Earth Artists Poem and Poster Contest

The 31st annual Earth Artists Program sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is underway; students in grades K-6 are invited to submit poems and posters displaying ways they and others can protect the environment.

The program is designed to bring environmental education into the classroom through creative learning by asking teachers to discuss environmental topics with their students and then give the students an opportunity to translate what they have learned into a poem or poster. Last year more than 200 teachers and 1,000 students participated in the program.

In each New England state, awards will be presented for outstanding poems and posters in each grade level. Winners will be invited to a special awards ceremony held in each state later in the year. Also, all entries will receive a participation certificate.

Entries must be received by the EPA no later than Friday, March 14 and will be judged in early April by a panel of EPA-New England staff. For more info about the Earth Artists Program, including program rules and an entry form, call 888-EPA-7341, or visit <www.epa.gov/ne> and select "education."