What combines a smidgen of science, a bit of biography, a taste of poetry, a speck of art, and even a dash of athletics mixed with a whole lot of outdoor fun and can be inspired by an activity that takes place anywhere?
America’s favorite pastime: baseball, of course!
If you can’t go to a game or if your children aren’t playing T-ball or baseball, here are a few suggestions to get you and your kids into the game.
How Baseball Works by Keltie Thomas (Maple Tree Press) is a fine way to dip into the science of baseball. Slightly older kids will read it independently, while snippets of it are ideal to share with younger children.
Don’t miss Kadir Nelson’s look at the Negro Baseball League in his extraordinary new book We Are the Ship (Hyperion).
Return to baseball of yesteryear with Casey at Bat, Ernest Thayer’s dramatic ballad of baseball in Mudville. Christopher Bing’s version (Handprint) was awarded a Caldecott Honor for his illustrations that clearly put readers in the late 19th century.
Did you know that not even a World War could stop baseball? David Adler’s Mama Played Baseball (Harcourt) — historical fiction for younger children — tells the story of a girl whose mother played while her father was away during WWII.
Meet Roberto Clemente: Pride of the Pittsburgh Pirates (Atheneum) in a handsomely illustrated picture book biography by Jonah Winter.
And younger children will empathize with Froggy as he experiences the ups and downs of sports in Froggy Plays T-Ball (Viking) by Jonathan London.
A bounty of books to share the fun, science, and history of the game are only as far as your local library or bookstore. So open a book — and a box of Crackerjacks — and champion your favorite team!
About the Author
Reading Rockets’ children’s literature expert, Maria Salvadore, brings you into her world as she explores the best ways to use kids’ books both inside — and outside — of the classroom.
Publication Date
April 11, 2008