CHRIS Evans’ writing competition for young kids in support of Black Lives Matter is now open for entries. The Virgin Radio Breakfast Show host wants Brits aged 5-13 to have their voice heard as part of the world’s largest 500-word story-writing competition. The Chris Evans’ 500 Words: Black Lives Matter competition is intended to […]
CHRIS Evans’ writing competition for young kids in support of Black Lives Matter is now open for entries.
The Virgin Radio Breakfast Show host wants Brits aged 5-13 to have their voice heard as part of the world’s largest 500-word story-writing competition.
The Chris Evans’ 500 Words: Black Lives Matter competition is intended to encourage important conversations at home, at school and across the nation on the issues emerging from the movement.
And from today, budding storytellers can send in their entries.
A spokesperson for the supporting publishers said, “All publishers love stories, they help us to expand our worlds and understand more about ourselves and others.
“When children write they can get to the heart of a subject in a way that adults often can’t and so we are really proud to support 500 Words: Black Lives Matter and we are already looking forward to hearing from the next generation of storytellers.”
Chris relaunched the contest this year after the Beeb unexpectedly canned the hugely successful event this month after ten years.
The competition was created and launched by him in 2011 when he was presenter of the Radio 2 Breakfast Show.
He has teamed up with Michael Underwood and Angellica Bell – who are also on the judging panel, along with Malorie Blackman – to encourage children aged five to 13 to put their thoughts on the global conversation into words – but no more than 500.
Entries can be in various forms, including poetry, and should be drawn from the children’s own thoughts and experiences.
Presenter-turned-teacher Michael, 44, and One Show host Angellican, 44, said: “We are so excited to be a part of this new era of the 500 Words challenge, asking young people for the first time to write about a specific theme, and in this case, Black Lives Matter.
“For both of us, writing has always been a powerful tool to help us work through difficult subjects that are often tricky to articulate.
“This fantastic competition will give children from all backgrounds across the UK, the opportunity to share their thoughts and feelings about the recent tragic events, the global response to it and how it has impacted us all.
“Empowering the next generation to share their personal views through their love of writing is brilliant!”
Many of the top stories will be read out on Chris’s Virgin Radio show by special guests.
The beloved competition has previously seen more than a million stories submitted on topics about everything from technology to climate change.
The popular initiative encourages children to tap into their own creativity and imagination, using storytelling to share their experience and understanding of how different ethnicities and cultures interact.
One hundred of the stories could even be collated as a book.
The 500 Words team said: “The narratives we write and share matter. We ask children to draw on their own experiences and feelings to create a story that can be as imaginative and visionary as they want.
“Storytelling is a must!”
It is now open with entries accepted until Friday 3rd July at 11.59pm 2020.
Four semi-finalists in teach age group will be chosen between July 13 and 16.
The winner will be announced on Friday July 17.
