Online Student Entry Form

Contest Deadlines

Please refer to the Deadlines and Address section at the bottom of the River of Words Art and Poetry Contest page to find your appropriate mailing address. This may depend on what state and country you live in. 

Poetry Entries

If you are submitting poetry, you can upload up to five poems through this form. If you have 6 or more poems, you will need to complete and submit an additional Student Online Entry Form.

Art Entries

All art entries must be mailed. If you are submitting art, print out your email confirmation and glue or tape the first page to the back of your art piece.  Include the second page of this email confirmation in the envelope to be mailed with your submission as well.

If you are submitting both art and poetry, please write "Poetry Submitted Online" as well as the confirmation number of your poetry submission at the top of your mailed art entry form.

Parental Guardian's Permission Required

Students 17 years old or younger must have permission from your parental guardian before participating in River of Words as an individual or as part of a group. No exceptions. 

Upon submission, the student and the student's legal guardian - and the student's group facilitator if applicable - will receive an email confirmation with a confirmation number within the hour. If you do not receive this confirmation email, contact rowinfo@stmarys-ca.edu. 

In the event that a student entry is selected to be a finalist or grand prize winner, your parent or legal guardian will need to sign a form allowing us to print your poem in our annual anthology, on our website, or in other publications.

Paper Entry Forms

If you prefer to mail your art or poetry entry, Paper Entry Forms for art and poetry entries are available here: https://www.stmarys-ca.edu/center-for-environmental-literacy/river-of-words/contest-entry-forms-and-rules-in-english

Information
Choose all that apply
Submission Information
Files must be less than 2 MB.
Allowed file types: txt rtf pdf doc docx.
Files must be less than 2 MB.
Allowed file types: txt rtf pdf doc docx.
Files must be less than 2 MB.
Allowed file types: txt rtf pdf doc docx.
Files must be less than 2 MB.
Allowed file types: txt rtf pdf doc docx.
Files must be less than 2 MB.
Allowed file types: txt rtf pdf doc docx.

Art cannot be uploaded and must be submitted via mail. After completing this form, you will recieve an email with a conformation number that must be included with your artwork. See top of the form for more instructions.

INDIVIDUAL ENTRY: If you created your entry all on your own, without an assignment or leadership, enter as an Individual.

GROUP ENTRY: If you created your entry as an assignment in school, a scout troop, or with any other group or organization with a teacher or leader, enter as a Group. All group Online Entry Forms MUST input identical School/Organization and Educator/Facilitator(s) information when submitting online.

Note: If not nominated, your artwork or poem will still be considered if it qualifies for a particular prize. Nominating your entry for a specific prize does not disqualify you for other prizes such as Poetry or Art Category winners or finalists
For Group Entries
Parent/Guardian Information
Legal

I hereby grant and assign to River of Words (ROW) the non-exclusive right and permission, in respect of the original artwork, writing, photos or video that I have submitted to River of Words, to use, re-use, publish, and republish, and otherwise reproduce, and display the same, individually or in conjunction with other original artwork, writing, photos, and video, in any and all media now or hereafter known throughout the world, for illustration, promotion, art, advertising, and trade, or any other purpose whatsoever; and to use my child’s name to identify the author of the work in connection with my participation in the River of Words Program. I understand that any use of this submitted work will include my child’s name as its creator. I hereby release and discharge River of Words from any and all claims and demands arising out of or in connection with the use of the original artwork, writing, photos, and video, including without limitations any and all claims for libel or invasion of privacy. In any of the winning categories, River of Words maintains the exclusive right to declare no winner and withhold prizes if no poem or artwork of merit is found. ROW assumes no responsibility for lost or damaged poetry or artwork. River of Words may sell, assign, license, or otherwise transfer all rights granted to it hereunder. This authorization and release shall also inure to the benefit of the successors, legal representatives, licensees, and assigns of River of Words. I have read the foregoing and fully understand the contents thereof. This release shall be binding upon me and my heirs, legal representatives, and assigns. I further release River of Words from any responsibility for injury incurred during the research or production of the original artwork, writing, photos and video.

Being the parent or guardian of the above-named minor, I hereby consent to and join in the foregoing release and consent on behalf of said minor.
I, the above-named student, declare and avow that the poem(s) or art I am submitting to the River of Words Contest is my own original work.

RIVER OF WORDS CONTEST RULES & GUIDELINES

  1. The contest is open to K through 12th grade enrolled students, ages 5-19. Youth older than 19 who are still enrolled in high school are eligible.

  2. Youth may enter the contest as many times as they like. Teachers/Facilitators should submit all the Group entries from their classes together. Every group entry MUST include a Facilitator Form (completed by the facilitator) and a class list. Please note: Students names only need to be posted on the list once, even if the student submits multiple entries. Class lists also do not need to be split into art and poetry sections.

  3. All entrants will be acknowledged with a Watershed Explorer Certificate.

  4. All poems must be original work. Physical poetry submissions must be either typed or legibly written in ink (not pencil) and mailed with a completed Paper Entry Form. One Paper Entry Form per poem. When mailed, poems and their Paper Entry Forms should be attached back-to-back, glued, taped or printed double sided. No staples or paperclips. ASL poetry must be submitted on DVD and mailed. Poems should not exceed 32 lines in length (written) or 3 minutes (signed). For ASL poetry, please include a brief written summary of the poem’s content, and glue or staple this summary to your entry form. Collaborative poems are accepted, but only one child (chosen as the group representative) will be eligible for any prizes awarded.  We are able to accept poems only in English, Spanish and American Sign Language.

  5. All artwork must be original work. Artwork should not exceed 11” by 17” in size-no exceptions. Acceptable media are paint, pencil, markers, ink, crayon, chalk or pastel (fixed), photography, cloth, collage and computer art. (Photo entries must be at least 8x10 inches.) All art entries must be mailed. All entries must have the student’s name, school, city and state on the back — do not use a marker or anything that will show through! A completed Paper Entry Form or Email Confirmation of a Online Entry Form must also be affixed to the back of each piece of artwork with glue or tape (be careful not to run damage the artwork) — do not use paperclips or staples! We do not accept color copies—all entries must be original work.

  6. Art entries must be done on paper that will allow for duplication, display or framing. Please, no notebook or typing paper, and do not mat, mount, laminate, frame or fold artwork. Entries must be mailed flat or rolled in a tube — no folding, please!

  7. Submissions become property of River of Words. Through submission of poetry or artwork, contestants and their legal guardians grant non-exclusive reproduction and publication rights to the works submitted which will not be returned.

  8. DEADLINE: All U.S. entries must be postmarked by December 1. International entries must be received by February 1. We are not responsible for entries that are late or lost in the mail. Entries received after the deadline will be automatically entered in next year’s contest.

  9. Winners will be announced in April of each year.* Winners must sign an acceptance form.

*River of Words reserves the right to not award a Grand Prize winner in any given category if no entry merits such designation.