Fifteen teams from across the Walton County School District faced off in a challenge of reading mastery at the district-wide Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl on Saturday, Jan. 23.
 
The Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl is a unique six-round reading competition where students test their knowledge of books from either the Georgia Book Award nominees (elementary and middle school students) or the Georgia Peach Book Award for Teen Readers nominees (high school students). Elementary and middle school students are required to read 10 books and high school students are required to read 20 prior to the competition. Two teams go head to head during each round, answering 10 questions in a competitive game format to earn points.
 
The top two elementary, middle and high school teams will move on to compete at the regional level on Feb. 20, 2021.
 
Helen Ruffin, a library media specialist in DeKalb County, founded the Reading Bowl in 1986 as a way to foster a love of reading in her students. The competition, now open to students in grades four through 12, was expanded across the state and renamed the Georgia Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl in 2003.
 
2020-21 Helen Ruffin Reading Bowl Winners
Elementary School
1st Place - Atha Road
2nd Place - Youth
3rd Place – Monroe and Walnut Grove
 
Middle School
1st Place - Youth
2nd Place - Carver
3rd Place - Loganville
 
High School
1st Place - Loganville
2nd Place - Walnut Grove
3rd Place - Monroe Area