1. 1. Please put your cell phone away and out of sight!
2. Today we will read “He Was First”.
3. You will take notes in your spiral notebook.

2. Strategy #1 - Reading Actively Annotations - you can use 4 colors if you wish
MP – Write this in the margin next to the author’s MAIN POINT he/she is making; in the intro P – Write this in the margin next to the POINTS or reasons the author gives within the body paragraphs EV – Write this in the margin next to important EVIDENCE and examples and support the author gives. ? – write a question mark in the margin beside anything you DON’T UNDERSTAND. Underline any vocabulary you don’t understand and LOOK IT UP.
Read “He Was First”, by John Kellmayer, p. 110, annotating as you read.

3. He Was First, by John Kellmayer
MP – (thesis) “It took place largely because baseball and because Jackie Robinson had the character, talent, and support to carry him through an ugly obstacle course of racism.”

4. He Was First, by John Kellmayer
P1 – (reason 1) “Even before he arrived in professional baseball, Robinson had to combat discrimination.”

5. He Was First, by John Kellmayer
P2 – (reason 2) “Eventually, Robinson was granted an honorable discharge, and soon after he signed a contract to play baseball in the Negro American League.”

6. He Was First, by John Kellmayer
P3 – (reason 3) “By 1944, the social climate had become more accepting of integration in large part because of the contributions of black soldiers in World War II. Also, …commissioner died and Happy Chandler replaced him… on record of supporting integration.”

7. He Was First, by John Kellmayer
P4 – (reason 4) “Rickey knew the time had come. He (Rickey) began searching for the special black ballplayer with the mix of talent and character necessary to withstand the struggles to follow.”

8. He Was First, by John Kellmayer
P5 – (reason 5) “The promise was not easily made (Robinson’s). Robinson had encountered plenty of racism in his live and he was accustomed to fighting for black rights… Consequently, keeping his promise to Rickey was going to require great personal will.”

9. He Was First, by John Kellmayer
P6 – (reason 6) “Robinson’s assignment to the Dodger minor-league team in Montreal was evidence of Rickey’s careful planning for the breaking of the color barrier, as there was little racism in the Canadian city.”

10. He Was First, by John Kellmayer
P7 – (reason 7) “No civil rights legislation could have turned Clay Hopper (vehemently opposed Robinson) around the way Jackie Robinson did.”

11. He Was First, by John Kellmayer
P8 – (reason 8) “It was clear that Jackie Robinson’s next stop was the big leagues, the Brooklyn Dodgers. Not surprisingly, though, the prospect of a black major-league player was not met by all with open arms.”

12. He Was First, by John Kellmayer
P9 – (reason 9) “Within the first month of 1947 season, it became apparent that Robinson could be the deciding factor in the pennant race… Undoubtedly, one reason many Dodger players rallied around Robinson was that they saw him as a critical, perhaps the critical, factor in their pursuit of the pennant.”

13. He Was First, by John Kellmayer
P10 – (reason 10) “On September 22, the Dodgers defeated the St. Louis Cardinals to clinch the a National League pennant...”

14. He Was First, by John Kellmayer
Conclusion begins with - “Americans learned something that year…” to the end of the selection.

15. He Was First, by John Kellmayer
Connection to the MP (thesis) – “The fire that Jacki Robinson fanned swept across the years to follow, resulting in a permanent change in the makeup of the game… The same major-league team owners who had voted against hiring blacks soon followed Rickey’s lead.”