Battle of the Books: 2008

Thursday, November 13, 2008

6th Grade: Find Your Battle Books in the Catalog!

6th Grade

The Extraordinary Adventures of Aldfred Kropp by Rick Yancy - Through a series of dangerous and violent misadventures, teenage loser Alfred Kropp rescues King Arthur’s legendary sword Excalibur from forces of evil.

Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins - When eleven-year-old Gregor and his two-year-old sister are pulled into a strange underground world, they trigger and epic battle involving men, bats, rats, cockroaches, and spiders while on a quest foretold by ancient prophecy.

Hurt Go Happy by Ginny Rorby - When thirteen-year-old Joey Willis, deaf since the age of six, meets Dr. Charles Mansell and his chimpanzee Sukari, who uses sign language, her world blooms with possibilities, but that of the chimp begins to narrow.

Inkheart by Cornelia Funke - Twelve-year-old Meggie learns that her father, who repairs and binds books for a living, can “read” fictional characters to life when one of those characters abducts them and tries to force him into service.

Listen! by Stephanie Tolan - During her solitary convalescence from a crippling accident, twelve-year-old Charley finds a wild dog, and the arduous process of training him leads her to explore her feelings about her mother’s death two years earlier.

The Merchant of Death by D.J. MacHale - Bobby Pendragon is a seemingly normal fourteen-year-old boy. He has a family, a home, and even Marley, his beloved dog. But there is something very special about Bobby. He is going to save the world. Before he can object, he is swept off to an alternate dimension known as Denduron, a territory inhabited by strange beings, ruled by a magical tyrant, and plagued by dangerous revolution.

The Night Tourist by Katherine Marsh - After fourteen-year-old classics prodigy Jack Peru has a near fatal accident he meets Euri, a young ghost who introduces him to New York’s Underworld, where those who died in New York reside until they are ready to move on, and Jack vows to find his dead mother there.

Once Upon a Marigold by Jean Ferris - A young man with a mysterious past and a penchant for inventing things leaves the troll who raised him, meets an unhappy princess he has loved from afar, and discovers a plot against her and her father.

Rules by Cynthia Lord - Frustrated by her life with an autistic brother, twelve-year-old Catherine longs for a normal existence but her world is further complicated by a friendship with a young paraplegic.

Shackleton’s Stowaway by Victoria McKernan - A fictionalized account of the adventures of eighteen-year-old Perce Blackborow, who stowed away for the 1914 Shackleton Antarctic expedition and, after their ship Endurance was crushed by ice, endured many hardships, including the loss of the toes of his left foot to frostbite, during the newly two-year journey across the sea and ice.

7th & 8th Grade: Find Your Battle Books in the Catalog

7th & 8th Grade

Alphabet of Dreams by Susan Fletcher - Fourteen-year-old Mitra, of royal Persian lineage, and her five-year-old brother Babak, whose dreams foretell the future, flee for their lives in the company of the magus Melchoir and two other Zoroastrian priests, traveling through Persia as they follow star signs leading to a new-born king in Bethlehem.

Before We Were Free by Julia Alvarez - In the early 1960’s in the Dominican Republic, 12-year-old Anita learns that her family is involved in the underground movement to end the bloody rule of the dictator, General Trujillo.

Day of Tears by Julius Lester - When gambling debts and greed enter into the Butler household, Pierce Butler decides to host a slave auction, breaking his promise not to sell Emma, his most-valued slave and the caretaker of his children–a decision that brings about unexpected consequences.

Dragon’s Keep by Janet Lee Carey - In 1145 AD, as foretold by Merlin, fourteen-year-old Rosalind, who will be the 21st Pendragon Queen of Wilde Island, has much to accomplish to fulfill her destiny, while hiding from people the dragon’s claw she was born with that reflects only one of her mother’s dark secrets.

Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick - When his younger brother is diagnosed with leukemia, thirteen-year-old Steven tries to deal with his school life, complicated emotions, and his desire to support his desire to support his family.
family.

Heat by Mike Lupica - Pitching prodigy Michael Arroyo is on the run from social services after being banned from playing Little League baseball because rival coaches don’t believe he is only 12 years old and he has no parents to offer them proof.

