Too Many Hits

1. Set Focus
Pose this essential question to guide discussion: When does the risk of a sport outweigh its rewards?

2. List Vocabulary
 Share with students some of the challenging vocabulary words in this article (see below). Encourage them to use context to infer meanings as they read. 

• attribute (p. 11)
• degenerative (p. 11)
• cognitive (p. 12)
• neurological (p. 12)
• camaraderie (p. 13)
• ostracize (p. 13)

3. Engage
Ask students to share what they understand about the health risks of playing football. Revisit this discussion after the lesson, having students share any new insights they’ve gained.

4. Read 
Have students read the article, marking the text to note key ideas or questions.

5. Discuss
Distribute or project Up Close: Too Many Hits, a close-reading activity for students to work on in small groups. (Note: The questions on the PDF also appear below, with possible responses.) Follow up with a class discussion. If you’re short on time, have each group tackle one or two of the questions. Collect students’ work or have each group report its findings to the class.

• What central ideas about C.T.E. does the article establish through the story of Wyatt Bramwell? Do you think opening with Wyatt’s story was an effective way to begin the article? Explain. (Central Ideas, author’s purpose) (Through the details of Wyatt Bramwell’s story, the article establishes what C.T.E. is, how it is caused, how it affects some sufferers, and its potential tragic outcome. Students’ opinions on the story’s effectiveness may vary, but they should support their opinions with logical reasons, such as that beginning an article with a personal story can make people care more about what they are reading.)

• According to the article, what causes C.T.E.? How do social pressures around youth sports lead to an increased risk of teens developing C.T.E.? (Cause & effect)(C.T.E. is caused by cumulative damage to the brain through repeated blows to the head, such as the ones football players absorb while being tackled. Because of pressure to start young in contact sports, players end up taking more—and more damaging—hits over a longer period of time.)

• Review the text features on pages 11, 12, and 13. How do these text features contribute to the article? (Integrate multiple sources, visual analysis)(The photos in the text box on page 11 starkly show the damage contact sports can do to the brain and help to make C.T.E. a less abstract concept. The map on page 12 shows the concentration of football players in each state, which gives the reader an idea of where C.T.E. might be most prevalent. The graph on page 13 shows that football might be growing again in popularity, which means future cases of C.T.E. might increase as well.) 

• According to the section “The Mounting Evidence,” what changes are experts proposing to help mitigate the risk of C.T.E.? (Problem & solution)(Besides experts recommending that young players avoid tackle football for as long as possible, U.S.A. Football has introduced changes that limit contact between players in the youth game, including making the field smaller, eliminating kickoffs and punts, and having players start each play in a crouch instead of the traditional three-point stance.) 

• What is the purpose of the last section, “An American Ritual”? What can you infer from the quotes from the families in this section? Explain. (Text structure, make inferences) (The purpose of the final section is to explore the love that Americans have for tackle football and to consider whether our attachment to the game has put, and may continue to put, young athletes at risk of developing C.T.E. The families in this section are quoted as saying that, if their children were still alive, they would have continued to let them play because of how much they loved the game. The reader can infer from this that slowing down the rate of student athletes who develop C.T.E. may be very challenging.) 

• Based on details in the article, do you think the number of C.T.E. cases will continue to increase in the future? Explain. (Make predictions)(Students’ responses will vary, but they should support their ideas with evidence from the text. For example, they may say that cases might fall now that we understand C.T.E.’s root cause and organizations are working to mitigate the problem. They might also predict that cases will rise due to football’s rebounding popularity and the seemingly intractable love for the game shown even by some parents who have lost children to it.)

6. Writing Prompt
Create a pamphlet to educate the public about the potential dangers of C.T.E. and to recommend protective measures that young athletes and their families can take to avoid it.

7. Video
Watch the video about football and C.T.E. What does it add to your understanding?

8. Classroom Debate
Should flag football replace tackle football?

9. Quiz & Skills
Use the quiz to assess comprehension and Analyze the Graphs to practice data analysis.