emotional depth

Story·Neva Pederson, age 13 — A girl picks a fight with her sister over blanket distribution, ignores her conscience, loses the argument she started, and learns to listen to that small inner voice.

Story·Jill Cooley, age 13 — A young ballet dancer overcomes stage fright to perform as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, discovering that her emotional connection to dance matters more than technical perfection.

Story·Arielle Gorin, age 13 — A Jewish boy flees to Switzerland with an aging WWI veteran during the Nazi occupation, learning to see beyond hero worship to understand human complexity.

Story·Max Strebel, age 11 — A boy reluctantly leaves his TV show to help with chores, befriends a squirrel, attempts to rescue it from a hawk, and discovers a new connection to nature.

Story·Sophia Emmert, age 13 — A deaf girl discovers she can feel music through vibrations when her teacher shows her how to play piano barefoot, finding her voice through the instrument.

Story·Allie Aguila, age 11 — A girl with amnesia wakes on a beach, joins a group of free children, and learns to fly by believing in herself—until she wakes from the dream.

Story·Joshua Bernheisel, age 10 — After his mother's death, a boy who once hated writing discovers fiction and publishes a book dedicated to her memory, finding friendship with his former bully.

Poetry·Zoe Savishinsky, age 12 — A poem confronts a classmate who casually weaponized the speaker's adoption status, exploring how thoughtless words can shatter trust and leave lasting wounds.

Story·Sarah Bryden, age 12 — A girl resents moving to a run-down house with her divorced mother until she discovers her mom crying over photos of her father, realizing they share the same grief.

Story·Stella Keaveny Haapala, age 12 — A foster child traveling to a new placement bonds with her driver when their car breaks down, discovering he and his adoptive parents will be her new family.