Cover of When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop

When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop

by Laban Carrick Hill

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Assigned across 1 curriculum list · 1 state

Grade placement varies by school — the median assigned book spans 4 grade levels (83% span three or more, across 13,258 source-cited assignments).

On reading-award lists:Texas Bluebonnet Award

When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop by Laban Carrick Hill is assigned in US schools at grades 3–6. It appears across 1 curriculum reference and 1 state, sourced from state DOE pages and AP/IB/Common Core syllabi. Every citation below links to the primary source.

This page shows where When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop is assigned in US schools — curricula, states, grades, and the primary-source citations behind each placement. Not a summary or study guide.

Grade range
Grades 3–6
Age range
Ages 8–11
Pages
30
Reading time
about 35 minutes (est.)
First published
2013
Genre
Realistic Fiction
ISBN-13
9781338193183

New to these terms? Reading levels by grade

More formats & details

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About this book

Before there was hip hop, there was DJ Kool Herc. On a hot day at the end of summer in 1973 Cindy Campbell threw a back-to-school party at a park in the South Bronx. Her brother, Clive Campbell, spun the records. He had a new way of playing the music to make the breaks the musical interludes between verses longer for dancing. He called himself DJ Kool Herc and this is When the Beat Was Born.

Similar grade-level books

See all books like When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop→ — matched on theme + reading level.

Why widely assigned

This Realistic Fiction title, typically at grades 3–6. Written in the 2010s; pairs with curriculum units on break dancing; cited across 1 curriculum framework.

Themes

break dancing

Where this book is assigned

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Common questions

What grade level is When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop?
When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop is most commonly assigned in US schools in grades 3–6. Specific grade placement varies by curriculum — AP Literature and IB English Literature typically use it in grades 11-12.
How long does it take to read When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop?
It takes about 35 minutes to read When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop (30 pages) at an average adult reading pace of about 250 words per minute — roughly 35 minutes. Faster or slower readers will vary; the estimate is a planning guide for assigning the book.
What curricula assign When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop?
When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop appears on reading lists for Texas Bluebonnet Award. Each assignment on this site links to its primary-source citation.
Is When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop banned in schools?
When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop does not appear in PEN America's Index of School Book Bans 2022-2024. No documented multi-district removals on record, but individual districts may challenge titles locally.
What themes does When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop explore?
Central themes in When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Creation of Hip Hop include break dancing. These themes match how the book is discussed in most curriculum guides and AP Literature prompts.

Why this book is on this list

How we classify

Each dimension below is sourced from a public reference. The full framework is documented on the classification standard page.

Lexile measure
Not classified — this book has no published Lexile measure.
Grade band
Grades 3–6 — drawn from state ELA frameworks and AP/IB syllabi citing this book.
Curriculum alignment
Cited in 1 curriculum on this site (see “Where assigned” above for primary-source links).
State-level evidence
Cited in 1 state ELA framework or DOE list (see citations above).
Removal / banning records
No tracked removal or challenge records in cited sources.
Seasonal / contextual tags
Tagged for: book-club.

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