COLUMBUS, Ohio (May 12, 2022) — Educational publisher Zaner-Bloser has announced the winners of the 31^st annual Zaner-Bloser National Handwriting Contest, the longest-running and best-known handwriting competition in the U.S. The list of winners includes 20 students from 15 states, including three who won in previous years.

The 20 winners in kindergarten through eighth grade were selected from more than 2,650 entries submitted by schools. Approximately 75,000 students participate at the school level each year. Since the contest’s inception in 1991, close to 2.5 million students have participated.

All of the winners have very personal reasons for wanting to write by hand. Here are some responses to the questions on the entry form, “What do you like best about writing?” and “How does handwriting make you a better reader and writer?”

• “You can make up your own stories.” — Kindergarten winner
• “Handwriting is fun to do.” — First grade winner
• “… I like to write about my feelings.” — Second grade winner
• “Handwriting makes you a better student.” — Sixth grade winner
• “Handwriting helps me … express my thoughts and ideas.” — Eighth grade winner

Whatever their reason, these students work hard day in and day out to excel at a skill that many parents and educators believe will benefit them long after they leave the classroom. That’s why Zaner-Bloser continues to run the handwriting contest year after year. As a well-known publisher of handwriting and other learning materials for elementary classrooms, Zaner-Bloser recognizes the value of handwriting instruction.

“We know from research that handwriting offers several benefits to children that can support cognitive development and bolster academic outcomes,” said Lisa Carmona, president of Zaner-Bloser. “The Zaner-Bloser National Handwriting Contest encourages the teaching and use of print and cursive handwriting in schools across the U.S. and recognizes students for their commitment to this lifelong skill.”

Each year, students in kindergarten through second grade compete in the manuscript category, while students in third through eighth grades compete with cursive writing. The contest also includes a category for students with special needs: The Nicholas Maxim Award, named in honor of a past participant whose passion for writing inspired the award, is open to students with cognitive, intellectual, physical, or developmental disabilities who excel in manuscript or cursive.

Participating public and private schools hold their own handwriting competitions and choose a winner in each grade. School grade-level winners then compete against each other at the state level. State-level winners in each grade move on to the national competition, where judges select nine grade-level grand national champions and nine grade-level semifinalists.

All students write the required sentence, “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog,” because it contains every letter of the alphabet. Judges select winners based on Zaner-Bloser’s four keys to legibility: the shape, size, spacing and slant of the letters.

2022 Grand National Champions

• Kindergarten — Alessandra Luna, Epiphany Catholic School, Miami, Florida
• First Grade — Liam Nanquil, St. Joseph School-Fullerton, Baltimore, Maryland
• Second Grade — Kylee Cleverley, John Hancock Charter School, Pleasant Grove, Utah
• Third Grade — Adam Mason, Valley Christian Academy, Santa Maria, California
• Fourth Grade — Apollina Recupero, St. Anthony School, Kailua, Hawaii
• Fifth Grade — Chanie Zhao, P.S. 229 Emanuel Kaplan School, Woodside, New York
• Sixth Grade — Annie Scandrett, Murray County Central Elementary School, Slayton, Minnesota (Annie was the fifth grade semifinalist in 2021.)
• Seventh Grade — Peyton Faller, Mother Seton School, Emmitsburg, Maryland
• Eighth Grade — Julius Dresser, St. Louise de Marillac School, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Each Grand National Champion receives an engraved Zaner-Bloser trophy and a $500 check. Their schools receive a $1,000 Zaner-Bloser product voucher and a certificate of achievement handcrafted by master penman Michael Sull. The winners’ teachers also receive a handcrafted, personalized certificate.

2022 National Semifinalists

• Kindergarten — Collins Corbin, Horizon Christian Academy, Cumming, Georgia
• First Grade — Riana Patel, D.A.V. Montessori & Elementary School, Houston, Texas
• Second Grade — Charlotte Gouveia, Divine Mercy Catholic Academy, Johnstown, Pennsylvania
• Third Grade — Brayer Stanley, Lehman-Jackson Elementary, Lehman, Pennsylvania (Brayer was the second grade semifinalist in 2021.)
• Fourth Grade — Drake Becerra, Saint Theresa Catholic School, Ashburn, Virginia
• Fifth Grade — Caroline Gross, St. Joseph School, York, Pennsylvania
• Sixth Grade — Natalie Bode, Emmanuel Lutheran School, Tempe, Arizona
• Seventh Grade — Noah Jebaraj, Valley Christian Academy, Santa Maria, California (Noah was the sixth grade semifinalist in 2021.)
• Eighth Grade — Cheyenne Knoll, Tipton Community School, Tipton, Kansas

Each semifinalist receives an engraved Zaner-Bloser trophy. The semifinalists’ schools and teachers receive certificates of achievement handcrafted by master penman Michael Sull.

Nicholas Maxim Award Winners

• Manuscript — Damian Jacobo, Valencia Elementary School, Portales, New Mexico
• Cursive — Christian Moore, St. Jerome Elementary School, Cleveland, Ohio

Damian and Christian will both receive an engraved Zaner-Bloser trophy and a $500 check. Their schools will each receive a $1,000 Zaner-Bloser product voucher and a personalized certificate handwritten by master penman Michael Sull.