Weekly Updates

Saturday, February 28th

Heritage had amazing battles this week!  5th/6th had one of their best battles to date, but unfortunately they did not move on.  We are so insanely proud of this team.  They showed amazing team work and supported each other through some tough losses.  We cannot wait to celebrate their amazing season in our end of the season celebration (date TBD - stay posted to the webpage for updates!)

3rd/4th has moved onto Branch Semifinals!  Yay!!  🥳🎉  Things will start to move quickly now!  We battle on Monday, March 2nd @ 6 p.m. at the Highlands Ranch Library.  Branch Finals will be Tuesday, March 3rd @ 5 p.m.  All things Battle of the Books will be wrapped up by the end of next week.  We encouraged students to hang on and stay resolute.  Keep reading those books, working practice sets, reviewing the Matched Themes workbook and the coach's question bank.  The finish line is in sight!  We are excited to see how far they go!

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3rd/4th grade will practice:

•  Monday, February 28th @ 7:45 a.m. in the Red Pod.  (please note the slightly later start time)

• If we battle Tuesday night, we will practice Tuesday, March 1st @ 7:45 a.m. in the Red Pod. (please note the slightly later start time)

• Please reach out if your student cannot make it.

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Final Schedule:

• Branch Semifinals:  Monday, March 2nd @ 6 p.m. Highlands Ranch Library (9292 S. Ridgeline Blvd, Highlands Ranch, CO 80129)

• Branch Finals:  Tuesday, March 3rd @ 5 p.m. Highlands Ranch Library (9292 S. Ridgeline Blvd, Highlands Ranch, CO 80129)

• Wild Card:  Monday, March 9th @ TBD

  • The 4th and 5th District seeds will battle for the 4th place seed in the District Semifinals (NEW THIS YEAR!)

• District Semifinals and Finals:  Wednesday, March 11th @  DCSD Legacy Campus (10035 S Peoria St, Parker, CO 80134)

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Below is a list of items students need to check off the list this week prior to practice:

• Read, read, read (and fill in the Matched Themes workbooks as you go)

• Complete the weekly check in form (either Monday or Tuesday)

• Complete new practice sets each week (practice sets are now available!)

• Review the coach's question bank for your expert books.

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Sunday, February 22nd

Quarterfinal Schedule is out!  The link in the Battle Schedule page will automatically update as we advance, so no need to wait for an official announcement moving forward.

3rd/4th:  Tuesday, February 24th @ 5 p.m. @ Highlands Ranch DCL Library

5th/6th:  Tuesday, February 24th @ 5:30 p.m. @ Highlands Ranch DCL Library

Wednesday, February 18th

Unofficial results show both teams moving forward in the quarterfinals!  Yay!!  🥳🎉  3rd/4th took home another win!  🎉  5th/6th battled hard and continued to fight until the very end!  Their tenacity and resilience kept them in the game and while they didn't win, they racked up valuable points to keep them in the running for branch finals. 

Below are links to the standings.  Click on Elimination Rounds to find the official standings and battle times.  We are waiting for the library to update to confirm the standings.

• 3rd/4th grade (click on Elimination Rounds-->we are in conference B)

• 5th/6th grade (click on Elimination Rounds-->we are in conference B)

🚩🚩🚩Both teams will have practice next week Tuesday, February 24th @ 7:30 a.m. in the Heritage Library.  Please reach out if your student cannot make it.🚩🚩🚩

This week is huge in moving forward!  Battlers need to go into next week's battle not worrying about what place they are, but focusing on doing their best and working as a team.  One of my favorite battles as a coach was when we went into quarterfinals as fourth and we resoundingly beat the first place team.  The Heritage team that year did not let their place define them!  They worked hard before the quarterfinal battle, read like crazy, and went into the battle with confidence and a determined focus to stay positive and supportive throughout the battle whatever the outcome.  Missed questions rolled off of them like rain and they were ready to steal any chance they got.  Heritage has a legacy of winners and fighters!  For the past nine years nearly every team has made it to the quarterfinals.  Such an amazing accomplishment and testimony to the hard work and heart of these students.  While we are explorers, I like to think of us as warriors too (it is a battle after all!).  

