Kids' Lit Quiz

CHINA FINAL

2008-12-05T05:44:00.002Z

This was the biggest and best China Final to date. Teams flew in from Beijing, Nanjing, Guangzhou and of course the local schools from Shanghai. Concordia International School of Shanghai kindly billeted all of the children. Eight new teams participated this year. The competition was closer and tougher than ever but the International School of Beijing won both first and third place. What was impressive was that the winning team were all year sixes. Concordia International School of Shanghai was second.
Book prizes were sponsored by Scholastic China and Bayard Presse donated subscriptions to their magazine Discovery Box and Shanghai Book Traders kindly supplied the branded T-shirts. Food for all our hungry readers today was supplied by Subway Shanghai Co.
The whole event was very slickly organised.
A great day
Wayne

UK GRAND FINAL

2008-11-29T11:48:00.003Z

Today's final of the Serco KLQ was really dramatic. One team arrived 25 minutes late and the quiz had already started and not only that one of their team members had a blood nose for much of the quiz so what a surprise when it was this team that won the UK final! Congratulations on keeping your poise under such pressure. This team was Bancrofts School from the Essex heat. They now will represent The UK at the World Final of the KLQ in Johannesburg. Second place went to Blue Coat School from the Midlands heat and Lancaster Royal Grammar came third after a sudden death play-off with Arnold House. Our guest author, the hugely popular Eva Ibbotson, awarded the KLQ trophies and books to the first two teams and Harry Enfield awarded the third and fourth placed teams with their prizes.

The UK organiser, Eileen Armstrong, was presented with a bouquet of flowers in recognition of all the energy and time she'd put into organising this year's heats and final.

Today's sponsors were Scholastic UK, Puffin Books and Usborne. Their books were well received by today's avid readers.

The School Library Association , who support the KLQ, kindly awarded vouchers to the

teams librarian coaches for the value of 50% of a training session and a 100% voucher to

the coach with Bancrofts School.

This year's final was the most rigorous ever and all of the teams deserved to win.

Thank you to all my colleagues and friends for their assistance on the day.

Wayne

NORTH EAST ENGLAND

2008-11-24T20:32:00.003Z

Hi Folks
Well what a fun-filled wonderful night to end the UK regional heats held at Gosforth Central Middle School. A massive 36 teams entered (this was the same as Cornwall) and the hall was busting at the edges with tables and chairs as well as as good number of knowledgeable spectators. We appreciated the Borders' booksellers pitching in to help us mark.
The winning team for the first time ever was Durham Johnston followed by Ripon. Again a sudden death was required to separate third position. Durham High School ended up pipping Highfield Middle School in a nail-biter.
Many thanks to Puffin, Scholastic UK and Usborne for supplying prizes.
Great finish.
Wayne

EAST SCOTLAND

2008-11-21T15:55:00.000Z

Today's five authors were heralded into the Stewart's Melville College Hall by two pipers and they then played a reel before the heat got under way. This was a grand start and the scores reflected it too. Many teams scored nines or tens.Sara Grady the Children and Education Programme Director for the Edinburgh Book Festival awarded the top three prizes. First was George Watson's College, second was Mary Erskine School and The George Watson 2 team was third. A grand result for George Watson. Each team received book prizes care of Macmillan Books.The authors were: Theresa Breslin, James Jauncey, Gill Arbuthnott, Jonathan Meres and Mike Nicholson.Thanks everyone for a very enjoyable afternoon.
Wayne

WEST SCOTLAND

2008-11-20T13:24:00.003Z

Hi Everyone,

Great turn-out today at the Kilsyth Academy. Banners were proudly flying, gold and black balloons hovered, and an atmosphere of anticipation pervaded the hall. Two guest teams participated - one of librarians - and the other local authors. (Theresa Breslin, Katie Grant and Linda Strachan). The librarians' team won the event but the top school was Dunblane High School followed by the High School of Glasgow. Third place was decided by a sudden death question. Douglas Adademy won it and this placed Bannerman High forth. The prizes donated by Scotia Books were awarded to the teams by guest authors

