PBS 45 & 49 announced the local winners in the kindergarten, first, second and third grade categories of the Reading Rainbow 14th Annual Young Writers and Illustrators Contest [see below for complete list of winners]. The winners were announced on Saturday, April 5, 2008, at two sites: the PBS 45 & 49/Summit Mall Family Expo in Akron and the Youngstown Book Fair at Fellows Riverside Gardens.
The four local grand prize winners received DVD players. Second place winners received art sets. Third place winners received $25 Borders gift cards. All winners, plus the honorable mention winners, received Reading Rainbow backpacks and DVDs. Grand prize and second and third place stories will be available to read on the PBS 45 & 49 Web site after April 18, 2008.
PBS 45 & 49’s grand prize submissions in each category will be entered into the national Reading Rainbow Young Writers and Illustrators competitions. The national grand prize winner in each grade level will receive a laptop computer. The second place winner in each grade level will receive a flat panel TV and DVD player. The third place winner in each grade level will receive an MP3 player. Plus, all national winners will receive three sets of 10 Reading Rainbow DVDs and feature books — one each for their school, community library and home. National grand prize winners will be announced in June 2008.
The Reading Rainbow 14th Annual Young Writers and Illustrators Contest encouraged children in kindergarten through grade three to submit their original stories and illustrations to PBS 45 & 49. Submissions were judged on originality, creative expression, storytelling and integration of text and illustrations. More than 400 children submitted stories.
Reading Rainbow, hosted by actor LeVar Burton, is a critically acclaimed television series that encourages children ages 5 to 10 to read. It is the most-used television program in local K-3 classrooms. The Emmy Award-winning series airs weekdays at 10 a.m. on PBS 45 & 49.