| Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians New York State Board 2007-2009 |
The Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians, Inc. Annual Irish History Writing Contest The subjects for this year are: Level 1 (grades 6-8): Irish in the American Revolution Level 2 (grades 9-12): Irish Contributions to Pop Culture National Board Winners’ Prizes: First Prize $1000 Grades 9-12 $500 Grades 6-8 Second Prize $500 $250 Third Prize $250 $125 Honorable Mention $100 $50 Honorable Mention $100 $50 All children in levels 6-12 attending public, private, parochial, and home schools are eligible to enter and have an equal chance of winning. The length of the writing pieces should be: Level 1 not less than 500 words and no more than 1000 words; and Level 2 not less than 750 and no more than 1500 words. RULES 1. All Irish History Writing Contest entries must be double spaced and may be legibly hand written or typed, on one side of the paper only. Typeface may NOT exceed 12 point. 2. Each writing must have a separate cover sheet with: the contestant’s name, home address, and age, contestant’s school name, address, and grade level, and the number of words in essay, exclusive of the cover page, introduction, and bibliography Writing Guidelines: § Be sure to submit a writing piece. Do not simply list facts. Show that you know and understand your subject and give your opinion or interpretation. You may set the scene by giving facts then drawing your conclusion. This contest is intended to produce writing pieces which show that students have researched, read about and understood the subject, and formed their own opinions. The writing should not be just a recap of facts and others’ opinions, comments or observations. Be careful to stick to the topic. § Be sure to give the source credit if you quote someone else’s work. Every time you borrow someone else’s words, facts or ideas, you must DOCUMENT the source-that is give a reference telling readers that you borrowed the material and where you borrowed it from. Although this is not a research paper, information in the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers is a good reference tool for writing and citing sources. List only those sources that contribute to the development of your writing. Be sure NOT to use exact words from your sources without giving credit. If you do so, you are committing plagiarism. § Be sure to include a bibliography, or a list of sources on the information you used. Drawings, maps, etc. should not be included in the writings. Only original and unmarked writings (i.e. no corrections, judges’ marks) will be accepted for the Writing Contest Essays will be judged by persons competent in the areas of English composition and Irish Culture who will fairly assess the originality of the presentation and knowledge of the subject matter as well. Submit your writing piece to the County Irish Historian by Feb. 5th 2008. . Local Prizes may also apply. |