Go Yankees!

Project URL: http://teachersnetwork.org/teachnet-lab/motthallschool/sskea/yankees/index.htm

How it works:
Go Yankees! is a unit of activities designed to inspire students to become part of an ”All- Star Team” through an exploration of the New York Yankees. As students read biographies, discuss, write about, and present the lives of one of America's greatest baseball teams, they learn that life is about facing and overcoming hardships, meeting challenges, engaging in team spirit, and standing tall at home plate.  

In activity one, students read biographies of famous Yankees. The Internet, newspapers, and magazines serve as additional sources of information. Students learn to read for information and to identify significant moments and facts. In activity two, students learn how to select and organize information through the creation of baseball cards. The Internet and an exploration of Microsoft Word and Publisher enhances their learning. Activity three enables students to explore the math behind the players’ statistics and to collect, organize, and evaluate data. Microsoft Excel, along with the Internet, is an invaluable tool here. Students write surveys, conduct polls, and present their findings in charts and graphs. Activity four allows students to role play, identify personality traits, assess abilities, and make judgments.

The extension activities listed in each of the four activities afford teachers and students opportunities to explore the physics, folklore, math, and dynamics of the game of baseball, a much-loved pastime.

Standards addressed: 
Students read and comprehend informational material; use information to enhance a project; make informed judgments; use and evaluate a range of resources; produce a report/display of information; create an organized structure appropriate to purpose, audience, and content; collect, organize, interpret, and evaluates statistics; create, read, and interpret charts and graphs; connect mathematics to real-life situations; participate in group discussions and one-to-one conferences; develop listening skills; prepare and deliver an individual presentation; demonstrate an understanding of the rules of the English language in written and oral work; analyze and subsequently revise work to improve its clarity and effectiveness; publish a final document; work cooperatively with others on a “team"; employ appropriate forms of technology effectively; and manage time appropriately to meet deadlines. 

Materials used: 
Materials include at least one computer with Internet access and Microsoft Word, Publisher (optional), and Excel, printers, scanners (optional), a digital camera (optional), a laminator (optional), heavy stock paper, newspapers or sport magazines, and biographies of New York Yankees past and present.

The students:
This program was developed for students in grades five through eight. A basic knowledge of the computer and the Internet is helpful.

Overall value:
This project truly reflects the many interests of students, as it was inspired and developed with their assistance. And it continues to evolve and grow in scope, in meaning, and in application as new students become involved. In addition to developing writing, math, and technology skills, students learn about sports history and perhaps their own family history as they interview their parents and grandparents about favorite New York Yankee players. This project can also lead to discussions about self determination, facing challenges, sportsmanship, and fair play that all serve to develop student social skills.
 
Tips: 
The project works best when each student is assigned an individual player. Check and approve the books your students select before reading begins and inform parents about the project. Listen carefully when students are discussing their reading.  I got the idea to have a “World Series” event and to include a quote on the baseball cards from my students. Many New York Yankees have their own websites. Check these sites first and provide web addresses for your students. Actively monitor your students as they use the Internet, and have students post interesting web sites they discover on the chalkboard for all to share. This also serves to develop team spirit. Be sure to ask for permission to conduct surveys outside the classroom. All the activities offered in Go Yankees! can be done using another team or sport.

About the teacher:
Sandra A. Skea is a fifth and sixth grade teacher at the Mott Hall School.  Her published projects include “Let’s Go Fly a Kite,” featured on the George Lucas Educational Foundation website and in its magazine, and “Building a Portable Storage System," a chapter in the City College of New York curriculum and technology guide “Packaging and Other Structures." Sandra has participated in the District Six Summer Institute and, with a team of teachers, helped develop, write, and publish a multi-disciplinary curriculum based on an exploration of three neighborhoods. She has completed a course of study with the Salvadori Institute at CCNY and was a contributing member of Amazon Quest. Sandra is also a member of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics and of the Project Arts Committee at Mott Hall.

E-mail:
sskea@aol.com

Subject Areas: 
Language Arts
Mathematics
Technology

Grade Levels: 
5-8