The Quizbowl Resource Center

Results:
http://www.qunlimited.com/nationaljr.htm

Sample questions:
that Peyton Manning is the NFL's most marketable player as far as commercials are concerned; that what the French called La Grande Guerre, we call World War I;

Manheim Township identified IBM as the company behind the Think Pad laptop computer

But the creme-de-la-creme:
"Disney announced that rights of High School Musical will be released so what places can do their own performance at the local level?"
and the answer: 'high schools'.

I state the facts as reported .... you may all reach your own conclusions.

I witnessed a JRNAC game in DC and it was pretty much as expected. In addition to the insultingly easy questions (even for eighth graders I'm pretty sure "Tibet is seeking its independence from what country?" is not a good way to distinguish the teams) there seemed to be a lot of new shenanigans, like the strong implication that they were offering "Harry Potter" as a lightning round category in EVERY GAME.

If i recall correctly, the most surreal part of that particular match was having a clock that was running like 3-4 minutes fast being used to forfeit a team that said that they had gotten out of another game late and had gotten bad directions. Needless to say, the moderator declared the forfeit, and the other team promptly entered.

[cracks open a beer]
[takes a bite of his hunk of cheese]
[waits to hear more questions while wondering how an IESA team might have fared, if it were legal to attend]
[wonders if he should invite Danville Bate to his Barrington tournament to see how good they really are]

Are any quizbowl organizations (most likely NAQT, but maybe PACE) considering running a Middle School Nationals on quality questions? Because it seems that this is the only outlet for top-quality middle school teams to play others from across the country. This may make them enter high school with an affection toward , which can only lead to bad things.

AlphaQuizBowler wrote:Are any quizbowl organizations (most likely NAQT, but maybe PACE) considering running a Middle School Nationals on quality questions? Because it seems that this is the only outlet for top-quality middle school teams to play others from across the country. This may make them enter high school with an affection toward , which can only lead to bad things.

It'd be interesting to try it on an IS-A set, or maybe run the playoffs on an IS set, too. Someone independent of NAQT could just run a national middle school invitational and report the results. Granted, the Great Middle School Pyramidal Experiment returned... interesting results.

Tegan wrote:Manheim Township identified IBM as the company behind the Think Pad laptop computer

That's not even true anymore! Lenovo has been making them for the last three years.

AlphaQuizBowler wrote:This may make them enter high school with an affection toward , which can only lead to bad things.

Boy, and isn't this the problem! It's like getting a kid hooked on a drug that only one dealer can offer .... thus becoming a customer for life.

I do think that NAQT is seriously considering a middle school championship. I honestly hope that it is something on the lines of an A set which I am pretty sure that most 7-8 graders can answer..

Matthew D wrote:an A set which I am pretty sure that most 7-8 graders can answer..

confirm

Have we tried this on 7-8th graders yet... outside of Lee's kids?

ILoveReeses wrote:Have we tried this on 7-8th graders yet... outside of Lee's kids?

Correct me if I'm wrong, Matt, but I believe Scottsboro hosted a Middle School NAQT State tournament. It was on A series and I think the winning team averaged around 200 PPG in a 9 team round robin.

everyday847 wrote: Granted, the Great Middle School Pyramidal Experiment returned... interesting results.

Great Middle School Pyramidal Experiment?? (especially interesting since Tom and I just spent today presenting to a group of mainly middle school writers for Kentucky about pyramidal questions)

Kechara wrote:

everyday847 wrote: Granted, the Great Middle School Pyramidal Experiment returned... interesting results.

Great Middle School Pyramidal Experiment?? (especially interesting since Tom and I just spent today presenting to a group of mainly middle school writers for Kentucky about pyramidal questions)

See this thread. Pretty interesting and somewhat insightful, I think.

Seriously, how definitive can any middle school national tournament be that is -run, has a field of 11 teams (at least three or four of which were B-teams, so we're looking at a maximum of say 8 different schools), & allows two high school freshmen (per team) to play down on any middle school in their district?

Would an IESA scholastic bowl team actually be prohibited from attending such a tournament, or is there some sort of "this doesn't meet the definition of scholastic bowl" loophole b/c of the different format/only four players compete at a time?

BarringtonJP wrote:[wonders if he should invite Danville Bate to his Barrington tournament to see how good they really are]

This! And while you're at it, if can do it, the Barrington Invitational should become the official middle school national tournament. Now you just need a mail-order-wife from the former Eastern Bloc who blows a train whistle at halftime . I would totally pay good money to see this in action.

