Category Archives: student writing contest

24

May. ’11

Writing Contest for High School Students

Contests often help motivate young writers, especially in the summer when there are no school deadlines.  This prestigious one sponsored by The Nation will get your high school student thinking!

Here is the information from the website:

Nation Student Writing Contest, 2011

We are looking for original, thoughtful, provocative student voices to answer this question: What do you think is the most serious issue facing your generation?

Essays should not exceed 800 words and should be original, unpublished work that demonstrates fresh, clear thinking and superior quality of expression and craftsmanship. We’ll select five finalists and two winners—one from college, one from high school. Each winner will be awarded a $1,000 cash prize and a Nation subscription. The winning essays will be published and/or excerpted in the magazine and featured at TheNation.com. The five finalists will be awarded $200 each plus subscriptions, and their entries will be published online. Entries will be accepted from May 15th through June 30th, 2011. A winner will be announced by September 24, 2011.

Eligibility

The contest is open to all matriculating high school students and undergraduates at American schools, colleges and universities, including those receiving high school or college degrees in the year 2011. Submissions must be original, unpublished work. Each entrant is limited to one submission. Entries will be accepted through June 30, 2011. Submissions can be e-mailed to studentprize@thenation.com. Please include the essay in the body of the e-mail. All e-mailed submissions will be acknowledged. Each entry must include author’s name, address, phone number, e-mail address and short biography and school affiliation—and say “student essay” in the subject line. Please email studentprize@thenation.com for questions. Anyone having participated in The Nation internship program as well as previous winners are ineligible.

Posted by . Categories: contest, education, essay, student writing contest, writers in the schools, writing. Tags: . 1 Comment

03

May. ’11

Summer Internship for Teen Writers

Are you a teenager who loves to write? Are you interested in youth entrepreneurship? Would you like to work in a digital office?

A group called Raising CEO Kids is offering teen writers a chance to join with other teens to learn how to run a business. To qualify for the journalist position, you must be willing to work at least 2 hours per week and be willing to write articles about business, finance, or life as a teen entrepreneur.

Stand-out writers may have the opportunity to join the CEO Kids Advisory Council and/or be invited to stay on for a school-year internship. For more information about this great opportunity to hone your writing skills, connect with other teens, and build your resume, click here.

Posted by . Categories: contest, student, student writing contest, writers in the schools, writing. Tags: , , , , . Leave a comment

28

Apr. ’11

Summer Writing Program Scholarships for High School Students

Target by Jasper Johns

What:  2011 Younkin-Rivera Prizes for Young Writers

When: Due April 30, 2011

Cost: $5

A nationwide competition for creative writers aged 15-18. Entries accepted during the month of April in the genres of poetry and prose.

Prize in each category: $250 and a full tuition scholarship to the 2011 Young Writers Workshop at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.

To enter in poetry: send no more than 2 poems (limit of 25 lines each) per entrant, along with an entry fee of $5.

To enter in prose (fiction or essay): send one story or essay (no more 1000 words) per entrant, along with an entry fee of $5.

To enter in both poetry and prose: send no more than 2 poems (limit of 25 lines each) and one essay or story (of no more than 1000 words) per entrant, along with an entry fee of $10. Entries longer than the limits listed above will be returned, along with their entry fees.

Entrants must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents.

All entries must be typed on white 8 1/2 by 11 inch paper. Do not put your name on your entries. Include a separate cover sheet with the following information on it: your name, home address, phone number, e-mail address, date of birth, titles of your entries, and the name and address of your high school. Checks or money orders to cover the entry fee should be made out to SIUC, with “Young Writers Workshop” written in the check’s memo line. Please do not send cash. Include a self-addressed stamped envelope for contest results. No entries will be returned, so please keep copies of the work you send. No e-mail or faxed submissions will be accepted. Winners will be contacted via e-mail, so please make sure your current, working e-mail address is clearly typed on your cover sheet.

Prizes will be awarded at a ceremony during the annual Young Writers Workshop at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, a five-day, coed, residential creative writing workshop for high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors interested in developing their skills in the writing of poetry and prose. If a prizewinner cannot attend the Workshop, the prize will not be awarded to that winner. Travel costs to and from the Workshop are the responsibility of the winner. Previous award winners cannot enter again.

