A Big Day for Baseball
by Mary Pope Osborne
Comprehension Questions; Vocabulary; Writing Prompts
Grades 3-5; Genre – Historical Fiction with Fantastical Elements; GRL N; AR pts: 1.0
Chapter 1
Why didn’t Jack and Annie want to go to baseball tryouts? They felt they were terrible at baseball p.4
Where were jack and Annie traveling too this time? Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, New York p.7
Why were Jack and Annie excited to go there and play
baseball? They would have magical gray
baseball caps to help them be good at baseball p.8
Chapter 2
What’s a bat boy? Someone who helps a baseball team during a game p.11
Who helped Jack and Annie get to Ebbets Field? Some twins named Olive and Otis p.16
Why was there a huge crowd outside the baseball stadium? There was a baseball game that afternoon
p.19
Chapter 3
How do the twins usually watch baseball games since they can’t
pay to get into the stadium? Lay on the
sidewalk and peek under the gate p.22
Give two differences from a baseball game at Frog Creek in
2017 from what Jack and Annie saw in Ebbets Field in 1947? What people wore to the game and half of the stadium was filled with
white people the other half had black people p.24
Who do you think was the baseball player Jack and Annie saw
signing autographs? Jackie Robinson p.24
Chapter 4
Why didn’t the Braves team ignore Jack and Annie? Bat boys never bother the players or get in their way p.28
Name three tasks Jack and Annie needed to do as they acted as bat boys? Hung uniforms in lockers; wiped off equipment and lined up the shoes on the benches; pushed the trunk of bats out to the dugout; unloaded bats and placed them on shelves; took the first aid kit, catcher’s gear, and chewing gum to the dugout; filled jugs with water; took towels and baseball to the dugout p.30
What’s the national anthem? A song we sing in the United States to show respect and appreciation
for our country; The Star-Spangled Banner p.32
Chapter 5
What were Jack’s and Annie’s responsibilities while the
Braves were up to bat? Jack’s: Retrieve foul
balls, gave new baseballs to the umpire always making sure he had three, had to
count the baseballs; Annie’s: picked up bats that the players dropped and put
them on the rack p.36
Why were the people in the stands heckling the black player?
Because he was a different skin color p.41
What happened to Jack’s cap? It blew off in the wind and some kid jumped who had from the stands and
grabbed it p.42
Chapter 6
What did Jack and Annie do to confuse the security guard and manager? They took turns wearing the hat to try to prove they were bat boys p.47
Why was Jack worried about people seeing him as they walked
out of the stadium? He was embarrassed and
humiliated p.48
Give a descriptive word to describe the manager and security
guard. Intolerant; angry; impatient p.48
Chapter 7
Who helped Jack and Annie after they got kicked out of the
stadium? Olive and Otis p.51
How did the Dodger’s team get their name? Fans need to dodge streetcars to get to the ballpark
p.53
Where did Otis and Olive take Jack and Annie to hear the
game? To their grannies’ house p.55
Chapter 8
Why were the grannies so fervent on Jackie hitting the ball?
They were also people of color and wanted
Jackie to be successful p.57
Why was this baseball game so important? Jackie Robinson was the first black player
allowed to play with white players in major league baseball and he made history
that game p.60
Why were the grannies so surprised to see Jack and Annie in
their home? Jack and Annie were the first
white people ever to come into their home p.61
Chapter 9
What was significant about the twin’s great-great-granny? She was 101 years old and born a slave p.64
What’s the advice Great-Great-Granny Beck gave to Jack and
Annie? Always keep your eyes on the good
and always keep your self-respect p.66
Why was it strange for Jack and Annie to be the first white
people to go into the grannies’ home? During
the history of the United States there had been a lot of racism against black people,
but Jackie Robinson helped begin to change it p.69
Chapter 10
What made Jack decide he wanted to try out for baseball? After reading about Jackie Robinson, he
realized he didn’t care so much what people thought of him p.75
What was the real reason Morgan sent Jack and Annie to Brooklyn?
To help them learn to be brave and keep
going p.75
