FORSYTH COUNTY FARM BUREAU 2015 MIDDLE SCHOOL ESSAY CONTEST Contest Guidelines: Open to all Forsyth County Middle School Students Topic: Make My Career Agriculture The following questions should be answered within the essay: 1. Why are careers in agriculture important? 2. What kinds of careers can you find in Georgia or your community? 3. Of the careers you discovered, what career would interest you the most and why? 4. Do you think students should see careers in agriculture as possible occupations? Why? Essays should be typed using a minimum 12 point font (Arial or Times New Roman preferred), 1 inch margins and no longer than 2 pages Include a bibliography that cites sources used in the essay(no WIKIPEDIA) Participating Students must include the official Farm Bureau Cover Sheet Contestant names should NOT appear on the essay itself Submissions must be received at the Forsyth County Farm Bureau Office by February 23, 2015 to be eligible for the contest Winning submissions will become the property of Forsyth County Farm Bureau Participating teachers should select no more than 4 essays to submit to the judging committee. Judging Criteria: )=. How well the topic is addressed > Command of conventions of standard English grammar and usage > Use of primary and secondary sources for research on topic The Following Prizes Will Be Awarded: * Teacher of 1st Place Winner - $25.00 Gift Card * 1 st Place-$25.00 Gift Card * 2"d Place-$15.00 Gift Card * 3rd Place-$10.00 Gift Card If you have any questions including requests for guest speakers, please feel free to contact the Forsyth County Farm Bureau office at 770-887-5245.
No.2 Georgia Farm Bureau Middle School Essay Contest 2015 Topic: Make My Career Agriculture Did you ever think about a career in agriculture? Agriculture is much more than being a farmer. The farmer depends on many other people to do his or her job on the farm. From scientific research to product development and sales, and communications to education, there are many career opportunities in your area of interest. This essay is to help you discover the many careers related to agriculture and maybe find one that you can set as a goal. Essential Questions for Essay: 1. Why are careers in agriculture important? 2. What kinds of careers can you find in Georgia or your community? 3. Of the careers you discovered, what career would interest you the most and why? 4. Do you think students should see careers in agriculture as possible occupations? Why? Bibliography Cite credible resources such as universities, etc. (Wikipedia does not count) Source should include name of the publication, date, title of article, author Contest Guidelines: The student must be enrolled in the 6th, 7th or 8th grade in Georgia for the 2014-2015 academic year. The contest must be entered through the county Farm Bureau. The essay must be accompanied by the official title sheet. No name should appear on the essay itself. It is preferable that the essay be typed. However, an essay that is neatly handwritten in ink will be accepted. Typed essays should be double spaced, minimum 12 point font (Arial or Times New Roman preferred), 1-inch margins, and maximum length of 2 pages. Handwritten essays should be in ink on lined notebook paper with a maximum length of 3 pages. The county winning essay must be submitted to the Georgia Farm Bureau Field Services Department in Macon by Friday, March 6, 2015. (Each county Farm Bureau will choose one winner at the county level.) Previous state winners of the contest are not eligible. Judging Criteria: How well the topic is addressed Command of conventions of standard English grammar and usage Use of primary and secondary sources for research on topic District Winner: 10 District Winners $100 cash each PRIZES State Winner: $150.00 cash (in addition to the district award) in the oar Cl aroo ss This contest is sponsored by Georgia Farm Bureau. - GEORGIA For more information, contact your county Farm Bureau office. FARM BUREAU GEORGIA
Matching State Standards to the Middle School Essay Contest The Georgia Language Arts standards for Grades 6-8 are listed here. However, reading and writing are emphasized across the curriculum. 