Poster Contest

If you plan to sponsor a poster contest for schoolchil­dren, you will need to furnish some slogans and a set of rules. It’s also standard procedure to appoint judges and offer some kind of reward or prize for the winners.

Where young children are involved, it’s a good idea to make everybody feel like a winner. In addition to three main prizes (we recommend commemorative stamp sets), try to offer something for participation. Perhaps you could obtain a number of special pictorial postmarks of local interest.

Be sure to furnish the media with information about when the contest will start, what schools are participating, who will judge the contest, and where the entries will be displayed.

Suggested slogans:

• Good neighbors keep good control of their dogs.
• Good fences make good dogs better.
• Mail time is time to take your pooch inside.
• Letter carriers love dogs on a leash.
• A dog on the loose is bad news.

Have the posters judged on originality, clarity of the dog bite message, and quality of the artwork. A panel of judges might consist of an art teacher, a letter carrier, an animal control officer, and a member of the PTA. State that the decision of the judges will be final and list the prizes. If pos­sible, have the grand prize-winning poster reproduced and sent to the schools.

Suggested contest rules:

• The Dog Bite Awareness Poster Contest is open to students in grades 1 through 5 from now until [Month, Day, Year].
• The theme is [Choose Theme].
• Only one entry per student will be accepted.
• Students must design and complete posters without help.
• Entries must be [Choose: e.g., 11" x 17", horizontal or vertical, black and white or color, in any two-dimensional medium (charcoal, water-color, marker, paint, etc.)].
• Posters will not be returned. By entering, a student agrees to give the Postal Service full ownership of the artwork and reproduction rights should it be selected the grand-prize winner.
• Each entry must have an entry form attached to the back. Posters with incomplete forms will not be considered.
• Entries must be submitted by [Date] to be consid­ered for judging.
• Winners will be notified by mail.