Coaches' Corner

Welcome, Power of the Pen Coaches!

Upon registration, you received a username and password. Be sure to share those details with your co-coach and log-in to view the pull-down menu to access a variety of resources that will help you plan for and stay up to date on the season.

See information below for Kernels of Wisdom and judge training, or visit our "Judge Training & Orientation" webpage for access to our holistic evaluation guide!

DEADLINE REMINDER:

All payments & contestant names must be in by December 1st, 2025!

Here's a link to our W-9 Form on our "Manuals and Forms" page.

Judge Training Requirements:

"At an Initial (District) Tournament, each school must supply one qualified judge per grade level team to accompany the contestants and judge at the event [I B 1].

The minimum qualifications for a judge at an Initial District Tournament are that they must be either a certified teacher or a parent with a college degree, and be sufficiently trained to make evaluations in the Power of the Pen tournament environment. The writing team coach is automatically qualified to judge tournaments by virtue of their role in the process and is authorized to train others to judge at the District level. Although judge orientation sessions are held before each Initial Tournament, it remains the responsibility of the writing team coach to provide preliminary training that will allow another person to participate fully and productively. Requirements include a study of the Coaches' Manual, an understanding of the concepts that underlie holistic evaluation, and some experience in reading and evaluating papers [I B 2]."

-- Power of the Pen Rules Manual

For more information on judge requirements, view our "Judge Training and Orientation" page after logging in.

Click the image above to download a PDF of the flyer and to access clickable links!