On May 31, 2013, Rancho Santa Gertrude School representing the Los Nietos School District won for the third year in a row the annual “Battle of the Books” competition against the Little Lake School District. The “Battle of the Books” competition has been an annual event sponsored by the Santa Fe Springs Library featuring teams from several Little Lake Schools and Rancho Santa Gertrudes, the only Los Nietos School within the boundaries of Santa Fe Springs. In preparation for the single elimination event competing teams read 30 selected books and must be prepared to answer questions posed to them about the books by naming the title and author of the book correctly.
For the past three years Rancho has approached the competition as part of a year-long journey for students involved in a book club that embraces and celebrates the love of reading. The enthusiasm in the book club was contagious as many Rancho students wanted to participate in the afterschool meetings with the “Battle of the Books” team members. The strategy of focusing on the journey experienced when reading a good book as opposed to the competition, helped prepare Rancho’s teams to go against the extremely strong schools in the Little Lake School District. Hoping to replicate last year’s first place finish student advisors Mrs. Emily Coutant, Mrs. Claudia Gonzales, and Mrs. Raquel Chavez worked with their dedicated group of students to form two strong teams that were entered into this year’s competition.
Rancho’s two teams (“Chillin’ With the Books”, and “The Book-A-Roos”) competed against each other in the semifinals with “The Book-A-Roos” winning and advancing to the finals where they eventually won the championship.
The Rancho teams were supported and cheered by parents, teachers, staff, district administration, Los Nietos School Board members, and Principal Octavio Perez.
Congratulations to the students, teachers, and parents who helped prepare and support the Rancho Team winning the "2013 Battle of the Books” competition for the third straight year!
For the past three years Rancho has approached the competition as part of a year-long journey for students involved in a book club that embraces and celebrates the love of reading. The enthusiasm in the book club was contagious as many Rancho students wanted to participate in the afterschool meetings with the “Battle of the Books” team members. The strategy of focusing on the journey experienced when reading a good book as opposed to the competition, helped prepare Rancho’s teams to go against the extremely strong schools in the Little Lake School District. Hoping to replicate last year’s first place finish student advisors Mrs. Emily Coutant, Mrs. Claudia Gonzales, and Mrs. Raquel Chavez worked with their dedicated group of students to form two strong teams that were entered into this year’s competition.
Rancho’s two teams (“Chillin’ With the Books”, and “The Book-A-Roos”) competed against each other in the semifinals with “The Book-A-Roos” winning and advancing to the finals where they eventually won the championship.
The Rancho teams were supported and cheered by parents, teachers, staff, district administration, Los Nietos School Board members, and Principal Octavio Perez.
Congratulations to the students, teachers, and parents who helped prepare and support the Rancho Team winning the "2013 Battle of the Books” competition for the third straight year!