The Morgan Book Project and Scholastic Writing Awards!

I'm playing catch-up here - 

Following last year's Book Project Awards that was cancelled due to the pandemic, The Morgan Library and Museum found a way to make it happen this year. The award ceremony was virtual, and judges had an opportunity to speak with the kids about their projects. I loved hearing their thoughts on the book project program experience, what inspired their projects, and how they made decisions about design layout and story. Themes included public safety Covid guidelines as a reflection of the times, and stories of cooperation and kindness toward others, an appeal to everyone to work together. Their dedication to their work was an inspiration to all of us. And a special thank you to the schools and teachers for helping to pull this off! All of the projects submitted were wonderful and full of heart. Congratulations to every participant for their extraordinary accomplishment. View the winning projects HERE click on the cover to expand the book. 

As a bonus to the kids for their tremendous effort during such a challenging time, all finalists have their books on display in the gallery through August 15th. 

The Scholastic Writing Awards were a great success. Another wonderful program I feel privileged to be a part of. The students surmounted the tragic uncertainty of living through a pandemic by channeling their creativity through the art of writing, and produced a record of our time. There were of course works influenced by personal experience of the pandemic represented in the submissions. But all of the work, all of the themes they embraced, proved that expressing ourselves creatively is important and should be nurtured through programs like this. Whatever the genre, these young writers showed they had something to say. Read the winning works HERE by genre. Regional awards list. Congratulations to all the participants and to the winners. Thank you for sharing your art, and thank you to the partnering organizations that helped to create a space where their work can flourish. Keep writing with Writopia Lab.

Look for more information about the programs and how young people can participate through the links.

Scholastic Writing Awards and Irish Arts Center Book Day

In January, I happily read scores of work by 7-12th graders who compete annually in The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards. The competition starts regionally and then moves to the national competition. When the winners are announced I scan the list of titles to see if the work I loved received an award. As I am one of the judges and the entries I read are anonymous, this is when I learn the names of the writers. I'm jumping up and down as if I know them personally, and make a mental note to keep an eye out for them as they hopefully embark on a career as a writer. I imagine one day standing in line at their book signing and telling them that I loved the story/play/essay/poem they wrote when they were in school. 

This year, Yuzhen Zou, and Isabel Stronski (both 11th graders), received gold awards in the memoir/personal essay category. Award winning work from this year will be available to read HERE after April 15th. 

Congratulations to all the entrants. It was a privilege to read your work. For information about how to enter click HERE.  

IRISH ARTS CENTER BOOK DAY is an annual event around St. Patrick's Day. They partner with other cultural organizations to give away free books to the public at various locations throughout NYC. This year they partnered with the Asian Alliance to offer asian authors in addition to Irish and Irish American authors. There are different genres available: fiction, non-fiction, poetry, memoir, adult and children's books. It's great fun to help passers-by to find a new book to read. Cristian Verdugo picked up books for members of his family too, including a book by an Irish author translated into Spanish.

Cristian Verdugo

That's what's great about this program. From one person, several more can be exposed to new books as well. The books I added to my To Read pile:

 

The Irish Arts Center offers performances and classes in writing, music, dance and Irish language.

SCHOLASTIC WRITING AWARDS

I'm delighted to have participated again as a judge for the Scholastic Writing Awards. Each year, this national program honors teens in grades 7 - 12 in several categories of writing. Students who receive  awards may be eligible for scholarships (see general information). Congratulations to everyone who entered! It was a pleasure reading your work.
Click on this link for further information about HOW TO ENTER  .

Writing can be a part of your teen's life throughout the year. There are many writing programs available for kids to hone their skills and pursue their passion. A great place to consider is the national organization, Writopia Lab. Locally there are branches in New York City, Brooklyn, Westchester, Rockland County and New Jersey. Click HERE for further information.

By the way, Scholastic also offers awards for young artists. Click on this link for general information about the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards HERE .

Scholastic Writing Awards for kids

I am excited and inspired after a day of reading kids' submissions to the Scholastic Writing Awards.  I read some fantastic work. And even those entry's that were less successful had kernals of wonderful work to come. I read beautifully crafted sentences. There was dialogue that made me feel I was eavesdropping,  the words were so true and genuine. There were photographic descriptions, and poetic turns of phrases that could have come from the most accomplished writers. All this from 9th-12th graders (in my batch)! Of course my fingers are crossed for the submissions I nominated. It's all subjective though, so I hope all the participants continue to write.

The arts seem to be under assault these days where kids are concerned. Programs in schools are being cut in favor of a push for more math and science over arts education.  There's nothing wrong with math and science,  but I believe the emphasis in school should be on developing intellectual curiosity for life long learning, and a broad education that embraces the humanities. After school programs and libraries can also fill the gap, but they need your support. And get kids to participate. The greater the demand, the more attention these programs will receive.

Here's a link to the submissions guidelines. I encourage everyone to let kids know about this wonderful opportunity. http://www.artandwriting.org/the-awards/how-to-enter/
And thank you to Writopia Lab in Hartsdale for hosting. Writopia offers writing workshops for kids across the country. http://www.writopialab.org/ Happy writing.