Academic Competitions

Creative Writing (1st and 2nd Grades, three students per grade level) The top 2 students from each grade level at the District Contest will advance to the State Contest. Contestants are given a writing prompt page with five captioned pictures. The students select from the captioned images and create an original story based on their selections. The stories must talk about at least one of the pictured items, but not all items on the prompt page must be included. Contestants should make up titles for their stories, but not writing a title is not a cause for disqualification. A sample prompt is provided on the page that follows the PSIA Academic Handbook instructions.

Dictionary Skills (4th/5th Grades combined, three students per combined grade level) The Dictionary Skills Contest tests the student’s ability to find information quickly in resource literature, specifically a dictionary.  Using only ONE dictionary in competition, contestants answer 30 multiple-choice test questions in 30 minutes.  Although any dictionary may be used in the contest, the adopted dictionary is the Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary, 11th edition, 2003 or newer printing. (We have these for student use in contests) Answers on the test can only be verified with the adopted dictionaries.  Dictionaries may be tabbed and written in, as desired, but no other printed material may be used in the contest. The top 2 students from combined 4th and 5th Grades at the District Contest will advance to the State Contest.

Listening Skills (4th/5th Grades combined, three students per combined grade level) The Listening Skills Contest tests students' ability to listen carefully and recall intricate detail.  Note-taking skills are enriched through preparation for this contest.  Practice in note-taking enables students to prepare best for competition and sharpens skills for writing down important information to be tested in any subject area.  Contestants listen to a recording of a passage of primarily objective material.  The material could be about any subject matter.  Some subjects have included historical information, geographical articles, travel to different places, and subject information (such as “How to….”).  Each year, at least one of the articles used in the competition is about a person.  After taking notes while listening to the recorded passage, contestants are given a 7-minute, 30-item multiple choice and true/false test over the passage.  The top 2 students from combined 4th and 5th Grades at the District Contest will advance to the State Contest.

Maps, Graphs, & Charts (4th and 5th Grades, three students per grade level) The M, G, and C contest tests the student’s ability to locate and interpret information in an atlas or data provided in the test itself in the form of maps, graphs, charts, tables, etc.  Students are expected to be able to use the map’s legend to gather information of importance, including finding distances on the maps, locating specific places, structures, and boundaries, and identifying locations of significance.  Students may tab their atlases, but no writing is allowed on the tabs.  (We provide the students with an atlas to use.) Students should be able to discern from various sources, including bar graphs, line graphs, pie charts, tables, etc., as provided in the atlas and on the test. General geography and social studies. Student questions that will not be answerable through the atlas will also be included.  Questions on this part will be like the questions presented in the National Geographic Bee.   The atlas, a ruler, and a magnifying glass may be brought into the contest.  Calculators are NOT permitted.  The test consists of 75 multiple-choice questions, and students are given 30 minutes to complete the test. The top 2 students from each grade level at the District Contest will advance to the State Contest.

Mathematics (2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th Grades, three students per grade level) The contest tests students' ability to solve various mathematical problems studied at or above grade level.  No loose papers, calculators, or other materials are allowed in the contest.  The grades 6, 7, and 8 test consists of 50 problems.  Test questions are like those found in state-adopted textbooks, but many items are usually tested at a higher grade level.  The tests will contain problems covering, but not limited to, numerations systems, arithmetic operations involving whole numbers, integers, fractions, decimals, exponents, order of operations, probability, statistics, number theories, simple interest, measurements (standard and metric) and conversions typically covered (feet to inches, quarts to gallons, etc.) Approximately 25% of the problems will require knowledge of Algebra I computation skills. There will also be geometry problems typically covered in middle school.  Various types of problems are randomly distributed throughout the test. The top 1 student from each grade level at the District Contest will advance to the State Contest.

