Library Basketball

Why Library Basketball?● Lets kids move around● Encourages teamwork● Provides feedback to librarians on

what students have learned● Gets students excited about library● Gives everyone an opportunity to

shine, as there’s both an academic and an athletic component

When Library Basketball?● After completing instructional units● As a review before a test● As a reward● Before vacations● During testing● Any time students are antsy

Supplies Needed:● Something to serve as a basketball (balls with

some weight work best; I use water-filled ones)● Something to serve as a basket (I use a high-

walled recycling bin)● Masking tape● Pen and paper to keep score● Treats for the winners● Ideally, a backboard for your basket

Library Basketball Set-Up● Place your basket and put three pieces of

equally-spaced masking tape on the floor in front of the basket (essentially, one shooting line close to the basket, one mid-way from the basket, and one far away from the basket).

● Split students into groups of 3-6 students (4 is my ideal group size).

● Choose one student to be the ball person and one to be the foot checker.

Library Basketball Rules● Groups choose an easy, a medium, or a hard

question.● Each question is read only one time.● The first answer that any group member yells

out is the group’s official answer, so students are encouraged to discuss their answer before blurting it out.

● The group has one minute to answer the question.

● If they answer the question incorrectly, the question rolls to the next group in line. Each group gets one chance to answer a question.

Library Basketball Rules, cont.

● If a group answers correctly, one student from the group gets to make a shot at the basket.○ All students in a group must shoot once

before anyone can shoot a second time.● Students answering an easy question shoot from

the furthest line back, a medium question from the middle line, and a hard question from the front line.

● Any students who yell while someone else is making a shot lose a point for their team, and the shooter gets a second chance.

Library Basketball Rules, cont.

● At the end of the game, the team that scores the most points wins a treat (I use Jolly Ranchers).

● No one touches the ball except the librarian, the ball person, and the shooter.

● The foot watcher makes sure that students are behind the line. Theirs is the official call in regards to foot faults.

Tailoring to Different Topics● If you already have a written

assessment, it can often easily be turned into library basketball questions.

● True/false questions can be used, but I remove the steal option in that case.

● The difficulty levels can be removed as needed by age/topic (make all students shoot from the medium line).

Library Basketball Example 1Class: 5th Grade LibraryPurpose: Review prior to breakModifications: None, played with rules as writtenQuestions: Standard library ‘trivia’ questions (provided as a handout)

Library Basketball Example 2Class: 3rd Grade LibraryPurpose: Differentiating fact and opinionModifications: All shots from the center line; no stealsQuestions: Groups are presented with a statement and have to identify whether it’s fact or an opinion

Library Basketball Example 3Class: 6th Grade LibraryPurpose: Identify parts of a citationModifications: All shots from center lineQuestions: Provide groups with written citations and ask them to identify a specific part (i.e., “what date was this information retrieved?”)

Library Basketball Example 4Classes: 6th Grade Enrichment and 5th Grade LibraryPurpose: Review for 5th Grade; writing for a specific purpose and audience for 6th GradeModifications: 6th Grade students will write questions and run the game for 5th Grade studentsQuestions: 6th Grade students will create library basketball questions for 5th Grade students, based on what 5th Graders should know about library