The Young Writers Workshop will be held in 2011 from June 21 to June 25, 2011.

To enter, send your submissions, postmarked from April 1 to April 30, 2011, to:

The Younkin-Rivera Prizes for Young Writers

Allison Joseph, Director

The Young Writers Workshop

Department of English

Southern Illinois University Carbondale

Faner Hall 2380–Mail Code 4503

1000 Faner Drive

Carbondale, IL 62901

Questions? Email Allison at <aljoseph(at)siu.edu> (replace (at) with @ in sending e-mail)

Posted by . Categories: contest, essay, fiction, poetry, student, student writing contest, writers in the schools. Leave a comment

11

Apr. ’11

Publishing Op: Crash Test Magazine

If you are a teenager currently enrolled in high school, grades 9-12, Crashtest, the new online literary magazine for high school writers, would like to hear from you! the deadline for the inaugural issue is APRIL 15, 2011.

Crashtest publishes poetry, stories and creative non-fiction in the form of personal essays, imaginative investigation, experimental interviews, and other invented forms. The editors seek writing that has both perspective and personality.

For more information and to submit your work online, click here.

Posted by . Categories: essay, fiction, publishing, student, student writing contest, writers in the schools. Leave a comment

03

Feb. ’11

PBS Kids GO! Writers Contest Gives Green Light

Ready, set, go! Houston writers and artists in grades kindergarten – 3rd for the 2011 PBS Kids Go! Writers Contest now accepting entries until March 21st.  Sharpen your pencils and your thinking skills for a chance to write and illustrate your stories, and win prizes for your hard work. To enter, click here.

Posted by . Categories: art, books, contest, creativity, education, event, fiction, Houston, imagination, inspiration, story, student writing contest. Tags: , . Leave a comment

25

Jan. ’11

Get Published: Poetry & Essay Contest

Students in grades kindergarten through 12 who have a love for writing poems and essays can win a $50 savings bond if they submit their entries to Creative Communication’s Poetry & Essay contest. Young writers have an opportunity to be published in an anthology, and schools with 15 or more students qualify for one of fifty $250 Language Arts grants. Go to Creative Communication’s website for contest guidelines and to enter.

What: Poetry & Essay Contest sponsored by Creative Communication

Who: Poetry divisions: Grades K-3, 4-6, 7-9 and 10-12. Essay divisions: Grades 3-6, 7-9 and 10-12

When: Poetry Spring deadline is April 12, 2011; Summer deadline is August 16, 2011

Essay Spring deadline is February 15, 2011; Summer deadline is July 19, 2011

Posted by . Categories: contest, creativity, education, essay, poetry, student, student writing contest, teaching, writers in the schools. Tags: , , . Leave a comment

21

Dec. ’10

Publishing Opportunity for Kids

What: GiggleIT Project competition for students ages 10-14. This is a international competition encouraging literacy and cultural education. Share your sense of humor with the world through your poems, stories, jokes, etc. and win funny prizes too.

When: Free online registration starts now at the IASL website.

Where: A digital publishing project hosted by the International Association of School Librarianship (IASL) and co-sponsored with the International Children’s Digital Library (ICDL), all submissions are online.

View the complete GiggleIT Project media release here.

Posted by . Categories: contest, humor, student, student writing contest, writers in the schools, writing prompts. Tags: , , . Leave a comment

15

Dec. ’10

Weekly Reader Student Contest

Weekly Reader’s Student Publishing Contest invites students in grades 3-12 to enter their best non-fiction writing and publications  for a chance to win a SMART Interactive Whiteboard for their classroom, cash prizes, and a trip to Washington, DC. The contest rewards young people for their compelling, true stories told through good reporting and writing. All essays, memoirs, feature stories, and news articles will be considered. Weekly Reader has opened the contest to digital-only publications encouraging submissions of websites, blogs, newspapers, or other nonfiction publications that only appear online.

There is no entry fee. Submission deadline is March 18, 2011. No late entries will be accepted.

For contest guidelines click here.

