PTSA Reflections Award Winners at School and State Levels

Congratulations to Abby Barber and Lucy Wagner!  Their Reflections entries were submitted to the State of Delaware PTA.

♦ All AI student entries chosen to go to the State contest will receive a $10 gift card and certificate.

♦ The PTSA will award a $25 gift card to each student who wins the Reflections Contest at the State level.

Reflections Theme Search for 2012-2013 Program Year

Each Reflections Program year, students create works of art inspired by a specific theme.  That theme is selected from hundreds of ideas submitted by students to the PTA Reflections Program Theme Search.

National PTA is looking for a theme for the 2012–2013 Reflections Program year.  The student who submits the winning entry will receive $100, and his or her theme will be presented at the 2011 National PTA Convention.  Repeat themes will not be considered (see the list of past themes on pages 3 and 4 of the Student Submission Form below).

Student entries should be submitted to the AIHS PTSA.  Deadline to be announced at the beginning of the 2011 School Year.


Theme Search Student Submission Form (Word)
Theme Search Student Submission Form (Word) SPANISH

 

REFLECTIONS Program 2010-2011 ~ Start Brainstorming for Next Year's Entries!

General Student Rules

The theme for the 2011–2012 PTA Reflections Program is “Together We Can....”  Only new pieces of artwork inspired by the theme may be submitted.

Student Eligibility Through Local PTAs
Students must participate in the Reflections Program through a local PTA/PTSA in good standing.  Parent groups not affiliated with the national PTA organization are not eligible to sponsor this program.  It is the responsibility of the state and local PTA/PTSA to determine each student’s eligibility in the Reflections Program.  A student may develop an entry in or outside of school.

Arts Areas
Students may submit works in any of six arts areas:

• Dance choreography ~ Rules (pdf) Link; Rules (pdf) Spanish Link
• Film production ~ Rules (pdf) Link; Rules (pdf) Spanish Link
• Literature ~ Rules (pdf) Link; Rules (pdf) Spanish Link
• Musical composition ~ Rules (pdf) Link; Rules (pdf) Spanish Link
• Photography ~ Rules (pdf) Link; Rules (pdf) Spanish Link
• Visual arts ~ Rules (pdf) Link; Rules (pdf) Spanish Link

The national PTA organization does not limit the number of entries a student may submit.

Student Entry Forms

Student Entry Form (WORD) Link

Student Entry Form (WORD) Spanish Link

Student Consent Form (PDF) NEW!

Student Consent Form (PDF) NEW! SPANISH

Originality
Each entry must be the original work of one student only.  An adult may not alter the creative integrity of a student’s work.  Because the program is designed to encourage and recognize each student’s individual creativity, help from an adult or collaboration with other students is not allowed.  Only one student may be recognized as the award recipient for each entry.  Other individuals may appear in or perform a student’s work, but the work itself—the dance choreography or film production (including screenplay, camerawork, and directing) or musical composition (including written score and any lyrics), etc.—must be the creative product of one student only.  (See the specific arts area rules for details.)

Use of copyrighted material (other than recorded music in dance choreography and film production entries) is prohibited.
Plagiarism is defined as taking and using another person’s ideas, writings, or inventions as one’s own.  Plagiarized entries will be disqualified and returned to the students.

Student Entry Form
All participants are required to fill out in its entirety and sign the Student Entry Form.  Students who have not completely filled out the entry form will not be eligible to participate in the program.  In situations where the child cannot fill out the entry form or write legibly, a parent may complete the form.

Students have the option of titling their works.  If a work has a title, the title must be included on the Student Entry Form.  If the work has no title, please write “Untitled.”  All entries must include an artist statement that describes how the piece relates to the theme.  For most arts areas, students must also answer a few questions about how they created their works; see Required Information on the Student Entry Form.

Required Artist Statement
Each participant is required to submit an artist statement that describes what inspired him or her to create the work and how it relates to the theme.  The artist statement is mandatory for all entries in all grade divisions.  The statement should not exceed 250 words; there is no minimum length.  The Student Entry Form provides a space for the artist statement; if the statement does not fit in the space given, it may be written on a separate sheet and attached to the Student Entry Form.  Make sure the student’s full name appears on any sheet attached to the Student Entry Form.

Children with Disabilities
PTA believes that each child with a disability should be provided a free and appropriate public education.  Therefore, the Reflections Program at the national level does not have a special division for students with disabilities.  The national PTA organization believes it is the right of parents to place their child in the Reflections Program grade division that best reflects the child’s developmental age.  However, guidelines for state and local Reflections Programs may vary.  Check with your state PTA for its guidelines.

Deadlines
Students must submit all works by the deadline established by their local PTA/PTSA.  Each local PTA/PTSA sponsoring the program sets its own deadline for entries, in adherence with state, district/region, and council deadlines.  Entries are judged at the local level and the top entries are forwarded to the next level of judging (council, district/region, or state).  Direct all questions regarding deadlines or rules to your state PTA office or arts chair.  The national PTA organization does not record deadlines for local, council, district/region, or state PTAs.

Judging
All national entries are judged on artistic merit, creativity, mastery of the medium, and interpretation of the theme.  Mastery of the medium in the context of the national Reflections Program pertains to the level of skill the student demonstrates in the basic principles/techniques of the arts area.  However, a well-developed concept is more important than technique.  Entries will be judged primarily on how well the student uses his or her artistic vision to portray the theme.

The Reflections Program makes no restriction on content or subject in artwork.  Students who are submitting entries need to meet school and/or local and state PTA standards.  Each PTA determines its own judges for the program.  Under no condition may parents or students contact the judges to dispute the status of an entry.  All decisions of judges are final.

 

*Reflections Program information reprinted with permission from "PTA Reflections," National PTA website, www.ptareflections.org.