Frassati Catholic Academy Seventh Grader Achieves Success in DAR Essay Contest
Emma R., seventh grade student at Frassati Catholic Academy in Wauconda, participated in the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) Essay Contest. This contest was established to encourage young people to think creatively about our nation's great history and learn about history in a new light.
The contest is open to students in public, private, and parochial schools. Students in grades five through eight are encouraged to participate. Each year, a topic is announced and contest instructions are communicated to schools. Essays are judged for historical accuracy, adherence to the topic, organization of materials, interest, originality, spelling, grammar, punctuation, and neatness. The 2016-2017 essay topic was National Park Service. Each year Mr. Lesinski, Frassati Catholic Academy, Social Studies teacher, introduces the essay topic to his sixth through eighth grade classes and has the students draft essays.
Mr. Lesinski said, "We enter the Daughters of the American Revolution essay contest every year and have had much success."
Frassati Catholic Academy middle school students look forward to the opportunity to submit their essays each year in hopes of becoming a winner. They take researching the history and writing their essays very seriously. Mr. Lesinski shared, "I read 92 essays the week before Christmas", all of which he said included some amazing insights and unique experiences.
After learning of the topic, Emma drew on her own personal experiences from her visit to Zion National Park in Utah as a child. She vividly remembered how beautiful it was and she felt connected to the serene atmosphere and scenic views.
Emma researched the history of Zion National Park and enjoyed connecting her experiences to that with which she had learned. Her excitement grew as she began to write her essay, "Celebrating a Century: America's National Parks".
Emma's essay was submitted on Friday, November 11th, 2016. Participating chapters send one winning essay from each of the four grades for judging on the state level. The state selects one winning essay to send to the divisional level. The winning essay from each of the four grades will then be judged on the national level and the winners are announced.
Emma's essay won the area chapter competition. She then won the divisional - District IV competition and will progress to be recognized for national selections taking place in Lombard on March 3, 2017.
Each student participant receives a certificate of participation from the chapter and the chapter winners receive bronze medals and certificates. State winners receive certificates and silver medals. National winners receive special certificates, medals, and a monetary award. The Frassati Catholic Academy community is thrilled to support Emma on her winning endeavors and progress throughout the competition.
Sunday, February 12th, Emma will read her essay aloud among a group of other winners and judges at a special luncheon for divisional winning candidates. When asked if she was nervous, Emma said, "No, I am excited. I enjoy public speaking!"
She added, "It feels good to have my essay selected. It makes me feel good that my hard work has paid off." She is looking forward to reading her essay aloud on February 12th and again in Lombard on March 3rd. She also said, "It's neat I get out of school to go to the luncheon and read my essay on the 3rd."