Teen Activities

Indiana Statewide Writing Contest – Grades 4-12

Leave a Comment / Notices, Teen Activities, Youth Activities / Jessica Stroud / December 16, 2024

Deadline – January 21, 2025

Letters About Literature is a letter writing contest for Indiana students in grades 4-12. Students are asked to read a book, poem or speech and write to the author (living or deceased) about how the book affected how they see themselves or how they see the world. Indiana students in grades 4-12 are eligible to enter the Indiana Letters About Literature reading and writing contest.

Watch our promotional video! / NOW ACCEPTING SUBMISSIONS!

2025 Call for Entries

There are three competition levels:

Level I: Grades 4-6
Level II: Grades 7 & 8
Level III: Grades 9-12

Prizes are awarded to the following winners in each level:

First Place: $100.00
Second Place: $50.00
Third Place: $25.00
Indiana Author Letters (Awarded to the highest scored letter written to an Indiana Author): $50.00
Teacher Prize: $150 (Awarded annually to a teacher who has gone the extra mile to support their students in entering our contest)

All Indiana winners will be announced in late March, 2025 and will receive an invitation to the Virtual Awards Ceremony, as well as a prize pack (including free books!) mailed to their home. All Indiana winning letters are published in a booklet that is distributed free to the winning students. Our author for the Virtual Awards Ceremony will be Indiana Author, LISA FIPPS!

LAL supports educational standards established for reading and language arts.

The 2024-25 Letters About Literature contest for young readers is made possible by the James and Madeleine McMullen Family Foundation and the Indiana State Library Foundation.

Please let me know if you have any questions and please forward to an educator who might be interested in this opportunity!

Contest Website: https://www.in.gov/library/icb/lal/

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Total Solar Eclipse Programming at HCPL

Adult Activities, Classes, Crafts, Online resources, Teen Activities, Youth Activities / Eden Ransdell / February 28, 2024

Are you ready for the Total Solar Eclipse? Come to one of HCPL’s eclipse events to learn everything you need to know for April 8, 2024. Attendees at each event will receive 1 free pair of solar glasses, as supplies last.

Programs for Kids:

Nature Club (ages 4+) – 4 pm Wed., Feb. 28 at Corydon – Learn about the science of eclipses and make a solar viewer to take home. Please bring 1 cereal box per child (the library has some extra if you do not have one available.)

Eclipse Crafts (all ages) – 2-4 pm Mon., Mar. 25 at Corydon and 1-7 pm Thurs., Mar. 28 at Elizabeth – Make a variety of eclipse-themed crafts and viewing tools. Please bring 1 cereal box per child if you would like to make a solar viewer.

Pinwheel Festival (all ages) – 11 am-2 pm Sat., Apr. 6 at Bicentennial Park – Stop by the library’s booth to get your face painted and pick up information about the eclipse.

Presentations for Adults and Families: Learn how to safely and successfully view April’s total solar eclipse.

Corydon Presbyterian Church – 6 pm Thurs., Feb. 29

Palmyra United Methodist Church – 6 pm Thurs., Mar. 14

Harrison County Community Foundation – 6 pm Tues., Mar. 19

Can’t make it to one of HCPL’s events? Here are some resources to help teachers and families prepare on their own:

Totality, Minute by Minute – HCPL has prepared this handout to remind you which phenomena to look for at each stage of the eclipse.

Cereal Box Viewer instructions – This viewing method is safer for children than solar glasses, as they will be observing the eclipse with their backs to the Sun, so there is less chance for injury. Highly recommended project for school groups.

NASA Punch Pinhole Projector – This site has in-depth explanations of how pinhole projection works and how to apply it to the eclipse.

Safe Solar Viewer (SSV) instructions – An SSV is an excellent way for a group to safely view and photograph the eclipse at the same time, and even see sunspots. This project can be built for as little as $5 and would work well for school viewing parties.

Path of Totality Map – The Sun’s corona, 360° sunset, and other exciting phenomena will only be visible on the path of totality. Most of Harrison County is only at 99% – and even 1% of the Sun’s disc is enough to drown out the corona. You MUST be at 100% to view the corona. This map shows the timestamps and percent eclipsed for any location.

NASA Exploratorium – If you cannot make it to the path of totality, NASA will be livestreaming the event here.

