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Steps to Participating in Reflections for PTA Leaders

Step 1: Register with LAPTA

Local PTA Units first register their unit. LAPTA has Zoom training sessions to get everyone confident in running the Reflections Program for their PTA. The PTA chooses which art categories will be offered to their students: Dance Choreography, Film Production, Literature, Music Composition, Photography, Visual Arts. National PTA has a Local Leader's Guide to Reflections (en español) that can help you get started. Also keep in mind that there are detailed guidelines that the students must follow for each art category. The specific guidelines are linked below. You can also direct students to download the guidelines and entry form at LouisianaPTA.org/students.

National PTA tracks participation in the Reflections Program. Please also register with National PTA here. This is just a data collection for them.​​​

Please view the Reflections Introduction PDF. This is the first place to get started with the Reflections Program. Contact Maribel  Morgan with any questions at Reflections@LouisianaPTA.org. We'll add meeting dates and recordings once they are available.

Step 2: Customize and Distribute

Edit program materials to include available arts categories for participation, program deadlines, directions for submitting entries, distribute to program participants, student entry forms, and category rules. Include additional details in the student materials like contact information and additional rules for student eligibility. Decide how students will submit their works and entry form to you. One option is to use Google Forms which is linked below. ​If you need help sharing files with your students, LAPTA has a page for students to access the file downloads at LouisianaPTA.org/students. 

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Each student needs to use the Student Entry Form. Before distributing to students, fill out the top section with the PTA's information. If your PTA is not including all art categories, use the below Word doc or Canva template to customize the categories and flyer for your PTA. You can also create a BAND group and add a QR Code to join your group. The Local PTA Unit submits their winners to LAPTA by January 17, 2027. Please set your deadlines earlier to give yourself enough time for your judges to pick the winners. Decide how you will collect your student entries perhaps using a Google Form template which is linked below.

Downloads

Step 3: Promote, Recruit, and FAQs

Promote

Share the program information with teachers, especially gifted and talented teachers. Ask your PTA President and the principal how to best advertise the program at your school. Personalize the Reflections flyers and materials. BAND is an all-in-one group communication app that helps to manage your Reflections program. Visit PTA.org/Reflections/StartYourProgram to find the "BAND and Your Reflections Program" resource and learn about the many features BAND has to offer, including file sharing, chat rooms and posts. If you need help sharing files with your students, LAPTA has a page for students to access the file downloads at LouisianaPTA.org/students. 

​Recruit Volunteers

Recruit Volunteers for your Reflections Committee and delegate tasks to promote the program, coordinate judging, and host celebration events. Judging MUST be impartial and not have a family member participating in the entries being judged. A Judges Rubric will be provided. 

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Frequently Asked Questions and Mistakes to Avoid

  1. Can students work together on an entry? Technically, an entry must be entered under one person's name. Louisiana PTA will try and acknowledge each person if they win an award, such as a dance group who all helped with the choreography. If they advance to the National PTA Contest, National PTA will only recognize one person.

  2. Can students work on their entries at home? Yes!

  3. Can students enter more than one category? Yes!

  4. Can a young student dictate their Artist Statement to a parent? Yes, they can as long as the parent does not edit the statement. A parent could also include a "translation" of the student's statement.

  5. Can Artificial Intelligence (AI) be used in any way? No, Artificial Intelligence is not allowed to be used in any way for this contest.

  6. For Film Production entries, students are to make a movie. They are not to be an actor in their film. 

  7. For Music Composition, students are to create original pieces of music. This is not a performance of a song written by another person.

  8. For Dance Choreography, students create their own choreography, filmed without any stops or edits, and all music must be cited.

  9. For Visual Arts, the entry must be a new, original work of art created for this contest.

  10. For Literature, entries may not exceed 2,000 words. Collections (such as several poems) are not permitted.

  11. For Photography, students may not add non-photographic elements to their photographs such as graphics or text.​​

  12. The Accessible Arts Division has 2 divisions. Elementary Accessible Arts is for grades Pre-K - Grade 5 and Secondary Accessible Arts is for grades 6-12. 

