From farm to bookshelves
Summer 2024 California Bountiful magazine
Young authors explore agriculture through creative tales
Story by Linda DuBois
Engaging stories about egg production, owls and rainwater were among the winning entries for the 2024 “Imagine this…” Story Writing Contest.
Coordinated annually by the California Foundation for Agriculture in the Classroom, the contest is designed to inspire students in third through eighth grades to learn more about where their food and fiber come from and hone their writing skills.
Students are asked to select and research a topic relating to agriculture and then craft a fiction or nonfiction story that educates the reader about the topic. The winning stories are published in a book illustrated by high school art, graphic design and photography students. (See the book review.)
As usual, this year’s winners found impressively imaginative ways to bring to life information about California agriculture, often while weaving in other positive messages.
Among them are two siblings from the tiny town of Hickman in Stanislaus County.
Braden Frantz educates readers about the importance of water and its life cycle through the adventurous journey of a raindrop named Blobby. Braden says he had fun with the names of his characters, including Dribble, Trickle and Sprinkle. “I looked up synonyms for raindrops to come up with them,” he says.
His sister Hailey writes of the destruction and regrowth caused by wildfire through the eyes of a book-loving Sequoia tree that dreams of becoming a librarian. She chose forest trees for her crop because she appreciates the wood and paper they provide.
Colton Menezes tells about a lamb that is unvalued because of his small size but grows into an impressive show sheep. He hopes readers are inspired by the idea that “no matter where you start, you can become anything you want.”
Similarly, Shayna Gomes writes about a calf that looks different from the others in the herd because of its breed. She hopes readers embrace the message that “everyone is different and should be celebrated.”
All the young authors have high praise for the high school artists who illustrated their stories.
“It’s like he took it out of my brain. It’s just perfect,” Hailey Frantz says.
Joey Vega, who chronicles the adventures of a peach named Fuzzy, offers advice for students struggling with writing assignments.
If you get stuck with writer’s block, he says, “just take a little break, have a snack, take a breather and then just go back after it.”
Entries for the contest are due each year on Nov. 1. For more information, visit LearnAboutAg.org.
‘Imagine this...’ Story Writing Contest 2024 state winners
Ethan’s Egg Business
By Ethan Burton
Plaza School
Glenn County
Teacher: Jennifer Crane
Illustrator: Sofia Matin
Millikan High School, Long Beach
Art instructor: Scott Coppenger
A neighbor’s amorous rooster, Ronald, has trespassed onto Ethan’s egg farm to get to the hens. Ethan chases him off, but then devises a plan that will keep Ronald happy at his own farm.
“I learned that eggs are very good for you,” the author says. He hopes readers who are raising eggs learn that “you don’t want roosters because you don’t want chicks.”
Sebastian the Sheep
By Colton Menezes
St. Anthony’s School
Merced County
Teacher: Andrea Hammar
Illustrator: Andrea Fonseca
Florin High School, Sacramento
Art instructor: Alexandra Pease
Farmer Mr. Clark is unimpressed by Sebastian, the runt of his lambs, so he sells him. The new owner raises Sebastian into a big, beautiful sheep—and Mr. Clark buys him back at an auction.
The story was inspired by Colton’s own misfit sheep: “We have a sheep named Tillie that has a tail—and sheep aren’t supposed to have tails.”
The Adventure of Spike & Fuzzy
By Joey Vega
Clairemont Christian Academy
San Diego County
Teacher: Reyna Gonzalez
Illustrators: Drea Soto,
Julianna Reyna and Amanda Kelly
Calvine High School, Sacramento
Art instructor: Corrie Soderlund
A dog named Spike makes friends with a peach named Fuzzy. When Fuzzy is in danger, Spike runs to the rescue, but Fuzzy’s own natural defenses have protected him.
“First, I was told that I won regionals, and I was very happy … and then when I learned that I won state, I was the happiest kid in the world.”
Hooty the Owl
By Henry Moon
Hale Charter Academy
Los Angeles County
Teacher: Paul Rios
Illustrators: Vivian Ning,
Vanessa Palafox and Savannah Farmer
Monterey Trail High School, Elk Grove
Art instructor: Monica Ortega
Hooty, a great horned owl, loves his job of eating rodents and other pests. Hooty enjoys telling all about his home, his family, his remarkable abilities and his role in keeping nature balanced.
“I learned about the importance of hunter animals. They can keep control of a population of rodents that could destroy crops.”
The Raindrop’s Story
By Braden Frantz
Gratton School
Stanislaus County
Teacher: Rexann Casteel
Illustrator: Djeffterline Jean Philippe
Florin High School, Sacramento
Art instructor: Alexandra Pease
Blobby the raindrop falls from the sky into a lake, travels through an energy turbine, down a river that irrigates crops and into the ocean, before evaporating back to his home cloud.
Braden chose to write about water because his dad is on an irrigation board. “He talks a lot about it at dinner. He’s a big inspiration in my life, so I followed his lead.”
The Grand Champion
By Shayna Gomes
Scott Valley Options
Siskiyou County
Teacher: Amy Hurlimann
Illustrators: Iris Pichardo and Celina Ring
Sheldon High School, Sacramento
Art instructor: Theresa Nguyen Tran Vo
A calf named Benson is teased because he looks different from the other cattle on the ranch. But he is chosen by a girl to raise for the fair, and he goes on to become Grand Champion.
“I hope people learn that color doesn’t matter and that agriculture is very important,” Shayna says.
The World’s Best Librarian
By Hailey Frantz
Gratton School
Stanislaus County
Teacher: Heather Yardy
Illustrator: Wangshuang Xie
Elk Grove High School, Elk Grove
Art instructors: Deborah George and Crystaline Owen
Ruby, a Sequoia tree, witnesses a raging forest fire that destroys some of her friends, but her spirits lift when she sees thousands of their tiny seeds waiting to grow.
Hailey says she enjoyed the whole research and writing process. “‘Imagine this’ is eye-opening. You learn stuff that you didn’t think you’d ever need to learn.”
Enter next year’s contest
The annual “Imagine this...” Story Writing Contest tasks California students in grades three through eight with researching and writing educational and entertaining agriculture-themed stories, with help from their teachers.
The contest awards about 40 regional winners. Of those, a statewide winner from each grade is selected and their stories are illustrated by high school art students for a published anthology. Statewide winners also receive prizes for themselves and their classrooms, along with a trip to Sacramento to be honored during an awards ceremony at the state Capitol.
The deadline for entries in the 2025 “Imagine this…” Story Writing Contest is Nov. 1. For more information, visit LearnAboutAg.org. For more information on submitting electronically, email Imaginethis@LearnAboutAg.org.
.svg.png){kind=small}