Useful Apps:

Solar Eclipse Timer by Foxwood Astronomy (free for practice mode, $2 to unlock each eclipse) – This app will time the eclipse for you and give audio prompts to remind you what phenomena to look for at each moment. It will even calculate the best times to take photographs.

Totality by Big Kid Science (free) – Click anywhere on the map to see how long totality will last for that location, and what time each phase will occur.

Stellarium Mobile (free, with optional in-app purchases) – This astronomy app helps you identify stars and other celestial objects. You can set it to the day and time of the eclipse to simulate what you will see. On eclipse day, it can help you identify the stars and planets that appear during totality.

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Teen Volunteers Conduct Water Quality Testing

Teen Activities, Youth Activities / Eden Ransdell / October 4, 2023

Eleven Teen Volunteers visited Indian Creek last Tuesday to test water quality for the Hoosier Riverwatch program. The teens used a dip net and kick seine to collect macroinvertebrates (insect larvae and other tiny aquatic animals) that cling to rocks and plants in the creek’s riffles. The species found included damselfly nymphs, stoneflies, riffle beetles, and water pennies, all of which can only survive in clean water. Despite murky conditions caused by a recent drought, this diversity of insects scored a Pollution Tolerance Index of 25, which is considered Excellent Water Quality.

The teens also conducted a range of chemical tests. Here are the results:

Dissolved Oxygen: The amount of oxygen available in the water for fish and other animals to breathe. DO is reduced by excessive algae growth, which is in turn caused by fertilizer pollution. Indian Creek scored 11.5 mg/liter. The state average is only 9.6 mg/liter (higher=better).

5-Day Biochemical Oxygen Demand: The amount of oxygen used up by algae and bacteria over five days. Indian Creek scored 4.5 mg/liter due to excessive algae. The Indiana average is 2 mg/liter (lower=better).

pH: The acidity of the water. Indian Creek scored excellent at 7.25 pH (the state standard is 6-9).

Orthophosphates: A type of fertilizer pollution. The teens found no trace of orthophosphates in the water.

Nitrate: Another fertilizer pollutant. Indian Creek scored 2.2 mg/liter. The Indiana average is over 12 (lower=better).

Turbidity: The murkiness of the water. Indian Creek scored 17 NTUs. The state average is 15 (lower=better), but the EPA recommends a limit of 10.4. Indian Creek is usually much clearer than this.

Although the drought caused poorer conditions than are typical, Indian Creek still earned a Water Quality Index of 80/100, a rating of Good. These results have been submitted to Hoosier Riverwatch, where the data will be freely available to scientists and the public. Thanks to our Teen Volunteers for helping protect Indiana’s precious waterways!

Teen Volunteers meet most Tuesdays at 5 p.m. at the Corydon Branch. Call the library at 812-738-4110 for more information or to learn how you can participate.

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Poetry Society of Indiana’s Young Voices Annual Poetry Contest

Notices, Teen Activities, Youth Activities / Jessica Stroud / May 27, 2023

Indiana Poetry Contest For Grades 3 – 12

The Poetry Society of Indiana announces the 2023 Young Voices Annual Poetry Contest. First-place winners will receive public acknowledgment on the PSI website and social media platforms. The poems may be published in the annual anthology Ink to Paper.

Contest Guidelines

Open state-wide to public, private, and homeschool students in grades 3-12
Recommendation by a teacher required
Original unpublished work only
One poem submission per student
30-line limit (including blank lines)
No submission fees

Contest Categories

Category 1: Grades 3 & 4
Category 2: Grades 5 & 6
Category 3: Grades 7 & 8
Category 4: Grades 9 & 10
Category 5: Grades 11 & 12

Deadline for submissions is September 20, 2023.

There is no fee. Additional details are available on the PSI Young Voices Annual Poetry Contest page.

About Poetry Society of Indiana: Poetry Society of Indiana (PSI), founded in 1941, is a non-profit organization dedicated to educating the public and encouraging poets in Indiana. PSI seeks to unite poets in friendship and understanding while recognizing cultural heritage and linguistic contexts. Prior to 2016, Poetry Society of Indiana was known as Indiana State Federation of Poetry Clubs (ISFPC).

All questions should be directed to [email protected], with “Young Voices contest” in the subject line.

