Multicultural Book -"Swish"

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Book Title:

Swish!

Author:

Bill Martin Jr.

Illustrator:

Michael Chesworth

Type of Book:

Picture Book

Age Level:

8-12

My Star Rating:

**

Summary

• “Swish” is about two girls’ basketball teams, battling for the win. With under a minute left in the game, and the scores tied, which team will have the chance to go to the hall of fame?

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My Thoughts

• This was a cute book, with a lot of action. The pace was super fast, and the rhyming was a great touch! I wouldn’t use this book it my own classroom as a read aloud option, but, I think it would be a great book for students who are interested in sports, especially basketball. The book uses a lot of basketball terms and captures the spirit of being on a basketball team. I chose this book to be my mirror book because I grew up playing basketball, I was on many teams, and I knew the excitement of a close game. This book was so fun to read and connect with on that level, and I imagine that students will be able to draw their own connections to the anticipation and suspense of this book. Especially, for reluctant readers, this book could serve as a great outlet, with the predictability and the constant rhythm.

• I think this book has a multicultural level to it because even though it is showing an American value of sports, it was also showing teamwork and sportsmanship between everyone involved. This is especially seen through the illustrations, this book shows many different races, hair colors, skin tones, and expressions, all working together to win the game.

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How to Use in the Classroom

• If I were to use this in my classroom, it would be to offer up literature to specific interests. I think that so many times students think reading is boring because they are not able to connect with it. However, perhaps if they were introduced to books that aligned with their interests, their negative attitude about reading could change. I understand that this book is not the key to every reluctant reader, but it seems to be a great book to keep in mind for those sport fanatics!

• This book could also be used to show older elementary kids how to build suspense in their own stories.  With the clock running down, and the game heating up, this book is very suspenseful, and as a reader, you can feel the anxiety build. This book could easily be brought into the curriculum of teaching suspenseful tactics in writing. 

More Resources:

• For more information about the author, click here.
• For more information about the illustrator, click here.