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Since the beginning of the school year, McDonogh Middle School students have been preparing for battle by reading from a list of extracurricular books. The list, created by independent school librarians, included historical fiction, non-fiction, fantasy, and modern conflict. The readers focused on details such as the characters, plot, and the settings of the books; and on May 13, students from each Middle School grade, faced their competition in the annual Battle of the Books.

In the lively competition, which took place at Roland Park Country School, McDonogh’s readers faced-off against students from eight other local independent schools in an effort to prevail as the team who could correctly identify key elements from the books.

McDonogh’s eighth grade was represented by veterans Mohit P. and Kasey G., who have participated in the Battle three or more years. The duo competed valiantly against five other schools whose teams each had four members. The seventh grade team was also made up of veteran battlers, Jessica T., Alexis H., Alexander Z., and Lauren S., who have been working together since fifth grade. They scored and impressive 120 points earning second place.

Representing the sixth grade were Hannah S., Ben M., Luke D., and Michael A. This was the most challenging round, with seven schools battling simultaneously. The team earned second place with a score of 120 points. The fifth grade rookie team, comprised of Megha C., Nicholas Z., Joe R., and Tyler H. did a wonderful job in their first Battle of the Books competition, also earning second place with a score of 104 points.

Congratulations to all the students who participated with enthusiasm and represented McDonogh with good sportsmanship.