WJCT Names Young Authors as Local Winners of PBS Kids Go! Writers Contest
June 14, 2011
Annual Competition Fosters Reading, Writing and Creativity
(June 14, 2011, Jacksonville, Florida) – WJCT has selected 12 winners of the PBS KIDS GO! Writers Contest, which encourages children grades K-3 to celebrate the power of writing and illustrating by submitting their own original storybooks. The winners were chosen from among nearly 200 statewide entrants by a panel of local judges including librarians, media specialists and teachers.
WJCT, with support from Community First Credit Union and Jacksonville Country Day School, along with prize sponsors Adventure Landing, Community First Credit Union and the Jacksonville Zoo, participated in this year’s writers contest, which was designed to promote the advancement of children’s reading skills through hands-on, active learning. Contest entries are first judged at the local level, after which, one local winner advances to the national Contest and is uploaded to the Contest website.
This year, writers created stories featuring tales of family, animals and travel.
KINDERGARTEN
First Place: Nicholas Baptista, Jacksonville, FL, “Nicholas and Max”
Second Place: Madison Mina, Jacksonville, FL, “The Gingerbread Kids”
Third Place: Sabrina LaVopa, Fruit Cove, FL, “When I Grow Up”
FIRST GRADE
First Place: Cori McWilliams, Vero Beach, FL, “Cori the Clownfish Goes to School”
Second Place: Andrew Miley, Clearwater, FL, “The Bear in the Air”
Third Place: Danny Haller, Jr., Tampa, FL, “The Grumpy Walrus”
SECOND GRADE
First Place: Adriana LaVopa, Fruit Cove, FL, “The Story of My Drawings”
Second Place: Jasmine Roncevic, Jacksonville, FL, “Travel Through a Book”
Third Place: Nithila Selvaraj, Jacksonville, FL, “The Watchbird”
THIRD GRADE
First Place: Ellie Anderson, Ponte Vedra Beach, FL, “Comin’ Home”
Second Place: Alex Kaplan, Needham, MA, “Basketball’s Most Important Lesson”
Third Place: KaeLeigh Ausley, Ocala, FL, “Blessed by Blindness”
“Congratulations to all the children, their parents and teachers from the schools who entered WJCT’s contest,” said Beth Culkeen, education outreach manager at WJCT. “In telling their stories, all of the participants demonstrated their unique talents and learned from the process. We especially appreciate our sponsors Community First Credit Union and Jacksonville Country Day School for recognizing the importance of literacy through creative writing and drawing.” Each child who entered the Contest receives a Certificate of Achievement.
“Research has shown that writing plays a key role in the development of early literacy skills,” said Beth Culkeen. “The PBS KIDS GO! Writers Contest leverages the reach and resources of public media to encourage kids to tap into these important skills. Judging from the response we received, it is apparent that the children are indeed eager for these resources and this type of platform.”
A sampling of winning stories can be found on the Contest Web site, located at http://www.pbskids.org/writerscontest/ The website also features information for parents and teachers as well as interactive user-generated content for kids.
Produced by WNED-TV, Buffalo/Toronto and PBS, the PBS KIDS GO! Writers Contest is a part of PBS KIDS Raising Readers, a national initiative that uses the power of public media to build the reading skills of children ages 2 to 8, with an emphasis on children from low-income families. The effort is funded by a Ready To Learn grant from the U.S. Department of Education, part of a cooperative agreement with the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), PBS and The Ready To Learn Partnership.
About PBS KIDS and PBS KIDS GO!
PBS KIDS, for preschoolers, and PBS KIDS GO!, for early elementary school kids, offer all children the opportunity to explore new ideas and new worlds through television, online and community-based programs. With positive role models and content designed to nurture a child’s total well-being, family and educator resources – including PBS KIDS and PBS KIDS GO! television series, PBSKIDS.org, PBSKIDSGO.org, PBS Parents (PBSPARENTS.org ), PBS Teachers (PBSTEACHERS.org). PBS is a nonprofit media enterprise owned and operated by the nation’s nearly 360 public television stations, serving more than 124 million people on-air and online each month. For more information on specific shows supporting literacy, science, math and more, visit PBS.org/pressroom.
About CPB
CPB, a private, nonprofit corporation created by Congress in 1967, is the steward of the federal government’s investment in public broadcasting. It helps support the operations of more than 1000 locally owned and operated public television and radio stations nationwide, and is the largest single source of funding for research, technology, and program development for public radio, television, and related on-line services.
About WJCT
WJCT is your community-supported public broadcasting station for the First Coast. For more information on WJCT’s programming content, services and special events, visit http://www.wjct.org