooms: a gold watch for wool; a lamp, to have the wool spun into yarn; a
necklace, to have the yarn woven into cloth . . . until the bright red coat is made. **
The King Of California: J.G. Boswell and the Making of A Secret American Empire
by Mark Arax and Rick Wartzman
You may never have heard of him, but J. G. Boswell controls the biggest farming empire in America. In the early part of the twentieth century, his family moved from Georgia to California, where they drained one of the country's biggest lakes, Tulare Lake, and planted cotton. Soon their cotton empire became the richest and most technologically sophisticated on the planet. This book is many stories, all rolled into one epic. It's the story of the Boswells from the 1800s to the present day; of cotton farming in America; of California itself; and of the evolution of race relations as the country dragged itself out of the era of slavery and, not at all smoothly, into the modern era. Written in a lively style that matches the bigger-than-life qualities of its subject, the book is far more exciting than you might think the story of a cotton farmer would be. With proper marketing, it could smash through genre barriers and become the Seabiscuit of agricultural biography! *
The California Gold Rush: An Interactive History Adventure (You Choose Books) by Elizabeth Raum
Describes the events of the nineteenth century California gold rush. Readers choices reveal historical details of how miners traveled, how they looked for gold, and their impact on California’s history. After readers follow one character to California, they can follow another. Thus, they learn which choices led to wealth, which to success, and which to failure. This book is an exciting read. Schools will want to provide copies in their libraries, since questions about this fascinating historical subject appear on many achievement tests. There are two story paths, fifty-four choices and fourteen endings in this book. There are five other historical "You Choose Books" in this series. *
California Gold Rush by Cathrine E. Chambers
These exciting stories of pioneer life capture the events and spirit of the times surrounding the exploration and settling of the American frontier. The "Adventures in Frontier America" series sweeps young readers into key events in U.S. history. Illustrated and indexed. *
Gold Fever!: Tales from the California Gold Rush by Rosalyn Schanzer
Rosalyn Schanzer's engaging and humorous book tells the story of these prospectors in their own words. Schanzer has gathered her favorite quotes from journals and letters written by the forty-niners to recount the discovery of gold at Sutter's Mill. Her irresistible narrative also uses newspaper accounts to trace the various routes the forty-niners took from the East Coast to the West, the adventures they experienced along the way, and the challenges they faced on arrival. The characters recount their stories in their own words, in well-researched and authenticated quote bubbles. To write and research Gold Fever!, Rosalyn Schanzer visited many California Gold Rush historical sites, and took more than 600 photographs of everything from gold nuggets to saloons in order to make her art as accurate and flavorful as possible. With skill and humor she brings historical characters vividly to life and puts the spirit of the age into her vibrant art. History shines brightly on every page of this evocative book.*
* www.amazon.com
**www.agintheclassroom.org