The most important thing students can do before now and next week's battle is READ.  📗📘📙

As coaches, we worked very hard this season to make sure all battlers received at least two battles during regular season.  Please note that as we move into finals, substitutions may look different.  Some students will get more battles than others, participation in play off rounds is not guaranteed, and as a reminder, not everyone will get a chance to be speaker.

I'll end this week's update with some fun facts and brag on how amazing these students are!!

• 3rd/4th grade team

  • Scored 207 cumulative points (across four battles)

  • Read 2,309 pages

  • Answered 740 questions in practice (including online practices sets)

• 5th/6th grade team

  • Scored 156 cumulative points (across four battles)

  • Read 2,837 pages

  • Answered 610 questions in practice (including online practices sets)

Current conference standings (as of 2/18/2026)

• • • 3rd/4th:  1st place

    • 5th/6th:  4th place

Final Schedule:

• Branch Quarterfinals:  Tuesday, February 24th @ Highlands Ranch Library (9292 S. Ridgeline Blvd, Highlands Ranch, CO 80129)

• Branch Semifinals:  Monday, March 2nd @ Highlands Ranch Library (9292 S. Ridgeline Blvd, Highlands Ranch, CO 80129)

• Branch Finals:  Tuesday, March 3rd @ Highlands Ranch Library (9292 S. Ridgeline Blvd, Highlands Ranch, CO 80129)

• Wild Card:  Monday, March 9th @ TBD

  • The 4th and 5th District seeds will battle for the 4th place seed in the District Semifinals (NEW THIS YEAR!)

• District Finals:  Wednesday, March 11th @  DCSD Legacy Campus (10035 S Peoria St, Parker, CO 80134)

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Below is a list of items students need to check off the list this week prior to practice:

• Read, read, read (and fill in the Matched Themes workbooks as you go)

• Complete the weekly check in form (either Monday or Tuesday)

• Complete new practice sets each week (practice sets are now available!)

• Review the coach's question bank for your expert books.

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Wednesday, February 11th

Another stellar performance by both teams.  3rd/4th took home another win!  🎉  While 5th/6th battled their hearts out, they were three points shy of a win.  The teams are working together beautifully and pumping each other up not just in battles, but in practice too!  As coaches we are so proud of both teams.  

Both teams have a very good chance of moving forward!  Let's keep reading, working practice sets, going through the coach's question bank, and filling out the matched themes workbook.  With the 4-day weekend ahead, hopefully this will afford for extra time to commit to Battle of the Books.

Each team member in 5th/6th was assigned a book to read this week.  Please be sure you take the time to read your book completely before the next battle.  The questions have been tough for this level across the board, not just for us, and the only thing that will make them easier is more reading and practice.  Please see below for the reread list this week for 5th/6th.  Also, all team members need to make a concerted effort to finish all the practice sets.  I have included a list of practice sets each battler has left to complete (i.e. PS: 8, 11, 14-28 means this battler needs to complete practice sets 8, 11, and 14 through 28).  

*Practice sets 24-28 were just posted today, so this is just a note that all practice sets are complete except for the new ones.  

Andes:  Hamra and the Jungle of Memories (If time:  15 Secrets to Survival) PS:  24-28

Clark:  The Eyes and The Impossible (If time:  The Phantom Tollbooth) PS:  8-10, 17,18, 21, 22, 24-28

Juliette: Unplugged (If time:  The Eyes and The Impossible) PS:  13, 14, 24-28

Lexi: Princess Academy (If time:  15 Secrets to Survival) PS:  14-19, 22-28

Maya: Deep Water (If time:  Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library) PS:  13 - 28

Will: Ella Enchanted (If time:  Hamra and the Jungle of Memories) PS:  8, 10-28

For the 3rd/4th grade team, let's try and reread at least one (and possibly both) of your expert books this week.  There are a couple of students with three books, pick the top two books you feel like you need a refresher on and if you have time to finish your third, that is icing on the cake!  Similarly to our 5th/6th grade team above, I have included list of missing practice sets for each team member.  

*Practice sets 24-28 were just posted today, so this is just a note that all practice sets are complete except for the new ones.  

