Sixth Grade
Worksheets
George Washington Carver: The Plant Doctor
In the 1860s, Moses and Susan Carver lived on a small farm near Diamond Grove, Missouri. The Carvers owned one slave. Her name was Mary. Mary had two small children. The boys were named James and George. The boys' father died before George was born.
One night, raiders came to the Carver farm. They stole Mary and the two boys. George was only a baby, and James was about six years old. The men took them to sell them again as slaves. Moses Carver hired a man to find his slave. The man was able to get the boys, but he couldn't find Mary.
After the Civil War ended in 1865, all slaves were free. Moses and Susan Carver didn't have any children. They raised George and James as their own. The boys worked hard on the Carver farm. George was always a sickly child. He helped "Aunt Sue," as the boys called Mrs. Carver, with the housework. He collected eggs from the henhouse. He churned butter. He helped plant the garden. One of George's favorite chores was picking persimmons in the fall.
Another of George's favorite things was exploring the woods around their home. He collected rocks. He kept pet frogs. He also kept a secret flower garden of his own. For the hardworking farmers of that time, it was "foolishness to waste time on flowers," George later said. It was during this time that people began to call him "the plant doctor."
George was always asking "why." He was curious about everything. At that time, black children and white children were not allowed to go to the same schools. There was no school for black children near the Carvers' home. Susan Carver taught George to read. When George was about twelve, he decided to go away to Neosho, Missouri, where there was a school for blacks. The Carvers gave him their blessing, and George walked about twelve miles to Neosho. He carried his belongings wrapped up in a bandana.