6th Grade ELA6W2 The student demonstrates competence in a variety of genres. The student produces writing (multi-paragraph expository composition such as description, explanation, comparison and contrast, or problem and solution) that: b. Establishes a statement as the main idea or topic sentence. c. Develops a controlling idea that conveys a perspective on the subject. d. Creates an organizing structure appropriate to purpose, audience, and context. e. Develops the topic with supporting details. f. Excludes extraneous and inappropriate information. g. Follows an organization pattern appropriate to the type of composition. h. Concludes with a detailed summary linked to the purpose of the composition. ELA6W4 The student consistently uses the writing process to develop, revise, and evaluate a. Plans drafts independently and resourcefully. b. Revises manuscripts to improve the organization and consistency of ideas within and between the paragraphs. c. Edits to correct errors in spelling, punctuation, etc. 7th Grade ELA7W1 The student produces writing that establishes an appropriate organizational structure, sets a context and engages the reader, maintains a coherent focus throughout, and provides a satisfying closure. The student a. Selects a focus, an organizational structure, and point of view based on purpose, genre expectations, audience, length, and format requirements. b. Writes texts of a length appropriate to address the topic or tell the story. c. Uses traditional structures for conveying information (e.g. chronological order, cause and effect, similarity and difference, and posing and answering a question). d. Uses appropriate structures to ensure coherence (e.g., transition elements). e. Supports statements and claims with anecdotes, descriptions, facts and statistics, and specific examples. ELA7W2 The student demonstrates competence in a variety of genres. The student produces a multi-paragraph persuasive essay that: b. States a clear position or perspective in support of a proposition or proposal. c. Describes the points in support of the proposition, employing well-articulated, relevant evidence. d. Excludes information and arguments that are irrelevant. e. Creates an organizing structure appropriate to a specific purpose, audience, and context.
f. Anticipates and addresses readers' concerns and counter-arguments. g. Provides a sense of closure to the writing. ELA7W4 The student consistently uses the writing process to develop, revise, and evaluate a. Plans and drafts independently and resourcefully. b. Uses strategies of note taking, outlining, and summarizing to impose structure on composition drafts. c. Revises manuscripts to improve the organization and consistency of ideas within and between paragraphs. d. Edits writing to improve word choice after checking the precision of the vocabulary. 8th Grade ELA8W1 The student produces writing that establishes an appropriate organizational structure, sets a context and engages the reader, maintains a coherent focus throughout, and signals a satisfying closure. The student a. Selects a focus, organizational structure, and a point of view based on purpose, genre expectations, audience, length, and format requirements. b. Writes texts of a length appropriate to address the topic or tell the story. c. Uses traditional structures for conveying information (e.g., chronological order, cause and effect, similarity and difference, and posing and answering a question). d. Uses appropriate structures to ensure coherence (e.g., transition elements, parallel structure). e. Supports statements and claims with anecdotes, descriptions, facts and statistics, and specific examples. ELA8W2 The student demonstrates competence in a variety of genres. The student produces a multi-paragraph persuasive essay that: b. States a clear position or perspective in support of a proposition or proposal. c. Creates an organizing structure that is appropriate to the needs, values, and interests of a specified audience, and arranges details, reasons, and examples. d. Includes appropriate relevant information and arguments. e. Provides details, reasons, and examples, arranging them effectively by anticipating and answering reader concerns and counter-arguments. f. Supports arguments with detailed evidence, citing sources of information as appropriate. g. Anticipates and addresses reader concerns and counter-arguments. h. Provides a sense of closure to the writing. ELA8W4 The student consistently uses the writing process to develop, revise, and evaluate a. Plans and drafts independently and resourcefully. b. Revises writing for appropriate organization, consistent point of view, and transitions between paragraphs, passages, and ideas. c. Edits writing to improve word choice, grammar, punctuation, etc.
Topic: " Make My Career Agriculture" County Farm Bureau: Student's Name: Name student is called by: Grade Level: Home Address: City & Zip Code: Mailing Address (if different from above): Phone Number (Area Code): Father's Name: Mother's Name: Name of School: GEORGIA FARM BUREAU - 2015 MIDDLE SCHOOL ESSAY CONTEST (Grades 6, 7 and 8) We hereby certify that this essay was written by the student whose name appears above. We understand that once a student has won this contest at the state level, they are not eligible to compete again. Date Parent or Guardian For County Farm Bureau Office Use Only essay contest. County Farm Bureau hereby certifies that this essay was the winner in our county County Farm Bureau President ESSAYS MUST BE POSTMARKED BY FRIDAY, MARCH 6, 2015 Send to: Georgia Farm Bureau Field Services Department Attn: Marilyn Akers