District News

The excitement was over the top at Bedwell Elementary School during this year’s Battle of the Books finale, where six outstanding 4th grade teams competed for the championship! With the theme being a blend of “Battle of the Books” meets “Battle of the Bands” the following teams were created: The Beatles, Oasis, Guns N’ Roses, AC/DC, Metallica, and Imagine Dragons. They all showed impressive knowledge, teamwork, and determination as they faced off in the ultimate literary showdown.

Starting with the Battle of the Books kick-off event on January 21, 2026, interest grew rapidly. A total of 83 students joined the battle, to read as many of the twelve titles as possible. They had eight weeks to prepare for the popular book-based trivia competition; over that time students carefully read, discussed, and quizzed each other on characters, plot, details and more! On March 13th, after two intense rounds and 36 challenging questions, the competition was incredibly close. Three teams - The Beatles, Metallica, and Guns N’ Roses - tied, forcing the battle into a dramatic overtime! The stakes became immediately higher, as with each proposed question a team could be eliminated or claim victory. After a few more nail-biting questions, The Beatles were eliminated, leaving Metallica and Guns N’ Roses to battle it out for the title.  In the final moments, Team Metallica pulled ahead to secure the championship!  

A big congratulations goes out to all of the 4th  graders who participated in the 2026 Battle of the Books at Bedwell. Their dedication, reading and teamwork made the competition a fantastic success. Special thanks to 4th grade teachers Patrick Reed, Jessica Collins, Jessica Mariani, Kris Hall, and Jordan Sakin, and to the Bedwell HSA Chairs Kelly Hunt and Katie Ryan for their continued support!