Step 4:  Judging

Set the deadline for your Local PTA Unit so that you have enough time to judge your entries and submit to LAPTA by January 17, 2027. Give yourself and the judges two to four weeks depending on the number of anticipated submissions. Find judges that are knowledgeable and experienced in the category they will be judging. You will provide them with a Judge's Rubric. Once the judges return with their scores, you can pick three winners per grade category that your PTA covers. These winners are then forwarded within the Portal to LAPTA. Announce your winners at your school and celebrate the students! See Local Leader Portal Instructions for directions on submitting winners to LAPTA. The link to the portal will be emailed directly once it's open. 

Step 5:  Submit Your Winners to LAPTA by January 17, 2027

Each PTA may submit three entries from each Arts Category per Grade Division to LAPTA for judging at the state level. If your school has more than one Grade Division, you may submit three entries for each of those separate divisions per Arts Category.

  • Grade Divisions are Primary (Pre-K to Grade 2), Intermediate (Grades 3-5), Middle School (Grades 6-8), High School (Grades 9-12), and Elementary Accessible Arts (Pre-K - Grade 5 with ADA 504) or Secondary Accessible Arts (Grade 6 - 12 with ADA 504).

  • Arts Categories are Dance Choreography, Literature, Visual Arts, Film Production, Music Composition, and Photography.

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Once your winners are selected, the Local PTA Leader submits their winners to LAPTA through the online portal which opens in December. See Local Leader Portal Instructions for directions on using the portal or watch a Zoom explaining the instructions. Do not share the portal link with students. Deadline to submit entries to LAPTA is January 17, 2027. Winners will be announced on March 6, 2027.

Summary

  • Register your Reflections Program Leader with LAPTA.

  • There are six Arts Categories: Dance Choreography, Literature, Visual Arts, Film Production, Music Composition, and Photography. The Local PTA Unit decides which Arts Categories their students can enter. If you need help sharing files with your students, LAPTA has a page for students to access the file downloads at LouisianaPTA.org/students. 

  • The Grade Divisions are Primary (Pre-K to Grade 2), Intermediate (Grades 3-5), Middle School (Grades 6-8), High School (Grades 9-12), and Elementary Accessible Arts (students in Pre-K - Grade 5 with an ADA Section 504) or Secondary Accessible Arts (students in Grades 6 - 12 with an ADA Section 504). Students with the ADA Section 504 may enter in the Accessible Arts Division or the grade division most closely aligned to their functional abilities, and they may receive appropriate accommodations to complete their entry.

  • Students need the Student Entry Form and the specific Guidelines for their art category so that they have all of the rules.

  • Eligible Local PTA Units can submit three entries from each Arts Category per Grade Division to LAPTA for judging at the state level. If your school has more than one Grade Division (plus Accessible Arts Division), you may submit three entries for each of those separate divisions. 

  • The Student Entry Portal link is ONLY for PTA Leaders to submit entries. Students do NOT use this link. This is the platform LAPTA uses to accept entries. See the Local Leader Portal Instructions on how to use the portal or watch a Zoom explaining the instructions. 

  • Use the fillable Judges' Rubric and Scorecard PDF.

  • ENTRY DEADLINE to LAPTA is Sunday, January 18, 2026. Set your local deadline well before to allow for your local judging.

  • Local Units must be Actively Affiliated with LAPTA by January 1 for student entries to be accepted for judging by LAPTA.

  • Louisiana PTA announces its winners on March 2, 2026. The "National Entry" 1st Place winners advance to National PTA for judging. Their winners are announced around May 1.

And the LAPTA 2025-26 Winners Are!....

LAPTA advanced 17 student entries into the National PTA Reflections contest. Two students won a National PTA Award for their entries! Congratulations to all four of you! Louisiana PTA sends its gratitude to every student and every PTA that supports the arts within their Local PTA Units with the Reflections Program. We love seeing so much creativity from students of all ages! There are three award levels: 1) National PTA Entry is the top award that only goes to one person per Art Category per Grade Division and they progress to the National PTA Reflections Contest who announces their winners by May 1; 2) Award of Excellence, and 3) Award of Merit. All students will receive an award and recognition from Louisiana PTA in late April or May when LAPTA travels to the PTAs to deliver the awards. 

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