Step 1: Organize a Chairperson and Committee

Select a Law Day essay contest chairperson. This person will coordinate all the activities related to your Law Day essay contest. It is also helpful to form a Law Day essay contest committee to have a group of people who will share the responsibilities for the contest.

Step 2: Select a Theme

Select an essay theme.

Step 3: Determine Prizes

Determine the number of prizes you want to award for each grade level, such as 1^st place, 2^nd place, honorable mention, etc. You will also need to decide what kind of prizes you will award to each of your winners. Many auxiliaries and bar associations have chosen savings bonds in different denominations and certificates. You many want to solicit sponsors to help pay for the prizes. Local law firms, banks, and educational associations are often willing to sponsor such an activity.

Step 4: Determine Awards Ceremony

Determine what kind of ceremony you want to host at which the winners will be honored. An awards breakfast, luncheon, afternoon tea, or dinner are all examples of Law Day essay contest ceremonies. Some have been held in local courtrooms, local restaurants, local schools, etc. You will also have to decide when you want to hold the ceremony. Typically, these ceremonies are held very close to or on Law Day, May 1. Again, you may want to solicit sponsors to help fund the ceremony.

Step 5: Determine Contest Deadline

Decide who will receive the entries and a deadline for the receipt of entries. The deadline will be determined by how long you think it will take to judge all the entries, determine the winners, and notify the winners. Ideally, the winners will be notified a least a month before the awards ceremony. You will also need to select a deadline that will give you time to judge all your entries before the deadline for the state essay contest.

Step 6: Prepare Contest Notification

Prepare a cover letter to your local school principals and 6^th–8^th grade teachers explaining the contest. If possible, offer support, such as guest speakers, etc. Try to keep the cover letter to one page, then attach copies of the (1) cover sheet, (2) contest rules and (3) criteria for scoring. Mail these packets to all area local schools that have 6^th–8^th grades.

Step 7: Importance of the Cover Sheet

The cover sheet is perhaps the most important piece of information associated with this contest! The cover sheet must be attached to each entry. It contains the name, age, grade, address, teacher, and school of the entrant, as well as other pertinent information. The essay itself should have no identifying information on it!

Step 8: Recruit Judges

Recruit an adequate number of readers to judge the essays and provide them with a copy of the criteria for scoring. You should also provide them with a schedule of when they will be receiving the essays and a deadline for when the scored essays must be returned to you.

Step 9: Number the Entries

When the essays come in, put a number on each cover sheet and the same number on the attached essay. Then separate the two sheets. You should retain the cover sheets and distribute groups of essays to your judges. Be sure to keep a record of the numbers that each judge receives. Each judge should also receive a sheet on which to record each essay number and each essay's score. This sheet needs to be returned along with the essays.

Step 10: Scoring

Each essay should be rated from 1 to 4 in the following six categories:

• Ability to follow directions, use of proper grammar, and spelling
• Originality
• Clear position
• Supports position by using core democratic values
• Supports position with knowledge of history, geography, civics or economics
• Uses researched information to compare/contrast or support position

The Criteria for Scoring Essays (similar to the MEAP criteria for scoring) outlines what is required to award a score of 1 to 4 in each of the six categories. The maximum score each essay can receive in a category is 4. Total the scores for all the categories. The maximum total score any essay can receive is 24.

Step 11: Notify Winners

When you receive all the essays back, determine the winners and notify them of the date, time, and location of the awards ceremony. Be sure to ask for an RSVP. Also, be sure to alert the local news media to your special event.

Step 12: Notify Area Schools of Winners

Send a list of all your essay contest winners to all the area schools that participated in your contest.

Step 13: Thank Your Volunteers

After you hold your event, be sure to send thank you notes to everyone you deem appropriate (i.e. judges, sponsors, etc.)

Step 14: Evaluate for Next Time

Finally, be sure to evaluate all aspects of your contest to develop strategies for improving your event the next year.