Stephen Colbert wrote:Seriously, how definitive can any middle school national tournament be that is -run, has a field of 11 teams (at least three or four of which were B-teams, so we're looking at a maximum of say 8 different schools), & allows two high school freshmen (per team) to play down on any middle school in their district?

Would an IESA scholastic bowl team actually be prohibited from attending such a tournament, or is there some sort of "this doesn't meet the definition of scholastic bowl" loophole b/c of the different format/only four players compete at a time?

OFFICIAL IESA RULING:
Jeff, bylaw 2.081 prohibits member schools from participating in this
tournament in Washington DC representing their school. Now a middle school
age team could enter this tournament if they were not associated with a
member school in any way. (no school uniforms, no money from the school,
etc.)



Schools which contests may be held.

2.081 Member schools may permit eligible students to participate in
interscholastic activities as school representatives pursuant with the
following:



a. Schools which are members of this Association.



b. Illinois elementary attendance centers containing any of the grades five
through eight which are not members of this Association.



c. Non Illinois elementary attendance centers in states adjacent to Illinois
which contain any of the grades five through eight. Member schools on the
Illinois borders should indicate on schedules whenever a school is outside
Illinois.

IESA
Assistant Executive Director
309-829-0114

Stephen Colbert wrote:

BarringtonJP wrote:[wonders if he should invite Danville Bate to his Barrington tournament to see how good they really are]

This! And while you're at it, if can do it, the Barrington Invitational should become the official middle school national tournament. Now you just need a mail-order-wife from the former Eastern Bloc who blows a train whistle at halftime . I would totally pay good money to see this in action.

Hmmm... And here I wanted to hire you to be a moderator, assuming Pam was able to come this year. Of course, I just might get one of our staff members to come in the commons and blow a train whistle to announce my arrival. Will that do it for you???

BarringtonJP wrote:Would an IESA scholastic bowl team actually be prohibited from attending such a tournament, or is there some sort of "this doesn't meet the definition of scholastic bowl" loophole b/c of the different format/only four players compete at a time?

OFFICIAL IESA RULING:
Jeff, bylaw 2.081 prohibits member schools from participating in this tournament in Washington DC representing their school. Now a middle school age team could enter this tournament if they were not associated with a member school in any way. (no school uniforms, no money from the school, etc.)

Wait... this is serious? So no middle schools from Illinois are allowed to play at Chip's??

Why did not know about this? Would this preclude anyone like NAQT from running a MS nationals?

No IESA middle schools would be allowed. Non-association members, such as, say, Holy Cross of Deerfield, could go. At this point, NAQT middle school nationals is a pie-in-the-sky idea and I won't obsess over it. Now, if it did come to pass that such a tournament was born, I could use the IESA's loophole of organizing our kids under a different banner and call ourselves something else... This, in fact, is already done at the annual girls-only tourney staged every year in Streator, IL. Most of the schools are Catholic, so they don't have to follow co-curricular rules established by the Illinois State Board of Ed, but I know at least one public school that participates and call themselves "Team (coach name)" to avoid any trouble with a public school participating in a tourney that excludes one sex. By all accounts, the girls have fun and it's a great experience.

Girls only? Really?...

Matt Weiner wrote:I witnessed a JRNAC game in DC and it was pretty much as expected. In addition to the insultingly easy questions (even for eighth graders I'm pretty sure "Tibet is seeking its independence from what country?" is not a good way to distinguish the teams) there seemed to be a lot of new shenanigans, like the strong implication that they were offering "Harry Potter" as a lightning round category in EVERY GAME.

That Tibet question (and presumably that entire packet) was used verbatim in a Chicago round today (today being the Saturday rounds of the Chicago "N""A""C" event).

BarringtonJP wrote:Hmmm... And here I wanted to hire you to be a moderator, assuming Pam was able to come this year. Of course, I just might get one of our staff members to come in the commons and blow a train whistle to announce my arrival. Will that do it for you???

Fair enough. But if I get to moderate next year, I'm bringing my own bell to ring after correct answers.

DeisEvan wrote:

Tegan wrote:Manheim Township identified IBM as the company behind the Think Pad laptop computer

That's not even true anymore! Lenovo has been making them for the last three years.

well, in reality it wouldn't be a correct answer, but in 's world it is, since IBM and Lenovo have somewhat "merged".