It’s that time of the year again! Wake County students in 4th and 5th grades are invited to take part in our annual poster contest! This year’s topic is “Water: The Cycle of Life” and your creative work can win you county awards as well as state awards- just as it did for Alice last year!
Last year Alice Lee’s poster won top honors at the county, area, and state levels! Alice received a total of $400 in prize money for her clever illustration of “The Big Bad Wolf” huffin’ and puffin’ to blow soil off of fertile farm fields. Fortunately, the farmers at Three Little Pigs Farm planted a “windbreak” – a best management practice of trees that protect the topsoil by serving as a barrier to the erosive force of wind.
“I chose the ‘windbreak’ as my best management practice because it is a good method that prevents soil erosion by strong winds,” said Alice. “Slowing down the wind creates beneficial conditions for soil, crops, livestock, wildlife, and people; it creates shelter from wind and spreads snow evenly across the fields. I thought of the benefits of the windbreak, and how the story of the ‘The Three Little Pigs’ fits perfectly. It’s the same idea as the strong brick house preventing the wolf from blowing it down; strong windbreaks prevent the strong wind from blowing away precious farm topsoil.”
The topics of the environment, soil and water, and preserving nature interests everyone in Alice’s family. Five years ago, Alice’s brother took part in the Wake Soil and Water Conservation District’s poster contest and his poster made Wake County’s top 10.
“The most interesting thing I learned by participating in the Soil and Water Conservation Poster Contest is how much damage can be caused by erosion, and how much work and dedication it takes for farmers to install best management practices,” said Alice. “Another interesting thing I learned is how heavy rains and stormwater runoff can cause serious soil erosion.”
Alice said that she worked very hard on her poster and was very happy to win. She did not expect to win on a state level, and winning it felt unreal. She said she was speechless and overjoyed.
For future participants she has one piece of advice. “Making the poster is difficult and time-consuming. You need to pick your best management practice and take the time to sketch a rough draft and gather materials. I would say do not rush and put every piece of effort and time into it. It is okay to have a little desire to win but try to enjoy the process and not put winning first.”
If you want to take part in our contest and win big as Alice did, check out our website and submit your artwork by Oct. 28! The poster contest is sponsored by Wake Soil and Water Conservation District and Novozymes North America Inc.
