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Wearing red Battle of the Books T-shirts, Hart Schools fifth-graders culminated a four-month literacy project Thursday with a game-show style competition among classes.
With literacy support specialist Kim Cologero as moderator, the fifth grade class teams were given in turns a quote from a book, and they had to name the title and author of that book.
The students had each read a number of books from a list of 80 childrens books beginning in January. After reading each book, they had to write up a story map, including the main characters, the setting, the main events, the problems and the solutions in the story. Prizes such as mini-Boggle games, pencils, erasers and magnets were given out as students completed milestones of five, 10 and more books.
I really liked reading all the books and it was fun competing in the battle, said John Edwards, 11, of Laura Kings class, which won the battle.
We get bragging rights, said Melvin Andie, 10, another student in the winning class.
Principal Linda Darling said the Battle had generated more enthusiasm for reading books than she had ever expected. Theyre reading more, I believe, than theyve ever read, she said. We were pleasantly surprised. We didnt realize how motivating the Battle of the Books is.
The most avid reader of the 73 fifth-graders was Sahithi Kollipare of Beverly Boyds class, who read 37 books and won a gift card from Barnes & Noble. Other students who won gift cards for reading the most books in their classes were Kaleha Morgan, Lesly Pineda, Harry Constantine and Anjhana Begum.
In addition to reading and writing about books, students and staff also dressed up as book characters during character parade days. And childrens author, Barbara Robinson, came to Hart School to talk to kids about her book, "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever."
Darling dressed up as the Great Gilly Hopkins, a young girl who goes through foster homes looking for her mother, on Character Parade day. The topics are relevant to kids today, and it propels kids to read the book, Darling said.
Several students said their favorite book was "Maniac Magee" by Jerry Spinelli, a book about a boy who runs away from home and goes through foster family after foster family before sleeping in a zoo and being invited by a friend to come stay with her.
Its just a fun book, and I liked reading how he did all these crazy things, John Edwards said.
Cologero, the organizer of the book competition, had participated in other Battle of the Books at Northeast Elementary School. She said she was pleased with the level of excitement in kids getting ready for the Battle. No matter what the outcome of (the competition), every student who participated is surely a winner, she said.
How many books do you read each week?
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