Frequently Asked Questions

What books are we reading for Battle of the Books this year?

You can get your grade level reading list from the BOB website, or see your school library media specialist or sponsoring teacher. 

How are the book titles selected?

Book titles for the SDPBC Battle of the Books come from the Sunshine State Young Readers Award and the Florida Teens Read lists. Titles for these state-sponsored reading programs are selected annually by a committee of library media specialists from across the State of Florida. Participating schools promote the books all year then have their students vote electronically in the spring for their favorite title. The winners of each division are announced at the FAME conference. The titles for the next fiscal year are posted in the late spring of each year.

When can we start reading/checkout out Battle books?

Students can begin reading Battle books as soon as the lists come out in late spring, during the summer, and throughout the school year until January when the online qualifying competition is held. Work with team members to develop strategies for remembering the details of the books that have been read.

What does it cost to participate?

The schools with one of the top two division teams who qualify in the District Online Qualifying Battle do need to commit to transporting students to the 'live' Grand Battle competition which will be taped at The Education Channel for delayed airing. The 'live' Grand Battle will pit the top two teams of each division against each other in a final round to determine the Grand Battle of the Books Champion.

What kind of competition questions are there?

Questions for the Qualifying Online Battle will be in multiple choice format. Team members may consult one another but must answer quickly to compete.

Questions at the Grand Battle will begin with the words "In which book…" The answer will always be a title and author.

When will the first Battle of the Books informational meeting be held?

The Battle of the Books organizational meeting will be held at different times for each school, but they are typically held between August and September. Listen to your school announcements and check with your library media specialist for more information about the exact date and time of your school's first meeting.

At the organizational meeting, the sponsor will provide interested students with:

How are teams formed?

The method of choosing teams is up to the individual school; however, only 2-5 students are allowed on a team. A team member is officially considered a "District Battle of the Books" participant when s/he plays on the school team in a round of the District Online Qualifying Battle during a regular Battle of the Books season.

Do all of our team members have to be from the same class?

No. You can have team members from any class, BUT they must all be from the same school and from the range of grades identified by the division reading list:

Do team members have to read every book?

Team members do not need to read all 15 titles but should read at least 5 of the 15. Students may count "books" they have read before however, they can not count books that they have only seen on a video or a movie. They must read the book. They may want to keep a summary so they can review this information before the qualifying Battle. When teams are formed, take into considerations the titles read by each team member to make sure all 15 titles are covered.

When formed, teams should designate one member as captain. The captain schedules periodic team meetings and is responsible for seeing that each member of the team reads his or her books. Excellent teams have been formed by students who have each taken the responsibility to be an expert on select books.

It is recommended that as the students read the books, they write questions in the format of the competition. These student-generated questions can be used for a school level competition or for practice for the online qualifying round. 

Can our school hold its own Battle of the Books competition?

Yes, your school can hold its own Battle of the Books competition to select the winning team(s) who will compete in the District's Online Qualifying Battle. Those competitions are created on-site and should be completed by December. School site competitions are completely voluntary and are not required for the Online Qualifying Battle. Teams do not have to compete in a school battle in order to qualify for the online district battle unless mandated by the individual school site. Check with your school library media specialist for more information about your school's competition.

What happens when a team wins the school competition?

The winning team(s) from each school will participate in the District's Online Qualifying Battle of the Books competition. Check with your school library media specialist for the exact date, time and place of the Battle.

What happens when a team finishes the District Online Qualifying Battle?

The District Online Qualifying Battle is held over a period of two weeks. The computer tabulates and records the score for each participating team. The scores are then reported to the District Committee who determine the top two winning teams for each division who will be invited to the Grand Battle of the Books competition.  Within 48 hours of the end of the competition, the division winners will be contacted.

Are there rewards involved?

All participating students receive a SDPBC Battle of the Books certificate.  The top 1000 students receive a SDPBC BOB dog tag necklace.  Each member of the teams who make it to the Grand Battle receive a medal.  The winning teams get to take home a travelling trophy for the year to be displayed in the media center or trophy case.  Any other rewards including, but not limited to, awards for in-house competitions are to be provided by the individual school sites.