US Common Core ELA

Poetry·Gabe Horowitz, age 10 — A swan gliding across a lake becomes a meditation on how serenity can expand from a single creature to transform an entire landscape.

Story·Jinhui He, age 12 — A struggling painter's work is stolen by a famous artist, leading to betrayal by her husband and society, ending in tragedy.

Story·Anya Geist, age 13 — In a genetically engineered society where roles are predetermined, a young Director-in-training discovers her forbidden passion for music during a symphony rehearsal.

Personal Narrative·Lydia Taylor, age 13 — A family camping trip to Yellowstone becomes a magical adventure as siblings explore forests, witness the Grand Prismatic Spring, and create their own riverside kingdom.

Story·Timothy D. Cho, age 12 — A boy constantly moving with his struggling immigrant family runs away in Brooklyn, only to realize through memories and reflection that he cannot escape his past or abandon those who...

Story·Rose Amer, age 10 — A girl who hates her ugliness wishes on a star to bring her stone gargoyle to life, then learns through painful transformations that she was already beautiful.

Poetry·Emma Catherine Hoff, age 8 — An ambassador without mind or face sits in a walled place, contemplating his non-existence and the walls that might have hope where he has none.

Story·Dana Yehia, age 8 — An alien from planet Watercolors dreams of being an explorer, builds his own spaceship to visit Earth, and ends up copying everything humans say because he doesn't speak English.

Story·Bo-Violet Vig, age 13 — A girl who knows every corner of her beloved childhood home must move across the country, discovering that home is defined by the people you love, not the house itself.

Story·Maggie Shelton, age 12 — Dawn breaks over a sleeping town, awakening colors, sounds, and smells as families gather for breakfast in homes around the world.