Leonardo’s Shadow: Or, My Astonishing Life as Leonardo da Vinci’s Servant by Christopher Grey - Fifteen-year-old Giacomo, servant to Leonardo da Vinci, helps his procrastinating master finish painting “The Last Supper” while also trying to find clues to his parentage and pursue his onw career as an artist in late fifteenth-century Milan.

Life as We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer - Through journal entries sixteen-year-old Miranda describes her family’s struggle to survive after a meteor hits the moon causing worldwide tsunamis, earthquakes, and volcanic
eruptions.

The Lightning Thief by Rick Riodan - After learning that the father he never knew is Poseidon, the God of the Sea, Percy Jackson is transferred from boarding school to Camp Half-Blood, a summer camp for demigods, and becomes involved in a quest to stop a war between the gods.

Mortal Engines by Philip Reeve - In the distant future, when cities move about and consume smaller towns, a fifteen-year-old apprentice is pushed out of London by the man he most admires and must seek answers in perilous Out-Country, aided by one girl and the memory of
another.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

High School: Find Your Books!

Afterlife by Gary Soto - A senior at East Fresno High School lives on as a ghost after his murder in the bathroom of a club where he has gone to dance.

Bang! by Sharon Flake - A teenage boy must face the harsh realities of inner city life, a disintegrating family, and destructive temptations as he struggles to find his identity as a young man.

Big Mouth & Ugly Girl by Joyce Carol Oates - When sixteen-year-old Matthew is accused of threatening to blow up his high school and his friends turn against him, an unlikely classmate comes to his aid.

Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry - Lame and suddenly orphaned, Kira is mysterious removed from her squalid village to live in the palatial Council Edifice, where she is expected to use her gifts as a weaver to do the bidding of the all-powerful Guardians.

I Am Rembrandt's Daughter by Lynn Cullen - In Amsterdam in the mid-1600s, Cornelia's life as the illegitimate child of renowned painter Rembrandt is marked by plague, poverty, and despair at ever earning her father's love, until she sees hope for a better future in the eyes of a wealthy suitor.

Just in Case by Meg Rosoff - Convinced that fate is out to get him, fifteen-year-old David Case assumes a new identity in the hope of avoiding what he believes is certain doom.

Tithe by Holly Black - Sixteen-year-old Kaye, who has been visited by faeries since childhood, discovers that she herself is a magical faerie creature with a special destiny.

Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson - After finally getting noticed by someone other than school bullies and his ever-angry father, seventeen-year-old Tyler enjoys his tough new reputation and the attentions of a popular girl, but when life starts to go bad again, he must choose between transforming himself or giving in to his destructive thoughts.

What About BOB? Everything you need to know about the Battle of the Books 2009

The Battle of the Books is a competition where teams made up of five teens read the chosen books and then participate in a trivia contest about those books. It’s a fun way to get some recreational reading done and actually get rewarded for it with some great prizes.

As a team, you need to assign the books to be read by the various team members. You can have each team member read two books, have all team members read all of the books, or some combination between. It’s up to you.

You will need to have a responsible person who’s 18 years of age or older to be your Team Manager. The Team Manager is there to help you get organized and provide transportation on the night of the event. Many teams ask a teacher, a parent, or their school librarian to be their team manager.

Here are some of the Rules about checking out Battle Books

1. Books may be borrowed for 1 week and renewed once.
2. A limit of 2 books is allowed on a team member’s card at any given time.
3. The books can only be borrowed on a library card belonging to a team member. Team managers should not check out books for their team members. Copies may be available through your school libraries, Sewickley Public Library, or Moon Public Library.
4. Overdue Fines are $.25 per day for Battle Books.
5. If the library doesn’t have the book because they’ve all been checked out, ask a reference librarian to order one for you from another library. (This service is free all the time.)

So what actually happens on the night of the battle you ask? Well here it is in a nutshell: You will need to arrive at the Hansen Library 15 minutes early so that you can sign in and set up your table. Each team will have a pad of paper, a pencil. Your Team Manager will actually be a Team Scorekeeper for another team to be named that night.