Adelyn:  24-28

Bela: 16, 24-28

Connor:  24-28

Danny:  24-28

Elia: 7-9, 14-18, 20, 24-28

Jack: 24-28

Josephine: 15-28

Naomi: 4, 6, 8-10, 13-28

The season is not over!  This is the point in the season where battlers can get tired, let's encourage them to dig deep!  Finals are just around the corner.  If there is a book you read three (3) months ago, we need to reread the book.  To move forward, students must keep reading and working.  

Current conference standings (as of 2/11/2026)

• • • 3rd/4th:  1st place

    • 5th/6th:  4th place

Final Schedule:

• Branch Quarterfinals:  Tuesday, February 24th @ Highlands Ranch Library (9292 S. Ridgeline Blvd, Highlands Ranch, CO 80129)

• Branch Semifinals:  Monday, March 2nd @ Highlands Ranch Library (9292 S. Ridgeline Blvd, Highlands Ranch, CO 80129)

• Branch Finals:  Tuesday, March 3rd @ Highlands Ranch Library (9292 S. Ridgeline Blvd, Highlands Ranch, CO 80129)

• Wild Card:  Monday, March 9th @ TBD

  • The 4th and 5th District seeds will battle for the 4th place seed in the District Semifinals (NEW THIS YEAR!)

• District Finals:  Wednesday, March 11th @  DCSD Legacy Campus (10035 S Peoria St, Parker, CO 80134)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Below is a list of items students need to check off the list this week prior to practice:

• Read, read, read (and fill in the Matched Themes workbooks as you go)

• Complete the weekly check in form (either Monday or Tuesday)

• Complete new practice sets each week (practice sets are now available!)

• Review the coach's question bank for your expert books.

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Sunday, February 8th

Happy Super Bowl Sunday!  

Amazing job by both teams last week - 3rd/4th took home a win!  🎉  We continue to see amazing teamwork, support, and sportsmanship by both teams!  

As we are at the half way point of the season, please be sure to mark your calendars for the upcoming final schedule.  The top four (4) teams from each conference move forward.  We have a great chance to move forward with both teams!  Please check calendars and get back to us as soon as possible with any possible conflicts.  The kids have worked hard and continue to do so.  We are going to lock in and look for a double win this week.  Go Heritage Explorers!

Finals Schedule Reminders:

• The top four teams move onto the first round - Branch Quarterfinals

  • Current standings (as of 2/8/2026)

    • 3rd/4th:  1st place

    • 5th/6th:  3rd place

• Each round of finals is single elimination.  If we win, we move on.  If we lose, our battle season is over.

  • Only teams that are moving on will continue to practice.

• There will be a full team celebration once ALL teams are finished for the season (date TBD).

Final Schedule:

• Branch Quarterfinals:  Tuesday, February 24th @ Highlands Ranch Library (9292 S. Ridgeline Blvd, Highlands Ranch, CO 80129)

• Branch Semifinals:  Monday, March 2nd @ Highlands Ranch Library (9292 S. Ridgeline Blvd, Highlands Ranch, CO 80129)

• Branch Finals:  Tuesday, March 3rd @ Highlands Ranch Library (9292 S. Ridgeline Blvd, Highlands Ranch, CO 80129)

• Wild Card:  Monday, March 9th @ TBD

  • The 4th and 5th District seeds will battle for the 4th place seed in the District Semifinals (NEW THIS YEAR!)

• District Finals:  Wednesday, March 11th @  DCSD Legacy Campus (10035 S Peoria St, Parker, CO 80134)

At least two practice sets were posted yesterday and I have put up more tonight.  Each team should have a total of four (4) new practice sets this week.  This is a great way to warm up for our battles this week.  

The season is not over!  Please remind students to keep working hard.  Now is the time to really lock in and keep reading, practicing, and reviewing questions.

The library has asked us to remind parents that you CANNOT communicate with your student(s) during the battle, whether on the sideline or in the huddle.  Instances of this could result in the team being penalized.

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Below is a list of items students need to check off the list this week prior to practice:

• Read, read, read (and fill in the Matched Themes workbooks as you go)

• Complete the weekly check in form (either Monday or Tuesday)

• Complete new practice sets each week (practice sets are now available!)