Music Memory (3rd/4th Grades combined and 5th/6th Grades combined, three students per combined grade level) The PSIA Music Memory Test consists of 2 parts:  Part 1 – Contestants learn about the composer and the musical work through their study of the Arts Education IDEAS publication, PSIA Music Memory Student Handbook.  Students take a 20-item multiple choice and true/false test over the information found under the titles “About the Composer” and “About the Music.”  Part 2 –Contestants learn to recognize the composer and title of 20 pieces of music by listening to recordings of the music selections.  Each year, 20 different pieces of music are included in the study. Students at all grade levels study the same pieces.  The top 2 students from combined grade levels 3rd/4th and 5th/6th at the District Contest will advance to the State Contest.

Number Sense (2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th Grades, three students per grade level): The contest presents 80 problems requiring the application of the four basic operations (add, subtract, multiply, divide) to find the solutions.  This is considered a high-speed contest.   All problems are done mentally.  There is no writing allowed except for the answers.  Contestants will have only 10 minutes to answer as many of the 80 questions as possible.  The top 2 students from each grade level in the District will advance to the State Contest.

Poetry/Prose Interpretation (4th and 5th Grades, three students per grade level) Students in the Poetry/Prose Interpretation contest select a published poetry or prose piece (or pieces), depending on the year, prepare an introduction to this literary work, and present the work with the introduction in a six-minute time limit at the contest.  There is no minimum time limit. However, better presentations are at least three minutes in length.  Contestants who exceed the allotted six minutes shall be disqualified. Contestants are evaluated by three judges on aspects of performance, selection appropriateness, presentation control, and overall effectiveness.  The top 2 students from each grade level at the District Contest will advance to the State Contest. **Poetry and Prose alternate years.

Ready Writing (3rd, 4th, and 5th Grades, three students per grade level) Ready Writing is “usually” writing that explains or expository writing.  It can also include narration and persuasion.  Contestants come to the contest “ready” to write on their choice of one of two prompts given.  Contestants should not place their names anywhere in their essay.  The prompts will either state or imply the purpose of the writing, the format, the audience, and the point of view.  There are three types of writing categories used in the contest:  1) description – describes a happening, person, object, or idea from imagination or memory; 2) narration – write a story with dialogue; 3) persuasion – describe and argue one side of an issue; describe both sides of an issue, then argue one side; write an editorial; or write a letter to persuade.  The maximum time allotted for writing is Grades 3 & 4 – 45 minutes; Grade 6 – 60 minutes.  Papers are judged on the following criteria:  Interest – 50%, Organization – 35%, and Correctness of Style – 15%.   The top 2 students from each grade level at the District Contest will advance to the State Contest.

Spelling (2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th Grades, three students per grade level) The PSIA Spelling Contest consists of the Spelling Test and the Tiebreaker Spelling Test.  Contestants learn by memory to write or print the spelling words found on the current year’s PSIA Spelling List (this will be provided to all interested students).  The spelling lists differ for each year, but the complete list usually consists of 900 words from grades 6 and 7/8 combined.   The competition tests consist of the following number of words:  80 words on test / 20 tiebreaker. Precisely 20% of the words pronounced on the spelling test will be from “outside.”  This means that the words are taken from the official source for spelling verification, the Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary, 11th Edition. Outside words are not on the study list.  Some words on the test may be derivatives of the original word or have different suffixes or prefixes.  (Example: “orderly” may be “orderliness”) The top 2 students from each grade at the District Contest will advance to the State Contest.

Storytelling (1st, 2nd, and 3rd Grades, two students per grade level) Students in the Storytelling Contest hear a short story of about two-to-three 8 1/2 x 11 pages (approximately 1000 to 1200 words). Contestants retell the story before a required audience and an odd number of judges (one or three) within about 6 minutes. The object is for students to demonstrate their ability to speak before an audience, organize details, and creatively retell the story they have just heard. The judge(s) has/have not heard the story; therefore, they are not listening for minute detail but for expression, intonation, characterization, and enthusiasm in the student’s voice as he/she speaks. Eye contact with the judge(s) and audience, posture, articulation, and adequate but not overuse of gestures are also important to the judging. Students should be ranked lower if school uniforms or costumes are worn. The top 1 student from each grade level at the District Contest will advance to the State Contest.

