Campbell Union District Honors 13 Young Published Authors Wednesday

On Wednesday evening, 13 young authors gathered in front of over 100 proud parents and community members at to present their newly published books.

“I dedicate this book to my parents and teachers for supporting me the whole way,” said Marcelo Almora of Campbell Middle School, stepping up to the podium. He later signed copies of his book, Mumbo – Frist Act, as other authors also imprinted their autographs to their works.

The students comprise the ninth annual , a group of third through seventh graders whose essays, short stories, and poems are among the hundreds entered into the ’s annual Writing Faire.

Judges review the works for their focus, technical excellence, use of creative expression, and originality in ideas, according to Marla Olszewski, the district’s communication specialist. They choose one student per school.

In addition to being honored at an awards ceremony, students receive a professionally-produced copy of their book, and a copy for the school library to keep. On Wednesday, there were also signed copies for sale for $15 -- the proceeds which went to benefit writing programs in the district.

Zane Walters, a third grade teacher at Marshall Lane Elementary School, said he chose to submit Shanyan Golshan’s winning How do Robots Work? into the competition.

“I always like to mix things up a bit,” said Walters, explaining his choice to submit a more expository piece or work rather than a story or prose. “I focus on the writing they’ll be doing later on: a lot of research and report writing.”

Families and students alike emphazised the importance of writing at an early age.

“I think it’s wonderful for children to be encouraged to write at a young age,” said Lili Dillon, the grandmother of Corey Dillon, whose The Lucky Find was the winning entry from The Capri School.

“It’s really cool. It feels like a huge accomplishment,” said Maddie Bankosh, whose book An Unexpected Trip was the winning entry from Monroe Middle School. “It encourages students to write and express their creativity.”

Bankosh’s mother, Shannon, agreed. “It gives kids motivation to write,” she said.

Marcelo Almora received the honor for the second year in a row. “I find it inspiration to write more books in the future,” he said.

To read the young authors books online, visit: http://www.campbellusd.org/rya/index.htm#2011books.

The following is a list of the young authors and their books, with a link to the Patch article they were featured in.

Blackford School, :
A Travel Through Time

Campbell Middle School, :
Mumbo – Frist Act

Capri School, :
The Lucky Find

Castlemont School, :
Being Free

Forest Hill School, :
The Flying Chair

Lynhaven School, :
The Best Poems

Marshall Lane School, :
How Do Robots Work?

Monroe Middle School, :
An Unexpected Trip

Rolling Hills Middle School, :
Happy Birthday

Rosemary School, :
Elephant Escape

Sherman Oaks School, :
La hormiga sin amigos

Village School, :
Music to My Ears