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Wednesday, January 28th

Amazing job by both teams on last night battles - both teams brought home a win!  🎉  While a win is always exciting, I am most excited for the teamwork, support, sportsmanship, and dedication these teams showed!  Many of the things we practice intentionally in practice each week paid off and showed up.  Keep up the great work!  

• Huge shout out to the 5th/6th grade team!  They missed a few questions, but stayed in the game and pulled out an astonishing five (5) steals and scored the highest points out of all the teams who battled this round!   So insanely proud of this small, but mighty team!

• Huge shout out to the 3rd/4th grade team!  They did not miss a single question and stole the two questions the other team missed, also making them the highest scoring team of the night!  Amazing job!

As I told the teams this morning, let's celebrate our win and then let's look forward to the next battle.  They have to keep working hard and working together.   ❤️

More practice sets have been posted.  Please come back by the end of the week as I am trying to add another two sets for each team.  So in total, battlers will have four (4) new practice sets to complete. 

Reminder, at this point everyone has read all of the books.  The differentiating factors that will impact team selection each week is the extra effort battlers are putting in.  This includes, working on the Matched Themes workbook for their expert books (this would have helped out a ton with our missed questions), completing ALL the practice sets, reviewing the coach's question bank, focused participation in practice, and reading their expert books.  Additionally, I have told students if they have just a few minutes to prepare each week, the best approach is to the read the first 25 pages of each book.  Of the three questions missed, two of the questions were found on page 8 and 9 of the books.  It is so important to review the early details.

5th/6th grade team - Here is the Unplugged excerpt on page 8 where the hair dryer question was located (this was a tough one to find!):

• "The breeze feels like it's coming from a hair dryer set on fricassee" (food preparation technique to dehydrate the skin, generally used for poultry dishes, and create a crispier texture after cooking)

  • This quote is referring to the heat they first experience when the land in Little Rock, Arkansas

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Below is a list of items students need to check off the list this week prior to practice:

• Read, read, read (and fill in the Matched Themes workbooks as you go)

• Complete the weekly check in form (either Monday or Tuesday)

• Complete two (2) practice sets each week (practice sets are now available!)

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Sunday, January 25th

Tuesday (1/27) is our first battle!  T-shirts were passed out last Tuesday (1/20).  Please make sure your student wears their shirt to school on Tuesday (1/27).

• 3rd/4th battles at 5:30 p.m.

• 5th/6th battles at 6:00 p.m.

Please see below for battle night reminders:

• Battle line ups will be posted by the EOD on Monday.  

  • If your name is not in the list of students, that means you are an alternate.  

  • All alternates are required to show up and support the team on the front row with the coaches.  

  • An (S) by your name means you are speaker for the battle.

• Battles will be at Highlands Ranch Library in the conference rooms upstairs.

• Arrive 15 minutes prior to your battle time

  • 3rd/4th grade team - we will meet in the Children's area to review for the battle

  • 5th/6th grade team - please come upstairs and quietly enter the conference room where the 3rd/4th grade team is battling.  Either a coach or one of Coach Melissa's teenagers will bring the team downstairs into the Children's area to review for the battle.

• If a battler does not arrive prior to 10 minutes before our battle time, an alternate will be assigned and there will be NO make up battles for any missed battles.

• Battlers MUST wear their battle shirts in order to participate.

• We will walk up together as a team just a minute or two before our scheduled battle time.  We will not be late, but we intentionally do not arrive early to the conference room for battles.

• Once battlers are dropped off, parents are encouraged to proceed upstairs to the conference room and grab seats.

Sunday, January 18th

Congratulations Naomi on finishing all 10 books! 🎉  

Apologies for the late update!  It's been a crazy sports weekend for the Crooks household.  😵‍💫

Another great practice this week!  The battlers are gearing up for their first battle at the end of the month.  We discussed arrival times and pre-battle preparations, which I will include below.  Remember, if you are aware of any battle conflicts, please reach out as soon as possible

• Arrive 15 minutes prior to your battle time

  • 3rd/4th grade team - we will meet in the Children's area to review for the battle

  • 5th/6th grade team - please come upstairs and quietly enter the conference room where the 3rd/4th grade team is battling.  Either a coach or one of Coach Melissa's teenagers will bring the team downstairs into the Children's area to review for the battle.

