A Bright Star in Tennis

Wimbledon is normally the highlight of the summer for tennis fans. But with this year’s tournament wiped out due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the next Grand Slam tournament on the calendar is the US Open, scheduled for Aug. 31 to Sept. 13 in New York City. That’s great news for Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka, who won her first Grand Slam tournament inside the Arthur Ashe Stadium back in 2018. Before Osaka goes for a repeat, students can read all about that first triumph in Naomi Osaka: Tennis Star , a 2020 Junior Library Guild selection.

Readers will also learn about Osaka’s first forays on the court with her older sister, her family’s move to Florida to further her tennis career and her early success. Osaka became an overnight sensation after her upset of the legendary Serena Williams in the 2018 US Open final, then proved she was no fluke by going back-to-back and winning the 2019 Australian Open months later.

While learning about Osaka’s meteoric rise, readers can also practice their reading analysis skills with the free lesson plans available from the Focus Readers website . For Naomi Osaka, students study how the author used dynamic details to help bring the exciting moments of Osaka’s career to life, then practice working those same kinds of details into their own writing.

Naomi Osaka: Tennis Star is just one of many exciting titles with free lesson plans available in the Biggest Names in Sports series. Young tennis fans will love learning more about one of the game’s brightest stars while also practicing important reading skills.