The Boys of Winter
Grade Band: High School
Reading Level 3.7
Adapted Book Usage
These adapted resources are provided by the ACCESS Project at the University of
Delaware’s Center for Disability Studies for teachers to help students with significant
intellectual disabilities participate in the general curriculum. Please limit the use and
distribution of these materials accordingly. Please read and purchase each original text
(cited by author) prior to using the adapted text.
ACCESS Project
Center for Disabilities Studies
University of Delaware
461 Wyoming Road, Newark, DE 19716
Phone: 302-831-1052
Email: deaccessproject@udel.edu
www.deaccessproject.org
Prologue
In 1980, the Olympics were held in Lake Placid, New York. The United States ice
hockey team wanted to win, but the Soviet Union was known as the best team.
The Soviet team was bigger and knew more about hockey than the U.S. team. The
U.S. Olympic hockey team wanted to win for their country.
The United States and the Soviet Union did not get along. The Soviets believed in
communism, but Americans believed in democracy. The countries were very
close to having a war. People were scared. The U.S. Olympic hockey team wanted
to win for their country.
The Coach of the U.S. team was named Coach Brooks. He found the best players
from all over the U.S. They were not used to playing on the same team. Brooks
was a tough coach, but he taught them to work together. He loved coaching
hockey. The U.S. Olympic hockey team wanted to win for their country.
First Period
Chapter One
The U.S. team and the Soviet team played once before the Olympics. The U.S. lost
this game. Everyone thought that the U.S. would also lose in the Olympics. The
U.S. played the Soviet Union hockey team.
At the Olympics, the U.S. played many teams. They won their first five games. The
U.S. team was strong. They had practiced hard. Their next game was against the
Soviet Union. The U.S. team was very nervous. The Soviet team was confident.
They expected an easy win against the U.S. team. The U.S. played the Soviet
Union hockey team.
The game started when the referee dropped the puck onto the ice. The Soviets
got it. The U.S. team was trying to play a strong defense, but the Soviets scored. It
was 1-0! The players and the fans were tense. The U.S. players got the puck and
scored. The game was tied, 1-1! The U.S. played the Soviet Union hockey team.
Chapter Two
The player who scored the U.S. goal was named Buzz Schneider. He could hit the
puck harder than anyone else on the team. When he was a kid, he played hockey
on frozen lakes and ponds. In college, he played for Coach Brooks. Now he was
playing for Coach Brooks again at the Olympics. In the first period, both teams
scored goals.
After the U.S. tied the game, there were a few minutes left in the first period. The
Soviets were playing well, but not as well as they did before the Olympics. The
American goalie, Jim Craig, blocked many shots. He was good at staying focused
on the game. In the first period, both teams scored goals.
In the last three minutes of the period, one of the Soviets scored again, making
the score 2-1. The first period was almost over. The U.S. team wanted one more
chance to shoot. In the first period, both teams scored goals.
Chapter Three
With only a few seconds left in the first period, a new U.S. player came into the
game, named Mark Johnson. Right as the clock ran out, he shot the puck and
scored. The officials decided that the goal counted! At the end of the 1st period,
the game was tied, 2-2.
After the first period, both teams went into the locker rooms. The Soviet coach
was angry that the U.S. team scored. He blamed the goalie. The coach put a new
goalie in for the rest of the game. At the end of the 1st period, the game was tied,
2-2.
Neither the U.S. nor the Soviet Union trusted each other. There were a lot of
policeman at Lake Placid. They wanted to protect the players and the fans. At the
end of the 1st period, the game was tied, 2-2.
THE SECOND PERIOD
Chapters Four, Five, and Six
When the second period started, the Soviets knew there was something different
about the American team. The U.S. team had very unique players. The Americans
kept control of the puck. Then one of the Soviets got it and scored, making it 3-2.
The U.S. goalie was very disappointed. The Soviets played hard in the second
period.
Just as one of the Soviets was about to shoot again, an American player stopped
him. His name was Ken Morrow. He was tall and strong. Morrow was known for
being a nice guy. He played aggressively, but he was never mean. The Soviets
played hard in the second period.
The U.S. team tried a couple more shots against the Soviet goalie, but none of
them went in. The U.S. team got the puck from the Soviets several times, but they
did not score. The Soviets missed many shots too. The Soviets played hard in the
second period.
There were a few minutes left in the second period. The Soviets were about to
score, but two U.S. players blocked them. The Soviets were winning by one point
at the end of the second period. The Soviets played hard in the second period.
INTERMISSION
After the 2nd period, the teams went to the locker rooms again. Jim Craig, the U.S.
goalie, was upset. The U.S. was losing the game. He loved hockey and didn’t want
to lose this game. Craig sat by himself and prepared for the final period of the
game. Craig wanted to beat the Soviet Union.