The Battle Moderator will begin by asking the first question twice. At the end of the second time, the Timekeeper will allow 20 seconds for teams to deliberate and write down their answers. After 20 seconds, one team will have the chance to answer out loud (the answering team will vary every question.) The Battle Moderator will announce the correct answer and the Team Scorekeepers will mark how many points were won. If your team answers correctly you get 4 points plus a bonus point if you can give the last name of the author. This means that each question is potentially worth 5 points. Answers must be specific. The moderator and judges will decide if an answer given is correct, and that decision is final. There will be three rounds with one question from each book per round.

At the end of each round, scorecards will be collected and verified. At the end of the third round, the Judges will tally all of the scores. If there is a tie, a special lightning round will take place between the tied teams. Once a clear winner has been made, the Battle Moderator will announce the winners. The top three teams will win prizes.

So, are you interested? To get started grab a booklist and a registration form. Both will be available on this blog and in the Teen Area on Monday, December 1. You’ll need to find four friends in your grade group, find a responsible adult to be a Team Manager, create a name for your team, and start reading!!! All final registration forms are due at Sewickley on Monday, January 26th by 9PM or at Moon by 8PM.

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Tips for Team Managers 2009

Here are some tips for Team Managers. Of course you want your team to do well, but more important than that is that they all have fun. Here are some guidelines and tips to help you help them do well and have fun.

Make sure that each team member understands which books on the reading list he/she is expected to read.

Meet with the team regularly to offer encouragement, check on reading progress, foster team cohesiveness and to help team members learn author’s names and facts from books.

Act as communication link between the library and team members and parents with all information regarding the Battle of the Books. Please keep us informed of any problems or changes. You may email Kelly at rottmundk@einetwork.net

Make sure your team demonstrates sportsmanlike behavior before and during the battle.

Make sure your team members and their families understand the rules of the Battle and expectations the evening of the Battle.

Possibly provide transportation for your team members.

Make sure they arrive on time at Sewickley Academy's Hansen Library (6th, 7th & 8th grade battles: 6:45, High School Battle: 6:15.)

During the Battle each Team Manager will act as scorekeeper for another team. You will be asked to:

Ensure that the team you are monitoring stops writing at the end of the 20-second time limit(whether answer is complete or not.)

Record the number of points earned for each question.

Remain focused on the team you are monitoring. (Please remember that these teens also need your encouragement.)

Build Team Spirit

Help them come up with a descriptive Team Name.

Decorate team t-shirts.

Have your team wear the same color or item of clothing to the Battle.

Practice, Practice, Practice

Decide who will read each book. You will probably want more than one person to read each title.

Decide how often you will meet to discuss the books.

Hold “mock” battles or “Jeopardy” style games based on the books.

Have kids make up some of their own practice questions to quiz each other during the meetings.

Coaches may want to read all the books.

Seek to understand the characters and the setting of the books. Then, if the children have to guess on an answer they may be correct.

Encourage and Reward

Give words of praise and encouragement.

Serve snacks at the meetings.

Play a game before your meetings.

Have a pizza party or ice cream outing at the completion of the Battle.

Keep it fun and make happy memories!

2009 Battle of the Books Information

Information on the2009 Battle of the Books

(Save the Dates!)

6th grade: Monday, March 2rd 2009 - 7PM

(Sewickley Academy's Hansen Library)

Booklist & Registration Form

7th & 8th Grade: Tuesday, March 3th 2009 - 7PM

(Sewickley Academy's Hansen Library)

Booklist & Registration Form

High School: Monday, March 9th 2009 6:30PM

(Sewickley Academy's Hansen Library)

Booklist & Registration Form

The Booklists for the Battle are now available:

on this Blog

at area school libraries

Moon Public Library

Sewickley Public Library

There will be no physical informational meetings again this year. Instead, we'll interact virtually within this blog. You are encouraged to ask questions via the comments on each post. This will allow everyone to see your question and my answers. Hopefully this will allow busy teens and Team Managers to get all of the information that they need to participate successfully. If you have a question for me that you would not like everyone to see,you can email Kelly at Sewickley at rottmundk@einetwork.net or Heather at Moon at panellah@einetwork.net.