• If a battler does not arrive prior to 10 minutes before our battle time, an alternate will be assigned and there will be NO make up battles for any missed battles.

• Battlers MUST wear their battle shirts in order to participate.

• We will walk up together as a team just a minute or two before our scheduled battle time.  We will not be late, but we intentionally do not arrive early to the conference room for battles.

• Once battlers are dropped off, parents are encouraged to proceed upstairs to the conference room and grab seats.

As an expert, students get access to the coach question bank and are responsible for reviewing the questions for their books.  They must request access to the question bank.  Please click on the link below to request access.

• 3rd/4th Grade - COACH QUESTION BANK (for Team Access)-->MUST REQUEST ACCESS

• 5th/6th Grade - COACH QUESTION BANK (for Team Access)-->MUST REQUEST ACCESS

Both teams have now been assigned expert books.  Please see below for those assignments.

I hope everyone enjoys an extra a day off!  See everyone on Wednesday morning!

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Below is a list of items students need to check off the list this week prior to practice:

• Read, read, read (and fill in the Matched Themes workbooks as you go)

• Complete the weekly check in form (either Monday or Tuesday)

• Complete two (2) practice sets each week (practice sets are now available!)

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Monday, January 7th

Congratulations Will, Lexi, Clark, and Juliette on finishing all 10 books! 🎉  The 5th/6th grade team worked so hard over break to finish all of their books!!  So proud of you all!

Thank you so much for everyone getting to practice so early on Wednesday!  We had such a great mock battle!  Ms. Zoey, the librarian, walked us through the rules, the coin toss, a battle, tie breakers, and challenges.  The battlers did amazing!  The mock battle stressed the importance of filling out the Matched Themes workbook.  Both teams had food questions and I guarantee we will see character descriptions crop up throughout the season.

We are getting closer and closer to our first battle.  Be sure to read and reread books, complete practice sets, and fill out the Matched Themes workbook for your expert books.  5th/6th grade team - I will be finalizing expert books this week and share those out on Wednesday.  Have a great weekend!

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Below is a list of items students need to check off the list this week prior to practice:

• Read, read, read (and fill in the Matched Themes workbooks as you go)

• Complete the weekly check in form (either Monday or Tuesday)

• Complete two (2) practice sets each week (practice sets are now available!)

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Monday, December 22nd

Happy Holidays!  Apologies for the delayed update!  My oldest has been out of town for a tournament and I traveled for a bit with her.

I have posted four (4) new practice sets for students to work over the break.  

📅📅REMINDER:  IMPORTANT DATE📅📅

MOCK BATTLE:  Wednesday, January 7th (arrive at 7:15 a.m.)

• The DCL librarians will be coming in and putting on a mock battle for the students!  Please be sure to have your student at practice early on this day.  

Hopefully this break is filled with lots of reading (and family and fun, of course!).  I can't wait to celebrate all the students who finish their 10 books over the break!  

Below is a table showing our experts for both teams.  As you can see our 3rd/4th grade team has been fully assigned and experts are set.   We are still waiting for forms and finishers for our 5th/6th team, so that we can finalize expert assignments.  Our 5th/6th grade team will more than likely have to take three (3) expert books due to the size of the team.  For context as to what it means to be an expert, please check out the previous weeks updates to see a list of what is expected. 

Have a fantastic break and we will see everyone on Wednesday, January 7th, for our mock battle with the DCL librarians.  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Below is a list of items students need to check off the list this week prior to practice:

• Read, read, read (and fill in the Matched Themes workbooks as you go)

• Complete the weekly check in form (either Monday or Tuesday)

• Complete two (2) practice sets each week (practice sets are now available!)

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Thursday, December 11th

Congratulations Adelyn on finishing all 10 books! 🎉

We are deep into practice now and we will be practicing in this format until our first battle.  Our goal is to make it through as many practice sets as possible.  Remember, additional practice sets are posted each week.  Students should review their answers and reference the books when possible.  If a student scores low on the practice set, that is OK, but we do encourage them to take and retake those practice sets to master the details in the books.

