The folks over at PBS Kids have just announced their annual PBS KIDS GO! Writing Contest for kids in grades K-3. This creative writing adventure encourages children from around the country to embrace the power of storytelling utlizing their own words and illustrations. Fun fact? As a fifth grader, The Rock Father once took part in a similar contest – becoming the winning writer to represent his school at the Illinois Young Author’s Conference at Illinois State University. Yes, I just spoke of myself in the third-person. Check out the full details on the PBS KIDS GO! Writers Contest below, and then get your little ones writing!
Full PBS KIDS GO! Contest Details:
How the Contest Works
PBS stations throughout the country will collaborate with schools, public libraries and other community-based organizations to present the Contest in local communities. Each station will select local winners and award prizes.
These local winners will then be entered into the national contest where a panel of esteemed judges will select the top 12 winners. National winners will be announced during the summer of 2013 and the winning stories will be featured on pbskids.org/writerscontest.
The national winners will receive prizes, including tablets, e-readers and MP3 players. Additionally, Highlights for Children has joined the Contest as a new promotional partner and all participants will have the option to receive a print or digital version of Highlights magazine.
PBS KIDS GO! Writers Contest Honorary Judges
A panel of America’s foremost children’s authors, illustrators and content experts will serve as honorary judges for thePBS KIDS GO! Writers Contest. The 2013 honorary judges include:
- Lisa Henson: As Chief Executive Officer of The Jim Henson Company, Henson serves as an executive producer of Sid the Science Kid and Dinosaur Train, both currently airing daily on PBS KIDS, and Pajanimals, a musical puppet series airing daily on Sprout.
- Jeff Kinney: As a New York Times bestselling author, online game developer and designer, Kinney has been named one of Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in the World. His seventh book, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Third Wheel, is the biggest print book of 2012. His book series has over 83 million in print worldwide, translated into more than 40 languages. He spent his childhood in the Washington, D.C., area and moved to New England in 1995. Jeff lives in southern Massachusetts with his wife and their two sons.
- Kate Klimo: As Vice President and Publisher of the Random House/Golden Books Group, she has been responsible for extending the Seuss brand into new formats including board and novelty books, and publishing non-fiction celebrations of Dr. Seuss’s life and works. Klimo has nearly 30 years of experience at Random House; more than 15 of them spent working on All Things Seuss. She is also the production executive of The Cat in the Hat Knows A Lot About That! Kate is the author of many books for young readers, including 12 titles in the Cat in the Hat’s Learning Library series. She has also written for young adults (The Centauriad Series) and has a new series for children, Dog Diaries, launching in January 2013.
- Jarrett Krosoczka: Two-time winner of the Third to Fourth Grade Book of the Year in the Children’s Choice Book Awards, author and illustrator for sixteen published books – ten picture books and six graphic novels. He has seen his work recommended by national publications like Newsweek, The New York Times and USA Today. His Punk Farm and Lunch Lady series are also in development to be feature films.
- Susan Meddaugh: Author and illustrator of Martha Speaks, the best-selling book series, as well as a creative producer of the award-winning PBS KIDS series of the same name. Susan grew up in New Jersey, studied art and illustration, and now lives in Massachusetts with her family — including her dogs of course.
- R.L. Stine: As one of the best-selling children’s authors in history, he has sold over 350 million books that have been read all over the world including Goosebumps – one of the best-selling children’s series of all-time. R.L. lives in New York City with his wife Jane and his dog Minnie.
Creative Writing Resources
The Contest is supported by a robust set of resources for children, parents and teachers. Story ideas, activity sheets, along with the previous winning entries are available on the Contest website to inspire children during the brainstorming process. PBS LearningMedia is also offering a collection of online teacher resources for use in classrooms nationwide.
PBS KIDS is a trusted guide nurturing young learners ages 2- 8. As America’s largest classroom, PBS inspires children to discover their full potential for success in school and in life and serves children wherever they live, learn, and play. More information on participating local stations, general entry rules and contest resources can be found on pbskids.org/writerscontest.
