Summary:
Reading level for 8-12 year olds. Joe Stoshack loves baseball and has a real magical connection to baseball cards. He knows about players past and present. Too bad he doesn't know how to play well. This is a great story that introduces themes of honesty and integrity. What would you do if you found the most valuable baseball card in the world while cleaning out a neighbors dusty attic?
Game:
Play a game of baseball or if you don’t have enough boys for a full game. Have batting practice or play catch. Have two boys with gloves play catch while standing near a base. (the base can be a hat, Frisbee, etc..) The rest of the boys run trying to run to the other base without being tagged out.
Refreshments:
Have Hot Dogs, popcorn, peanuts and cracker jacks! Make it an All American Meal.
Topics to talk about:
Integrity. Honus wouldn’t let the tobacco company use his picture. Joey has an integrity issue too- what to do with the card… what would you do?
What is the secret to being a great baseball player?
p60 “lies catch up to you” Did Joey do the right thing? What would you do?
Talk about the traits of characters in the book: What do we know about the values of Joey’s mom, his dad, Joey, Honus, Birdie, etc..
What does Honus get out of doing nice things? P106
Activity: Let the boys design their own trading card. Have card stock cut to size with markers and color pencils.
