A Negro League Scrapbook by Carole Boston Weatherford. Boyds Mills/Kane, 2005
Vocabulary: segregation, barnstorm, clown teams, color barrier
Discussion Questions
1. How did Negro League players feel about being barred from the major leagues?
2. How did the retired Negro League players feel when the major leagues began signing black players?
3. Who were the greatest Negro League players?
Activities
1. Create names for pitches like Satchel Paige did.
2. Draw a Hall of Fame plaque for a Negro League player.
3. Design a poster for a Negro League game.
4. Write road diary for a Negro League player on a barnstorming team.
5. Study newspaper, radio and TV sports reports to find synonyms for “defeat.” List those synonyms.
6. During segregation, African-Americans were barred from many restaurants. Thus, when Negro League teams traveled they dined in black-owned restaurants, residents’ homes or on team buses. What types of foods might they have prepared and eaten on the bus? Write a menu and recipes for a meal that does not have to be heated or refrigerated. You may include canned foods and staples. Remember that many convenience foods used today were not available in the first half of the 20th century.
Online Resources
Baseball by Ken Burns Shadowball lesson plan (grades 6-8)
children's books by the weatherfords 
Leave a Reply