This fall, Hawthorn Academy students might not have had as much of a summer slide in reading as their peers.

That’s because many of the upper-grade students who participated in last year’s America’s Battle of the Books wanted to get a jump on the reading lists for this year’s contest.

Last spring, several teams battled it out for the top places.

Then sixth-grader Scarlett Dahl read seven books on the 20-book list which included “Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library” by Chris Grabenstein, “Ella Enchanted” by Gail Carson Levine and “Candy Shop War” by Utahn Brandon Mull.

“I liked ‘Wonder’ and ‘The White Mountains,’” she said. “We split up the list, so everyone read some of the books. It was fun to compete; I’m anxious to read all the books now.”

During the competition, Hawthorn’s literacy coordinator Beverley Griffith read questions for the student teams to answer, matching the question with the book’s name and author to get full points.

For example, Griffith asked, “In what book did a family team win the league championship four times?” The students answered “Brothers at Bat” by Audrey Vernick. Another question they correctly answered was “In what book was the main character an Eagle Scout in the 1940s?” Their response: “Who was Neil Armstrong” by Roberta Edwards.

Scarlett’s team was tied after three rounds and went into six tie-breaker questions against her classmate, Dallin Gardner, and his team.

Dallin read four books.

“I liked ‘My Side of the Mountain’ and ‘Holes,’” he said. “We learned how to work as a team and have good sportsmanship.”

Griffith said there were 88 school battles in just over two weeks. Top teams received medals made by the school’s 3D printing club showing two books battling; they were presented by Principal Jeremy Craig.

“The kids were excited not just to compete, but to read books. Some found they got to read books they never would have before. Some asked for more books like the ones they read or more by the same author,” Griffith said. “Some students read different genres they had never read before. It’s rewarding to see they’re reading not because their teacher says to read, but because they’re enjoying a good book.”

She provided graphic organizers and story maps as tools to help students prepare for the matches.

“It was fun to see each team’s strategy on preparing for the battles. They also had a lot of fun coming up with their team names and supporting one another,” Griffith said. “The bottom line is we want the students to read every day.” λ