Here is the list of the books that we'll be reading. We are going from the bottom of the list up!
Avalon High by Meg Cabot
Blood on the River: Jamestown 1607 by Elisa Carbone
Blood Red Horse by K.M. Grant
Chew on This by Eric Schlosser and Charles Wilson
Code Talker: A Novel About the Navajo Marines of World War II by Joseph Bruchac
Dragon Keeper by Caroline Wilkinson
Driver’s Ed by Caroline B. Cooney
Fish by L.S. Matthews
The Gawgon and the Boy by Lloyd Alexander
Ghost Girl: A Blue Ridge Mountain Story by Delia Ray
The Legend of Bass Reeves by Gary Paulsen
The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
Marooned: The Strange But True Adventures of Alexander Selkirk by Robert Kraske
Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment by James Patterson
The Ruins of Gorlan: Ranger's Apprentice by John Flanagan
Shakespeare’s Secret by Elise Broach
Stanford Wong Flunks Big-Time by Lisa Yee
Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli
Uglies by Scott Westerfeld
Zach’s Lie by Roland Smith

At our next meeting, we will discuss The Ruins of Gorlan.

Mrs. DeHart

WELCOME TO BATTLE OF THE BOOKS, SENIOR DIVISION!!!

For those of you who are returning members, welcome back! This promises to be an exciting year again...we have experienced members and some fresh newcomers to make this another fabulous team.

We have been meeting Wednesdays at lunch. Thanks to those who have brought cookies, especially Ms. Moser, who has been very dedicated to the cookie cause!

I am sorry the blog has been delayed in coming, things really have seemed crazy this year, but that is no excuse! My apologies.

I already have a picture I would like to share, from yesterday's meeting:




As you can see, the cookies are the highlight of the day! If you can contribute cookies to the next meeting (Wed. Nov. 14) please email me at sdehart@highlandschool.org and let me know. Usually two bags are more than plenty!

We have covered 5 books so far. I will publish the list as a separate entry, so you can have those at hand.

I am TRULY looking forward to a fun year with this amazing group of kids! Thank you for the support you all give throughout the year! Mrs. DeHart

WOW. Was that intense or WHAT???? I am SO VERY PROUD of all our fabulous kids! I will keep this short and sweet: We DO get a dress down day tomorrow.

And I will see if we can get Coldstone delivered to school so we don't have to coordinate getting the kids over there...I think Mr. Harmon will treat on this one.

The K-8 Assembly is Monday morning, so we will be able to make our wonderful announcement and show off the beautiful trophy.

I would like to extend my very heartfelt thanks to Michele Daniel-Shenk for all her hard work with the team...we couldn't have done it without her.

And thank you Elizabeth Bennett for promoting the idea of doing the Battle of the Books in the first place.

And, of course, I thank all the parents who supported their kids in this fun and challenging endeavor.

But most of all, thanks to all the kids who made this so much FUN. I am honored to have such a great group to work with and laugh with and eat cookies with.

Mrs. DeHart

Well, the meeting today was good! Here is the scoop for tomorrow. We have a DRESS DOWN DAY!!! Have the kids at least BRING their shirts, even if they don't wear them; we'll be wearing them to the BATTLE!

The Battle is at Auburn Middle School on Riley Road (off Rt. 605) I have never been there so I think you'd be better off with Mapquest!! We will meet a little before 5 (4:50ish would be great) and have Chinese Food, kindly provided by the Moser-Schwartz family! Then the Battle will begin!

The Battle will proceed much like the Open, but instead of taking the Multiple Choice test beforehand, the first round will be the team and the alternates taking the MC test. Then Rounds 2 and 3 will be just like the Open. The Jeopardy Round will take place while the scores are being tallied. Team members AND alternates will be able to qualify for the Jeopardy round and there is no limit to how many members from one school can be in the Jeopardy round. So the kids REALLY need to try hard on the Multiple Choice test, which is how they will qualify for the Jeopardy Round.

THIS IS IT!! We all started the meeting today by visualizing the coordinator announcing Highland School's deHAWKS as the winners of the Piedmont Regional Battle of the Books! GO TEAM!!

If you have any questions, feel free to email me at sdehart@highlandschool.org or call me at (540) 878-2715!

Mrs. DeHart

Hi,
(The BLOG site changed its software, so I had a little learning to do before I could post this!) But here is the latest. I have chosen the FIVE team members, the two alternates, and the three alter-alternates! I must say, this was the HARDEST thing my library career has asked of me yet; each and every one of these kids is fantastic. Oh, and the kids came up with a GREAT name: De Hartless And Wicked Krazy Students, or -- De H.A.W.K.S.!

The TEAM:
Annie
Marina
Nathan
Sara
Simon

The ALTERNATES:
Fiona
Dylan

The ALTER-ALTERNATES:
Katie
Jacob
Parker

Now, because we can only compete 5 on the team, those five team members will have to undertake new books on which to be the experts. So here are their "new" books which they will study with undying zeal and scrutiny over the break I am sure.

Nathan: Welcome to the Ark, Worth
Sara: Defiance, Al Capone, Teacher's Funeral
Simon: Left for Dead, Worth
Marina: Haymeadow
Annie: Midnight Magic, Last Shot

That will certainly do it. I am excited. I know we have a strong team that has a chance at winning! GO De H.A.W.K.S.!!!

Mrs. DeHart

Thanks to the generosity of many parents we have an abundance of cookies!! YUMMMMM. This Battle of the Books is requiring many miles of walking for me to keep up!

After some deliberation, the Battle of the Books Committee has decided to go with very specific questions for Round Three of the Battle. There was a suggestion that Round Three be questions in the format "In which TWO books" but this ideas was discarded. I think our kids will do FABULOUSLY regardless!!

So...we are busy with picky little questions; I am reviewing and writing them like crazy. Get your kids to REread their books.

I will be choosing the final team and alternates using a little test we gave today, performance at the Open, and participation in our weekly meetings. This is the worst most difficult thing I have had to do in a LONG TIME. I wish there was an easy way to pick...ALL these kids are AMAZING. Please remember, the alternates and the remaining team members can NOT slack off...if one little flu bug hits, we will NEED THEM!!!!

More later. I will post the team probably tomorrow, so we can re-assign books on which to be experts, and those kids can get to work. Happy three-day weekend!

Mrs. DeHart

Hi folks!
For the next two weeks we'll be meeting twice a week to get ready; the final Battle is 3 days after we return from Spring Break! So after school is out, we'll need everyone to review some of the earlier books, review the books for which they are the EXPERT, and to keep the authors of the books memorized.

Once we have the final team of five members selected with two alternates, we'll reassign the books so each team member will have to be expert on several more books. Those kids who are not chosen will still need to be on top of their game, because you NEVER know when some wave of illness will wash through and we could be needing them! So ALL our fabulous teammates must stay on their toes!

Elizabeth Bennett is on cookie duty for Wednesday...do I have any takers for Thursday?

Mrs. DeHart