If students have read all of the books and are struggling to get another reread in, encourage them to read the first 25 pages of the books they have on hand.  There are so many details in the those first few crucial pages; for example character descriptions, setting, and story introduction and development that will come up in the battle.  These pages are the most difficult to remember because they tend to be less engaging and happen long before the exciting parts come.  By reviewing these pages, students will be ready for those minute details that will invariably show up in battle questions.  

Remind students to fill in the Matched Themes workbook.  Already in practice we have seen foods pop up that students have had trouble recalling.  Jotting down those setting/character descriptions and foods in the workbook while reading, will give them something to quickly look at prior to battles and help to relieve the pressure of trying to frantically reread prior to a battle.

Battlers - Once you have completed at least 8 of the 10 books, please complete this form to let me know the books you want to be an expert on.  In theory, we want you to complete all books prior to choosing experts, but we are getting close to battle season and we need to be able to get students focused on specific books.  **Even if you are assigned as an expert, you MUST complete all 10 books first.** 

What does it mean to be an expert?

• You will read and reread your expert books as many times as possible.

• In the huddles, you are the go-to person for that book and will provide insight if there is a question regarding your expert book.

• Every student will be an expert on at least two books.

• You gain access to the coach's question bank for your books, which you are expected to review throughout the season.

• You will review and contribute to the Matched Themes workbook for your expert books.

See everyone next week!  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Below is a list of items students need to check off the list this week prior to practice:

• Read, read, read (and fill in the Matched Themes workbooks as you go)

• Complete the weekly check in form (either Monday or Tuesday)

• Complete two (2) practice sets each week (practice sets are now available!)

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Friday, December 5th

Congratulations Jack, Josephine, Andes, and Maya on finishing all 10 books! 🎉

Battlers were working hard over the break!  We now have six (6) finishers for the 3rd/4th grade team and our first two (2) finishers for 5th/6th!  AND almost every student finished at least one book over the break!  So proud of how hard everyone is working.

Practice sets are now available!  Please be sure to complete two practice sets each week in lieu of question writing.  

Battlers - Once you have completed at least 8 of the 10 books, please complete this form to let me know the books you want to be an expert on.  In theory, we want you to complete all books prior to choosing experts, but we are getting close to battle season and we need to be able to get students focused on specific books.  **Even if you are assigned as an expert, you MUST complete all 10 books first.** 

What does it mean to be an expert?

• You will read and reread your expert books as many times as possible.

• In the huddles, you are the go-to person for that book and will provide insight if there is a question regarding your expert book.

• Every student will be an expert on at least two books.

• You gain access to the coach's question bank for your books, which you are expected to review throughout the season.

• You will review and contribute to the Matched Themes workbook for your expert books.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Below is a list of items students need to check off the list this week prior to practice:

• Read, read, read (and fill in the Matched Themes workbooks as you go)

• Complete the weekly check in form (either Monday or Tuesday)

• Complete two (2) practice sets each week (practice sets are now available!)

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Tuesday, December 2nd

IMPORTANT UPDATE:

Just a quick reminder regarding weather, if school is delayed, Battle of the Books is cancelled.

Additionally, I am missing t-shirt sizes for several battlers.  Please fill out this form as soon as possible letting us know what size to order for your kiddo.  Any student that does not have a form filled out by 12/3 will be receiving a Youth Large t-shirt.

Fingers crossed we will see you tomorrow!

Wednesday, November 19th

T-shirt colors have been chosen!  Below are the colors for each team (keep scrolling down).  Please fill out this form no later than Wednesday, December 3rd to let us know what size your child needs.  Any student that does not have a form filled out by 12/3 will be receiving a Youth Large t-shirt.

Students came home with a TENTATIVE Battle Schedule (it is a hard copy).  Let's go ahead and pencil these dates in.  I did receive confirmation we are on Tuesdays, so I am assuming if there are any changes, they would be minor (i.e. time of battle).  If you see any initial conflicts, please reach out as soon as possible.  This will help us immensely when we begin to think about battle line ups.

🚩🚩EXCITING UPDATE🚩🚩

We should have questions written for all of the books by the end of the month!  🎉  This allows for an exciting transition for the students.  Instead of writing 10 questions before each practice, they will now complete practice question sets before practice.  

• The first practice question sets are available NOW!  

