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ABOUT THE BOOK
NO SPOILERSDave Packer is a loud, opinionated fifth grader at Laketon Elementary School in New Jersey, and his whole class has earned the nickname "the Unshushables" for their nonstop chatter. While preparing a report on India, Dave reads that Mahatma Gandhi spent one day each week in complete silence to bring order to his mind, and Dave decides to try the same thing. He manages nearly four hours of quiet before blurting an insult at his equally loud classmate Lynsey Burgess at lunch, and from that argument a wild challenge is born: the fifth-grade boys against the fifth-grade girls, two full days with no talking at all unless answering a grown-up, and even then no more than three words in a row.
Free Battle of the Books questions for No Talking
SPOILERSEvery one of these has the same answer, and that is the point. In a real battle the question is read aloud with a dozen other books in play, and students have a few seconds to place it. Here is what a battle might ask about No Talking. Use them as a quiz, a trivia round, or BOTB practice.
Where in the book they come from
- Early in the book
In what book does a boy wonder if staying silent would help him finally understand fractions?
✓ Answer
No Talking by Andrew Clements
After reading that Gandhi believed silence could bring order to his mind, Dave wonders if not talking could make him smarter. He imagines finally understanding fractions, spotting adverbs, and maybe even becoming a better baseball player.
- First half
In what book does a custodian tell teachers to go check out a miracle in the cafeteria?
✓ Answer
No Talking by Andrew Clements
Mr. Lipton sticks his head into the teachers' room and says the fifth graders aren't even whispering, comparing the cafeteria to a funeral. For a group of kids known as the loudest in school history, the silence really does seem miraculous.
- First half
In what book is silent dodgeball compared to a pack of wolves hunting a lone caribou?
✓ Answer
No Talking by Andrew Clements
Without the usual shouting, dodgeball becomes eerily intense. When three or four kids with red dodgeballs silently hunt down one player, the narrator compares it to wolves stalking prey. A motion of the leader's head, a move toward the target, and then the throws slam in.
- Second half
In what book does a girl ask a classmate to sign a note as a witness to a bet?
✓ Answer
No Talking by Andrew Clements
After Lynsey accepts Dave's head-to-head challenge, she has Helena sign the note as an official witness. Lynsey doesn't hesitate for a second. She's confident she'll win and is already thinking about which color permanent marker to use.
- Second half
In what book does a girl answer her flute teacher's questions by tapping beats on a music stand?
✓ Answer
No Talking by Andrew Clements
Ellen won't speak during her flute lesson, so when her teacher asks how many beats of silence a rest gets, she taps the correct number on the music stand instead of saying it out loud. Her confused teacher keeps asking her to just say the answer, but Ellen sticks to tapping and eventually the lesson continues without any words at all.
- Near the end
In what book does a boy shout, "You have the right to remain silent"?
✓ Answer
No Talking by Andrew Clements
When Mrs. Hiatt uses the bullhorn to order Dave to talk during lunch, he stands up and yells back that he doesn't have to talk if he doesn't want to. Then a sentence from TV cop shows pops into his head, and he shouts it to the whole cafeteria. It becomes a rallying cry as every kid folds their arms in solidarity.