THE THIRD PERIOD
Chapters Seven and Eight
Four minutes into the third period, the pace of the game slowed down. When one
of the Soviets got the puck, Mark Wells stopped him from scoring. Wells was a
great player. The U.S. played their best in the third period.
There were only thirteen minutes left to play in the game against the Soviet
Union. One of the Soviets got a penalty. He had to sit out of the game for two
minutes. This helped the U.S. For two minutes, the U.S. had one more player than
the Soviets. One of the U.S. players, Johnson, shot the puck and scored! The score
was tied again, 3-3. The crowd cheered. The U.S. played their best in the third
period.
Next, Mike Eruzione went into the game. As the captain of the team, he loved
hockey and always played his hardest. Eruzione got the puck. One of the Soviets
tried to block him, but he pushed past. Eruzione shot the puck. The Soviet goalie
tried to block it. But the goalie missed. The U.S. scored again, 4-3. There were ten
minutes left in the game! The U.S. played their best in the third period.
Chapter Nine
Craig, the U.S. goalie, focused on not letting the puck get passed him. The rest of
the team played the best defense they could. Coach Brooks tried something new.
He had the players go onto the ice for a short period of time. This way, they could
play their hardest then rest while a new player stepped in. The U.S. hockey team
won the game!
The Soviets kept trying to get a goal, but they could not score. Pretty soon, there
were ten seconds left. Then 3-2-1…the U.S. won! The U.S. players gathered
around Craig. They shouted, cheered, and hugged. Coach Brooks went right to the
locker room when the game was over. He cried because he was so happy. The
Soviets were disappointed. The U.S. players and fans went into the streets to
celebrate together. The U.S. hockey team won the game!
The Soviet Union was the better team, but the U.S. tried harder. The U.S. winning
the game represented hard work, hope, and the importance of a team. The U.S.
hockey team won the game!
POSTGAME
After the U.S. beat the Soviet Union, they still had to beat one more team to win
the Olympics. In a tough game, they beat Finland by two points. The U.S. team
won the gold medal. They were the best hockey team in the world! It gave
Americans hope for their country.
The Boys of Winter Vocabulary Definitions
* This list is a vocabulary reference tool.
Teachers should choose existing words and/or create additional words based on student needs.
Essential Vocabulary
Important vocabulary
Olympic Games-a sports competition held every four years where countries compete against each
other
Hockey-a game played on ice where players skate and try to score goals into a net
Communism-a type of government in which all goods are supposed to be shared equally
Democracy-a government in which people hold power
Soviet Union- a country now called Russia
Practiced-to work at something over and over again
Confident-sure of one’s self
Puck-a hard rubber disk used in hockey
Period-a portion of time, hockey games are made up of three periods (20 minutes each)
Tied-when teams have the same score in a game
Goalie-a player who tries to stop the other team from scoring in the net
Officials-people who make sure the players follow the rules of a game
Blamed-held someone responsible for something bad that happened
Unique-unusual, special, one of a kind
Disappointed-feeling upset when something doesn’t happen the way you wanted or hoped
Aggressively-forcefully, acting ready to attack
Prepared-to be ready
Penalty-a punishment for breaking a rule in a game
Captain-the leader of a team
Focused-paid attention to
Defense-the part of a team that stops the other side from scoring
Hope-wanting something and expecting it to happen
Gold Medal-a prize given to the winning team at an Olympic game
The Boys of Winter Vocabulary Object List
* This list is a vocabulary reference tool.
Teachers should choose existing words and/or create additional words based on student needs.
Vocabulary
Olympic Games
Hockey
Communism
Democracy
Soviet Union
Practiced
Confident
Puck
Period
Tied
Goalie
Officials
Blamed
Unique
Disappointed
Aggressively
Prepared
Penalty
Captain
Focused
Defense
Hope
Gold
Object
Four Olympic Rings
Hockey Stick
Balance
Demonstrate voting; Ballot
Tactile Map
Have students practice a skill
Demonstrate giving yourself a pat on the back or thumbs up
Puck
Stop Watch
Score Board
Net
Whistle
Demonstrate pointing
Present of set of objects with similar characteristics except for one
Demonstrate covering your head
Demonstrate making a fist
Demonstrate readiness for a task (Sit in seat, feet on floor, hands on desk)
Yellow Flag; Penalty Flag
Hat
Glasses
Tactile Stop Sign
Toy Dove; Flag
Gold Coin/Medal
Boys of Winter Public Domain Vocabulary Pictures
*This list is a vocabulary reference tool. Teachers should choose existing words and/or create additional words based on student needs.
Olympic Games
Hockey
Communism
Democracy
Soviet Union
Practiced
Confident
Puck
Period
Tied
Goalie
Officials
Boys of Winter Public Domain Vocabulary Pictures
*This list is a vocabulary reference tool. Teachers should choose existing words and/or create additional words based on student needs.
Blamed
Unique
Disappointed
Aggressively
Prepared
Penalty
Captain
Focused
Defense
Hope
Gold Medal