Pleasure Reading Picture Book: Z is for Zamboni A Hockey Alphabet by Matt Napier

Title:
Z is for Zamboni: A Hockey Alphabet

Bibliographic Information:
Napier, M. (2002) Z is for zamboni: A hockey alphabet. Ann Harbor, MI: Sleeping Bear Press.

Weekly Requirement:
Pleasure Reading Picture Book


 Plot Description:
Z is for Zamboni: A Hockey Alphabet is a book that describes hockey-related words from A to Z.  The words are about things like famous players like Wayne Gretzky, rules of the game such as slash and trip (two types of penalties), hockey gear such as jerseys, hockey player positions such as forward, and much more. There is a word for each letter and each word is described by a short rhyming poem, along with a longer, more in-depth description on the side of the page. The book includes color illustrations by Melanie Rose.


Quantitative Reading Level:
ATOS Reading Level 6.8

Qualitative Reading Analysis:
This is a complex text because it describes hockey both as a work of literature through the poems and as an informational text in its detailed descriptions of hockey-related trivia. Each letter of the alphabet is used to describe something about hockey and it goes in alphabetic order from A to Z. Each letter includes a simple four line poem that rhymes, but the side of the page adds complexity with a detailed description of the word. The book is written in Canadian English, which makes the book slightly more complex for U.S. readers who are not used to seeing the spellings of words like centre, favourite, and defence. The last pages of the book includes a table comparing Canadian and American spelling of specific words, which adds text complexity for the  reader who can compare how to spell words from two different English dialects.


Content Area:
English Language Arts Reading Literature Grades 2-4, English Language Arts Reading Informational Texts Grades 2-4

Maine Common Core Content Area Standard:
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.1 & CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.2.1
Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.3.1& CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.1
Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.4.1 & CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.1
Refer to details and examples in a text when explaining what the text says explicitly and when drawing inferences from the text.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.4
Describe how words and phrases (e.g., regular beats, alliteration, rhymes, repeated lines) supply rhythm and meaning in a story, poem, or song.
 CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.2.5

Know and use various text features (e.g., captions, bold print, subheadings, glossaries, indexes, electronic menus, icons) to locate key facts or information in a text efficiently.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.2.6
Identify the main purpose of a text, including what the author wants to answer, explain, or describe.

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.5
Use text features and search tools (e.g., key words, sidebars, hyperlinks) to locate information relevant to a given topic efficiently.

Curriculum Suggestion:
This is a great book for teachers to read to students during the Winter Olympics or Canada's National Hockey Day to explain the game of hockey, or during National Fitness Month to encourage students to be involved in sports and physical activity.

Personal Thoughts:
This is a great book because it doubles as a literary book and as an informational text. It also can be enjoyed by a wide range of elementary school children. Children in the early elementary grades will love the pictures and the rhyming, and children in the older grades will love to hockey trivia.

Subject/Themes:

Alphabet, hockey

Awards:
Blue Spruce Award 2003, Midwest Independent Publishers Award, 2002