Just Kicking It Around: Who Wants to Play Just for Kicks? by Chris Krale

I SIT IN THE CLASSROOM AND STARE AT THE CLOCK.

TODAY IS THE LAST DAY OF SCHOOL BEFORE SPRING BREAK AT VICTORY SCHOOL FOR SUPER ATHLETES. NONE OF US CAN WAIT.

NO HOMEWORK! WE CAN SPEND THE ENTIRE WEEK PLAYING SPORTS.

Josh is planning to head straight for the ice rink with his buddy Brandon to sharpen their super hockey skills. But as he grabs his gear, Brandon says something that surprises him.

"I THINK IT MIGHT BE FUN TO TAKE A BREAK FROM HOCKEY FOR A DAY."

Josh can't believe that Brandon is heading out to the field to kick a soccer ball around with Carmen and the other soccer fans. He protests that he doesn't know anything about soccer, but Brandon thinks that is a good reason to go out and have some fun with soccer for a change. Josh disagrees.

"WHO WANTS TO PLAY JUST FOR KICKS?" 

But Josh finds that it is not fun practicing all alone on the ice. And the next morning he accepts Carmen's invitation and heads over the pitch with his friends.

But he was right. He's no good at soccer. When he tries his famous fast footwork on the grass, he actually falls on his face. It's embarrassing, and Josh is a little bit angry at his friends for laughing at him. But now he's determined. He takes advantage of Carmen's offer to meet him early the next day and show him some of the basics of soccer.

Josh confesses that being so bad at soccer makes him feel dumb. Carmen laughs and says she felt that way at first, too. So Josh lets Carmen teach him how to switch from hockey to soccer moves, and when the gang gets together, he finds that he's actually actually having real fun playing just for kicks!

Chris Krale's Who Wants to Play Just for Kicks? (Sports Illustrated Kids Victory School Superstars) (Stone Arch) continues the Victory School Superstars series with a title that has the superstars playing outside their area expertise, with emphasis on being open to new experiences. Illustrator Jorge Santillan ably portrays facial expressions to help convey important emotions and individual personalities to supplement and extend the simple text. With a text written in vocabulary simple enough for even some first graders, this entry in the Sports Illustrated Kids offerings invites young primary grade readers to make the move to chapter books as well.