Convention Tips

Convention Tips for Getting Started

  1. Visit the Convention Guidelines page and download the current Student Convention Guidelines.
  2. Talk to another school in your area that has attended Convention.
  3. Read through all of the guidelines so you can answer students' questions.
  4. Distribute copies of the Event List (found on the Convention Guidelines page) to students.
  5. Have a parents' meeting early in the school year to explain the details and the estimated costs.
  6. Find qualified people to advise and assist in different areas of competition.
  7. Meet with all Convention-aged students. Have them make a preliminary list of events they are interested in pursuing. Go over the lists individually with them, giving guidance. (Be sure to compare their lists with the number of entry limitations on page I-2 of the General Guidelines.)
  8. Encourage student participation in fundraisers to raise funds for Convention. 
  9. Set deadlines for written work, photography, sewing, and art. These events can be completed early in the school year, leaving the winter and spring to prepare music and platform events.
  10. Make practice schedules for music and platform events. Be sure that all students participating in these categories receive the needed attention from staff to ensure that their entries are memorized and “polished.” Afternoons are best for practice time, leaving the mornings for academics.
  11. Register for Convention. Registration and housing assignments are not confirmed until schools have paid the registration fee. Watch the Convention registration tutorials for a step-by-step guide on how to register. 
  12. Download the Passport app to get current information about Convention.
  13. Have students perform for chapel, special parents' nights, local churches, and any other opportunities you can find. This will help with their stage presence and will get them past the initial “jitters” prior to competition.

Above all else: Pray, encourage, exhort, praise, and love them through the entire process. It is worth all the work . . . there are eternal dividends.