What is NM Battle of the Books?

The New Mexico Battle of the Books is a competitive extracurricular reading program for students in grades 4-8.  It encourages the youth of New Mexico to read high quality literature, have fun, and compete by demonstrating their knowledge of books.  Participants read and meet with their peers throughout the year, then enter a quiz-style battle  in which they are asked about books that they have read from the year’s designated Battle of the Books reading list. 

Who can sponsor a team, and who can participate?

New Mexico Battle of the Books teams can be sponsored by public, private and home schools, public libraries or other organizations.  Participants can compete in either the Elementary or Middle School Division.  Students in grades 4-5 compete in the Elementary Division, while students in grades 7-8 compete in the Middle School Division.  Sixth graders can participate in either Elementary School or Middle School levels.

Where and when are the State Battles?

There are three New Mexico Battle of the Books competitions held around New Mexico on the same date; one in Central New Mexico and two other Battles held at rotating locations in New Mexico.  There are two important reasons for holding three state Battles on the same day.  First, it keeps the number of participants at each Battle more manageable.  Second, we have heard from many sponsors that travelling far distances and the associated costs can make it very hard for their teams to participate in Battles.  As a sponsor, you can choose to register your team(s) for the Battle location of your choice, whichever one is more convenient for you.  All of the Battles use the same books, questions, format and rules, which stipulate that participants must read at least 10 books from their appropriate list to be eligible to compete.

The State Battles typically take place on a Saturday at the end of April each school year, and registration typically opens in early March.  When registering, sponsors will be required to register their students in teams of one to eight students.  A sponsor can register more than one team; however, each team must bring one volunteer on the day of the battle.  While teams enter the Statewide Battle as a group, when they arrive at the Battle, participants are placed on mixed teams that consist of children from other schools all over the state.

Who runs NM Battle of the Books?

The NM Battle of the Books steering committee meets twice a year and is very open to your suggestions, questions and participation.  Our goal is to ensure that Battle of the Books competitions take place in New Mexico every year.  We help connect past site coordinators to upcoming Battle site coordinators.  We have been developing and maintaining a database of information that is useful for Battle of the Books site coordinating committees.  Please contact anyone on the steering committee with questions or input.