Dave Purpura

DR-TA (Directed Reading-Thinking Activity)

Hoosiers

Summary of the movie:

Hoosiers is a heart-filled movie about second chances, belief, and teamwork. Hoosiers takes
place in 1951-1952 in the small town of Hickory, Indiana. An ex-collegiate basketball coach with
a troubled past is called upon to coach the Hickory Hoosiers High School basketball team. In a
town that puts the highest value on high school basketball, Coach Norman Dale, already facing
adversity in the underdog role, finds himself un-welcomed by his players, the community, and a
fellow teacher. The townspeople attempt to have Coach Dale fired, but his job is saved when
the star player Jimmy, makes the bold statement, I play, coach stays, he goes, I go. Through
hard work, discipline, and perseverance the Hickory Hoosiers find themselves on a storybook
run to the state championship. In a season that started with Coach Dales word as the law, it
ends with the coach trusting in his players in the seasons deciding moments.
Grade Level: 11
th
and 12
th
grade
Literacy Strategy: DR-TA (Directed Reading-Thinking Activity)
Description: Directed Reading- Thinking Activity (DR-TA) is used to extend students reading
and thinking about content. The four components of DR-TA are the following:
Brainstorming- to activate prior knowledge
Predict the content that will be covered in the reading/movie
Read/ Watch
Discuss- to revisit predictions for the purpose of confirmation or revision
Reference:
Allen, J. (2004). Tools for Teaching Content Literacy. Portland, Maine: Stenhouse Publishers.
Modifications: Students write individually, then share in small groups or to the whole class.
Thematic Units, Topics, or Literature Units: This movie would work well in an English class,
Physical Education class or coaching sports. This movie would fit well in a unit that focuses on
teamwork or battling adversity.
Brainstorm Predict Discuss