Writes Rachel Harrison, Assistant Librarian
Book Boffz is back for another academic year, with weekly sessions in the Junior Library offering pupils the chance to explore books and reading through a mixture of games, challenges and activities.
Our first session was a chance to welcome new and returning members. We began with our traditional getting-to-know-you activity, sharing our favourite books, places and foods, as well as the rather more imaginative question of which superpower we would choose if we could. The answers were then folded into paper planes and launched from the library mezzanine, which proved a memorable way to finish our first session.
For our second session, we turned our attention to numbers, exploring them in three very different ways. We began with a bookish Higher or Lower game, in which pupils were given statements containing numerical values relating to books and reading and had to decide whether the true answer was higher or lower. Questions ranged from the number of books in popular series and the average number of books read by adults in the UK each year, to the size of our own Library collection, which contains over 23,000 items. There was plenty of discussion as the Book Boffz weighed up their guesses, with many changes of mind along the way. One of the more surprising figures was that research from the University of Sussex found that reading can reduce stress by 68%, which seems like a pretty good reason to keep reading!
Our second game was all about the Dewey Decimal system. After a brief introduction, the boys quickly grasped how its hierarchical numerical system is used to put non-fiction books into a strict order. They then went head-to-head against the clock, sorting sets of Dewey numbers that became increasingly tricky. With every digit counting, there was plenty of pressure to get them in the right order before time ran out. The result was very close, but Lucas G. (U3rds) just edged ahead to take the win in this round.
Finally, we turned to books with numbers in their titles, with the numbers removed. Pupils had to identify the missing numbers from their knowledge of books and authors, with some titles proving much easier to recognise than others. Gwilym H. (U3rds) came out on top, showing an impressive knowledge of books and authors along the way.
While the biscuits were being handed out, Finn S. (3rds) was the first to finish, accurately adding up all the numbers from the book titles quiz with remarkable speed.
With Book Boffz meeting weekly, there are plenty more bookish challenges to come. Thirds and Upper Thirds are welcome to join; just speak to a member of the library team for more information.
