Contest Rules
- A 100- to 200- word original fable in Latin.
- Submit an English translation of the submitted piece.
- Compositions are graded based on the student's ability to accurately use Latin vocabulary and forms of speech, the student's creativity in subject matter and writing style.
- The student must be 13-18 years old.
- One entry per student per year.
- Entries must be submitted via the Contests internet-based program.
- Students may make free use of any Latin dictionary, Latin grammar, or other resource. Students should, however, keep in mind that Smith's English-Latin Dictionary and Bradley's Arnold Latin Prose Composition are the standards for this contest.
- The fable must be original in its entirety, not a reworking of an existing fable in Latin or any other language. If a fable seems too close to any existing fable, it will automatically be disqualified without explanation.
- The composition must be solely the work of the student participating in the contest. A teacher or instructor may NOT write any part of the fable, even in correcting a mistake. Contestants may NOT submit a composition that was written in cooperation with another person.
- Students are allowed to submit their composition to a teacher or instructor for feedback one time, but teachers or instructors may only give two kinds of help: first, they may indicate the presence of an error by circling the entire word that is in error; second, they may indicate that the error is one of the following general types of grammatical error: case, number, gender, tense, voice, mood, person, spelling, or verb-formation. If any help beyond this is suspected, the submission will be disqualified.
Judging Timeline
- Through an initial round of judging, the top 20 percent of entries will advance to the semi-final stage.
- The advancing entries will then be sent to our nationwide panel of Teacher-Judges by April 1, 2012. The judges will enter their ratings through our online system by April 15.
- New Saint Andrews College faculty will oversee the final judging process and name winners by May 1, 2012, in time for you to provide year-end recognition for your students' achievements.