One day I took a chance and wrote a poem.
It felt so great to let my words run free.
Now I write outside, in school, at home
And all my work is always signed “By Me.”
In honor of National Poetry Month, Charlesbridge invites students in fourth through sixth grade to take a chance and enter a poem into the I Must Go Down to the Beach Again poetry contest.
Put your own twist on a Shakespearean sonnet, or write an original funny haiku. Winning poems will capture the imagination and tickle the funny bone. For inspiration, read I Must Go Down to the Beach Again (and Other Poems), by Karen Jo Shapiro and illustrated by Judy Love.
The first-place winner receives a $100 gift certificate to their local independent bookstore, a subscription to Stone Soup Magazine, and an autographed copy of I Must Go Down to the Beach Again.
Second- and third-place winners receive a subscription to Stone Soup Magazine and an autographed copy of I Must Go Down to the Beach Again.
All entries will be published on Charlesbridge’s website.
Poems can be any length, typed or hand-written (legibility counts). Participants must be fourth through sixth grade elementary students. Deadline for submission is April 30, 2007. Winners will be notified by May 15, 2007.
Email your submissions to trademarketing@charlesbridge.com, or send them by snail mail to:
Charlesbridge Publishing
I Must Go Down to the Beach Again Poetry Contest
85 Main Street, Watertown, MA 02472
No purchase necessary. Contest is open to students in the United States only. Submissions will not be returned. Submission authorizes Charlesbridge to reprint the poem in part or whole. Charlesbridge employees and their families are not eligible for participation.
