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GPB Celebrates Young Writers at the 2026 PBS KIDS Writers Contest Awards Ceremony
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On Saturday, June 27, Georgia Public Broadcasting (GPB) welcomed families, educators, and some of Georgia’s most imaginative young storytellers for a joyful celebration honoring the winners of GPB’s 2026 PBS KIDS Writers Contest. The annual statewide contest encourages children in kindergarten through third grade to explore their creativity by writing and illustrating original stories while strengthening important literacy and storytelling skills.
Each year, students from across Georgia submit entries in a variety of formats, including fiction, nonfiction, poetry, prose, and graphic novels. This year's young authors once again demonstrated remarkable imagination, originality, and talent through stories that entertained, inspired, and informed.
After submissions were received, stories were judged by students in Georgia State University’s Master of Arts in Creative and Innovative Education (MACIE) program. Entries were evaluated on creative expression, storytelling, originality, and the effective use of both words and illustrations. First-, second-, and third-place winners were selected from each grade level and invited to GPB’s headquarters for a special awards celebration recognizing their achievements.
The event provided an unforgettable experience for the winning authors and their families. Throughout the event, MACIE students led a variety of music, art, and movement experiences, giving children opportunities to create, collaborate, and celebrate their creativity while waiting to record their stories.
Authors had the unique opportunity to step behind the microphone and record narrated versions of their stories in GPB’s radio editing booths with support from GPB’s radio operations team. Recordings will be combined with the students’ original illustrations to create videos that will be featured on GPB’s website, allowing audiences across Georgia to enjoy the creativity and hard work of these talented young writers.
Kindergarten winners were Harper Kay (Violet’s Cartwheels), first place; Prisha Rohan Kamat (The Christmas Princess Who Helped Community), second place; and Reagan Wood (Lily’s Snow Day), third place.
First Grade winners were Margaret (Greta) Dexter (The Cheese Whiz), first place; Elizabeth Ohuegbe (The Fairy Without Friends), second place; and Naomi Zhang (Stella and Shu), third place.
Second Grade winners were Blake Stevens (The Slow Snail), first place; Dylan Beswick (The Adventures of Rabbit and Fox: Fox Invasion), second place; and Annie Aitchison (The Big Snow), third place.
Third Grade winners were Nmachi Uzoho (The Imaginary Zoo), first place; Sharone Lee (Tona the Flower), second place; and Manvith Prakash (Leo the Lion Faces His Fears), third place.
Congratulations to all the 2026 PBS KIDS Writers Contest winners and participants! GPB is proud to celebrate these outstanding young authors and looks forward to sharing their stories with audiences across the state.
The PBS KIDS Writers Contest continues to inspire children to discover the power of their own ideas and voices. By encouraging students to create and share original stories, the contest helps build confidence, literacy skills, and a lifelong love of reading and writing.
Check out the PBS KIDS Writers Contest webpage for the 2026 Awards Ceremony, the Writer’s Guide, and a collection of stories from past winners that are sure to inspire future authors.
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