Posted by . Categories: contest, essay, student writing contest, writers in the schools, writing. Tags: . Leave a comment

29

Nov. ’10

Writing Contest: Kids Are Authors

Postmark deadline: March 15, 2011

The only thing better than reading a good book is writing one, and Scholastic’s  Kids Are Authors contest rewards children who have a story to tell. The contest is open to students in grades K-8 with a chance to win one grand prize in fiction or nonfiction. Each Grand Prize winning team wins $5,000 in merchandise and 100 copies of their published book.

Click here for contest guidelines and to read entries from past winners. Imagine everyone reading the best book of the year – written by YOU!

Posted by . Categories: books, contest, education, student, student writing contest, writers in the schools, writing. Tags: , , . Leave a comment

16

Nov. ’10

Poetry Contest for Kids

Young writers, you can submit your best work to a poetry contest. It’s sponsored by Creative Communication, and the next deadline is December 9, 2010.

Yes, there are prizes. For students, the top ten entries in each grade division (K-3; 4-6; 7-9; 10-12 for poetry) will receive a $50 savings bond, special recognition in the anthology, and a free copy of the anthology that is created from the contest. Teachers with 5 or more students submitting will receive a free copy of the anthology that includes their student writers. Teachers also can qualify to apply for one of fifty $250 grants that they award each year.

Deadline: December 9, 2010

Who: Students in the US or Canada grades K-12 are eligible

Cost: Free

Posted by . Categories: contest, poetry, publishing, student, student writing contest, writers in the schools. Tags: . Leave a comment

12

Oct. ’10

Love Books? Write One!

logo

NaNoWriMo for Young Writers starts Nov. 1st!

You may have heard about NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month), an annual November marathon of text production undertaken by thousands of sleep-deprived adults across the globe? Well, there’s a kid-version of this madness, and it starts November 1st.  Find out all about it here.

Who’s in?

Posted by . Categories: books, contest, fiction, student, student writing contest, writers in the schools. Tags: , . Leave a comment

06

Oct. ’10

The Blue Pencil Online Now Accepting Student Submissions

The Blue Pencil Online, edited and produced by the students in the Writing & Publishing Program at Walnut Hill School for the Arts, publishes the work of writers ages 12 to 18 from around the world, with the intention of showcasing the best in literary craft by young writers. The Editors seek text and audio submissions for their magazines and online archive. Visit Visit TBPO’s Writers’ Guidelines and Submissions for information on how to send your work!

Posted by . Categories: contest, education, fiction, poetry, publishing, student, student writing contest, writing. Tags: . Leave a comment

24

Sep. ’10

Writing Contest for Kids: Where I’m From

What Kids Can Do (WKCD) announces a new writing contest, “Where I am From” open to kids across the country. Read their contest guidelines below and submit your entry before October 31, 2010.

Who can enter
Young people in grades 6 to 12, anywhere in the United States.

Entries
Your entry may take the form of either a poem or an essay (no longer than 400 words).

Before you write, we suggest that you read the poem “Where I’m From,” by George Ella Lyon (see below). What about this poem gives you the strongest feelings? Is there anything you can relate to in it? How do you think the author feels about where she is from?

Next, write your own “Where I’m From” poem. Rather than copying the order and form of Lyon’s poem, follow your own intuition in writing about the smells, sights, sounds, voices, people, and place you are from. Or, if poetry is not your thing, bring your life to light in an essay.

Finally, read your poem or essay aloud, to yourself or to others. What do you like best about it? What do you want to change about it? Revise your writing until it sounds true to your very own heart and voice.

To submit your entry
Email your work (as an attachment) to: info@whatkidscando.org. Please include your name, age, the school you attend, and the city/town and state where you live.

Deadline
October 31, 2010 (yes, Halloween)

Prize Winners

We’ll announce the winning entries on our website on November 15, 2010. Winners will receive $100 Amazon gift certificates and be published on the WKCD website – it’s a great place to take a bow!

Subscribe or bookmark A Poem a Day to find out about great writing contests for kids.

