Happy Mother’s Day to every person who fills that role – moms, grandmothers, teachers, babysitters, daycare providers, neighbors…and yes…sometimes dads!

The past week was also Children’s Book Week…and for the past 9 years, I’ve hosted #50PreciousWordsforKids, an international writing challenge for young people. It’s so important for us to encourage kids to believe that their voices matter…and, no matter how young or how old we are, we all have a story to tell.

I tried to respond to each child, mentioning some of the reasons why I loved their story…I hope that when parents and teachers share that praise with them, they will grow in confidence. Each child receives a Certificate of Participation…early successes can become cornerstones in a strong foundation of self-worth.

Stories came from NY, California, Iowa, Minnesota, Florida, North Carolina…as well as Canada and Angola. The topics were varied…and the ages of these young authors varied…the youngest storyteller is 3…and the oldest is 16.

Congratulations to all – and a huge thank you to the parents and teachers who encouraged and supported and took the time to send the stories to me.

DRUMROLL PLEASE…….

THE TINY MOUSE’S CRACKER CHALLENGE
by Lauren S. – Grade: 5 – Age 10 – USA

Creak! The mouse froze. Behind him, the cat snorted, eyes fluttering. Heart pounding, the mouse gripped his giant cracker and crept toward the kitchen door. Closer. Suddenly—aaah-CHOO! The cat, now awake, pounced. Whoosh! The tiny mouse slid under the door just as a heavy paw collided with the door. 

A RAINY DAY
by Emily – Grade 2 – Age 8 – North Carolina

It’s a Saturday and it’s raining. 
Most people would say “Aw man, it’s raining.” 
But I went out in the rain.
I checked on my garden.  I splashed in puddles.  I rode my scooter in the rain. 
I didn’t just watch the rain; I felt the rain on my skin.

BLUE SKIES AND BLISS
by Aiden Parker – Grade 8 – Age 13 – Florida

He stepped outside. Sunlight warmed the green hills under the bright blue sky, the city resting in the distance. The Bliss background glowed in his mind, a memory from long‑ago screens. Technology had failed, but his reasoning saved the day. The world felt calm again, so he walked toward the hills.

BENJAMIN WORLD RECORDS
By Milo – Kindergarten – Age 5 – Massachusetts

Papusa—Cutest Stuffed Cat
Sonia—Best Artist
Dan—Tallest Man
Top Ramen—Ramenest Dog
Cup of Noodles—Noodlest Dog
Dreidel—Cutest Cat
Snowman’s Twinkle Star—Best Flashlight
Kelley Burger—Biggest Burger with a Face and Ears
Coddy—Biggest Avocado with a Face
Mom and Dad—Happiest Grown-ups
Juniper—Cutest Cousin

DREIDEL THE CAT’S GUIDE TO LICKING
by Sonia – Grade 4 – Age 9 – Massachusetts

First, you find a spot to lick.
Then you lick and lick and lick and lick.
If itchy, you lick.
If red, you lick.
If balled, you lick.
If mommy gives you gross medicine, you lick. Even if you puke.

BASEBALL CHICKEN
by Myles – Grade 2 – Age 8/second grade – North Carolina

One day I was playing baseball when I saw a chicken.
I fell in love with it.
I brought it home and kept it.
I gave it food, and water, and a wedding ring.
In ten years, I got married with a chicken.

THE MISSING SLEEPOVER ITEMS
by Nicole Xie – Grade 4 – San Francisco, CA

“Where is my plush? Where’s my hat? 
Is my candy gone?”
She searched everywhere and questioned everyone.
Then she found all of it with her little sister.
“It’s time to go!” exclaimed Ella.

THE MISSING BACKPACK
by Cindy Zhang – Grade 4 – San Francisco, CA

“It’s time for school!”
 Mila ran down the stairs.
“Where’s your backpack?” asked Mom.
“I can’t find it,” replied Mila.
She ran up the stairs and looked for her things.
She saw her books laying on the step. Afterwards, she found her homework.
A backpack strap peeked from her closet.

ANNA’S TEST
by Huiyan Chen – Grade 4 – San Francisco, CA

Anna has a test today.
Yesterday Anna practiced and practiced.
Anna is practicing Chinese and English.
Her mom gave Anna a hug and told Anna to drink a glass of milk.
The day of the test Anna is ready.
Anna is confident she will get good grades on her test.

THE JAMMED FINGER
by Kitty Wen – Grade 4 – San Francisco, CA

Mia closed the door on Mar’s finger.
“AHH!” yelled Mars
Mars opened the door, seeing her finger red. It looked like there would be a bruise.
Mars’s mom tried to heal it with ice.
“It’s not working,” says Mom “Try not to think about it.”
Mia handed them a bandage.

A SWIM AT THE POOL
By Karris Guo – Grade 4 – San Francisco, CA

“Yay! Pool!” It was Fifi’s first time at the pool.
Her parents were terrified to let her swim, she was only 4 years old. 
The crystal clear water brought Fifi closer to the pool.
Hesitant but determined. 
“SPLASH!” 
“I want to come here everyday!”
Fifi’s parents breathed a sigh of relief.

