ACARA Years 7-10

Story·Malin Moeller — A boy in an orphanage experiences vivid dreams of a jungle that begin bleeding into reality, leading him to discover his connection to an enslaved ancestor.

Story·Mariel Dempster — A girl sent to an Italian convent school to stop her from painting secretly learns from an old man in the town plaza and ultimately convinces her mother to let...

Story·Esther Lyon, age 13 — A five-year-old's joy at her first ballet recital turns to tears when she's the only dancer without flowers, until her grandmother picks a makeshift bouquet from the grounds.

Poetry·Nicole Guenther, age 13 — At dusk, a writer sits on a cold rock sketching the last light while frogs sing, watching her huge shadow wave across the page as darkness falls.

Story·Katie Sinclair, age 13 — Two friends visit an aquarium and walk the pier, where floating red roses on gray ocean water prompt reflection on breaking patterns.

Story·Veronica Engler, age 13 — A girl visiting an island for the first time encounters the legendary Storm Dancer during a fierce storm and learns to dance with the ocean's rhythm.

Story·Sarah Jick, age 13 — A teenager planning to run away at dawn is discovered by her little sister, whose innocent love makes her reconsider and decide to stay.

Poetry·Mushka Bogomilsky, age 10 — A grandfather shares his Holocaust survival story with his grandchild, from separation to liberation, ending with both in tears.

Story·Lauren Tompkins, age 13 — An orphaned girl joins her estranged sea captain father's ship, where she exposes the first mate's theft and helps navigate through a storm to earn her place.

Story·Emma Kilgore Hine, age 13 — A girl crafts a tiny boat from bark and wildflowers beside a New Mexican mountain stream, then releases it to drift away like a fairy ship.