Genoa Middle School’s sixth-grade team earned top honors at a district-wide Battle of the Books competition on May 11 at Westerville North High School’s auditorium.
Walnut Springs came in second, Heritage followed in third and Blendon placed fourth in the competition, which celebrates reading a wide variety of book genres.
Classrooms of students at each of the district’s four middle schools competed at the building level to determine the four- or five-member team that would represent each school. Students were given 10 books to read before facing off in a question/answer competition against teams.
Genoa’s team included students Zeke Gulliver, Brady Clark, Sam Gernant, Henry Davis and Thurston Deck with coach Shannan McCreary.
Walnut Springs’s team included students Olivia D’Silva, Paige Blasiman, Lucy Theiss, Andria Thomas and Brynn Thomas with coach Amber Ferguson.
Heritage’s team included students Max Crites, Ashika Rizal, Diya Ruppa and Muhanad Sharif with coach Kellie Sheely.
Blendon’s team included students Rose Neideffer, Norah Edon, Aaliyah Johnson, Emery Strong, Ilhan Mohamed and alternate Ethan Fitzwater with coach Jamie Bouscher.
Interim Gifted Facilitator Angie Heath volunteered to judge the event while Drew Farrell, a middle school technology coach, served as moderator. Gifted Education facilitators Debbie Pellington and Lisa Huelskamp served as the Battle of the Books coordinator and co-coordinator, respectively.