LOST IN THE MALL
by Crystal Li – Grade 4 – San Francisco, CA

Juan ran everywhere screaming.
“Where is my dad?” 
“Horror and fantasy books aren’t his favorite.”
“Not here!”
There are too many lines.
Dad wouldn’t dare to wait.
“Well, I guess I can wait.”
Juan walked out of the mall and saw a bright orange car.
“DAD!”

Fire Engine
by Keon –  Age 3 – Angola 

The fire engines are sleeping at the station.
The phone rings. Emergency! Two men are stuck in a tree.
The sirens go nee-naw, the lights flash, the fire engines rush to the tree.
They rescue the people. Hooray!
Everyone is happy.
They go back to the fire station to sleep.

MAYA STANDS UP
by Becky Zhen – Age 10 – Grade 4 – California

It was Maya’s first day of school.
Her mom dropped her off early.
Maya walked near a group.
Kids laughed at her height.
Maya wasn’t brave.
She was filled with desperate tears.
“Leave me alone!”
The kids walked away gossiping.
Maya felt a relief and calmer.
RING…it was class time.

A TRUE TREASURE
by Sonora – Grade 10 – Age 16 – Minnesota

All pirates want certain kinds of treasure.
Some look for maps, jewels, and gold.
Though for me, marbles bring pleasure.
I don’t scavenge for lots of colors so bold
or for pieces of a game played between a few.
Rather, I seek them for adventure with my crew.

THE STOLEN CANDY
by Conrad Xu – Grade 4 – San Francisco, California

Robert came home to see his candy was gone. 
Crash!
He went into the room 
Nope. Not there 
He was hungry for candy already but he couldn’t find his candy.
So he went out to ask for more candy.
And then Robert saw his little brother 
eating his only candy.

GEAR FINDING
by Kevin Zeng – Grade 4 – San Francisco, California

My brother screamed, ”I LOST MY HEADPHONES.”
I replied, ”Maybe it’s at school.”
He said, ”Nah, I don’t think it’s there.”
I said, ”JUST CHECK!”
Then we found nothing.
He said, “We searched everywhere.”
I said, ”How about your classroom?”
Then we saw his headphones on his desk.

THE GREAT TREE (Graphic story)
by Gemma – Age 10 – Grade 4 – NY

MR. BANANA
by Avery W. – Grade 4 – Age 9 – WA

One day at Fred Meyer, a banana came to life!
His name was Mr. Banana. Mr. Banana has never been alive before. He explored the shop. “Hmmm…” he said, “I wonder if there is any other alive foods.”
Then, “Hello! I’m apple.”
“I’m Mr. banana. Do you want to play?”

SPORTS
by Natalie M. – Grade 4 – Age 9 – Puyallup, WA

I like football!
My dad and brother play football too.
My dad throws far, he can throw across a whole yard.
My brother can throw across a road.
I can’t really throw that far. So, my mom taught me crocheting and she said I was getting it. So for now I do that instead.

MONKEY- CRAZY BANANA
by Traizen P. –  Grade 4 – Age 9 – Puyallup, WA

A monkey had a banana and then a gorilla took it and said “ha-ha I took your banana.”
The monkey said, “Hey give me that back!”
The gorilla said, “Not a chance!” and thew it in a tree.
Monkey knocked him out.

 THE STORY OF AN EGG
by Indica D. – Grade 4 – Age 9 – Puyallup, WA

Once there was an egg named Billy.
Billy had a friend named Jimbob.
“Hi Billy!” said Jimbob.
“Hello,” Jimbob said. “Billy, do you want to go on the swings?” asked Jimbob.
“Ok,” said Billy.
They both went to the swings and after they went home.

ONCE UPON A BADMINTON DREAM
by Johnson Zhang – Grade 4 – Age 10 – San Francisco, CA

I think about a badminton dream 
The next day, I told my mom that I want to play badminton.
Mom said “Sure, but you need to promise that you will be on the International Stage.”
18 years later, I am 28, I success the promise and even win the champion.

TWO NEW KITTENS
by Kelan Huang – Grade 4 – San Francisco, CA

Sophia skipped down the block to get a new kitty. 
She adopted a white one.
“It’s so cute and furry!” 
The kitten purred softly and cried.
Sophia was confused.
Then she remembered that the kitten had a friend.
She adopted him too.
“You now are Yin and you are Yang!” 

THE BULLIED PERSON
by Darren Chen – Grade 4 – San Francisco, CA

A person called Joseph got bullied.
Then he told them to stop but they didn’t stop.
Then Joseph told them to stop again but they still didn’t stop.
Then he told the teacher. They finally stopped.  And he was happy that they finally stopped.
“Yay. I’m not getting bullied anymore!”

DANNY’S NEW FRIEND
by Jacob zhou – Grade 4 – San Francisco, CA

Danny had a new school.
He missed his old friend.
At school, everyone was staring at him.
He didn’t even know what the teacher was saying.
At lunch time, a classmate asked him about things.
Danny didn’t answer.
Then the classmate asked him, want to be a best friend.