Posted by . Categories: contest, essay, poetry, self-portrait, student writing contest, writers in the schools. Tags: , , , . 1 Comment

01

Sep. ’10

Student Writing Contest: Poems for Peace

In honor of Conflict Resolution Day, the  Association of Conflict Resolution is sponsoring the following opportunity:

Peace Poem Contest Rules

1. Eligibility. The contest is open to all students in grades 3 – 12.
2. Submission Period. Entries will be accepted between September 1, 2010 and November 1, 2010,11:59 PM Eastern (10:59 PM Central; 9:59 PM Mountain; 8:59 PM Pacific; 5:59 PM Hawaii).
3. To Enter. Write a poem that describes “Peace in My Community”. Please write a title for your poem. Limit your poem to 20 lines. Poems must be in English. Limit: 1 poem per student, 20 per school. Please do not put your name or school on the poem (for fairness in judging).
ALL POEMS SUBMITTED MUST BE THE STUDENT’S OWN, ORIGINAL WORK, AND NOT PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED.
4. Prizes. Prizes will be awarded in three categories: Grades 3-5; 6-8; and 9-12. First Place: $100. Second Place: $75. (prizes are in U.S. dollars)
5. Announcement of Winners. Winners will be contacted by December 1, 2010.
6. Sponsor. The Association for Conflict Resolution (ACR) is a professional organization dedicated to enhancing the practice and public understanding of conflict resolution. This contest is being sponsored as an activity for ACR’s Conflict Resolution Day. For information about ACR and Conflict Resolution Day, click here.
7. General Conditions.
Poems will not be returned. Entrants should keep a copy of their submissions.
Association for Conflict Resolution assumes no responsibility for entries that are lost, incomplete, misdirected, illegible, or late, or for failed computer transmissions or technical failures.
Association for Conflict Resolution reserves the right, in its discretion, to reject entries that it believes are unlawful, libelous, or would be detrimental to the reputation of Conflict Resolution Day or the Association for Conflict Resolution.
Poems with profanity, obscenity, vulgarity, or anything else which overrides the general norms of civility will not be eligible for prizes.
Entry must comply with all contest rules to be eligible for a prize. The Association for Conflict Resolution reserves the right not to award any prizes.
Selected entries (including those that were not awarded prizes) may be displayed at the ACR National Conference and may be compiled in a poetry book or other form (including electronically) as may be determined by the Association for Conflict Resolution.
Winning students will have the opportunity to submit a digital tape recording of their poem, which the Association for Conflict Resolution may link to its website.
Winners will be selected by a panel of judges named by the Association for Conflict Resolution. The judges will evaluate the entries using the following criteria: exploration of theme, impact on reader, originality, literacy, message. Judges’ decisions are final.

Posted by . Categories: contest, student writing contest. Tags: , , , , , . Leave a comment

26

Jul. ’10

The Macedonian Express and the Best-So-Far Awards

Today was the first day of the WITS Creative Writing Camp in Tetova on the border of Bosnia.  The camp was huge with 25 students here this afternoon and four “Best-So-Far” Awards for each group — the morning kids and the afternoon kids.  I am not really sure how these “Best-So-Far” Awards got started, but they have come to have a life of their own.  They all culminate on the Fridays of the Camp with a “Best of the Best” Award in nine different categories, most of which are actually related to our writing, as in Best Haiku, Best Extended Poem, Best Play, Best Vignette, Best Short Story, Best Piece of Descriptive Realism, but also including Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Director of the plays that are presented the last day, usually in front of a representative sent by the embassy in Skopje.

Every afternoon, after hours with the kids, sit down together and review the writing that went on in the camp and select the best pieces “so far.”  It is an interesting experience, but what is equally fun is to see the campers come in the next morning and the smiles on their faces when they have won one of the awards and they know exactly what they won it for.  Then, the third day of the camp, we begin awarding campers for the “Best Body of Work So Far.”

I guess life doesn’t really give such awards, but it would be convenient to get a kind of check-up like this from time to time in life itself.  It also let’s the teachers know, if there is no award for example, that we may need to see what we are doing and make changes.  That has never happened, but it is possible.  Hope that you are having a “Best-So-Far” Day yourself.

From Tetova, this is WITS Writer Merrilee Cunningham having a good day.

Posted by . Categories: contest, student writing contest, travel, writers in the schools, writing. Tags: , , , , . Leave a comment