Read, set, GO! Explore the world of sports through books for a sports theme or ball study. Students can share and teach their friends about the sports they play. The more students know about each other, the stronger your classroom community will be. Make your classroom into a family where students can share, grow and take risks.
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Nonfiction
These first 20 books are part of a series (I Love Sports) written by Bullfrog books. They are wonderful nonfiction texts with colorful photos. The photos show the game or sport in action and the simple text teaches the reader the basic rules of each sport. These books are great to introduce little learners to many different kinds of sports and games. They are short readers that will work well in a classroom of younger students. Bowling, Cheerleading, Track and Field, Baseball, Basketball, Figure Skating, Football, Gymnastics, Hockey, Snowboarding, Soccer, Surfing, Swimming, Tennis, Golf, Lacrosse, Skateboarding, Softball, Tae Kwan Do, Volleyball,
Follow Erik as he goes to his first soccer practice and join the team as they learn how to pass, kick, and shoot the ball. The book is full of colorful, real-life images with a great story to capture your little learners’ attention.
Join Jenny at her first gymnastics practice! This text is perfect for little learners that are interested in gymnastics and are ready to try reading on their own. It would also make a great read-aloud with its bright photos and simple text.
In this book, you will join Hannah and Jessica as they learn the vault, beams, and bars. This book offers bright photographs and a little bit harder text than the previous book but still great for your little learners.
Do you have some little learners that love basketball? Read about Lebron’s childhood and his journey to becoming a professional basketball player. This book will inspire your little learners to follow their dreams and keep trying.
Hut, hut, hike! Get ready to read about Russell Wilson and his childhood dreams of becoming a famous football player. Your little learners will enjoy all the photos and learning about Russell’s childhood and growth into an NFL quarterback.
This book is perfect to introduce your little learners to the sport of ice skating. The book will go through the equipment needed to ice skate and some of the safety precautions needed when ice skating. The book uses real-life photographs that will capture your little learners’ interest.
Learn all about ramps in this nonfiction text. Explore how ramps are used every day in real life for having fun and for completing work.
Fiction
Join a family as they go to a football game. This book will let you see the excitement of a football game, the fun a family can have spending time together, and the friends that can be made at a game. Then, wind down as the family heads home for the night.
Batter up! In this book, you will get to accompany a little boy as he goes to a baseball game. The rhyming text is so fun for your little learners and they will love watching the boy experience a baseball game from start to finish.
Do you enjoy a hockey game? Or maybe you have never been? Read this book to learn all about a hockey game from beginning to end. The rhymes and pictures will be enjoyed by your little learners.
As you might think, Goodnight Soccer is similar to the previous 3 books. It will offer rhyming and fun as you read about a soccer game from the first whistle to the last.
This book comes in a board book format. Perfect for lots of little hands to explore! The book offers fun riddles as it teaches your readers about hockey.
This book offers your little learners rhyming riddles all about basketball! They will love hearing this book over and over again!
Just like the previous 2 books, Little Football is full of rhyming riddles and fun pictures to teach your little learners all about football.
Early readers will love this text because it offers them alliteration and word families for easy reading. They will be reading all about scoring a goal in a soccer game. The author does a great job building excitement as the book progresses.
What little learner doesn’t love a Pete the Cat book? I know my class loves Pete and will love reading about Pete play a game of baseball. Your little learners will also get to see how Pete handles losing the game.
Encourage perseverance as you read this book about Lily’s first gymnastics meet. Should you keep trying if you mess up or just give up? This is a great read-aloud for your classroom!
This book is not what it seems from the title! I use this book to teach friendship, compassion, and not judging a person by their outward appearance. The pictures are simple and quirky but your little learner will love them.
Join Piggie and Gerald on a day of fun and read about them learning that being the best isn’t always the greatest!
Will Jabari jump off the very tall diving board? Dive in and see! This text is perfect for teaching about overcoming fears. It is written perfectly for little learners to relate and make connections with Jabari.
Your little learners will love reading about Zoe; a little girl that wants to fly! Will gymnastics be like flying? Will she be able to do the stunts? Read the book to find out!
Want to hear your little learners giggle? This book will definitely have them giggling as they read about many different kinds of balls. The author talks about sports balls but also throws in some unexpected rolling objects like meatballs!
Have your little learners guessing the sports by the clues hanging on the clothesline! They will love guessing the sport and learning about the equipment needed for each different sport.
Bounce, jump, and wiggle with this fun book! Encourage movement as you read this book and your little learners will be asking you to read this book over and over again!
Practice number recognition and counting with this fun text. The author uses real-life examples of counting and has fun pictures to go along with them.
Ever wondered how far a ball would bounce? Join this little person as they follow their blue ball out the door and down the steps into the world. Your little learners will love seeing where the ball goes next and hearing the rhyming text!
Read about the women that played in the World Soccer Cup in 2019. They had to persevere and work really hard to get there and your little learners will enjoy hearing their story.
Your little learners will love the pictures in this silly book about Duck and his baseball game. One thing after another goes wrong; will Duck ever get to play the game?
Want to encourage your kiddos to try something new? This book is perfect for that! Lucy wants to learn hockey but it will be too hard and complicated. Luckily her parents encourage her and sign her up for a hockey lesson because hockey becomes her favorite!
Learn all about different kinds of balls in this simple text. Even your youngest learners will be able to make connections with this book. This book would perfect for English learners too!
Learn all about motion in this fun text! Push, pull, speed, and force are all covered in this colorful book!
- Dino-Sports Books
The last 7 books are part of a dino-series! What a great combination to get your little readers engaged! Dinosaurs and sports games! They will love reading about dinosaurs playing all different kinds of sports games! The author uses fun words and great pictures to teach about sports! Dino-Basketball, Dino-Hockey, Dino-Baseball, Dino-Football, Dino-Soccer, Dino-Swimming, Dino-Dancing
Take the sports theme all over your classroom! Grab Sports Math and Literacy Centers, Sports STEM I Can Build, All About Force and Motion (a science ball study), and Bowling Alley Dramatic Play.
Want to check out more of my favorite books for little learners? Check out my Book List Blog Series that features themed book lists to accompany your lessons! If there is a book list for a theme you need, just let us know so we can create it for you!
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