District Tournament

The District Power of the Pen Tournament was held on Saturday, January 27 at Ohio State University -Lima. Congratulations to Xavier Rhoades for placing 8th overall out of all 7th graders at the tournament. Congratulations also goes to Natalie Sullenberger who placed 11th overall out of all 8th graders. Both now advance to compete at the regional tournament at Lourdes University in Sylvania on Saturday, March 2.


Overview

Power of the Pen is a non-profit educational writing program which targets 7th and 8th grade students in Ohio. At three levels of competition (District, Regional, and State), students participate in three rounds of impromptu writing and receive instant feedback from judges.

Created in 1986 by Lorraine B. Merrill, Power of the Pen emphasizes creative writing and relies on holistic evaluation. It encourages schools to identify excellence and develop writing teams. It allows young writers to compete, and receive awards and recognition. Such awards include trophies, medallions savings bonds, publication of writing, and scholarships.

Last year, the state-wide activities included a little over 10,000 tournament participations (8,000 different students and 1,200 teachers). One third of Ohio's eligible public, private, and parochial schools (offering a seventh and/or eighth grade course of instruction in language arts) participated in the program.


Mission Statement:

Power of the Pen is committed to being the leading interscholastic program in written expression, designed for young writers at the 7th and 8th grade levels. It assists teachers in the on-going task of facilitating writing by providing quality tools and resources to identify, challenge, and reward excellence. It provides teachers with an educational network that shares ideas and instructional materials to improve student's expressive writing skills. Power of the Pen inspires a love for the beauty and power of language for writing as a life skill. It encourages creative and critical thinking, and enriches and enhances the writing curriculum of schools. This is accomplished in a collaborative environment that includes community support and involvement at all levels.