Hoops

Burleigh, R., & Johnson, S.T. Hoops. (1997). NY: Silver Whistle/Harcourt Brace & Company.

Lexile Score: AD260L

Summary: Written in poetic form, this book takes the reader through every movement and feel of the game of basketball.

Evaluation: I surprisingly really enjoyed this book. I was surprised because I don’t know specific terms of basketball let alone know the specifics of playing it. Because of the way the book was written though, I was able to imagine every movement without even having much background on the sport itself. The imagery is amazing. I could have pictured to whole story without even looking at the pictures because of how detailed it was and the brilliant word choice.  

There isn’t a conflict in this story and the storyline is pretty basic, but it is still very engaging for students, especially for those who love the sport of basketball. The illustrations portray characters realistically and genuinely. There are no stereotypes found in the illustrations as far as cultural groups and backgrounds are concerned. However, I did not find any females within the illustrations, which can be a big stereotype proclaiming that girls don’t or can’t play basketball.

There aren’t really any lessons to be learned from this text besides the love of basketball and playing it. The story may or may not encourage discussions depending on whether or not the student found the book interesting and engaging. The story itself will be interesting to most students who either love basketball, know a lot about basketball, or want to know a lot about basketball.

Literary elements: Imagery- All five senses are portrayed in the text. For example, “The rough roundness.”

Illustrations- the pictures were made using pastels and paint a very clear picture of the sport for readers who may not know much about the sport.

Word choice- the poetic words were chosen specifically and make the story more engaging. For example, the words “skaterly glide” just seem to flow from the page.

Mini lesson: I would have a mini lesson about imagery and word choice and first explain how the two literary elements go together. Then, I would have students make a story about their favorite sport or hobby. They would be asked to use imagery and strong word choice in their stories.

Target Audience: 2^nd-5^th grade