Roberto Clemente: Pride of the Pittsburgh Pirates by Jonah Winter; Illusrated by Raúl Colón

Winter, J. (2005). Roberto Clemente: Pride of the Pittsburgh Pirates (R. Colón, Illustrator). New York, NY: Aladdin Paperbacks.

Summary: This book is a short picture biography of Roberto Clemente from him as a boy growing up without money in Puerto Rico to coming to the United States and making a name for himself in a racist society to his tragic death on an airplane to help earthquake victims.

Review: A beautiful story biography for all of our students who aspire to be baseball players.

Diversity: Clemente is a Black Puerto Rican who endured lots of racism.

Suggestions for Teachers: Use this book to teach biography.

Reading Level:

1. Quantitative: Lexile 800L, ATOS Book Level 2.75-5.14, Flesh-Kincaid 1.98-5.34, 3.53-6.13 RMM
2. Qualitative: This text is slightly complex. It is organized chronologically. Yet, the sentences are written like poetry in stanzas. Vocabulary is largely familiar and contemporary. The colorful illustrations give life to Clemente's story. Knowledge of baseball and Roberto Clemente will help students.

Content Areas: Language Arts

Common Core State Standards:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.3.7
Use information gained from illustrations (e.g., maps, photographs) and the words in a text to demonstrate understanding of the text (e.g., where, when, why, and how key events occur).

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.3.8
Describe the logical connection between particular sentences and paragraphs in a text (e.g., comparison, cause/effect, first/second/third in a sequence).

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.3.9
Compare and contrast the most important points and key details presented in two texts on the same topic.

Relevant Links: Teaching Books

Subjects/Themes: racism, identity, biography, perseverance, acceptance, family

Awards: N/A

Series Information: N/A