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Information for Teachers         Printable version

 

                “Sixty-eight Writes” is a no-fee, non-profit writing contest for District 68 students in grades 10, 11 and 12. We hope that teachers will bring the contest to the attention of students, not only in English but also other subjects (e.g. Communication, Social Studies, Civics, History, Science) where writing is an important part of the learning and communication process. When presenting the contest to students, please note the following:

 

1)          Categories: Please encourage students to explore the limits of either or both categories. Entries are welcome in prose fiction or non-fiction. Fiction may include work such as short stories, dramatic monologues, letter narrations etc. in any genre. Non-fiction may include work such as memoirs, travelogues, journalism, personal essays, editorials, biography, reviews, literary criticism or articles on specialized or technical topics written for a general audience.

 

2)          Contest rules: Please feel free to print and distribute copies of the contest rules, or any other information from the contest web site (http://members.shaw.ca/sixtyeightwrites ). Note that there is no minimum word limit, and the maximum limit is 3000 words. It might be helpful to draw students’ attention to key points such as the required format and the submission process. The process has been designed to be as simple as possible for the contest organizers and judges (e.g. a specific format for file names to keep entries organized, a set font and point size to make it easy for judges to read but not otherwise distinguish entries, a mechanism by which entries and student names can be linked by the organizers but not by the judges etc.). Note that we have a free speech policy. Self expression is encouraged, but it must be within the law and within generally accepted limits for minors.

 

3)          Class assignments: Students are welcome to submit work that has been produced as a class assignment, as long as it conforms to the rules and has not been submitted for publication elsewhere. However, if you expect that a class assignment will result in several entries on the same topic students should be told that it is helpful for entries to have unique titles. This will help avoid confusion for the judges.

 

4)          Teachers as contacts: Although students are not required to submit their entry via a teacher it is helpful to have a teacher’s name as a contact point, e.g. to establish the bona fides of contest winners and to facilitate distribution of prizes. Please ask your students to use your name when submitting their entry.

 

5)          Submission of entries: Please encourage first semester students to submit their entries by the end of the semester, rather than waiting for the contest deadline in March. The extra time will help us get the package of entries to the judges faster, and provide the maximum time possible for evaluation.

 

6)          Feedback: This contest is intended to support teachers by providing an event to inspire young writers. We welcome your suggestions for improving the contest in future years. Please email your thoughts to sixtyeightwrites@shaw.ca.