Letters About Literature Contest

Have you ever read a  book that changed you in some way? Have you ever read a book that made you feel relieved that you were not the only person on this planet that felt the way you do? Have you ever read a book that changed the way you looked at a particular person or group of people or even yourself?

One SMS Student who enters the Letters About Literature Contest will win $25 in cash!
Turn in your letter to Mrs. Tazerouti by January 4th. Many ELA teachers are offering extra credit for participation. A winning letter will be selected for each grade level and a school winner will win $25! If your letter goes on to win at the state level you will also win a $50 Target Gift Card, and more!

Visit the Letters About Literature web page to read and be inspired by winning letters: http://www.lettersaboutliterature.org/

From the Letters About Literature Participation Guide:  http://lettersaboutliterature.org/yahoo_site_admin/assets/docs/Guidelines_School_Library_2012_pdf.249112742.pdf

How to Enter:

First, determine your competition level. Letters About Literature welcomes entries from all readers — reluctant as well as enthusiastic — on three Levels of Competition. Entrants must be at least 9 years old and fall into one of the following categories:

Level 1 — Grades 4–6 Level 2 — Grades 7-8 Level 3 — Grades 9–12

Second, reflect and connect! Select a fiction or nonfiction book, a short story, poem, essay or speech (sorry, no song lyrics) you have read and about which you have strong feelings. Explore those feelings and why you reacted the way you did during or after reading the author’s work. Consider one or more of these questions when writing your letter:

• Did the characters, conflict or setting mirror your life in some way? If so, how? If not, why not?
• What strengths or flaws do you share with a character or characters in the book?
• What did the book show you about your world that you never noticed before?
• What surprised you about yourself while you were reading this book? Why was this work meaningful to you?

Your letter need not answer all of these questions, of course. These are just starting points to spark ideas.
Third, write a personal, reflective letter (not a fan letter or a book report!) Express yourself! A letter is less formal than an essay or research paper. Write honestly and in your own voice, as if you were having a conversation with the author. Those are the best letters to read and the most fun to write! Keep in mind these two tips:

• Correspond, don’t compliment! Your letter should inform rather than flatter the author.
• Do not summarize the book’s plot! The author wrote the book and knows what happened. What the author doesn’t know is how the book affected you.

Our judges do not count words but we do have recommended lengths: Entries for Level 1 should be no less than 100 words and no more than 400 words.• Entries for Level 2 should be no less than 300 words and no more than 600 words. • Entries for Level 3 should be no less than 500 words and no more than 800 words. Please refer to the Contest Entry Guidelines in Rules #4 of the Official rules found at www.lettersaboutliterature.org for complete information on how to prepare your letter.

All you have to do is write a "personal, reflective letter (not a fan letter or a  book report!)
6th graders will be in level 1 of the competition and should write