Category: 2022-23 Submissions

2023 Vision+Voice Literary Festival

This will be a huge event to celebrate all the K-12 poets who participated in Vision+Voice. This year for the first time, we are combining the K-12 event with the other literary competitions that ACC runs. The festival will include food & refreshments, literary goodies, music, open mic, spoken word and several writers and educators from our community.

Friday, April 28
5:30-8pm
6101 Highland Campus Drive

5:30-7pm: food & refreshments, music, open mic, spoken word and several writers and educators from our community

7-8pm: formal award presentation

Please invite your friends, family, teachers, principals. Everyone is welcome to the party. We can’t wait to see you!

Here’s a short video on how to get from the parking garage to the Vision+Voice event space at ACC Highland.

And the Winners Are…

The judges have made their final decisions and we are thrilled to announce the winners in the 2023 Vision+Voice Poetry Contest.

As you you read these winning poems you will see that there is a lot of variety – some are funny, some are sad, some are mysterious, and some are beautifully simple. All of these poems succeed in presenting a vision or a feeling of the poet’s world in their own special way.

The poems are judged based on these 6 criteria:
Theme – Does the poem give readers a specific idea or perspective on a subject?
Originality – Does the poem offer a new or different way of thinking or feeling about that idea?
Language – Are the words precise and does their arrangement create a unified impression?
Imagery – Does the poem use figurative language (simile, metaphor) to create a vivid description and appeal to readers’ senses and imagination?
Impact – Does the poem evoke an emotional response from readers?
Technical Details – Are spelling and usage appropriate to the poem’s subject?

Judging poetry isn’t easy, and our judges take this task very seriously. There were hundreds of wonderful poems to choose from, and we are confident that these poems are a great representation of the best entries in this year’s contest.

Stay tuned for more information about the 2023 Vision+Voice Literary Festival coming up on April 28 – we’re planning a huge celebration for all the winners, and we hope you will join us!

THE 2023 VISION+VOICE WINNERS ARE:

1st Grade
I BIT MY BED by Lyric B. / Maplewood Elementary School

Fried Chicken by James B. / Homeschool

2nd Grade
Happy Days by Luna Y. / Boone Elementary School

Having Fun by Luna Y. / Boone Elementary School

3rd Grade
Thanksgiving by Everly L. / Boone Elementary School

Bubblelian by Sparrow D. / Boone Elementary School

4th Grade
I Am From These Moments by Owen M. / Brentwood Elementary School

Toledo Bend by Aida B. / Brentwood Elementary School

5th Grade
Anger by Brodie K. / Boone Elementary School

I Am by Mateo L. / Boone Elementary School

6th Grade
Paintings by Annika E. / Lamar Middle School

All Quiet by Days End / Katherine R. / Gorzycki Middle School

7th Grade
Gone by Delinah O. / Gorzycki Middle School

moments to memories by Aubrey L. / Gorzycki Middle School

8th Grade
Words by Alexandra S. / Murchison Middle School

Blue and Gray by Stella S. / Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders

9th Grade
My Grandfather’s Guitar by Ximena F. J. / Rouse High School

Car Crash in Cold Country by Josie B. / Liberal Arts & Science Academy

10th Grade
Sentimentos No encontrados by Jhoselin L. / Austin Achieve Public High School

The Power Of A Name by Victoria M. / Stephen F. Austin High School

11th Grade
Where I’m from by Caleb E. / Rouse High School

Chasing Birds by Ryan M. / Rouse High School

Only For a Season by Cicily H. / Stephen F. Austin High School

The Reality of Dreams by Claire D. / Stephen F. Austin High School

12th Grade
Ode to Dishes by Wallis B. / Stephen F. Austin High School

Dear Mother by Lani G. / Anderson High School

Congratulations to all the poets, their teachers, and their families!


Monkeys

Monkeys swinging in the trees,
Up high in the branches with the greatest of ease.
Their tails are long and their fur is brown,
They chatter and play as they move around.
They love to eat bananas, oh so sweet,
And they’ll swing and they’ll play until they’re beat.
They’re playful and curious, always on the go,
They’re the life of the party, don’t you know.
So let’s all give a cheer for the monkeys up high,
They bring joy and laughter to the sky.
They may be mischievous, but they’re full of fun,
They’re and delight to watch, one by one.

The Power Of A Name

We break through thick, gray clouds and I see innumerable bright lights below,
Shining white from tall silhouettes, jammed into one long, narrow island,
Each warming this frigid night of someone with a name.
Twenty six letters in the alphabet, an infinite number of names.
We all have one, given at birth, before our parents know us.
I walk crowded streets, snow flurrying across the myriad faces in front of me.
A tiny, wrinkled woman, her head wrapped tightly in a worn, red scarf, I call her Amaya.
The darkest skin and whitest teeth of a young man without a coat,
hands shoved in baggy pockets, weaving briskly through bodies, maybe he is Robert.
The ear-muffed girl bouncing beside me calls her brother Billy, and he turns,
pink cheeks and wet nose, smiling at her, as they discover this new city.
A warm, packed restaurant called Angelo’s, an artsy street called Cornelia, an immense cathedral called St. Patrick’s, a solemn monument listing 3,000 names.
Our names announce our existence, introduce us to this world, represent who we are.
The power of a name.