Happy reading

Wayne

NORTH WEST ENGLAND

2008-11-18T21:41:00.002Z

Hi Bloggers
The Kids' Lit Quiz had the honour tonight of being the first official event held in the new Social Learning Centre at Bolton University as it had only been opened three weeks ago by Prince Edward.
Lots of teams selected their jokers wisely and tonight's scores reflected their decisions. The winning team had never entered the quiz before but ended up winning quite convincingly. Lancaster Royal Grammar was an all-boys team and their win was well-deserved. Queen Katherine was second followed by Christelton High School.
Book prizes donated by Hachette were given to the winning teams by local author Philip Caveney.
Great results across the board-well done everyone.
Wayne

NORTHERN IRELAND

2008-11-18T10:35:00.002Z

Teams came from every corner of Northern Ireland last night to participate in the Kids' Lit Quiz. Seven new schools entered for the first time. The BBC came for an interview but ended up being absobed by the atmosphere and stayed for the whole quiz. The teams were buzzing and the category winners enjoyed a selection of titles supplied by Scholastic UK.
Sullivan Upper School defended their title and will now travel to the UK Final in Newcastle. Second place went to Strathearn Grammar and Wellington College Belfast was third. The prizes were awarded by guest author Dan Freedman.
Many thank to Wellington College for hosting the event.
Happy reading.
Wayne

SOUTH WEST ENGLAND

2008-11-15T00:38:00.002Z

Hi Everyone
What an exuberant afternoon in Cornwall and what amazing book knowledge everyone had. This has been the biggest heat to date. Wadebridge School hosted us again and the tables for the teams occupied the whole hall. The audience sat on the stage. High scoring rounds were common today and congratulations must go to defending champions and last year's UK winners Truro School for again winning the SW heat. South Molten was second and Exmouth was third.
Thank you to all those teams who travelled from so far to take part.
Happy Reading
Wayne
Quizmaster

SOUTH WALES

2008-11-14T09:15:00.002Z

Hi Everyone
All the contestants were welcomed today by last year's Welsh Champions (and third in the World Final) the team from Whitchurch School. They told the teams to read avidly and encouraged them to do well.
This year the venue moved to the Bishop of Llandaff School hall and the venue worked very well. A good number of parents, grandparents and librarians/teachers watched the heat and were impressed by the students' literary knowledge.
An all-boys team from Whitchurch School won the heat, Howell's School was second and Monmouth Boys' third.
Book prizes were donated by Harper Collins.
Thanks to the senior students from Bishop of Llandaff for their assistance.
Wayne

SOUTHERN ENGLAND

2008-11-12T22:03:00.003Z

Hi Everyone
Another accomplished result was posted by our authors' team in Havant today. The team of five consisting of Andrew Norriss, James Riordan, Craig Simpson, Andy Briggs and Ali Sparks once again proved too good for the KLQ teams in this southern heat.
The prizes were spread widely and many kids walked away with books to get signed from the book shop or else gained a book from the category round.
Robert Mays' Odiham School won both first and third place which was quite an achievement. Portsmouth High School was second. The difference between first and third was 1.5 marks. So a very tight squeeze today for the top positions.
Great results
Wayne

OXFORD

2008-11-12T08:29:00.002Z

Hi Folks

Fast and busy evening last night in front of over 200 spectators who witnessed extraordinary talent on display. Some kids were even attempting questions before they were asked! The winning school was Oxford High followed half a point behind by The Cherwell School. St Helens was third.

The authors' team with superior numbers bettered Oxford High but look at the literary power of these people: Meg Harper, Linda Newbery, Dennis Hamley, Mark Robson, MG Harris, Rachael Wing and Susie Day.

I was delighted to see so many local politicians supporting the event-that was certainly appreciated.

We tried a new venue this year at Our Lady's school as this gave the audience better views from tiered seating. The school went out of their way to ensure that all teams felt very welcomed.

Many thanks to OUP for supplying the book prizes.

Can't wait until the next heat.

Happy reading

Wayne

CENTRAL ENGLAND

2008-11-10T22:23:00.003Z

Hi Everyone

In a lovely old hall at Oundle School the Oundle and King's Cliffe Middle School won today's heat of the Serco Kids' Lit Quiz, second was King's School Peterborough and third was Oakham School. All great results but three cheers ought to go to the authors' team as they won with a massive score. The team of Julia Jarman, Mary Hoffman, Mark Robson, Lucy Coats and Pippa Goodheart scored a remarkable 99/100. Lots of teams went away with prizes and some even with Anthony Horowitz T-shirts.

