Get Kids to Enter the 'Write It, Film It' Video Contest
RSSBy SLJ Staff
Calling all creative writers and potential filmmakers-if you've got kids with some spare time over the next few weeks, tell them to enter the "Write It, Film It" video contest-and possibly win a flip video camera, books, and more. Sponsored by Reading Rockets and AdLit,org, kids ages 7-18 are invited to flex their scriptwriting and film director muscles, while improving their writing and research skills. Here's how it works-students choose one of seven prompts inspired by one of the following authors: Jon Scieszka (Time Warp Trio); Katherine Paterson (Bridge to Terabithia); Kate DiCamillo (Because of Winn-Dixie, The Tale of Despereaux); Natalie Babbitt (Tuck Everlasting, The Eyes of the Amaryllis); Susan Cooper (The Dark Is Rising); Steven Kellogg (Chicken Little); and Lemony Snicket (A Series of Unfortunate Events). All of the authors are participants in the Exquisite Corpse Adventure, which involves dozens of favorite children's book creators who each write one chapter of a story. Scieszka, the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, has written the first episode, and he's passed it on to a cast of celebrated writers and illustrators, who must eventually bring the story to an end. Every two weeks for the next year, there's a new episode and a new illustration. So far, the story has 23 episodes. Each prompt offers specific instructions-for example, if someone chooses Paterson, they'd be asked to create a vlog, or a video diary, asking to describe a factory job during the Industrial Revolution, including the working conditions, your co-workers, and how you feel about working in a factory. With this prompt, kids must create historical fiction and develop characters by researching the time period. They're also asked to submit a character sketch along with a bibliography of the resources used. Once the research and writing is complete, students are asked to film it for a maximum of three minutes. Entries will be judged on creativity, theme development, and technical quality. And if appropriate to the prompt, entries will also be judged on character development and research and factual accuracy. Entries from each level are eligible for a Gold Award, Silver Award, or Bronze Award. Winners from each competition level will have their video published on Reading Rockets, AdLit.org, and YouTube. Gold Award winners will receive a Flip HD video camera, a collection of books and DVDs, and movie tickets. And Silver Award and Bronze Award winners will receive books, DVDs, and movie tickets. Hurry up, the deadline is August 13, 2010, and winners will be announced on September 7.
