SHERMAN, Texas (KXII) – “You got first place!”

Cheers and excitement rang out from a classroom of six to nine-year-old’s Thursday morning after they were surprised with a $2000 check and the title of first place in the Create-a-Book competition over the summer.

“I was like, what is going on? And then I realized it was the book and I’m just so happy that we won,” said eight-year-old Evan Shuff.

The kids each received a professional copy of a book they all helped write and illustrate—and the $2000 check which will fund their library.

“I’m proud,” said their teacher Ingrid Cayton. “That’s all I can say. I was so proud of these kids. They worked so hard and it was a joy to see their hard work just paying off,” Cayton said.

The project began when Workforce Solutions Texoma wanted to create a program focusing on kids. They thought to have local schools and day cares make their own books over the summer.

“And whoever was interested sent us a book,” said Lacey Lucas, who works for Workforce Solutions.

Cayton’s class decided on the theme of careers, since they were planning on discussing them over the future.

“We were talking about careers,” said eight-year-old Jayden Buckaloo. “So it was fun.”

“All of us actually got to write in it,” Shuff added.

Cayton has been teaching for ten years now, and she said she couldn’t be more excited for her kids.

When asked what she was the most proud of, Cayton said: “Their ability, their talent, their willingness to try anything.”

“Thank you, that all I can say, that’s just amazing,” Shuff said.

The winning school for the four to five-year-old age group was the Footsteps and Fingerprints school in Bonham, with School Zone coming in second.

The second place winner in the six to eight-year-old category was the Tioga Early Childhood Development school. Second place winners won $1000 for their libraries.

By Kristen Weaver | Aug 10, 2017