It was a lovely heat as all questions were answered by at least one team.

I look forward to seeing you at a heat soon

Happy reading

Wayne

YORK HEAT

2008-11-10T07:08:00.002Z

The Scissett Middle School orchestra played a welcoming medley of tunes as schools entered the North Light Gallery for the quiz, and so the stage was set for this year's heat of the Serco KLQ.

John Mc Coomb, local artist and storyteller awarded prizes to North Halifax Grammar School for coming first, followed by Woodleigh School.

The traditional Kids' Lit Quiz chocolate cake has been a great favourite and all the teams enjoyed a scrumptious piece again this year. the book prizes were generously given by Chicken House.

Happy Reading

Wayne

MIDLANDS HEAT

2008-11-07T08:12:00.004Z

There's no doubting that evening heats of the Serco Kids' Lit Quiz really rock. The venue was packed with teams and over 200+ spectators filled the sides of the room. There was a feeling of literary expectation and the final result confirmed just how close all the teams were bunched together.
Mark Robson attended and gave away copies of his books to lucky kids able to answer his questions. All the other team prizes were generously donated by Macmillan Publishers.
The team from Scholastic UK competed well for the first five rounds but then faded after the break. The top team though was Blue Coat followed by the two teams from Finham Park School.
Fun festive night.
Happy Reading
Wayne

NORFOLK HEAT

2008-11-05T22:29:00.003Z

Hi Everyone
A lovely afternoon today where reading was positively affirmed by all teams and spectators. Winning teams were spread and all teams experienced a measure of success in the ten categories. Swavesey Village College 1 defended their title from last year which was a great achievement given the stiff competition. Wymondham College was second and Thetford Grammar 2 was third.
Many thanks to Wymondham High School for hosting the KLQ and to student, William, for his technical assistance.
Keep Reading
Wayne

ESSEX HEAT

2008-11-04T20:53:00.003Z

Hi Everyone
Very happy and enjoyable afternoon today in Ockendon during the second heat of the UK Kids' Lit Quiz. All teams quickly sorted out their joker round and we got right into the quiz. It was won very convincingly by Bancrofts School and their second team was also placed second. This now means that the school will head to Newcastle for the UK Final on Nov 28th. Well done.
Our guest author, Michael Coleman, assisted with the marking and a comprehensive display of his books was displayed for readers to pursue.
Happy Reading
Wayne

LONDON HEAT

2008-11-04T09:50:00.008Z

Hello Everyone

It's great to be back in Britain again and to start the next session of the 2009 Kids' Lit Quizzes in London. Last night's heat was won by the authors' team (Dianne Hofmeyr, Amanda Lees, Sally Nicholls and Beth Webb) and boy did they enjoy winning!. However they cannot be the team to go through to the Newcastle national final of course. That honour went to Bishop's Stortford College A team-congratulations. The two teams from Arnold House were second and third this was pretty good too. Mark Robson had a busy time on the scoreboard and the markers were well known authors like Echo Freer, Gareth Mottram and Pauline Francis.

Alan Jeffreys provided the book shop.

Thanks to Bloomsbury for the book prizes and to Broxbourne School for use of their facilities and hall.
Next heat is in Essex
Wayne

THE KIDS' LIT QUIZ 2008 - DATES OF REGIONAL HEATS

2008-10-31T00:36:00.005Z

Wayne Mills arrives in the UK this week-end and starts his whistle-stop tour in London on November 3rd.

November 3 - London

November 4 - Essex

November 5 - E England

November 6 - Midlands

November 7 - York

November 10 - Bucks

November 11 - Oxford

November 12 - S England

November 13 - S Wales

November 14 - SW England

November 17 - N Ireland

November 18 - NW England

November 19 - W Scotland

November 21 - E Scotland

November 24 - NE England

November 28 - National final - The Seven Stories Newcastle

Wayne will add to the blog after each heat and welcomes your comments.