• Practice sets consist of 10 questions and should take students no more than 10 minutes for each set.  

  • We only have 30 seconds to answer each question if we are the receiving team in a battle, so students should not be spending more than 30 seconds on each question.  They will type the title (spelling does not matter) in the form for each question.  

• Tickets will be given for every practice set completed (as long as an effort has been made).  

  • If a student answers with a question mark (?), "I don't know", "idk", leaves it blank, etc, they will not earn a ticket for the set.  Students can take the sets as many times as they want.

• A minimum of two (2) practice sets will be published each week.

📅📅IMPORTANT DATES📅📅

MOCK BATTLE:  Wednesday, January 7th (arrive at 7:15 a.m.)

• The DCL librarians will be coming in and putting on a mock battle for the students!  Please be sure to have your student at practice early on this day.  

TENTATIVE BATTLE SCHEDULE:  

• 3rd/4th grade battle schedule

• 5th/6th grade battle schedule

*The link to the schedule is linked directly to the DCL Battle of the Books website and will update automatically with any changes.  

Have a great break! 🦃🦃🦃🦃🦃🦃🦃

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Below is a list of items students need to check off the list this week prior to practice:

• Read, read, read (and fill in the Matched Themes workbooks as you go)

• Complete the weekly check in form (either Monday or Tuesday)

• Complete two (2) practice sets each week (practice sets are now available!)

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Wednesday, November 12th

Battlers are mastering authors and titles!  Great job!  This is crucial to our success in the battles.  We are in full blown practice mode at this point, with our main emphasis on getting through as many practice sets as we can each week.  While going through practice sets we will discuss strategy and work on problem solving techniques to help our speaker make the best book choice for each given situation.  We are talking about challenges, steals, battle conduct, and preparation strategies too!  Lots of great work happening.  Thanks for getting your kids there each week.  They are happy, excited, and participating, which is all a coach can ask for!

🚩🚩SAVE THE DATES!🚩🚩

MOCK BATTLE:  Wednesday, January 7th (arrive at 7:15 a.m.)

• The DCL librarians will be coming in and putting on a mock battle for the students!  Please be sure to have your student at practice early on this day.  

TENTATIVE BATTLE SCHEDULE:  

• 3rd/4th grade battle schedule

• 5th/6th grade battle schedule

*I did some sleuthing and can see a battle schedule up (which is linked above).  Let's go ahead and pencil these dates in, but don't move anything around just yet.  I want to hear from the library that these schedules are finalized before people make any changes to schedules due to conflicts.  For background, last year they released a version of the schedule and then changed it after some of us went out of our way to clear schedule conflicts.  To avoid this inconvenience, I will reach out once I get word that things are set. 

**If you see any initial conflicts on the initial schedule please reach out as soon as possible.  This will help us immensely when we begin to think about battle line ups.

See everyone next week!  

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Below is a list of items students need to check off the list this week prior to practice:

• Read, read, read (and fill in the Matched Themes workbooks as you go)

• Complete the weekly check in form (either Monday or Tuesday)

• Write 10 questions (links to the question bank are found here)

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Wednesday, October 29th

Congratulations Danny on finishing all 10 books! 🎉

We had a great practice today!  Our practice sets are going well, definitely more right than wrong, and we had our first challenge today!  Next week, we will walk through the challenge process and we get to see if we "win" the challenge.  Very exciting!

Keep practicing those authors and titles!  We are heads down working on practice sets, so the sooner we have those authors and titles down the better!  

Don't forget to request access to the MATCHED THEMES WORKBOOK - Request access now!

See everyone next week!  

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Below is a list of items students need to check off the list this week prior to practice:

• Read, read, read (and fill in the Matched Themes workbooks as you go)

• Complete the weekly check in form (either Monday or Tuesday)

• Write 10 questions (links to the question bank are found here)

Wednesday, October 22nd 

Congratulations Connor and Bela on finishing all 10 books! 🎉 

The battlers made a lot of great progress over the break!  Please encourage students to keep up the good work and read, read, read.  

