A BRIEF HISTORY OF BATTLE OF THE BOOKS
Battle of the Books first appeared on a Chicago radio program in the 1930's. Since then it has expanded to states all over the country, each having its own format.
In 1993, Peggy Mavis, coordinator of the elementary libraries of the Mount Vernon City Schools, decided to bring it to Mount Vernon. Mrs. Mavis created a round robin tournament in which teams from various schools competed against each other. The first game was played between 4 of the 7 schools at Central Office. There were teams from East, Dan Emmett, Wiggin Street and Elmwood schools. Her expectation was that students would just be dropped off and picked up but parents stayed to watch the competition, and thus was born the Mount Vernon Battle of the Books. In 1994, all of the elementary schools plus Saint Vincent De Paul fifth graders participated in May in the first ever complete Battle.
Battle of the Books grew into an extraordinarily popular program that encouraged fifth grade students to continue reading at a time when many of them had slowed their reading down considerably. It began with a list of 180 fiction titles and a team of 5 plus two alternatives. Over the years, different team configurations were tried (just 5 then up to 6) and lists changed with deletions and additions made each year. The list eventually settled down at 120 titles. Many community adults were involved in running the program. Library aides acted as coaches and DARE officers helped the teams on and off stage quickly. Adults, including the Mayor of Mount Vernon, helped with scoring, judging and timing. The director of the Public Library of Mount Vernon & Knox County videotaped the games. When Peggy Mavis retired, a completely new format was tried based on an Alaskan model and the list of titles was reduced to 60. In 2012, the Battle went back to its original round robin format, each school battling all the other schools but still with the shortened list.
The Battle was cut short in 2013 due to budget cuts in the Mount Vernon City Schools. In 2015, it was decided to try to revive the Battle of the Books, but to open it to all students in Knox County. This includes all 5th graders in not only the Mount Vernon City Schools and St. Vincent but in Danville Elementary, East Knox Elementary, Fredericktown Elementary, Centerburg Elementary and home schooled students.
Anyone interested in learning more about the event or the Battle of the Books program can contact Erica Oberlin, head of Youth Services at the Public Library of Mount Vernon and Knox County, at 740-392-BOOK (2665) Ext 257, visit www.knox.net, or email [email protected].
In 1993, Peggy Mavis, coordinator of the elementary libraries of the Mount Vernon City Schools, decided to bring it to Mount Vernon. Mrs. Mavis created a round robin tournament in which teams from various schools competed against each other. The first game was played between 4 of the 7 schools at Central Office. There were teams from East, Dan Emmett, Wiggin Street and Elmwood schools. Her expectation was that students would just be dropped off and picked up but parents stayed to watch the competition, and thus was born the Mount Vernon Battle of the Books. In 1994, all of the elementary schools plus Saint Vincent De Paul fifth graders participated in May in the first ever complete Battle.
Battle of the Books grew into an extraordinarily popular program that encouraged fifth grade students to continue reading at a time when many of them had slowed their reading down considerably. It began with a list of 180 fiction titles and a team of 5 plus two alternatives. Over the years, different team configurations were tried (just 5 then up to 6) and lists changed with deletions and additions made each year. The list eventually settled down at 120 titles. Many community adults were involved in running the program. Library aides acted as coaches and DARE officers helped the teams on and off stage quickly. Adults, including the Mayor of Mount Vernon, helped with scoring, judging and timing. The director of the Public Library of Mount Vernon & Knox County videotaped the games. When Peggy Mavis retired, a completely new format was tried based on an Alaskan model and the list of titles was reduced to 60. In 2012, the Battle went back to its original round robin format, each school battling all the other schools but still with the shortened list.
The Battle was cut short in 2013 due to budget cuts in the Mount Vernon City Schools. In 2015, it was decided to try to revive the Battle of the Books, but to open it to all students in Knox County. This includes all 5th graders in not only the Mount Vernon City Schools and St. Vincent but in Danville Elementary, East Knox Elementary, Fredericktown Elementary, Centerburg Elementary and home schooled students.
Anyone interested in learning more about the event or the Battle of the Books program can contact Erica Oberlin, head of Youth Services at the Public Library of Mount Vernon and Knox County, at 740-392-BOOK (2665) Ext 257, visit www.knox.net, or email [email protected].
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