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These March Madness Classroom Ideas Are a Slam Dunk!
Christy Walters
February 15, 2026
March Madness brings energy, excitement, and plenty of teachable moments to your classroom. With the right March Madness classroom ideas, you can channel tournament buzz into meaningful lessons that build reading, writing, and critical thinking skills across subjects.
Using Newsela’s subject products, you can bring basketball-themed learning into ELA, social studies, and STEM without extra prep. These activities help you keep students engaged from tipoff to the final buzzer while staying focused on standards and skill growth.
[Start a March Madness reading bracket](id-bracket)
Key takeaways:
March Madness themes make reading more engaging by turning text selections into a friendly competition.
Literary brackets help students practice comprehension, analysis, and decision-making.
Digital tools like Newsela ELA and Newsela STEM increase participation and make classwide tracking easy.
Brackets aren’t just for basketball. They can be a fun way to motivate readers. By framing reading as a tournament, you give students a clear purpose for close reading, discussion, and voting while keeping energy high throughout the month.
How can you use a March Madness reading bracket to boost engagement?
A reading bracket turns text selection into an event students care about. Over several class periods, students read short fiction or poetry selections, compare them, and vote on which texts advance. Each matchup encourages rereading, discussion, and evidence-based reasoning.
For even more participation, have students create individual brackets on paper or digitally. A classwide bracket lets you track majority picks and spark conversation when opinions differ.
Why should you extend your bracket with nonfiction and STEM texts?
Adding nonfiction STEM articles raises students' thinking and makes voting more meaningful. Students must compare ideas, themes, and information—not just personal preferences—before choosing which text advances.
You can mix these texts directly into your ELA bracket or create a parallel science-focused tournament. Topics included in the selections are:
[Go beyond the bracket with March Madness ELA classroom ideas](id-ela)
Key takeaways:
March Madness ELA activities can support debate, writing, and discussion.
Opinion-based topics help students practice using textual evidence.
Newsela Writing supports feedback, structure, and engagement throughout your writing lessons.
Reading brackets are a great starting point, but March Madness is also a hook for teaching deeper ELA skills. You can use basketball-related topics to spark discussion, support argument writing, and help students practice listening and speaking—and have fun doing it!
How can students debate whether college athletes should get paid?
This topic connects directly to students’ interests and real-world issues. It also gives you a clear way to teach argument skills. With a debate activity, students read content from multiple viewpoints, track evidence, and learn how to respond to opposing ideas respectfully.
To support the debate:
Have students read articles from different viewpoints about the debate topic: Should college athletes be compensated?
Split the class into groups to debate whether college athletes should receive payment for their playing performance and use of their likeness. Use a Debate Rubric to score their participation.
If you’d rather focus on writing, you can use this same topic for an opinion essay. Students can choose a position and support it with evidence from the texts. Assign the task with Newsela Writing so students can get real-time feedback as they draft and revise.
How can competition affect athletes’ mental health and behavior?
March Madness highlights intense competition, making it a strong opportunity to discuss pressure, motivation, and mental health. This topic encourages students to think beyond the scoreboard and consider the human side of the sport.
Help students build informed opinions by sharing articles about:
Students can use these and other texts to prepare for a discussion, have a debate, or construct a short written response.
How can paired texts help students compare themes across genres?
Paired text analysis helps students see how similar ideas appear in both fiction and nonfiction. Basketball-themed texts make this skill more accessible and engaging. You can structure this activity by:
Sharing the fictional story, “Abby Takes Her Shot” by Susan M. Dyckman, about a young basketball player who must wait patiently on the bench for her turn to play.
Assigning a nonfiction article that details ways we can learn to be patient.
Which basketball-themed novels work well for independent or class reading?
Longer tests help students extend their learning beyond short articles. Basketball-themed novels connect sports, identity, and coming-of-age themes in ways that resonate with students. Popular options include:
[Discover the science behind jump shots and free throws](id-sci)
Key takeaways:
March Madness topics can reinforce science and math concepts using real sports examples.
Basketball physics and data help students apply abstract concepts to real-world situations.
Newsela STEM and Generation Genius videos make complex ideas more accessible across grade bands.
Basketball may look effortless on the court, but every shot involves science and math. March Madness gives you a timely way to explore motion, force, energy, and data while keeping students engaged through a familiar and exciting context.
How does science explain basketball performance?
Students often wonder why some players excel at shooting, jumping, or endurance. Basketball provides a natural entry point for exploring how physical and mental factors work together. Use Newsela STEM articles to help students investigate basketball topics such as:
Data analysis helps students see how numbers tell a story. By working with basketball statistics, students learn why collecting and interpreting data matters in real life. Students can explore resources such as:
An article about how the SportVU camera systems revolutionized the sport’s data tracking.
How can video support STEM learning during March Madness?
Using Newsela STEM with Generation Genius videos allows you to reinforce science and math standards while keeping lessons visual and engaging. Videos help break down complex ideas and work well as lesson openers, review tools, or discussion starters.
These video lessons also include a 5E lesson plan, key vocabulary, discussion questions, and DIY activities to minimize the prep you need to do to bring these concepts to life for your students. Try these video selections:
[Spotlight March Madness history and traditions in your elementary social studies classes](id-ss)
Key takeaways:
March Madness classroom ideas can support elementary social studies instruction.
Nonfiction texts help students learn about traditions, economics, and competition.
Discussion and writing activities build comprehension and collaboration skills.
What is March Madness, and why does it matter beyond sports?
Students often recognize brackets and team logos, but they may not understand what March Madness represents. Articles about the tournament help students learn how large events influence culture, media, and money. To build background knowledge, you can:
Keep the competition going with the Independent Reading Challenge
March Madness excitement doesn’t have to end when the final buzzer sounds. The Newsela Independent Reading Challenge brings that same competitive energy into reading all year long. Students can set goals, track progress, and work toward earning rewards, just like advancing through a bracket.
Not a Newsela Customer yet? You can access the Independent Reading Challenge and other differentiated content and activities by creating an account and starting your free 45-day trial of our premium subject products!
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