Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry WebQuest
Based on the novel by Mildred D. Taylor

In Roll of Thunder, Cotton was King!
Farming and the cotton season controlled their lives.  Learn more about farming cotton by finding the answers to the questions below.  Use the links (underlined words) to go to each website.

1. What kind of climate does the cotton plant require?

2. What is the seed pod of the cotton plant called?

3. Mama talks about taking the cotton to Vicksburg to be ginned. What is the purpose of ginning cotton?

4. How are the seeds of the cotton plant used today?

5. Mama talks to Pa about spraying the cotton plants against insects. What insect can be very damaging to cotton plants?

6.  Many of the families in the community live on farms as "sharecroppers".  In your own words, explain the sharecropping system.

Roll of Thunder Budget
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry takes place during the Great Depression, a time when most people were very poor.  Farmers struggled as sharecroppers, or from the weather, or from the economy.  Below is a list of what various items cost in 1932. (As well as current costs, so you can compare.) 
Assume that you were a sharecropper, what would your monthly budget look like? 

Based on how much you make, what would you buy?  Why?  Make a monthly budget for your family, assuming you’re married and have 4 kids.  You should spend at least $25 on food, and don't forget the cost of taxes.