GOOD LUCK TO EVERYONE

UK Final 3 Dec

2007-12-04T00:43:00.000Z

Impressive, exciting, breathtaking and oh-so-knowledgeable were all the finalists.
We were delighted to have as guest of honour Eva Ibbotson who presented first prize to Arnold House from the London Heat. I was personally thrilled to meet Eva for the first time. She was ably assisted by Paul Bajoria who handed out the prize to second place George Heriot's from East Scotland and to Truro School from Cornwall.
Arnold House went away with individual trophies, the 2007 KLQ Cup, books, book vouchers and a smart Kids' Lit Quiz cake.
Thanks to all the staff at Seven Stories for their management of the event, to Philip Pullman for sponsoring the event, to Serco for their belief in the quiz, to Eileen Armstrong for coordinating the national heats. Thanks too to all the librarians and teachers who prepared their teams, to Jacky, Margaret, Diane and Trevor all of whom assisted ably and made today the best final ever!
Wayne
Quizmaster

West Scotland 27 Nov

2007-11-27T14:58:00.000Z

Who was the most delighted to win today? Okay rhetorical question but it was the authors' team of Cathy Cassidy, Alex Nye, Keith Charters and Kathie Grant. They had had a tough fight on their hands all afternoon but just managed to beat Bannerman High School from Glasgow. It was a privilege to have two of the winning authors from last week's Scottish Books Awards (Cathy and Alex)in the authors' team.
Once again all the scores were really close showing just how well the teams are doing.
Well that's the end of the UK heats. I wonder who will win the UK final on Dec 3?
Cheers everyone, thanks for following my blogs.
Wayne

North East England 26 Nov

2007-11-26T18:11:00.000Z

This was the tighest heat so far (there's only one heat left now before the final) the top three teams were separated by only two points and if the second team had not changed an answer, the result well who knows... Instead well done Central Newcastle High who were first. The venue at Park View School allowed all the spectators from two sides to view the participants as they were down two levels on the hall floor. It was a cracker night and enjoyed by all and several of the adult prizes were won by kids.
Wayne
Quizmaster

East Scotland 23 Nov

2007-11-24T10:53:00.000Z

A piper welcomed everyone one as they entered into the brand new Performing Arts Centre at Stewarts Melville School for the first Kids Lit Quiz heat in Scotland this year. The excitment must have got to two kids though as they both had nose bleeds. But the atmosphere was exciting and the heat was won again for the third year by George Heriots School and the authors' team (consisting of Debi Gliori, Keith Gray, Gill Arbuthnot and Mike Nicholson) was just behind in second place

Northern Ireland 21 Nov

2007-11-23T10:29:00.000Z

Great festive night-crackers on the tables and back in the land of the Kids' Lit Quiz World Champions. This year every county in Northern Ireland turned out for the event as well as one hundred spectators. Many teams had travelled quite a distance to participate. Welcome and thank you to you all. Wellington College the defending World Champions couldn't quite hold off new winners Sullivan Upper. But even Sullivan Upper couldn't quite pip the authors' team consisting of Eleanor Updale and Sarah Wray and several librarians. It was another evening spent celebrating 'the sport of reading'
Wayne
Quizmaster

North West England Heat 20th Nov

2007-11-20T22:11:00.000Z

Hi Everybody
What a hot and exciting heat. It was jammed packed as we had 130 in the audience and a capacity number of teams given the size of the venue. Many thanks to all those who came along tonight as supporters. Another world first for the quiz occured tonight as the winning team, Helsby High School, only had three children in their team! Their fourth member withdrew at the last moment. (one wonders what they would have achieved with four members in their team). Guest author Sherry Ashworth handed out the cup and prize vouchers to the winners and she was very impressed with the overall knowledge of all those teams taking part.
Wonderful performances all round
Wayne
Quizmaster

South West England 16 Nov

2007-11-17T10:14:00.000Z

What an exhuberant heat and so well attended by over 75 parents, grandparents, librarians and teachers. The hall was filled to capacity and was only one team short of the record set by the Yorkshire heat. This was a night to remember for when the results came in from both the manual count and from the electronic scoring Truro School had amassed a record breaking 96 points.Prizes were handed out by local Cornish author Chris Higgins. Such a fantastic result-well done. And a special thanks to the three students who prepared the supper as part of their citizenship award- we were spoilt for choice.
Keep that reading going
Wayne
Quizmaster