Applications and instructions are available here in Adobe PDF format. Simply click on the link below. When the form is loaded, print it directly from your browser.  Depending on your browser, you may also save it to disk.

295 K Byte file (By Modem 1 min. @50Kb/s)

Click the icon on the left to download this year's Poster/ESSAY instruction sheet and application in Adobe Portable Document Format (pdf). It is large, so please be patient. You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader, available free of charge.   Click the icon to go to the Adobe web site and follow the instructions to download Acrobat Reader.

This contest is for the children. Even though we would all like our children to win and find it difficult not to help, we ask that parents keep their help to an absolute minimum.  This will not hurt your student's chances of winning. In fact it could help.

In the past, we have had posters whose style and sophistication obviously did not fit the age of the child, and made it very difficult to judge the entry. This contest is not judged simply by how good an entry looks.  There are many factors and the judges consider them in relation to the age group the child is in.  As an example, it is expected that a high school aged art major would produce a more highly detailed and sophisticated entry than a child in third grade.  However, we DO understand that there are children capable of producing exceptional entries. The judges reserve the right to determine whether the child has the capability of producing an entry of a level beyond his or her years, if an entry seems out of place and there is a question of authorship.  This determination may include asking teachers at the school the child attends or asking the parent(s) or teacher for an additional example that demonstrates the child's proficiency.  The parent(s) would be notified first if there was a question.

Here are some questions and answers that may help in determining if too much assistance is being given to the student:

Q: May the entrant use colored poster board?
A: Yes. Colored background materials of all types are fine as long as it meets the other requirements, such as size and shape.

Q: May I show my child how to use the computer or how to use a particular program on the computer?
A: Yes, you may show and help a child learn the operation of a computer or program.  You may demonstrate its use by creating program content, but cannot demonstrate a program's use by creating any part of the entry.

Q: Is my child permitted to include computer "Clip-Art" in a poster or PSA?
A: Not normally. Most Clip-Art from a CD or Internet download is copyrighted, even if it is "royalty free".  Besides, we are looking for the child's talent and not the clip-art artist's. Clip-art may be used for ideas and as a visual aid (not traced or projected).

Q: Is my child allowed to trace or use projections of published material as a guide in drawing/coloring all or part of a poster?
A: No. Copying another's creation by tracing or using it directly as a guide in any form is not allowed.  However, an entrant may use pictures, clip-art, etc. for ideas or layouts and then free-hand sketch their own creation from them.

Q: If the student takes a photograph and then uses it to trace onto a poster, would it be accepted since the source was the student's own creation?
A: Yes.  However, the parent cannot take the picture for the child and then use it as the entry unless the child is incapable of using the camera. The student may direct the parent in what to do or what scene to capture.  If the judges feel the entry contains copied material, you will be asked for the original.

Q: Can a digital camera be used for a photographic entry, followed by processing in a program such as Photoshop?
A: Yes. Be sure to use at least a 3 megapixel camera and print it on glossy photo paper or take it to a photo store for printing. This will help produce the best picture possible. You may need more than 3 Mpx if you plan an enlargement.

Q: Is my child permitted to use a computer to produce the video PSA?
A: Yes. There are several good video editing packages available for the production of high quality video.  However, the content and composition/compositing must be the child's own. The parent may teach the child to use the program

Q: What multimedia formats are acceptable?
A: VHS tapes and DVDs are both acceptible for video PSAs, but video DVDs are recommended.  Many video cameras use special tapes such as HI-8, VHS-C, 8 mm, etc.  These must be converted to VHS or DVD format to be entered. Audio may be submitted on AUDIO CDs (CD-A). CD-I, MPEG and other compressed formats requiring a computer for viewing or airing are not allowed.

Q: Are Computer Generated Graphics (CGG) and animation allowed?
A: Yes, as long as they were created by the student.  "Canned" clips and video downloads are not allowed for the same reasons that Clip-Art is not allowed. As previously mentioned, you may teach and demonstrate the use of CGG programs and instruct in the techniques if creating CGG, as long as the final content is the student's own.

If you have additional questions, please E-mail us at maddloudoun@aol.com.