Vocabulary Test (5th and 6th Grades, three students per grade level) The Vocabulary Test is like an SAT Preparation Course.  The Vocabulary List consists of 300 words.   The test contains 30 items – approximately thirteen sentence completion, thirteen analogies, and nine questions over a reading passage that is 400-700 words long.  The test time is 30 minutes.   Although each test question will be composed using at least one of these words, a well-read student with a broad, cumulative vocabulary will perform best in this contest, for many of the words used in the test are not used in everyday language.   The top 2 students for each group at the District will advance to the State Contest.

Art Memory ( 6th- 8th, three students per combined grade level) The PSIA Art Memory Contest consists of two parts:  Part 1 – Contestants learn about the artist and the artwork through their study of the Art Smart Bulletin.  Contestants take a 30-item multiple choice and true/false test of Art Elements and Art History information found in this bulletin about each painting.  Part 2 – Part 2 of the contest will recognize 15 out of 40 paintings.  Contestants learn to recognize the artist and title of 40 art pieces by studying the current year’s Art Smart Bulletin.  Every two years, 40 different art pieces are included in the study.  Selections from the National Gallery of Art (Washington, D.C.) and several Texas art museums exist.  Color pictures of the works provide additional study for the contest.  The top 2 students from the combined 6th – 8th grades at the District contest will advance to the State Contest.

Calculator Applications (Combined 6th- 8th, three students per combined grade levels) The contest presents 80 problems in straightforward numerical calculation, calculations based on geometrically presented, and word problems.  Both accuracy and speed are factors in the contest. Geometric problems involve knowledge of formulas for simple figures such as circles, squares, rectangles, and right triangles.  Word problems require applying appropriate mathematical skills and practical knowledge of real-life situations.   Contestants may use one silent, hand-held, tapeless calculator and are responsible for providing their own. The top 2 students in combined 6th-8th grades at District will advance to State.

Dictionary Skills (6th - 8th Grades combined, three students total per combined grade levels) The Dictionary Skills Contest tests students' ability to find information quickly in resource literature, specifically a dictionary.  Using only ONE dictionary in competition, contestants answer 30 multiple-choice test questions in 30 minutes.  Although any dictionary may be used in the contest, the adopted dictionary is the Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary, 11th edition, 2012, or newer printing. (We have these for student use in contests.) Answers on the test can only be verified with the adopted dictionaries.  Dictionaries may be tabbed and written in, as desired, but no other printed material may be used in the contest. The top 2 students from combined 6th – 8th Grades at the District Contest will advance to the State Contest.

Impromptu Speaking (7th /8th combined, three students per combined grade level) This contest provides opportunities to evaluate speeches given by others to explore the use of the voice and body in speaking situations, to examine the different purposes for speaking, to organize ideas; to prepare and deliver various speeches; and to develop self-confidence in speaking before a live audience.  Contestants will have drawn three topics and have three minutes to prepare a speech that must be presented without any notes.  The maximum time limit for each speech is five minutes, with no minimum time limit.  The top 2 students in combined Grades 7/8 at District will advance to State.

Listening Skills (6th - 8th Grades combined, three students per combined grade level) The Listening Skills Contest tests students' ability to listen carefully and recall intricate detail.  Note-taking skills are enriched through preparation for this contest.  Practice in note-taking not only enables students to prepare best for competition but it also sharpens skills for writing down important information to be tested in any subject area.  Contestants listen to a recording of a passage of primarily objective material.  The material could be about any subject matter.  Some subjects have included historical information, geographical articles, travel to different places, and subject information (such as “How to….”).  Each year, at least one of the articles used in the competition is about a person.  After taking notes while listening to the recorded passage, contestants are given a 7-minute, 30-item multiple choice and true/false test over the passage.  The top 2 students from combined  6th – 8th Grades at the District Contest will advance to the State Contest.  

