Old Town Elementary ~ 2017-2018 UIL
General Contest Information
UIL A+ Academics
We are excited to announce that Old Town Elementary students will have the opportunity to participate in the UIL A+ Academics contest. This program is available for students in grades 2-5 in various categories.
UIL A+ Academic contests help students develop oral language and communication skills, become independent readers and writers, develop conceptual understanding, learn to solve problems and apply knowledge to all facets of their lives.
The following events are available
Course Descriptions
Creative Writing
The contest is designed to promote creativity in an academic format and to encourage writing skills at an early grade level. Through preparation for the contest, students in second grade will be able to evaluate their own writing and the writing of others.
Contestants will be given a prompt with several captioned pictures. From these pictures, the students will create an original story based on their selections in 30 minutes. The stories must contain at least one of the pictured items, but it is not required that all items on the page be included.
Storytelling
To tell a story, the participant must develop skills in listening, thinking and speaking. This contest also allows for the development of creative expression, something being given more attention in the professional world. For practice, teachers can use stories from any good children's books or magazines.
Contestants in the second and third grades shall listen to a storyteller read a brief story (between 600 and 1100 words long) only once, and then retell that story in their own words before a judge or judges. There are no time restrictions on the length of the story the student creates.
Spelling
The spelling contest is designed to give students in grades 3, 4, and 5 exposure to a wide variety of vocabulary words. It is not a contest of memorization. For the most educational value, preparation for this contest should include instruction in the rules of the English language, meanings and definitions, and root words. In addition to learning to spell proficiently, contestants will learn to write clearly and to capitalize words properly.
Students will write down words given by the pronouncer on their paper at a rate of approximately five words per minute.
Number Sense
Individuals are called upon every day to use their ability to make quick mental calculations to make decisions. The development of such abilities should be an integral part of the math curriculum. Concepts covered include, but are not limited to: addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, proportions, and use of mathematical notation.
Students will be given a 10-minute, fill-in-the-blank test which they must complete without doing calculations on paper or on a calculator. Erasures and mark-outs are not permitted.
Oral Reading
Reading literature out loud provides opportunities for students to analyze the text, to grow and to develop as a performer, to communicate a message to an audience and to perform an artistic creation. The oral reading competition should be an extension of the classroom literary and language arts activities in poetry, short stories, and children's fiction.
Important Details Regarding UIL
Classes will be
Number Sense - Monday 2:55 - 3:55
Spelling - Monday 3:00 - 4:00
Storytelling - Thursday 3:00 - 4:00
Creative Writing - Thursday 3:00 - 4:00
Oral Reading - Tuesday 3:00 - 4:00
Class Dates are weekly:
October 23 - December 22
Campus Competition to qualify for Division III District Competition
December 18 (must be present to qualify)
Division III District Competition (if selected)
January 27th
Apply Online...
Click on the appropriate grade level link below to apply.
Email: Laura_Chamness@roundrockisd.org
Website: https://oldtown.roundrockisd.org/
Phone: 512-428-7600