Student Nomination Worksheet: Organize Your Thoughts Before Writing
A student asks you to nominate them for a character scholarship. You say yes because they genuinely deserve it. Then you sit down to write and stare at a blank screen for fifteen minutes trying to remember that thing they did in October that was so impressive.
The problem is not that you lack material. The problem is that your brain stores observations in random filing cabinets labeled things like "that Tuesday" and "spring semester somewhere." Without a system to extract and organize those memories, writing becomes archaeological excavation instead of straightforward documentation.
A nomination worksheet solves this problem. It gives both you and the student a structured way to capture specific examples before memory fades. Five minutes of organized note-taking saves an hour of frustrated writing later.
Why Most Teachers Skip This Step and Regret It
You have written nominations before. You know what information you need. Why waste time filling out a worksheet when you could just start writing?
Because three things happen when you skip the organization phase. First, you spend twice as long writing as you pull examples from memory one painful detail at a time. Second, you forget your best examples and remember them five minutes after submitting the nomination. Third, you end up with generic descriptions instead of specific stories because specific details require specific recall.
The worksheet is not extra work. It is the work that makes the actual writing efficient and effective. Skip it and you pay the price in time and quality later.
The Complete Student Nomination Worksheet
This worksheet captures everything you need for a strong nomination. Give a copy to the student and complete your own version. Compare notes before writing.
Part One: Basic Context
Student Name: _______________
Grade Level: _______________
Your Relationship to Student: (Teacher, coach, advisor, etc.) _______________
How Long You Have Known Them: _______________
Context Where You Observe Them: (Classroom, team practice, club meetings, etc.) _______________
Scholarship Focus: (Sportsmanship, compassion, character, etc.) _______________
Nomination Due Date: _______________
Part Two: The Defining Moment
Think of one specific incident that best demonstrates why this student deserves recognition. This becomes your primary example in the nomination.
What Happened: (Describe the situation in detail)
_______________
_______________
When This Occurred: (Month, event, or specific timeframe)
_______________
Who Was Involved: (Other students, staff, context)
_______________
What the Student Actually Said or Did: (Specific quotes, actions, choices)
_______________
_______________
Why This Moment Matters: (What it reveals about character)
_______________
_______________
What Made It Remarkable: (Why you still remember it)
_______________
Part Three: Supporting Evidence
List three to five additional brief examples that show a pattern of behavior. These do not need full detail. Just enough to jog your memory.
Example One: _______________
Example Two: _______________
Example Three: _______________
Example Four: _______________
Example Five: _______________
Part Four: Character in Action
Times This Student Chose the Right Thing When It Cost Them Something:
_______________
Moments When They Helped Others Without Being Asked:
_______________
Situations Where They Demonstrated Leadership Through Example:
_______________
Instances Where They Showed Integrity When Nobody Was Watching:
_______________
Part Five: Growth and Development
How Has This Student Changed Since You First Met Them:
_______________
What Challenges Have They Overcome:
_______________
Where Do You See Continued Growth:
_______________
Part Six: Impact on Others
How This Student Affects Team or Class Dynamics:
_______________
Specific People They Have Helped or Influenced:
_______________
Ways They Make Your Program or Classroom Better:
_______________
How to Actually Use the Worksheet
The worksheet only works if you use it correctly. Here is the process that produces the best results.
Give Students the Worksheet First
Email them the worksheet as soon as they ask for a nomination. Give them three to five days to complete it. Students remember different details than you do. Their worksheet often triggers memories you had forgotten.
Tell students to be specific. "I helped people" is useless. "I tutored three freshmen in algebra every Tuesday for two months" gives you material to work with.
Complete Your Own Version Independently
Fill out the worksheet before reading the student's version. You want your unfiltered observations first. Write quickly. Do not overthink. The goal is to capture memories before they fade further.
If you cannot remember specific examples for a section, that tells you something. Either this is not your strongest evidence or you do not know this student well enough in that area.
Compare and Combine
Put both worksheets side by side. The student will remember details you forgot. You will notice patterns they did not recognize. The combination gives you your complete source material.
Star the two or three examples that appear on both sheets or that feel most compelling. Those become your featured stories.
Before and After: Worksheet vs No Worksheet
Without Worksheet:
Sits down to write. Remembers student is good at sportsmanship. Types "Jake demonstrates excellent sportsmanship." Stares at screen. Remembers something about practice but cannot recall details. Writes generic statements for twenty minutes. Submits adequate but forgettable nomination.
With Worksheet:
Reviews completed worksheet. Sees detailed note about Jake spending extra practice time helping injured teammate stay engaged. Has specific date, context, quotes. Also sees pattern of three other examples. Writes focused nomination with compelling story in fifteen minutes. Nomination makes Jake stand out.
The worksheet transforms vague memories into concrete evidence. That is the difference between nominations that blend into the pile and nominations that evaluation committees remember.
Questions That Unlock Better Answers
Some questions on the worksheet confuse students. Here is how to help them understand what you actually need.
When they write too generally:
Student writes: "I am a good teammate."
You ask: "Tell me about one specific practice or game when you helped a teammate. What exactly did you do?"
When they list accomplishments instead of character:
Student writes: "I scored fifteen goals this season."
You ask: "That shows skill. I need examples of your sportsmanship. Tell me about a time you put the team ahead of your own stats."
When they undersell themselves:
Student writes: "I do not think I did anything special."
You ask: "What about that time you stayed after practice to help the freshman learn plays? Tell me about that."
