For the second year in a row, U.S. Peace Corps volunteers in Georgia organized a nationwide Writing Olympics to promote writing, creativity, and English language in Georgian school
Writing Olympics 2005
"If your book is dirty, you are dirty, too"
For the second year in a row, U.S. Peace Corps volunteers in Georgia organized a nationwide Writing Olympics to promote writing, creativity, and English language in Georgian schools. Students were divided by grade level and given one-hour to write about one of 3-4 themes they were given only at the start of the hour.
According to Peace Corps volunteer Helen Chung, one of the organizers of the Olympics, the students were "curious yet nervous" to write so spontaneously. This year's Writing Olympics drew a record 615 entries from throughout Georgia.
140 regional winners, 18 National winners, and 3 "Best of" winners were awarded. This year's 1st place regional winners from all forms were invited on May 10 to meet the First Ladies of the United States and Georgia, Laura Bush and Sandra Roelofs.
Over the next 6 weeks, The Messenger is publishing the winning students' essays in each grade level. Their essays are edited only for clarity. Below are the top three writing winners from the 6th grade level.
Students in the 6th grade were able to chose to write about one of the following three topics:
- What is your favorite possession? Why is this possession so important to you?
- If you could be any animal, which would you be? And why?
- What role does music play in your life? Why is music important to you? And how is music important to you?
1st Place
Tamuna Makhatadze
Anabasisi School, Zestaponi, Imereti Region; PCV- Karen Gaskill
Q: What is your favorite possession? Why is this possession so important to you?
My favorite possessions are my photos. Now I live with my grandma and grandpa. My parents are in Russia. I have very many photos of my family. When I want to see my parents, I take out my photos and look at them. The photos remind me of my parents and it makes it easier to be without them. Sometimes I look at the photos when I was so little and lovely.
I have photos of my friends whom I haven't seen for a long time and the photos remind me of them, too. When I was in the first form, there was one girl named Tamuna. She was my very close friend, but when I was in the second form, she moved to Tbilisi. Now I have her photo and it reminds me of her-how we played when we were little and loved each other very much.
Once I wanted to be with my parents very much. I looked upon the photos and remembering them, I began to cry, because in that photo I was little and was living with my parents. But then I said to myself that I mustn't cry because soon my parents will return and I will live with them again. We have many photos of when my parents were little, and when I look at them, I notice that I look like my parents. There are some funny photos like when my friends and I are on the grass and laughing very much, but now, I can't remember why we were laughing. So I think that photos are my favorite, because they remind me of everything.
2nd Place
Vakho Baramashvili
English Language School, Gori, Shida Kartli Region; PCV- Michael Ebel
Q: What is your favorite possession? Why is this possession so important to you?
My favorite possessions are books, because books are the man's best friends. With books you can learn many things. And first, by books you study how to live in this world. In the book, there are little men: letters. They talk about animals, about life in this world. The book reflects your own appearance; if your book is dirty, you are dirty, too. If you haven't money, you can't train around the world, take a book and by this book, you can train in America, in England, and in other countries.
It's my friend book
It's my brain book
There isn't a better thing in the world
as much as a book.
3rd Place
Tornike Kuchava
N. Mari's Secondary School No. 1, Chokhatauri, Guria Region; PCV- Melissa Eker
Q: If you could be any animal, which would you be? And why?
If I could be any animal or bird, I must of course be an eagle. The eagle is the King of Birds. He is big and his eyes are killers, but I like the eagle very much. If I will be an eagle, I would fly all over the world. I will fly in Italy and I will see "Old Mrs," which is in Turin. I will fly to America and see the ground where the President lives. And then I will see Peace Corps volunteer Melissa Eker who will already be in America. After this, I will fly in Niagara Falls and get my wings wet. I will then fly to Africa where in Egypt, I will see many pyramids and the Big Sphynx. If I will be an eagle I will fly in the sky and through the clouds. Really, all these are dreams and I am sure this will never become. I want to be a fish also because I want to go to the bottom of the sea and discover the Atlantis.
