Battle of the Books

Your student has the opportunity to participate in Battle of the Books this year. Battle of the Books is a reading program designed for high-ability readers in the Advanced Learning Program and those who are not part of the program but enjoy reading. Our first meeting will be October 5th in Mrs. Victor-Baker’s room. The purpose of this program is to encourage students to read and to give recognition to those students who like to read. Battle of the Books exposes students to quality literature and great authors. Teams will be formed soon at your student’s school. A minimum of four and a maximum of six students will be on each team. Every team will have an adult coach. Participants will read from a pre-selected list of forty books. Your student will be expected to read at least 10 to 12 books. We are looking for students who have a great deal of task commitment and are avid readers. The Battle of the Books reading list is available in your student’s school and at the Des Moines Public Library in the Favorite Lists Category on the computer card catalog, but we may still have to wait awhile for the books to arrive at schools.

In March, the teams will engage in “battles” by answering questions about the books they have read. Although one team eventually outscores the others, we believe everyone in this program is a winner. The highest-scoring team from each school will advance to the regional competition after spring break. The District Final Battle of the Books Competition will be held in April for those winning teams from the regional competitions.