Sunday, April 6, 2014

In honor of the 25th Anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall...

 Who is interested in writing about this?  -- Yes, in English. 

German Information Center USA 9th Annual Essay Contest

It's that time of year! 

The German Information Center USA 9th Annual Essay Contest has begun and students from grades 3-12 are invited to enter. This year it’s all about the Berlin Wall. Students and their teachers could win one of the e-certificates for amazon.com or a prize package from Germany.info. We’re ready to read, so start writing today!

25th Anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall

The year 2014  marks the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. It was built in 1961 and while the wall’s Berlin sections were the most famous, the wall marked the entire border between East and West. This wall divided not only the capital city’s citizens, but also Germany itself until November 9, 1989. 

Today an entire generation has grown up learning about the Berlin Wall only as a part of Cold War history, giving young people today a different perspective on this era. Pieces of the wall only exist today as monuments or museum exhibits. 

How do you think young people today differ in their views of the significance of the Berlin Wall than older generations? 

Do you think the lessons learned from a divided Germany apply in the modern world or is it an era whose elements have no meaning for young people today? 

Is it important to look back and remember this period in history? 

How has the German-American relationship changed since that time? Has it gotten better or worse? It is still an important relationship? 

Does the Berlin era play a part in the German-American relationship today?

Essays must be in English and in paragraph format.

300 words or fewer for Grades 3-5; 
500 words for Grades 6-12. 
(Note: More does not mean better! Focus on the quality, not quantity.)

Students may submit only one essay per person.

Deadline for entry is April 15, 2014
 
Email your essay to Jennifer Clardy Chalmers (dz-12[at]germanembassy.us). 
Entry must include the author’s name, grade level, school name and school address at the beginning. 

PRIZES
Amazon.com gift e-certificates will be awarded to the national 1st place winners in each age group.
1st place - grades 3 - 5: $100 bookstore gift certificate
1st place - grades 6 - 8: $150 bookstore gift certificate
1st place - grades 9 - 12: $200 bookstore gift certificate
For Teachers or Advisors of 1st place winners:
$200 bookstore gift certificate for classroom resources
In addition, 10 runners-up will receive a package from the German Information Center USA.

PRIZES FOR CLASSROOM CONTESTS: Teacher who wish to hold the contest within your classroom and award a prize, additional Amazon.com e-certificates in the amount of $25 will be issued for the 1st place student. You must send the GIC USA the winning essay and the number of students who participated. Should you wish to enter all student entries into the national contest, you may send all student entries in addition to the winning entry to the GIC USA.
The complete rules and guidelines, including how to submit entries, can be found through the link below. The inbox is ready for your submission!

Good luck!

1 comment:

  1. This sounds like a great topic to write on! Unfortunately, I doubt I have enough time to write a good essay for this contest. Perhaps next year . . .

    ReplyDelete