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www.oakvillebeaver.com The Oakville Beaver, Friday May 25, 2007 - 23 E. J. James senior team wins regional Battle of the Books By Stephen Johnson GRADE 8, E. J. JAMES On April 24 and 26, 20 junior teams of students in Grades 3-5 and 16 senior teams of students in Grades 6-8 competed in the Oakville Library's annual Battle of the Books. For those who are not familiar with this literary tournament, these battles do not involve hurling, catapulting, or any other method of propelling books. The battles require six members of the maximum nine-member school teams to compete against one another by identifying the titles, authors, and characters of a wide variety of children's and young adult fiction ranging from award winners and classics to new books and fantasy science fiction. From the April round-robin battles, the two top scoring junior teams (St. Dominic and St. Matthew) and the two top senior teams (E.J. James and Pilgrim Wood) went on to compete at the Grand Battle, which was held the evening of Wednesday, May 2, in the auditorium of the Centennial Library. All four teams battled masterfully and the enthusiastic winners were St. Matthew and E.J. James. On Thursday, May 10, the winning teams from Burlington, Milton, Halton Hills, and Oakville met for the tenth annual Regional Battle. After the well-played matches, the junior team from Burlington's Sacred Heart School, and the senior team from E.J. James School took home trophies for being the top schools in the Halton Region. Library staff worked hard to make these three events very enjoyable. Every year the library staff arrange for the book combatants to meet authors and illustrators. At this year's round-robin, we got the opportunity to meet with author Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch, and at the Regional Battle, Sharon McKay read to us from her book set in Halifax during the time of the explosion. Both authors emphasized how exciting and inspiring historical fiction can be. The best thing about this year's Battle of the Books team at E.J. James is that we developed a great team spirit of cooperation, encouragement and mutual respect. This winning combination was coached ably by Mrs. Lambie. Another great thing about this year's battles is that there were more boys on the teams. As a male, I have sometimes felt quite outnumbered the many female readers in the Halton Region. There have been years when several schools were represented only by girls. This can sometimes pose a problem; for example, I remember one all-girl team being stymied by a Hardy Boys question. The teams that made it to this year's Regional Battles were made up of male and female readers, which is, of course, very helpful when it comes to identifying books that appeal largely to a single gender audience. It also goes to show that boys can be just as literate as girls. E.J. James' team wants to thank our coach, the library staff, our families, the school, and everyone who cheered us on including our vice principal, Mrs. Quist. If you have a craving to participate in a battle and if you want to try a sport that involves a unique set of muscles, join next year's Battle of the Books team at your school. The Summer Reading Game at the library provides an excellent opportunity to get into training for the tournament. BEAT THE RUSH WITH OUR SUMMER SPECIAL Oakville's Natural Stone Supplier PERMA Includes: FREE Blower, FREE Front, FREE Brickliner. SL550TRS Contractor Referral Program Providing A Full Line of Premium Grade Stone Products For Pools . Patios . Walkways . Retaining Walls . Gardens "MASONRY & FIREPLACE DESIGN SPECIALISTS" w w w. c o b b l e s t o n e m b e r s . c a ACROSS FROM RONA LANSING 905.337.2066 406 SPEERS RD., OAKVILLE On Cornwall Road, East of Ford Drive Ph: 905-849-5557 www.boulders.ca Monday - Friday: 7am-5:30pm . 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