January 6th

By Mutt Mulligan

Have you entered TurfMutt’s essay contest yet?

Time is running out to enter TurfMutt’s “Be a Backyard Superhero” essay contest! The contest is open to kids in grades K-5, and entries are due by Jan. 23.

The top-dog entry will win $10,000 to improve the school’s green space. New this year, a lucky-dog teacher will be awarded a trip to the NSTA Conference in Los Angeles.

Teachers and parents need to download the character cutouts on TurfMutt.com to help their child or student illustrate his or her story. To enter, students must put on their creative caps and describe how they are backyard superheroes just like TurfMutt.

The entries will share how the student supports living landscapes to help TurfMutt and the Outdoor Powers combat environmental villains like Carbon Creep, Dust Demon, Dr. Runoff and Heatfreak.

For students in grades K-2, stories will be between 25-50 words. Those in grades 3-5 will write 100-150 word stories. Students will include illustrations of their mission, using the downloadable character cutouts to adorn their drawings.

Each entry must be labeled with the child’s name, the name of the school, and the teacher’s name. Un-labeled artwork will be considered ineligible.

Learn more about the contest rules and entry guidelines here.