Watertown, NY December 30, 2014 – Today, WPBS-TV announced its annual PBS KIDS Writers Contest, www.wpbstv.org/writerscontest designed to promote the advancement of children’s literacy skills through hands-on, active learning. The Contest empowers children in grades K-3 to celebrate creativity and build literacy skills by writing and illustrating their very own stories.
“WPBS-TV is committed to helping North Country children build valuable literacy skills through fun, hands-on opportunities to express their creativity and explore their imagination, said Tiffany Hart, Outreach Manager, WPBS-TV. “Through providing opportunities for North Country kids to learn and explore through creative writing, WPBS-TV is making a commitment to its children and their long term success, in school and in life.”
How the Contest Works
Beginning January 1, 2015 children in the Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties can submit their entries to the PBS KIDS Writers Contest. Deadline for entry is March 31, 2015. WPBS-TV will select local winners and award prizes in the spring of 2015.
The local winners will then be entered into the national contest where a panel of esteemed judges will rank the top 12 entries. National winners will be announced during the summer of 2015 and the winning stories will be featured on pbskids.org/writerscontest.
The national winners will receive prizing courtesy of national prizing sponsor, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers and PBS. The PBS KIDS Writers Contest is produced by PBS and based on the Reading Rainbow® Young Writers and Illustrators Contest, a concept developed by WNED-TV, Buffalo.
National Judges
This year’s panel of national judges includes acclaimed writers and producers behind many PBS KIDS programs and prominent illustrators and authors working in the children’s media space. A full list of this year’s national judges will be released in January 2015.
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.
To enter the Contest and for more information on entry rules and contest resources visit wpbstv.org/writerscontest.
About WPBS-TV
WPBS-TV is a non-profit public television station serving approximately 650,000 households throughout Northern New York and Eastern Ontario. WPBS-TV’s mission is to educate, entertain and inform our two-nation audience through superior local and national content and media engagement in order to enhance the lives of those it serves.
More information about PBS is available at www.wpbstv.org, or by following WPBS on Twitter and Facebook.
About PBS KIDS
PBS KIDS, the number one educational media brand for kids, offers all children the opportunity to explore new ideas and new worlds through television, online, mobile and community-based programs. Kidscreen- and Webby-award winning pbskids.org provides engaging interactive content, including the PBS KIDS video player, now offering free streaming video accessible on computer- and mobile-device-based browsers. For more information on specific PBS KIDS content supporting literacy, science, math and more, visit pbs.org/pressroom, or follow PBS KIDS on Twitter and Facebook.
About WNED
Through WNED-TV, ThinkBright and Well/WORLD TV, WBFO-FM 88.7 and Classical 94.5 WNED, member-supported WNED Buffalo/Toronto provides high quality programming and services to local, regional and national audiences that enlighten, inspire, entertain and educate Western New York and Southern Ontario communities. Additional information about WNED can be found at wned.org.
About Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers is a division of Hachette Book Group (HBG), a leading trade publisher based in New York and a division of Hachette Livre, the third-largest publisher in the world. HBG publishes under the divisions of Little, Brown and Company, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, Grand Central Publishing, Orbit, Hachette Nashville, and Hachette Digital. For more information, visit hbgusa.com.
