The Little Foxes Lesson Plan

Cotton and the South

Kind of Activity:

Research

Objective:

Students will be able to understand the context of the mill that Ben and Oscar want to build

Common Core Standards:

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.7; CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.8; CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.9-10.4

Structure:

Ben and Oscar are trying to convince Regina and her husband, Horace, to invest in building a cotton mill in the South. They seem to consider this an original and compelling business idea. Why might this be so unusual?

Divide students into small groups. Each group should use at least three distinct and reliable sources to research the production of cotton in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, with the aim...