Provincial Selection Committee
Representative teams of elementary and secondary teachers across the province will be chosen to form subcommittees for the provincial Young Authors Winners selection process. The judging process will take place virtually with small teams of teachers. Information regarding judging criteria and procedures will be provided to those selected, and judges will receive a small honorarium for their time.
Teachers, please apply to serve on the 2026 Provincial Selection Committee here.
Selection Committee applications are due by February 19, 2026.
Applicants will be notified by email during the first week of March if they have been selected to serve as a judge.
Successful applicants will be required to attend a virtual Provincial Selection Committee information meeting on March 11, 2026 (after school).
Judging of entries will take place between March 12 and March 25, 2026.
Young Authors Awards/Prix jeunes écrivains
OECTA is proud to sponsor the annual Young Authors Awards/Prix jeunes écrivains. The awards celebrate the exceptional writing produced by our students from Kindergarten through Grade 12 every year. Students across the province submit fiction, poetry, plays, and nonfiction to the competition, in both English and French.
There are three levels of competition: school, unit, and provincial. The first-place winners at the school level advance to the unit level, and the first-place winners in each unit advance to the provincial competition.
2026 Deadlines
School – February 13 (Class entries received by the staff representative)
Unit – February 20 (School entries received at unit office)
Provincial – March 4 (Unit entries received at the unit office)
Submissions
All entries must be submitted digitally in the form of a Word document or PDF. Unit entries should be emailed to youngauthors@catholicteachers.ca by end of day, March 4.
Categories / Divisions
| DIVISION |
CATEGORIES |
| JK–SK |
Short Story
Poem
Nonfiction (e.g. reflection or report) |
| Grades 1–2 |
Short Story
Poem
Nonfiction (e.g. reflection or report) |
| Grades 3–4 |
Short Story
Poem
Nonfiction (e.g. reflection or report) |
| Grades 5–6 |
Short Story
Poem
Play
Nonfiction (e.g. reflection or report) |
| Grades 7–8 |
Short Story
Poem
Play
Nonfiction (e.g. essay or report) |
| Grades 9–10 |
Short Story
Poem
Play
Nonfiction (e.g. essay, article or report) |
| Grades 11–12 |
Short Story
Poem
Play
Nonfiction (e.g. essay, article or report)
|
Provincial winners are announced at the June Council of Presidents and certificates are issued to all students whose work makes it to the provincial level. Winners’ plaques are issued to all provincial winners, in addition to copies of the anthology containing their work.
The provincial winners’ works are published in an anthology each year. See the full list of our 2025 winners HERE.
Questions
Inquiries should be directed to youngauthors@catholicteachers.ca or by calling the Professional Development department at OECTA Provincial Office at 416-925-2493 or 1-800-268-7230.