The goal of the non-fiction category is to prove an argument in response to one of the given prompts. This response can be in the form of an essay, a video, an infographic, or any other publication that answers the prompt.
5th/6th Grade Prompts
Professional athletes today get paid a lot of money to play sports. Both men and women play professionally, but women don’t get paid nearly as much as men do. Why do you think there is such a difference in pay? Should men and women get equal pay for playing on professional teams? State your opinion and support your point of view with clear reasons and examples.
In many schools today, music and art classes are getting cut from the curriculum due to lack of funding. Do you think it’s a good idea to cut these classes? If you agree, give reasons and examples why. If you disagree, state why you believe art and music are an important part of learning for all students, giving reasons and examples
The lessons we take from difficulties we face in life are often things God uses to help us grow and mature. Write about a time when you faced a challenge, setback, or failure. How did it affect you, and what did you learn from the experience? Can you look back and see God’s work in your life through the challenge? Be sure to share details and examples to support your ideas.
7th/8th Grade Prompts
By the time the 2020 Fine Art Festival happens in Hanford, our country will be right in the midst of another presidential election cycle, with numerous candidates vying for the chance to occupy the Oval Office. In a race like that, the question of genuine leadership surfaces, making us wonder about what type of leader is the best for such a job. Paint a picture of the ultimate leader, including character traits and how those might play out in actual ways, who would do a good job running our country, weaving in biblical principles that should guide any effective leader.
Some folks have described the literacy rates in our country as declining, due in part to the prevalence of visual-heavy platforms like Snapchat, Instagram and Vine. An American culture that used to see around and read books now spends copious time scrolling through feeds. Does the emergence and heavy use of such social media outlets contribute positively to the growth of culture and bonding community or does it negatively affect American society, making us illiterate and isolated? Pick a side of the debate and argue for either its continued use or its preferred decline. Use of statistics and data could bolster an argument on either side.
When God spoke beauty into place and created the world, it was a place of wonder, majesty and richness. Sin’s entry into that good setting brought about the fall and tarnished everything with sin. Jesus rescued all of creation with his death and resurrection, and now we get to join him in the work of restoration and making all things new. To engage in that work of restoration is our calling and sometimes requires us to reimagine the way things are. Jonas Salk once remarked, “Hope lies in dreams, in imagination, and in the courage of those who dare to make dreams into reality.” Using the theme of “What if?” dream of some things that could be changed in our world that would help it to become a place more reflective of what God intended. Think either in specific, concrete changes or big-picture wide dreams.