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ABOUT THE BOOK
NO SPOILERSWhen the earth is brand new, water drips through a little cave and leaves tiny piles of minerals behind. After many, many drops, two little nubs with eyes have grown. Stalactite hangs from the ceiling, and Stalagmite sits on the floor right below it, where the drips land on its head. The two nubs become friends and keep each other company for millions of years. All kinds of visitors pass through their cave, from a trilobite with many legs to a very loud triceratops to a thirsty giant ground sloth. Drip by drip, the friends keep growing while the world outside changes.
Free Battle of the Books questions for Stalactite and Stalagmite: A Big Tale from a Little Cave
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 Stalactite and Stalagmite: A Big Tale from a Little Cave. 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 trilobite say, "I am not a thing"?
✓ Answer
Stalactite and Stalagmite: A Big Tale from a Little Cave by Drew Beckmeyer
One of the friends spots something and says, "A thing is moving down there." The trilobite answers, "I am not a thing. I am a trilobite."
- First half
In what book does an Ichthyostega look kind of like a fish?
✓ Answer
Stalactite and Stalagmite: A Big Tale from a Little Cave by Drew Beckmeyer
One of the friends tells the Ichthyostega, "You look kind of like a fish." The Ichthyostega says the fish don't like it much, because it has legs instead of fins.
- First half
In what book does a red triceratops open its mouth full of white teeth?
✓ Answer
Stalactite and Stalagmite: A Big Tale from a Little Cave by Drew Beckmeyer
When the triceratops first shows up close, its huge red face with three horns fills the picture, mouth wide open. It looks scary, but it tells the friends, "Don't be afraid."
- Second half
In what book does one friend ask, "Are you a lick monster?"
✓ Answer
Stalactite and Stalagmite: A Big Tale from a Little Cave by Drew Beckmeyer
When the giant ground sloth starts licking them, one friend says it feels funny and asks, "Are you a lick monster?" The sloth answers, "NO. I AM A GIANT GROUND SLOTH."
- Second half
In what book does a bat hang upside down from a dripping rock?
✓ Answer
Stalactite and Stalagmite: A Big Tale from a Little Cave by Drew Beckmeyer
A bat hangs upside down from the tip of Stalactite, the friend that hangs from the ceiling. One friend asks, "Excuse me, could you hang somewhere else?"
- Near the end
In what book does a tour guide show visitors two rocks inching closer together?
✓ Answer
Stalactite and Stalagmite: A Big Tale from a Little Cave by Drew Beckmeyer
Much later, a tour guide tells a group of people that the two friends "have been inching closer and closer together for millions of years, one tiny drip at a time." By now Stalactite and Stalagmite are almost touching.
