Students win literacy festival

After some stiff competition at the annual Fayette County Literacy Festival, six middle school students have emerged as winners and will represent the school system at the Griffin Regional Educational Service Agency (RESA) Literacy Days Festival in January.

Students competed in the areas of Ready Writing and Poetry recitation. A winner was selected for each grade level in both categories.

The Ready Writing finalists are Titoluwa Alofe, sixth grade, Rising Starr Middle; Margarita Danilevich, seventh grade, Bennett’s Mill Middle; and Cecily Lacy, eighth grade, Bennett’s Mill Middle.

In this category, students are given a prompt and begin writing on the spot. They have 60 minutes to complete their papers, and are judged on ideas, organization, and style.

The Poetry recitation finalists are Sonja Sutcavage, sixth grade, Whitewater Middle; Aiden Choat, seventh grade, J.C. Booth Middle; and Raven Winder, eighth grade, Bennett’s Mill Middle.

In this category, students select and recite a poem for memory within a seven-minute timeframe. Students must use their voice and upper body for emphasis; they cannot move their feet or walk around. Students are judged on stage presence, articulation, interpretation, difficulty of the piece, and accuracy.

The Griffin RESA Literacy Days Festival will take place on January 25 at the RESA office in Griffin. The six finalists will compete with other students from school systems within the region, which includes the counties of Butts, Henry, Lamar, Newton, Pike, Spalding, and Upson.