Battle of the Books

Since my return to the states, I've learned a lot about the educational system. The Battle of the Books is one of those things that I had never heard of before. The idea is to encourage students to read novels that are picked by a committee to cover different genres and levels of reading ability. They are geared towards upper elementary students, middle and high school students.

Any school participating can decide how they will set up their own Battle of the Books. In one school, I saw March Madness type tournament charts on the walls, with the books at each end of the chart. The school included 4th - 6th graders. Some schools only do 6th grade as a mandatory activity that all have to participate in, and then some schools do it as a voluntary activity in addition to the curriculum. The nice thing about this is that the school library will carry all the titles in several copies, as well as the local libraries, to support many students reading the same titles.

If you google the term Battle of the Books, you're bound to find all sorts of resources. I decided I would read this year's books, since I feel a bit out of touch with these current selection of novels for young readers.

So far I have read Garvey's Choice by Nikki Grimes, Save Me a Seat by Sarah Weeks and Nine, Ten: A September 11 Story by Nora Raleigh Baskin. In order of favorite so far, 1. Nine, Ten, 2. Save Me a Seat, 3. Garvey's Choice. 

Nine,Ten was a tear jerk-er for me. Just like so many Americans, the events of September 11, 2001, have left huge inconsolable feelings in my heart. I haven't been able to actually watch any of the movies/TV shows or read books based of the real and tragic events in our history. I was anxious reading it, and I had to stop for a few days because I knew what was to come in the end. I'm so glad I did read it. The story is full of great points of views, and I think this is a must read for any young student. It's really about acceptance and compassion for the people in our communities, those we know and don't know, which are great life skills to have. 

I haven't chosen the next book from this school year's list. Anyone else reading these books? Any top picks to read next?