The Follow-Up Email That Gets Better Responses
When students return worksheets with weak answers, send this: "Thanks for completing the worksheet. For the section on defining moments, I need more detail. Instead of 'I helped someone,' tell me the story: who needed help, what was wrong, what you specifically said or did, how long it took, what happened as a result. Give me enough detail that I could describe the scene to someone who was not there."
Common Worksheet Mistakes Teachers Make
Filling it out five minutes before the deadline. The worksheet needs time to work. Complete it days before writing so your brain can process the material.
Letting students complete it alone without guidance. Most students have never done this before. They need examples of what good answers look like. Show them the difference between "I am compassionate" and "I noticed a student eating lunch alone and invited them to sit with our group three times this month."
Skipping sections that seem hard. If you struggle to fill in Part Four about character in action, you might not have enough material for a strong nomination. That is valuable information to discover before writing.
Not keeping copies. Students apply for multiple scholarships. If you have the worksheet from their first nomination, future requests take five minutes to update instead of starting from scratch.
Over-editing student responses. Their words often work better than yours. If a student writes "I felt bad seeing her sit alone so I asked her to join us," that honest simplicity beats your polished version.
The Digital vs Paper Decision
Paper worksheets get completed faster. Digital worksheets store better. Pick based on your workflow.
Use paper when: You hand it directly to students and want answers immediately. Students can fill it out during class or study hall. You prefer to take handwritten notes. You want students to think without technological distraction.
Use digital when: Students are remote or have scattered schedules. You need to store and search multiple nominations. You want to share one master copy with multiple teachers contributing observations. You collaborate with other nominators.
Hybrid approach: Give students paper copies, have them complete by hand, then type key details into a digital master file you keep for all nominations. Best of both systems.
Building Your Personal Nomination System
Once you have the worksheet, create a system that makes future nominations even easier.
Keep a folder on your computer labeled "Student Nominations" with subfolders for each academic year. Every completed worksheet goes in this folder immediately after use.
Maintain a running note file throughout the year. When you observe something nomination-worthy, add one line to the file: "Sept 15: Marcus helped new student with locker combination and walked him to class." Takes fifteen seconds. Gives you material for December nominations.
Save your best written nominations as templates. Not to copy and paste, but to remember your most effective phrases and structures. Build your personal library of strong language that you can adapt for different students.
Create a checklist for yourself: Worksheet completed, student version received, both versions compared, best examples starred, timeline confirmed, contact information verified. Simple checklist prevents forgotten steps.
When Students Cannot Complete the Worksheet
Sometimes students struggle with the worksheet despite your guidance. This reveals important information.
If they cannot identify specific examples of the behavior you are nominating them for, question whether this is actually their strength. A student with genuine sportsmanship should easily remember five examples. If they cannot, maybe someone else is a better fit for this particular scholarship.
If they remember events but cannot articulate why they matter, that is fixable. You provide the interpretation. Their job is raw material. Your job is shaping it into meaning.
If they return the worksheet blank or with minimal effort after reminders, you have three choices. Complete it entirely from your observations if you know them well enough. Decline the nomination and explain why. Or schedule fifteen minutes to fill it out together as an interview.
The interview method works well for students who think better verbally than in writing. Ask the worksheet questions out loud, type their answers as they talk, read it back for confirmation.
Adapting the Worksheet for Different Scholarships
The core worksheet works for any character-based nomination. Adjust the specific questions based on scholarship focus.
For sportsmanship scholarships: Add questions about specific game situations, interactions with opponents, responses to losses, treatment of teammates at different skill levels.
For compassion scholarships: Focus questions on noticing others in need, choosing to help when inconvenient, consistency in caring behavior, specific people they have supported.
For leadership scholarships: Include questions about leading by example, difficult decisions, conflict resolution, empowering others rather than self-promotion.
For community service recognition: Emphasize impact measurements, sustained commitment, initiative in starting projects, recruiting others to participate.
Keep the core structure. Customize the specific prompts. The worksheet remains useful across all nomination types.
The Five-Minute Daily Practice That Transforms Nominations
The best nomination worksheets practically write themselves because you documented observations throughout the year instead of trying to remember everything at deadline time.
Spend five minutes at the end of each week recording notable student moments. Not formal writing. Just quick notes in a running document. "Week of Oct 2: Emma organized study group for students struggling with unit test. Stayed after school three days. Four students passed who were previously failing."
When nomination season arrives, you have months of documented examples instead of scrambled memory. Your worksheet gets completed in minutes because the work happened gradually across the year.
This systematic approach to documenting student achievement aligns with best practices recommended by the National Association of Secondary School Principals for recognizing and supporting student excellence. Professional development in student evaluation and recognition helps educators identify meaningful patterns in student behavior that merit formal acknowledgment.
This also helps with unexpected nomination requests. When a student asks you at the last minute to nominate them and you actually can because you have documentation, you look like a superhero. Really you just have a system.
Ready to Write the Nomination
Once your worksheet is complete, the actual writing becomes straightforward. Check out our guide on Writing Recommendation Letters That Actually Make Students Stand Out for the step-by-step process of turning your organized notes into a compelling nomination.
For more resources on supporting students through the scholarship process, visit our Character Scholarship Guide where you will find additional tools for identifying exceptional students and advocating for their recognition.
The worksheet is not busy work. It is the foundation that makes strong nominations possible. Five minutes of organization now saves an hour of frustration later and dramatically improves the quality of what you submit. Your students deserve nominations that do them justice. The worksheet helps you deliver that.