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Art Unplugged – Harrison County Winner Announced

Design, Notices, Teen Activities, Youth Activities / Diana Lasky / April 19, 2023

Samantha Lawyer is the winner of the Harrison County portion of the Regional High School Art Juried Competition – Art Unplugged – Repurposed Shape with her entry Garden of Vellichor. Samantha, a junior at Lanesville High School, will be awarded a $500 scholarship sponsored by Harrison County Public Library for the Best in Show. This competition is the area’s first-ever regional high school art show with winners from Clark, Floyd and Harrison Counties advancing to a finalist show at the Arts Alliance of Southern Indiana in New Albany, Indiana.

All 17 Harrison County student entries are showcased on the library website through April 30. Six Lanesville High School students were awarded Honorable Mentions:
Ella Funk – Garden Snail
Kassie ZurSchmiede – (untitled entry)
Brayden Isgrigg – Johnny Bravo
Hannah Rowley – Stand Proud
Ella Funk – upcycled city
Elizabeth Saier – Heart Strings

Samantha Lawyer’s Garden of Vellichor advances to the finalist show May 8 – 20 at the Arts Alliance of Southern Indiana. Finalists will compete for the following scholarships: 1^st place – $2,500; 2^nd place – $1,500; and 3^rd place – $1,000. Scholarship winners will be announced at the finalist ceremony and reception on May 20, 2023, at the Arts Alliance of Southern Indiana.

A judging committee member commented, “I would like to thank all students who submitted artwork for the competition. It was such a joy to view all of the entries and see the broad range of amazing artistic talent from Harrison County students.”

Best in Show

Honorable Mentions

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HCPL invites you to join us in the 2022 SoIN Big Read, “Ella Enchanted”!

Adult Activities, Book club, fiction, Reading Program, Teen Activities, Youth Activities / Jessica Stroud / October 14, 2022

Harrison County Public Library is partnering with the Arts Alliance of Southern Indiana (AASI) and other regional partners in the SoIN Big Read, and you are invited to read along with us!

To kickoff the 2022 SoIN Big Read, Harrison County Public Library’s first event will take place this Saturday, October 15th, at the Corydon branch in the Children’s Activity Room at 105 N. Capitol Avenue with public showings of the movie Ella Enchanted (2004) at 10 am and 2 pm.

Free copies of the book will be available to pick up at any Harrison County Public Library branch starting Monday, October 17.

More Harrison County Public Library in-person and virtual book discussion events are coming soon.

“We are thrilled to kick off the SoIN Big Read with our partners, The Floyd County Library, Jeffersonville Township Public Library, Harrison County Public Library, Jeffersonville Public Art Commission, and Community Action of Southern Indiana,” said AASI Executive Director Brian Bell. “The SoIN Big Read will promote a regional community reading event of Ella Enchanted”

Over 1,000 copies of this beloved Newbery Honor-winning story that is sure to enchant readers new and old will be distributed at no cost at locations throughout Southern Indiana. Each SoIN Big Read partnering organization will host book-related programming, movie events, book discussions, workshops, and podcasts with the intention of fostering engagement and discussion of the book.

At her birth, Ella of Frell receives a foolish fairy’s gift—the “gift” of obedience. Ella must obey any order, whether it’s to hop on one foot for a day and a half, or to chop off her own head! But strong-willed Ella does not accept her fate…

Against a bold backdrop of princes, ogres, giants, wicked stepsisters, and fairy godmothers, Ella goes on a quest to break the curse forever.

A tween favorite for 25 years, adults who remember the pleasure of discovering this fun fairytale themselves are now sharing this book with younger readers.

For more information about the SoIN Big Read, please click here.

HCPL invites you to join us in the 2022 SoIN Big Read, “Ella Enchanted”! Read More »

Brush up your sea-farin’ vocab, Monday is Talk Like a Pirate Day!

Adult Activities, Notices, Online resources, Teen Activities, Youth Activities / Jessica Stroud / September 18, 2022

Ahoy, mateys! Grab yer eye patch, bandana, frilly shirt and favorite parrot or tiny monkey–and break out Treasure Island or Pirates of the Caribbean (movies and books for each title are available at HCPL)!

Practice your pirate conversational skills using Mango Languages, available for free to all HCPL cardholders. If you don’t have a library card, you can apply online or at your local HCPL branch, or request a Digital Access Card that allows access to all HCPL eResources.

PSA: Though this is a day to mimic pirates, you are strongly encouraged to not pillage, steal or brawl.
Instead, may we recommend that you don your pirate garb and do the fun activities below.

Copies are also available to pick up at any library branch.

pirate name generator — Click to download

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