Little House in the Big Woods

On the western frontier, being self-sufficient was not just a choice but a necessity for survival. How does the Ingalls family display self-sufficiency throughout the story? What skills do they have to be self-reliant? Consider these points as you reflect on the text to answer the question.

• What specific skills does each family member contribute to the household?
• How are these skills and knowledge passed down among family members?
• What tools does the Ingalls family use to achieve self-sufficiency? Are these tools homemade or acquired from elsewhere?
• Besides physical skills, what emotional or mental traits do family members display that contribute to their self-sufficiency?
• How does the family’s self-sufficiency compare to what might be considered self-sufficient in today’s world? Are there skills that are lost, or new ones that have become essential?

Teaching Suggestion: Before the discussion, readers might benefit from a vocabulary lesson on key terms like “self-sufficiency,” “self-reliant,” and “homesteading.” To guide the discussion, you may wish to address each family member’s self-sufficiency separately. You could also structure the examples of self-sufficiency by seasons; this would help students find specific examples from the text. After this analysis question, you may wish to relate the Ingalls family’s experiences to the broader context of the American frontier and how self-sufficiency was a cornerstone of frontier life.