March is a magical month for read-alouds! With Women’s History Month, Read Across America, Pi Day, St. Patrick’s Day, and more, there’s no shortage of opportunities to share great stories. And, of course, we can’t forget March Madness!
While it may be a basketball tradition, we’ve put our own literary twist on it—introducing March Magic: A Book Bracket Activity! 🏆📚
March Madness is an NCAA basketball tournament that has become a nationwide phenomenon. Fans create brackets to predict which teams will advance, competing with friends, family, and coworkers to guess the final two contenders.
But what does basketball have to do with books? School librarians and educators have taken this exciting concept and given it a literary twist! Instead of teams, students vote on books, narrowing them down round by round until a champion is crowned. It’s a fun, interactive way to spark excitement for reading and build a thriving reading community!
These book brackets are all about spectacular soundscapes, and we need your vote! 🏆📚 When choosing which books would make the ultimate soundscape, consider:
Our team has created three exciting bracket activities that let you choose how you participate in the March Magic Book Bracket with your Novel Effect app. Each one adds an extra layer of fun to your read-alouds—get ready to make some magical reading matchups!
Our staff librarian has curated some of the most requested and read soundscapes. The completed bracket for in-app voting is on page 1 of our book bracket download.
Each week, read-aloud the books in the bracket, then vote on your favorite soundscape.
WEEK 1: Women’s History Bracket
WEEK 2: Spring Bracket
WEEK 3: Guaranteed Giggles Bracket
WEEK 4: Award Winners Bracket
Share with us on social the winner of your bracket. We cannot wait to see which soundscape you vote as a slam dunk!
No planning necessary. All you need is your Novel Effect app and our filled-in printable bracket with 16 pre-selected titles. Read the two books competing against each other, vote on the best soundscape, and write the winner on the line. Keep reading along the sides of the bracket, working your way towards the middle, and a reigning soundscape champ.
Do you have your own favorite soundscapes that you cannot wait to share with your budding bookworms? Are there new-to-you soundscapes that you can’t wait to read? Planning your own #bookbracket is for you!
There is a blank bracket included for you to write in your preferred 16 soundscape titles. After reading aloud with your Novel Effect app, vote on and write the winning title for that category. Continue on until you have your final four, and then the reigning champ.
We cannot wait to see which soundscapes you and your readers think are the best! Share your results with us on social. Use #bookbracket and tag us in your social posts so we can see your final favorites!
To print or download the Novel Effect Book Bracket PDFs click the blue button to ‘Add to cart’. After you checkout, a new page will open where you can immediately download your March Magic Book Bracket. You’ll also receive an email with a download link.
Print the bracket of your choice, turn it into a poster or bulletin board, or even give each student their own copy to make personalized predictions!
Download the Novel Effect app to bring stories to life with music and sound that respond to your voice.