Maps, Graphs, & Charts (6th, 7th, and 8th Grades, three students per grade level) The M, G, and C contest tests the student’s ability to locate and interpret information in an atlas or data provided in the test itself in the form of maps, graphs, charts, tables, etc.  Students are expected to be able to use the map’s legend to gather information of importance, including finding distances on the maps, locating specific places, structures, and boundaries, and identifying locations of significance.  Students may tab their atlases, but no writing is allowed on the tabs.  (We provide the students with an atlas to use.) Students should be able to discern from various sources, including bar graphs, line graphs, pie charts, tables, etc., as provided in the atlas and on the test. General geography and social students’ questions will also be included that will not be answerable through the atlas.  Questions on this part will be similar to those in the National Geographic Bee.   The atlas, a ruler, and a magnifying glass may be brought into the contest.  Calculators are NOT permitted.  The test consists of 75 multiple-choice questions, and students are given 30 minutes to complete the test. The top 2 students from each grade level at the District Contest will advance to the State Contest.  

Mathematics (6th, 7th, and 8th Grades, three students per grade level) The contest tests students' ability to solve mathematical problems studied at or above grade level.  No loose papers, calculators, or other materials are allowed in the contest.  The grades 6, 7, and 8 test consists of 50 problems.  Test questions are like those found in state-adopted textbooks, but many items are usually tested at a higher grade level.  The tests will contain problems covering, but not limited to, numerations systems, arithmetic operations involving whole numbers, integers, fractions, decimals, exponents, order of operations, probability, statistics, number theories, simple interest, measurements (standard and metric) and conversions typically covered (feet to inches, quarts to gallons, etc.) Approximately 25% of the problems will require knowledge of Algebra I computation skills. There will also be geometry problems normally covered in middle school.  Various types of problems are randomly distributed throughout the test. The top 2 students from each grade level at the District Contest will advance to the State Contest.

Modern Oratory (7th/8th Grade combined, three students per combined grades 7 and 8) The Modern Oratory contest provides opportunities for the students to explore the use of the voice and body in speaking situations to organize ideas to prepare and deliver a researched speech and to develop self-confidence.  The student will select one of the topics listed for the current year, determine the critical issues, and acknowledge both pro and con points, citing support discovered in the research.  Students will decide which side to defend and support it with additional evidence.  Speeches will be delivered from memory without notes before a live audience, including 1 to 3 judges. The maximum time for each speech is 6 minutes, with no minimum time.  The top 2 students from the combined grade levels at the District will advance to State.

Music Memory (5th/6th combined, and 7th/8th combined, three students per combined grade levels) The PSIA Music Memory Test consists of 2 parts:  Part 1 – Contestants learn about the composer and the musical work through their study of the Arts Education IDEAS publication, PSIA Music Memory Student Handbook.  Students take a 20-item multiple choice and true/false test over the information found under the titles “About the Composer” and “About the Music.”  Part 2 –Contestants learn to recognize the composer and title of 20 pieces of music by listening to recordings of the music selections.  Each year, 20 different pieces of music are included in the study. Students at all grade levels study the same pieces.  The top 2 students from grades 5 and 6 and combined grade levels 7 and 8 at the District Contest will advance to the State Contest.

Number Sense (6th, 7th, and 8th grades, three students per grade level): The contest presents 80 problems requiring the application of the four basic operations (add, subtract, multiply, divide) to find the solutions.  This is considered a high-speed contest.   All problems are done mentally.  There is no writing allowed except for the answers.  Contestants will have only 10 minutes to answer as many of the 80 questions as possible.  The top 2 students from each grade level in the District will advance to the State Contest.

On-Site Drawing (6th, 7th, and 8th Grades, three students per grade level) Observing a display still life model consisting of 4-7 objects, contestants produce a rendering on regular drawing paper using any drawing media.  Contestants have 45 minutes at the contest site to produce their freehand work of art to be judged by qualified artists/teachers.  After judging, the finished artwork will be displayed in the art show for the remainder of the contest day. Contestants may use any combination of drawing media if each medium does not require water, oil, or a paintbrush.  No mechanical drawing media will be allowed.  The top 2 students from each grade level at the District will advance to State.

