The classrooms at Woodhull Intermediate School have some of the best young writers in the town, if not Long Island. Four of the youngsters recently won honors in the Town of Huntington Youth Bureau Project Excel’s annual writing contest.
This marked the 19th annual Huntington Youth Writes! competition. The contest is open to students across the town enrolled in grades 4-12. There are separate divisions for grades 4-5, 6-8 and 9-12. Categories include poetry, short story and essay. Students must submit their own original work. Poems cannot exceed 60 lines. Essays and short stories cannot exceed 3,000 words. Winning entries are published in a journal.
Woodhull’s award recipients included:
• Category: 4th-5th Grade - Essay
Honorable Mention: Jenna Italiano - “My Dad, My Hero”
Teacher: Dawn Ginty
• Category: 4th-5th Grade - Short Story
Second Place: Amalia Heinz - “It All Started with the Magic Bird”
Teacher: Desire Lahoz
• Category: 6th-8th Grade - Poetry
Honorable Mention: Landry Flynn - “Seasons”
Teacher: Diane Grassi
• Category: 6th-8th Grade - Essay
Second Place: Lily Tierney - “Spirit of the Windchime”
Teacher: Patricia Nowack
Ms. Nowack and Ms. Grassi recently attended the contest awards presentation, representing Woodhull and celebrating the achievements of the four special students. “It was wonderful to share in their distinguished achievement and recognition,” Ms. Grassi said. “It was a wonderful evening enjoyed by all. We are all so proud of them.”
Woodhull Principal Traci Roethel and Assistant Principal Jarrett Stein are naturally ecstatic the school has four of the best young writers in the entire town. The duo credits the youngsters, their parents and all the teachers that have worked with them through the years.
