Teacher Connections Writing Contest Nov. 18 - Dec. 9

How to participate in the Teachers Connections Writing Contest

If you are an existing Helium member, just go to the contest page Nov 18-Dec. 9 to select titles and start contributing.

For those new to Helium.com:

1. Complete your writer registration on Helium and set up your writer profile page.  (This article provides some helpful tips.)
2. To begin participating in the contest, head to the contest page by clicking on the red "Writing Contest" button in the horizontal navigation. In the list of active contests, look for Teaching Connections Writing Contest. Please be sure to read the rules (available Nov. 18). Pick a title that interests you. Do research and writing, edit and save your article on your own computer in a word processing program.
3. To submit your article, click on the title that interests you. Below the title you will see a pencil icon. Click on this and you will be on the Helium submission page. If you use Word, click on the "Paste from Word" icon at the top of the screen.  Copy and paste your article there. Use the "Spell Check" and "Word Count" features to make sure your article is in top form and meets the word-count requirements; and use the "Preview" feature to verify that formatting is the way you want it. Unless you are familiar with SEO, leave the "search phrase" feature alone. If you are interested, consider donating your article’s ad revenue earnings to Teachers without Borders. Read the agreement at the bottom of the page, check the box to verify you agree to it. Finally, click “Submit.”
4. After submitting your article, you’ll be led to a rating page that shows you two articles on another topic in the Education channel. This is your opportunity to play the important role as a Helium rater.  Your article will be processed in the same manner with other writers to determine the rank among all the other articles submitted to that title.  The cumulative rank of your articles ultimately leads to your contest score.
5. You will have 3 weeks to write to any of the contest titles. The week after the contest is closed to further article submissions, and  is identified as the "Awaiting Calculation" period. The contest articles will be passing through the rating process so the best will rise to the top. Don’t worry about where you place initially in the rankings, and understand that your articles' ranks may vary until the last day of the contest.  You should participate in rating during this time as well, although you will never rate your own work. Helium is a fair and trusted platform that is designed such that rating is anonymous and randomly delivered to the rater. While you are at it, explore more opportunities for writing on Helium.  This Quick-Start Guide gives an overview and this Zone for New Writers provides a simple plan to start your writing career on Helium.
6. You’ll notice a leader board on the contest page, with points assigned per writer. You earn points based on how many articles you contribute and on how highly peers rank your articles relative to others competing for top slot in that title. You can acquire points between +5 and -5 based on the rank of your article. Specifics of this are provided on the contest page. Please be aware that the rank can change until the last day of the contest, as can your points.
7. Enjoy the fun and realize the net result:  A treasury of informative articles you’ve contributed that can help teachers and students the world over. We also hope that many writers will choose to donate their article earnings right back to Teachers Without Borders. It’s a great way to contribute directly and easily to the organization’s work. These articles will remain on your account, which you can reach by viewing your About Me page. Your articles will continue to earn and pay you based on our "ad revenue share." Learn all about how to earn money on your Helium articles.
8. And you might collect a nice pile of cash when we announce the winners on December 16. You’ll be notified by email, and given instructions on how to collect your cash prize. By the last day of the month, go to your Earnings & Payments page (via the My Helium button on the main menu). Click “Request Payment.” Then, by the 10^th of the next month, you will have all your earnings deposited into the PayPal account you created upon registration (Jan. 10). Please check that PayPal is offered in your country before entering the contest. Helium does not offer alternative payment plans outside of PayPal.