Thank you for the following feedback from participants, please email oboblsta@gmail.com  with additional comments. - Debbie Alvarez, OBOB Chair

From various feedback sources:

"One of my students recently competed in the Oregon Battle of the Books.  We happened to take the OAKS reading test recently as well.  Only half way into the school year it is difficult to cover all of the material needed to be successful on the OAKS test.  This student had spent much time and effort preparing for OBOB.  Reading comprehension is one of the most important aspects of the test and in this area she excelled.  While this student met the state standard in reading last year her score was not outstanding.  After spending time reading and preparing for OBOB the student showed an incredible increase of 15 points!  This pushed her score well above the exceeding mark.  I would like to claim that exemplary instruction was the catalyst for this increase but it is obvious that the passion for reading that OBOB spurred in this young reader is responsible for her success.  OBOB is an outstanding program that encourages students to increase their reading comprehension skills while promoting a passion for literature that will stay with them for life.  OBOB is the kind of program we should support." -Seth Hedberg

Battle of the Books has generated more excitement and enthusiasm about reading books, especially from 4th grade.

Fabulous, fabulous program. Thank you thank you thank you.  Parents still come to the library to tell me how much the program improved the reading skills of or inspired their child. 

What a monumental job you all did!  Thank you.

I'm so glad we got to be a part of this!  One boy on our top team has delinquent older brothers, and his mother is SO proud of his achievement in the battles!  Another student, now a 6th grader, talked to me at the public library.  His team came in 4th, but he told me it was OK because he read so much he was a much better reader now.  One teacher remarked how the test scores of some of her battlers had shot up.  All good!

Wonderful program - you have done a lot of hard work.  I can't wait to see what titles are selected for next year.

What a great positive experience, thanks so much for all the work you did.  Parents and students loved OBOB!

LOVE it. Best program to get students reading.

Thank you so much for providing this opportunity -- it was a great experience for the kids...

I appreciate the huge amount of time and effort the committee put into creating the regional and state competitions.

It was a great way to get kids to read out of their comfort genre.

Special thanks for all of the hard work that went into this event for Oregon schools and students.

It was a wonderful experience, for both the students and staff.  It encouraged reluctant readers to broaden their book choices. The book selection was great - the students loved the books.  Almost 1/4 of the students in our a school (a K - 8) participated!

My students love the BOB and it's been great to see such enthusiasm state wide.

Thank you for all of the hard work involved in bringing this great enrichment program to our schools.

For the first yeatr, OBOB made an awesome impact across the state and in my district among the kids.  Next year will be more growth and greater impact. Great work, OBOB Committee. J.T. 8 Apr 08

Overall, felt as our first year that we had a great experience.  We are looking forward to next year, hope to get started sooner and will appreciate the grant books!!

I am at a high school that did not participate, but attended the local final battles and thought it was the best thing since sliced bread!

We've been doing Battles for 4 years; having a state-wide competition added a whole new dimension for our students that was exciting for them.  The students that went to the regional battle were "jazzed" and my team that went to state were really excited.  Great job, OBOB!

We had parents and grandparents thank us for the opportunity for their kids and tell us about how it inspired free-time reading in reluctant readers as well as voracious readers.

It's a wonderful experience and I expect our students to be more excited next year!  Thank You.

Great list of books. I think that helped me a lot - I liked all of the books and did not hesitate to recommend any of them.

It was a great experience all the way around.  I loved seeing all of the teamwork and good sportsmanship in our building and at the regional battle.

The grant allowed me to do this! Thanks!  I'll be looking for donations to continue.  It's a bit of a chunk out of my regular budget.

Great way to showcase some titles. The kids had a great time.

This was a terrific experience for our kids, and I hope to be able to build excitement through them for next year.

Thanks to all the people who made the battles happen...it was a lot of work, and our kids & their families really appreciated the experience!