Poetry/Prose Interpretation (6th Grade and 7th/8th combined, three students per grade level for 6th Grade, and 3 per combined grades 7/8) Students in the Poetry/Prose Interpretation Contest select a published poetry or prose piece (or pieces), depending on the year, prepare an introduction to this literary work, and present the work with the introduction in a six-minute time limit at the contest.  There is no minimum time limit; however, better presentations are at least three minutes long.  Contestants who exceed the allotted six minutes shall be disqualified. Contestants are evaluated by three judges on aspects of performance, selection appropriateness, presentation control, and overall effectiveness.  The top 2 students from 6th Grade and the top 2 from combined 7th/8th at the District Contest will advance to the State Contest. **Poetry and Prose alternate years.  Please check with the PSIA Coordinator to determine which style will be used for the current year.

Ready Writing (6th, 7th, and 8th Grades, three students per grade level) Ready Writing is “usually” writing that explains or expository writing.  It can also include narration and persuasion.  Contestants come to the contest “ready” to write on their choice of one of two prompts given.  Contestants should not place their names anywhere in their essay.  The prompts will either state or imply the purpose of the writing, the format, the audience, and the point of view.  There are three types of writing categories used in the contest:  1) description – describes a happening, person, object, or idea from imagination or memory; 2) narration – write a story with dialogue; 3) persuasion – describe and argue one side of an issue; describe both sides of an issue, then argue one side; write an editorial; or write a letter to persuade.  The maximum time allotted for writing is Grades 6 – 60 minutes; Grades 7 and 8 – 90 minutes.  Papers are judged on the following criteria:  Interest – 50%, Organization – 35%, and Correctness of Style – 15%.   The top 2 students from each grade level at the District Contest will advance to the State Contest.

Science (6th, 7th, and 8th Grades, three students per grade level) The contest presents 50 multiple-choice problems.  Emphasis is placed on three main areas:  knowledge of scientific fact, understanding scientific principles, and thinking through scientific problems.  The last area is a cognitive challenge requiring students to use higher learning skills to arrive at a solution or understanding of a problem without exposure to that particular set of circumstances.  Approximately 40% of the test consists of Earth Science questions, 40% are about Life Science, and 20% are about Physical Science. Contestants will have 30 minutes to complete the test.  The top two students from each grade level in the District will advance to State. 

Spelling (6th  and 7th/8th  Grades, three students per grade level at 6th Grade, three students per combined 7th and 8th grades) The PSIA Spelling Contest consists of the Spelling Test and the Tiebreaker Spelling Test.  Contestants learn by memory to write or print the spelling words found on the current year’s PSIA Spelling List (this will be provided to all interested students).  The spelling lists differ for each year, but the full list usually consists of 900 words from grades 6 and 7/8 combined.   The competition tests consist of the following number of words:  80 words on test / 20 tiebreaker. Precisely 20% of the words pronounced on the spelling test will be from “outside.”  This means that the words are taken from the official source for spelling verification, the Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary, 11th Edition. Outside words are not on the study list.  Some words on the test may be derivatives of the original word or have different suffixes or prefixes.  (Example: “orderly” may be “orderliness”)  The top 2 students from each grade level  (3 from 6th Grade and three from 7th/8th combined) at the District Contest will advance to the State Contest.

Vocabulary Test (6th Grade and 7th/8th Grades combined, three students per grade level) The Vocabulary Test is like an SAT Preparation Course.  The Vocabulary List consists of 300 words.   The test contains 30 items – approximately 13 sentence completion, 13 analogies, and nine questions over a reading passage that is 400-700 words long.  The test time is 30 minutes.   Although each test question will be composed using at least one of these words, a well-read student with a broad, cumulative vocabulary will perform best in this contest, for many of the words used in the test are not used in everyday language.   The top 2 students for each group in the District will advance to the State Contest.