2007 Endangered Species Poster Competition

Theme: Bringing It Home - North America's Endangered Species

The North Carolina Zoo invites all North Carolina public and private school students and home school students to showcase their artistic talent and their commitment to increasing awareness of endangered species, by participating in the 3rd annual Endangered Species Poster Contest. We hope your school, community group or club will participate in this worthwhile event and look forward to working with you!

In recent times it has been proposed by US Fish and Wildlife, that the polar bear be listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. The primary threat to polar bears is the decrease of sea ice coverage due to climate change. Polar Bears International, an organization dedicated to the conservation of these animals, has announced 2008 to be the Year of the Polar Bear. Together we can all learn how to help polar bears from becoming endangered! These events have inspired the theme for this year’s competition: Bringing It Home – North America’s Endangered Species.

WHAT IS AN ENDANGERED SPECIES?

An endangered species is an animal or plant that is in danger of becoming extinct; meaning it would no longer be alive on our Earth. There are more than 1,000 animal species endangered worldwide. North Carolina alone has 35 threatened and endangered animal species. There are many reasons why a species may become endangered, including habitat destruction, introduced species, disease, pollution, animal trade, population, and the list goes on. But remember, Endangered means there is still time!

WHAT CAN WE DO?

Everyone can help! The smallest things we do every day can make a difference.

Don’t put hazardous waste down the drain or in your trash. Read directions for the best disposal method.
Keep litter and waste out of the gutters and drains.
Keep your cats indoors to help protect local wildlife, when it is outdoors putting a bell on helps.
Recycle everything you can.
Don’t leave water running.
Turn the lights and TV off when you are out of the room.
Make your neighborhood friendly to back yard wildlife; for example hang birdhouses and feeders, or plant a butterfly garden, or build bat houses.
Use environmentally friendly alternatives to pesticides.
Compost food waste.
Organize clean up days at your school or in your neighborhood.
Plant gardens with native plants.
Don’t throw trash out of the car.
Encourage other people to learn more about endangered species.

COMPETITION DETAILS

Who Can Enter?

Students may enter through their school or community group such as 4H and scouts. Each student may only submit one entry.

Designing the Poster

Classroom teachers work with their students to design a poster, following the guidelines below. In addition to their poster, students 3rd through 12th grade will be required to answer the following questions:

What is the name of the endangered species you have chosen and what habitat does it live in?
What are the main threats to this animal/plant and its habitat?
How can we help protect this animal/plant and its habitat?

An endangered species teacher resource pack is available to support implementation in the classroom. This important teaching aid includes lesson activities across different curriculums, suitable web sites and resources, and entry details for the contest. Call or to receive a free Resource Pack.

Poster Specifications

Students must design an 8½” x 11” poster containing a picture and a message about one endangered species which is native to North America. It should encourage people to care about endangered plants and animals and want to protect them. A very short simple message is best for a poster so that it is easy to see and sticks in people’s minds.
The poster may be designed on any kind of paper, including card stock. Students may be as creative as they wish. The poster may be in any medium including collage, free-hand drawing, paint, charcoal or pencil. Chalk, charcoal, and pastel must be sealed with a fixative spray to prevent smearing and smudging. Photography, 3D designs and computer-generated images and text are excluded. Three-dimensional entries will not be accepted.
All posters should be backed with construction paper leaving a two-inch frame around the edges.
Only the original poster can be submitted into the competition, no photocopies.
Each poster should reflect the student’s own idea, reflecting the theme. The teacher may assist young children with writing down the message on their poster, but the message must be the child’s own thoughts and all artwork must be the child’s own work.
All posters will become the property of the NC Zoo.
Any incomplete entry (e.g. no research submitted for grades 3 – 12) or entry not following these specifications, will be disqualified from final judging.

Submitting Entries

Schools will first hold a school-based competition, and choose first, second and third place in the following divisions.

Division 1 – Kindergarten – 2nd Grade
Division 2 – 3rd – 5th Grade
Division 3 – 6th – 8th Grade
Division 4 – 9th – 12th Grade

For the first place winner of each division, please complete an entry form and attach it to the back of the original artwork with a paperclip. Posters will not be returned. Take a photo or copy of your poster before submitting it.

Competition coordinators should take photographs or color copies of the 3 winning entries in each division and submit them on the group results form. This form will be used to issue certificates to those students. Please do not send originals for 2nd and 3rd place to the zoo.

Folded posters will not be accepted. Artwork should be rolled and shipped in a mailing tube or be packed and wrapped flat. Please read the poster contest rules carefully, as only posters that meet the contest rules will be considered. Send your posters to the following address:

2007 Endangered Species Poster Competition
NC Zoo Education Division
4401 Zoo Parkway
Asheboro, NC 27205

Deadline: Posters must be postmarked on or before Friday, December 14, 2007 . Winners will be notified by mail.

Judging Procedure

The posters will be grouped in one of the following four grade categories:

Kindergarten through 2nd Grade
3rd through 5th Grade
6th through 8th Grade
9th through 12th Grade

Posters will be judged by a committee of zoo staff and community representatives. The winning poster and runner-up in each grade category will be judged based on the criteria listed below. In addition, we will be selecting the best entries in the following categories: mammal, reptile, bird, amphibian, and plant.

Judging Criteria

Clear message conveyed by the text and artwork.
- How significant or relevant is the poster in increasing understanding of an endangered species?
- Does it communicate the message to a broad audience?
- Did the artist use a catchy slogan or message?
Creativity, originality and artistic quality.

Is the design creative and original?
Does the selected media enhance the presentation of the overall artistic quality?

Visual clarity — easily read.

Visual use of space - Is the poster clearly and logically set out?
Is the text easy to read?

Research

Clarity of information – all questions were answered in clear sentences
Was the information accurate?

Winners

One winner will be chosen in each division. All winning entries will be combined to create an Endangered Species Awareness Poster. The poster will be sent to participating schools and used in conjunction with the zoo’s education programs. Winning posters in each division will be displayed on the zoos web site: www.nczoo.org.

The overall winner of each division will receive a prize pack including a family pass to the zoo, an endangered species poster and an educational program for their classroom.

For more information on the 2007 Endangered Species Poster Competition,

or Phone (336) 879-7715 or toll free 1-800-488-0444 ext. 7715

To receive a copy of the 2005 Endangered Species Poster or 2006 Endangered Species Poster for your classroom, please send an e-mail with your school name and address requesting the poster you would like to receive.

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N.C. Zoo is a member institution of AZA and an agency of the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, William G. Ross Jr. Secretary; Michael F. Easley, Governor. A part of the North Carolina Government portal.

The Zoo is closed Christmas day and during severe weather. Call our information line at: 1-800-488-0444.