Oregon Battle of the Books (OBOB)

Students in 3rd through 8th grade are invited to participate in OBOB, a statewide reading program. This is a voluntary program that encourages students who enjoy reading to broaden their reading interests. OBOB’s mission is to increase reading comprehension, promote academic excellence as well as cooperative learning and teamwork among students. OBOB provides a list of different books each year representing a variety of literary styles, subjects and viewpoints. Interested students create teams with 4-5 members each and battle other teams with questions testing their memory and comprehension of the reading material. The goal is to make the All Saints OBOB battles a fun, positive experience for all participating students.

Click Here to Register for OBOB

2023-2024 Key Dates (subject to change)

Sunday, September 17 – Team Registration Opens

Thursday, October 5 7:00pm – Parent Meeting to learn more about OBOB (in-person at the school library; zoom and/or recording will also be available)

Sunday, October 15 – Team Registration Closes

Wednesday January 17 & 24 – Practice school battles on campus, after school (optional)

Tuesday February 13 and Wednesday February 21 – Official school battles on campus, after school (required to compete)

Early to mid March – Regional battles (top team in each division represents All Saints; exact dates TBD)

Early to mid April – State battles (winning teams from regionals attend; exact date TBD)

Resources

OBOB Website www.oregonbattleofthebooks.org/

Book List www.oregonbattleofthebooks.org/title-list/

Helpful Information (such as author pronunciation guides and video examples of battles) www.wccls.org/obob

Moderators/Scorekeepers/Timekeepers Information

Available by January

FAQ

How are teams formed?

Teams are formed by students and parents. A parent lead should register the team via the registration link (found on this page and in PRC updates). Please make sure to communicate with parents of all team members before registering a team.

Do team members have to be in the same grade?

While most teams are made up of students in the same grade, teams can include students in any of the grades in a division (3rd-5th or 6th-8th).

How many students are on a team?

Teams are typically made up of four or five students, but can participate with as few as two students.

How does it work if a team has 5 students?

In a given battle, a maximum of four students may participate. If a team has five members, the members can rotate between battles or the 5th member can act as an alternate.

Can you help my child find a team?

We ask that you try to find a team for your child by reaching out to classmates and parents, but please reach out to oboballsaints@gmail.com if you are not able to find or form a team and we will try to help.

What is a battle?

A battle is a game in which student teams compete against each other and earn points by answering detailed questions about the books on the list.

How should our team prepare?

The best way to prepare is for students to read!

Preparation beyond that varies, but some ideas: reread books for detail; take notes on specific, concrete details; meet regularly as a team to learn how to work together; answer practice questions found online; have students write questions.

Cedar Mills Library (and other libraries) can be good sources for free online practice questions. Unofficial practice questions are also available for purchase online. Please be sure when using questions found online that they are for the current books, not books from previous years.

Does my child have to read all 16 books?

No, and most students do not read all the books! Books may be divided among the team members, but it is advisable to have at least one (and ideally two) students read each book.

Additionally, please use your judgment if you do not feel a book is appropriate for your child for any reason.

What kind of parent participation is required?

OBOB can only happen with the help of many volunteers! Parent leads register their team, help the team prepare and make sure there is an adult present to supervise the team during the school battles.

Parent volunteers are also needed to help run the school battles. Each team is asked to provide at least one volunteer who will be willing to help on one or more of the battle dates.

Additional questions?

Please note that this email address is primarily monitored September through March.