Written by Sharon Draper
Published by Simon Pulse
ISBN: 978-0-689-84233-7
Ages 12 & Up
Awards:
2004 Coretta Scott King Honor Book
2005 Young Adult Choice Books - International Reading Association
Review:
The Battle of Jericho follows 16 year old Jericho during his junior year of high school at Frederick Douglass High School. He is asked to pledge the exclusive club, Warriors of Distinction, with his cousin, Josh. The Warriors have been around for 50 years and everyone at school knows who they are. They get special treatment from teachers and people in the community. The pledge process gets off to a great start with a holiday toy drive. However, as Jericho and Josh progress further into the process they are asked to do more questionable tasks. Readers will understand Josh's dilemma about going along with something that goes against his moral values in order to fit in or standing strong and becoming ostracized. In the end, they boys' lives will be changed forever in ways they never imagined possible. This book would appeal to middle and high school students experiencing the same internal battle as Jericho and make them think about how far they would really go in order to belong.
Professional Review
Publishers Weekly (2003)
Teaching Ideas
All standards listed are from the Virginia Department of Education Standards of Learning (2015).
1 - English 9.6b
English 9.6 - The student will develop narrative, expository, and persuasive writings for a variety of audiences and purposes. b) Plan and organize writing to address specific audience and purpose.
You are a reporter at one of the following scenes. Write the story for your newspaper.
- Eddy's trial for the accident which caused Josh's death
- Eddy's trial for his assaults on Dana
- The trial for the Warriors of Distinction
- The school board meeting for the month after the tragedy
- The final meeting of the Warriors of Distinction
(Simon & Schuster, n.d.)
2 - Health 10.2k & Computer Technology 9-12.3A
Health 10.2 - The student will analyze, synthesize, and evaluate the protective factors needed to make healthy decisions throughout life. k) Explain the value of positive self-image, self-esteem, and self-control when faced with peer pressure.
C/T 9-12.3 - Demonstrate an understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of various technologies for supporting different tasks. A) Make appropriate choices when determining how to use different technologies for different purposes. Demonstrate the ability to choose appropriate resources when completing assignments in various content areas.
Answer the following questions - How does peer pressure affect the decisions that were made by the characters in the story? What lessons might the pledges have learned from Eric Bell? (Simon & Schuster, n.d.)
You may do this by writing about it or by creating a presentation on PowToon, Prezi, or some other presentation tool.
3 - Health 10.2i & English 10.6a
Health 10.2 - The student will analyze, synthesize, and evaluate the protective factors needed to make healthy decisions throughout life. i) Explain the role of the environment, individual behavior, social norms, legislation, and policies in preventing intentional and unintentional injuries.
Health 10.2 - The student will analyze, synthesize, and evaluate the protective factors needed to make healthy decisions throughout life. i) Explain the role of the environment, individual behavior, social norms, legislation, and policies in preventing intentional and unintentional injuries.
English 10.6 - The student will collect, evaluate, organize, and present information to create a research project. a) Use technology as a tool to research, organize, evaluate, synthesize, and communicate information.
Research current laws concerning hazing. What is the usual punishment? What do you think should be the punishment for groups who practice hazing? Present your findings in an interesting and innovative way to your classmates.
4 - English 9.4 & Computer Techology 9-12.1A
English 9.4 - The student will read, comprehend, and analyze a variety of literature texts including narratives, narrative nonfiction, poetry, and drama. (Essential understandings include - understand a character's development throughout the text.)
C/T 9-12.1 - Demonstrate an operational knowledge of various technologies. A) Use various types of technologies to perform learning tasks. Demonstrate the ability to perform a wide variety of complex tasks using technology.
English 9.4 - The student will read, comprehend, and analyze a variety of literature texts including narratives, narrative nonfiction, poetry, and drama. (Essential understandings include - understand a character's development throughout the text.)
C/T 9-12.1 - Demonstrate an operational knowledge of various technologies. A) Use various types of technologies to perform learning tasks. Demonstrate the ability to perform a wide variety of complex tasks using technology.
Imagine it is three weeks after the end of the novel. Write a letter or create a conversation between the following characters:
- Jericho to Arielle
- Arielle to Jericho
- Dana to Kofi
- Mr. Tambori to Jericho
- Mr. Culligan to Josh's parents
- Josh's parents to Mr. Culligan
- Eric Bell to Jericho
(Simon & Schuster, n.d.)
You may write out this conversation or create it in comic strip form for those of you who prefer to include art. You may use Pixton for your comic strip if you would like. You may also choose to act out this conversation with a classmate.
You may write out this conversation or create it in comic strip form for those of you who prefer to include art. You may use Pixton for your comic strip if you would like. You may also choose to act out this conversation with a classmate.