Thank you to all the students (and parents!) writing questions!  Keep those rolling in!  The first practice sets have been constructed and the kids are excited when they hear their questions in the practice.  ☺️  A few of the books have been completed by coaches.  If you log into the question bank and see a tab turned red, that means we have plenty of questions for that book.  If that is the ONLY book a student has, please write your ten questions on that book, as you will earn a ticket for every 10 questions.  If you have an option to write questions for a book whose tab is not red, please write questions for that book instead.  If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to reach out.

Have a great rest of the week!

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Below is a list of items students need to check off the list this week prior to practice:

• Read, read, read

• Complete the weekly check in form (either Monday or Tuesday)

• Write 10 questions (links to the question bank are found here)

Wednesday, October 8th 

The students racked up a ton of tickets this week reading and writing questions!  Great job!  I did see quite a few questions coming through late (after midnight).  Please know that Battle of the Books should not be keeping our friends up, as we know how important rest is.  Students can enter questions at anytime throughout the week, so no rush to get everything done Tuesday night.  

We finished our scavenger hunt activity this week!  Students are now experts on navigating to our website, finding the resources there; such as pronunciation guides, question banks, etc., and should be all set to accomplish their tasks each week.  If your battler is still confused about locating their resources, please reach out.  We are happy to walk them through the steps before or after practice.

Fall Break is upon us!  Our 3rd/4th grade friends are reading machines and we even had our first 10 book finisher this week!  🎉Congratulations Elia! 🎉 New this year is a High-Five line for everyone who finishes all the reading!  This gives us an opportunity to celebrate the hard work of these students.  I'm excited to see who is next!💗

Our 5th/6th grade team is working hard to knock out some books over Fall Break!  Be sure to bring a book or two along wherever you go.

Questions will start "disappearing" from the question banks.  Don't panic!  We are starting to compile our practice sets and the questions students work so hard writing each week are used to create these sets.  So keep your ears open, your question might be the next one asked!!  Note:  All tickets will be distributed prior to the questions being moved over.  

For our next practice on Wednesday, October 22nd, we will hopefully start our questions sets for both teams!  See everyone after Fall Break.   Have fun!  🍁

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Below is a list of items students need to check off the list this week prior to practice:

• Read, read, read

• Complete the weekly check in form (either Monday or Tuesday)

• Write 10 questions (links to the question bank are found here)

Wednesday, October 1st 

What a great group of kids!  Everyone is engaged and very excited to be at BOTB VERY early in the morning!  We are loving the enthusiasm from the group.  ❤️

Today we passed out our first set of tickets (below is a list of ways students earn tickets and prizes each week), played a fun game highlighting the importance of communication and information delivery, and received ice cream coupons for anyone who has finished their first book!  Next week we will knock out the scavenger hunt and hopefully get into some question writing (although this group is doing an AMAZING job writing questions already!  Keep up the good work!)

Tickets earned:

• For every (10) ten questions written in their team question bank

• For every book read (up to 10 ten tickets - one for each book)

• For every practice set completed (score does not matter) - these will be released later in the season

Prizes earned:

• Completing the check in form each week

• Cleaning up our practice space

Below is a list of items students need to check off the list this week prior to practice:

• Fill out the contract with the student and parent(s)/guardian(s) (Contract)

• Read, read, read

• Complete the weekly check in form (either Monday or Tuesday)

• Write 10 questions (links to the question bank are found here)

See everyone next Wednesday in the Heritage Library @ 7:30 a.m. 

Wednesday, September 24th 

What a great first practice!  We got to know each other a bit and delve into what Battle of the Books is.  Next week, we will finish our getting to know each other activities and complete our BOTB Scavenger Hunt!  Below is a list of items students need to check off the list this week prior to practice:

• Fill out the contract with the student and parent(s)/guardian(s) (Contract)

• Read, read, read

• Complete the weekly check in form (either Monday or Tuesday)

• Write 10 questions (links to the question bank are found here)

See everyone next Wednesday in the Heritage Library @ 7:30 a.m. 

Wednesday, September 17th 

• Parent information meeting - Wednesday, September 17th @ 5:30 p.m. in the Heritage Library

• Practice begins Wednesday, September 24th @ 7:30 a.m. in the Heritage Library

All students must be signed up and have a completed contract prior to attending practice.  

• Sign up form  

• Contract

Battle of the Books is back!  Check out the lists and start reading now!