Quarterback Season
By Fred Bowen
LOUISIANA YOUNG READERS CHOICE NOMINEE 2014
GRADE 6-8
Submitted by: Brandi Burton, Teen Librarian, Central Branch Library, East Baton Rouge Public Library System

Title: Quarterback Season
Author: Fred Bowen
Publisher: Peachtree Publishers
Pages: 132

SUMMARY: 
Eighth grader Matt is required to keep a journal for the entire first semester worth 25% of his grade.  Not sure what to write about, Matt decides his journal will be all about his middle school football season.  He tries out for quarterback, and he’s sure there is no one that can possibly beat him out of the spot, but there is a seventh grader, Devro, who is pretty good.  Matt doesn’t worry when Devro beats everyone when they run a mile, or when coach has Devro running quarterback drills, but Matt must really stay focused and play hard to get and keep his starting position.

AUTHOR’S BIOGRAPHY: 
	Fred Bowen is a huge sports fan.  He remembers playing little league baseball and basketball when he was a kid.  Aside from writing sports fiction for children, he writes the sports column for kids that appears in the Washington Post.
http://www.fredbowen.com/

OTHER TITLES BY THE AUTHOR:
•	Touchdown Trouble
•	Real Hoops
•	Hardcourt Comeback
•	On the Line
•	Final Cut
•	Full Court Fever
•	Off the Rim
•	Perfect Game
•	Throwing Heat
•	Dugout Rivals
•	Winners Take All
•	Playoff Dreams
•	Kid Coach
•	Golden Glove
•	T.J.'s Secret Pitch
•	Go for the Goal
•	Soccer Team Upset
RELATED TITLES (Students may also enjoy these titles)
•	Football Genius by Tim Green. Harper Collins Publishers, 2008. 244 p.
•	Game Changers by Mike Lupica. Scholastic Press, 2012. 207 p.
•	Plunked by Michael Northrop. Scholastic Press, 2012. 247 p.
•	Ted and Me: A Baseball Card Adventure by Dan Gutman. Harper Publishers, 2012. 194 p.

CLASSROOM CONNECTIONS

**This is a great NY Times article with Football and Superbowl teaching activities for History and Civics, Language Arts, Media Studies, Science, Math and items like crossword puzzles:    http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/02/01/5-ways-to-teach-the-super-bowl/. 

Language Arts: 
The publisher has provided a 4 page Writing Lessons PDF matching 6th grade Common Core Standards. 
•	 QB Season Writing Lessons (Chapter by Chapter): http://www.fredbowen.com/quarterback_season_116525.htm
•	Football Word Scramble worksheet. Go to this link, scroll down and click on “Make Word Scramble Worksheet” http://worksheets.theteacherscorner.net/make-your-own/word-scramble/31/football/ 

Physical Education:
•	Have students keep a journal for the grading period about their activities in PE.
•	Have students play flag football using some of the plays Matt describes.

Math:
•	Teach students how to keep score in football and how to understand the statistics in football like the ones Michelle kept for the team. Here is an overview of football scoring: http://www.ducksters.com/sports/football/scoring.php.  
•	This is a lesson plan from Education World for calculating the number of blades of grass on a football field http://www.educationworld.com/a_lesson/dailylp/dailylp/dailylp088.shtml. 

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1.)	Do you think Matt learned anything about football from Devro?  If so, what?
2.)	Explain some things Matt learned about himself throughout the football season.
3.)	 Who do you think should have won the MVP award? Why?
4.)	Do you think Matt his a bad person for how he treated Devro at first? Why or why not?
5.)	How do you think Brandon felt watching his best friend play so well with his replacement on the team?
6.)	How would it make you feel if you thought you were the best person for an activity, but someone better came along and took your place? Why?