5 - Health 9.2o
H9.2 - The student will explain the impact of health risks and identify strategies and resources to limit risk. o) Evaluate long-term consequences of injury (e.g, permanent disability) and disease, and describe controllable and uncontrollable risk factors.
H9.2 - The student will explain the impact of health risks and identify strategies and resources to limit risk. o) Evaluate long-term consequences of injury (e.g, permanent disability) and disease, and describe controllable and uncontrollable risk factors.
In diary form, write the life of Eric Bell for several months. Include details about how he manages to cope as a teenager in a wheelchair. Try to include his daily actions, his feelings, and what he believes makes him special. (Simon & Schuster, n.d.)
Further Exploration
Audiobook links - If you are a student who would prefer to listen to the book instead of read it, the full unabridged version is available on iTunes and Audible.
Book Trailer - This is a 90 second video giving a quick glimpse into the story.
Sharon Draper's Website - This website has some nice questions to think about and a more detailed summary of the book.
Interview with Sharon Draper - If you'd like to learn more about why Sharon Draper writes books focusing on African American characters and how she goes about her process, this is the right link for you.
Newspaper Article about The Battle of Jericho - An article from the Cincinnati Enquirer about the book and how it relates to real life.
Prezi on The Battle of Jericho - This presents a summary of the story in an ABC format.
Inside Hazing Website - If you are experiencing a similar situation as Jericho, here is a resource that can help you determine if it's hazing or not and what you can do.
InLovingMemoryofJack.com - This is the website started by the family of a college freshman, Jack Phoummarath, who died during a fraternity pledge activity. On the site, there is a video about what happened as well as the dangers and information about Jack's life,
Possible Partner Titles
By Sharon Draper
Students who enjoyed The Battle of Jericho and are interested in knowing more about what happened next will want to read this sequel. While this book does not deal with the exact same topic, it follows Jericho and November, Josh's girlfriend, as they deal with this death and try to move on with their lives.
By Diana Lopez
This fictional novel follows a similar theme as The Battle of Jericho. However, the main character is a girl trying to find a way to fit in who ends up getting involved in the "choking game" with her new friends. Students who found The Battle of Jericho interesting might also appreciate the questions and issues raised in this one.
Publishers Weekly Review (2012)
By Mike Lupica
For students who would prefer a look into hazing through the eyes of the sports world, this book depicts a high school basketball team that ends up in trouble after its manager gets murdered and allegations of horrid initiation rites.
Publishers Weekly Review (2004)
By Hank Nuwer
This nonfiction book provides examples of real-life hazing that has happened in high schools and possible ways to deal with it. The book is appropriate for high school students.
By Rosalind Wiseman
This fictional novel has a parallel story to The Battle of Jericho. However, in this book the main character is a girl entering high school who wants so badly to fit in. She tries to join the popular crowd, but then ends up having to mke tough choices when a hazing stunt goes wrong. This book is appropriate for a slightly younger audience than The Battle of Jericho or for students looking for a female lead.
Resources
Draper, S. (2015). Sharondraper.com: The battle of Jericho. Retrieved from http://sharondraper.com/bookdetail.asp? id=14
Insidehazing. (2014). Inside hazing: Understanding dangerous hazing. Retrieved from http://www.insidehazing.com/statistics_25_high.php
Knippenberg, J. (2003, October 28). Teens caught in the "Battle of Jericho." The Cincinnati Enquirer Retrieved from http://www.enquirer.com/editions/2003/10/28/tem_wwwtem2a.html
LCHSLEMN (2012). The battle of Jericho by Sharon Draper - Book Trailer - 90 seconds. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9SIFY1RWG8o
Phoummarath Family. (2010). In loving memory of Jack. Retrieved from http://inmemoryofjack.com/
Publishers Weekly. (2003). The battle of Jericho. Publishers weekly, 250(23), 53. Retrieved from http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-689-84232-0
Publishers Weekly. (2004). Too far. Publishers weekly, 251(46), 40. Retrieved from http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-399-15210-8
Publishers Weekly. (2012). Choke. Publishers weekly, 256(24), 53-54. Retrieved from http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-545-41822-5
Simon & Schuster. (n.d.). The battle of Jericho reading group guide. Retrieved from http://books.simonandschuster.com/The-Battle-of-Jericho/Sharon-M-Draper/The-Jericho-Trilogy/9780689842337/reading_group_guide
Stikeleather, A. (2013). The battle of Jericho [Prezi]. Retrieved from https://prezi.com/2phbqw_pll_4/the-battle-of-jericho/
Teachingbooks. (2007). Sharon M. Draper in-depth written interview. Retrieved from http://www.teachingbooks.net/interview.cgi?id=44&a=1
Virginia Department of Education. (2015). Standards of learning (SOL) & testing. Retrieved from http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/index.shtml
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