THE ICE CREAM PROBLEM
by Vivian Wu – Grade 4 – San Francisco, CA

Andrew wanted to get ice cream.
He went to pick one.
The great tasty flavors waited upon him to pick.
Andrew gets chocolate.
“Yum!” said Andrew.
“Plop” the ice cream fell.
Andrew sniffed and cried of his ice cream.
Andrew decided to get a new one and ate it happily.

PETS IN THE TUB
Maya – Senior kindergarten – Age 6 – Ontario, Canada

I wanted a pet whale.
I put him in the bathtub.
I gave him a kiss.
EWWWWWWW!!!
Shampoo-y kiss!
I don’t want a pet whale.
I get a pet dog.
I gave him a kiss.
EWWWWWWW!!!
Shampoo-y kiss!
Maybe the bathtub is the problem.

TURTLE WANTS A HUG
Arthur – Preschool – Age 3 – Ontario, Canada

Turtle is in the bathtub playing with toys.
He sees dad and wants a hug.
He gets a hug.
He is happy.

GETTING A NEW GAME
by Aiden Huang – Grade 4 – San Francisco, CA

So one day there were named John and Chris
They both wanted to get a game called Minecraft
But they got no money so they went to the bank
And when they were excited the ATM said Error
Then a miracle happened. A billionaire came and gave out games

JOHN’S FAVORITE MISSING LEGO
by Justin Huang – Grade 4 – San Francisco, CA

As John was playing with his legos,
He found out that his favorite lego piece was missing.
John searched everywhere and even asked his mom and dad.
But even they didn’t know, so John gave up.
But when he went back to playing legos
John found it in his hands.

MY FIRST FLIGHT
by Caroline – Grade 8 – Age 13 – Iowa

I’m trapped in my nest. I try to spread my wings and lift my tail feathers. I jump up and down, but no luck. I try again and again. I jump out of my nest, and spread out my wings, and I….
SOAR!! 
I can fly!!
Where should I go?

THE GREAT HIKE
by Skyler S. – Grade 4 – Age 10 – Puyallup, WA

Jack, Bill, and Bob were ready for an adventure.
Jack said,” I think we should take a hike”.
Bill asked, “what’s a hike and what will we have to do”.
Bob said”, it is exploring by walking”.
Jack had food, water, clothes, and tools in everyone’s backpack.
They started the long hike then it got cloudy and cold. They saw a trail and followed it till they got to the end.
It was a week, they survived.

THE HAPPY PLACE
by Addison J. – Grade 4 – Age 10 – Puyallup, WA

The happy place is a place where dogs live.
One dog named Darly, with a head full of wounders, goes to see a dog named Fother.
Darly says “hi, want to play?”.
Fother says “yes”.
He says “let’s go to the park”.
Darly says “ok”.
They are friends.

SNOWBOARD KING
Kaleb M. – Grade 4 – Age 10 – Puyallup, WA

December 2205
Kaleb is a boy that loves snowboarding and math. So one day in December 2205 he went to a mountain and started to snowboard and when he got to this ramp, he hit a backflip and someone saw him and then he got selected for the X Games.

LONELY DOG
by Gianna H. – Grade 4 – Age 10 – Puyallup, WA

There once upon a time, a dog was on a street. Lonely, scared, cold, and sad.
Until some people grabbed her and put her in a cage.
She was at a adoption center.
She waited until it was time.
They sacrificed her.
She is in heaven.

THE MISSING ARTIFACT
by Lexi T. – Grade 4 – Age 10 – Puyallup, WA

Once upon a time there was an older sister and a younger brother, they both were investigators.
Then a person came and said, someone stole an ancient artifact’!

 They looked all over town but didn’t find them so they looked at the festival and found them, so they got arrested.

UNICORNS
by Addison P. – Grade 4 – Age 10 – Puyallup, WA

Unicorns: there is a situation – please save us – bye.
“What are we going to do” the stinky ones said.
Then the purity ones said  “we are going to kick buts.”
 Then the librarian said “SHHHHH”
Then we went there and we won – bye.

The Best Cake Ever
by Emily Jin – Grade 4 – San Francisco, CA

“Good luck!”
“I’m making the best cake ever!” Sharky said
He tried to make a seven layer cake. The layers tipped and tumbled down.
He decorated with unicorns. The horns fell off.
Finally, he added berries on top. 
The berries made a flower. 
First place. “Delicious!”

The PUMPKIN TRICKS
by Ella Tran – Age 5

There was a pumpkin and he was nice. He trick-or-treated every day. One day, he trick-or-treated, and when he looked in his bucket, there was no candy. A skeleton had taken it. And then the pumpkin asked him to give it back. And the skeleton did. 

THANK YOU TO ALL THE COURAGEOUS KIDS WHO SHARED THEIR WONDERFUL STORIES WITH US. Please keep making your voices heard…we are listening!