ACARA Years 3-6

Story·Hannah Fern Pollard, age 13 — A boy finds his rival's lost championship kite before a competition and must decide whether to return it or keep it to ensure his own victory.

Story·Isabel Folger, age 12 — A girl shovels snow to earn money for Christmas presents, then must choose between a bracelet she wants and a gift for her sister.

CJ

Story·Nell Chidley, age 11 — On Christmas Day, a girl discovers one of her ducks killed by a weasel, then incubates the duck's last egg to hatch a duckling she names CJ.

Story·Alahna Harrison, age 13 — A girl moves from Seattle to rural Idaho, finds a favorite spot under a tree to sketch the landscape, and appreciates the peace of country living.

Story·Alexander Freed, age 12 — A teenage boy struggles to get his four-year-old sister to bed during a foggy night, finally outsmarting her with a clever intercom trick after she hides.

Poetry·Nadia Rossy, age 12 — A girl draws a smiley face on a foggy bus window during a rainy morning, creating her own small moment of brightness against the gloom.

Story·Sophia Catalan, age 11 — A girl races into the ocean on a hot day, gets tumbled by a surprise second wave, and makes her friend laugh with silly antics on the beach.

Story·Ariana González Silas, age 11 — Two sisters left home alone escalate from bickering to a kitchen accident that brings them together when the older sister rushes the younger to the hospital.

Poetry·Isaac Walsh, age 10 — A six-year-old loses his orange Croc over the Stone Arch Bridge and imagines it floating down the Mississippi to Louisiana, carrying its mystery.

Story·Isabel Folger, age 12 — A girl struggles with her family's move to Hawaii and her father's engagement, finding peace only when she discovers her mother's spirit remains with her.