Do the Write Thing
Our approach begins with listening and continues with amplifying
student voices in order to co-create a brighter and safer future for all
All across America, students are impacted by youth violence.
Do the Write Thing (DtWT) was born out of the Kuwait-America Foundation’s desire to reduce youth violence in communities across the United States and its consequences on the lives of youth.
Launched in 1994, DtWT is a unique education program designed to give middle school students an outlet to communicate in classroom discussions and written form how violence impacts their daily lives. By providing a space for youth to share their stories, experiences, and ideas, DtWT aims to expose the causes and effects of violence, and ultimately to empower young people to reduce violence in their communities.
For more on DtWT’s mission to engage middle school students, committed to alleviating violence from their communities, by facilitating meaningful, and impactful action, visit www. dtwt.org.
Why Writing?
For many students it is the first time that they have expressed themselves about how violence impacts them. Writing becomes a very cathartic and therapeutic experience. They are able to take a very personal and sometimes painful experience, put it down on paper and then move forward.
No one likes to be marginalized. Our young students have experiences, thoughts and insights that they want to share. They want to be listened to and through writing we can be invited into their world.
Young people get excited about writing when it is something directly related to them, not something abstract or academic, but something that personally affects them. Everyone has a story to tell and middle school students are open to writing about a subject that is of interest to them—themselves.
Why Middle School?
Certainly high school and elementary school students experience violence, but DtWT is targeted to middle school students because this age group is old enough to have had some experiences that might be shaping their life, yet not too old to be caught in detrimental patterns. At a very vulnerable age, just when they are becoming teenagers, we hope to connect with them, advancing our commitment to valuing their words. As they enter 6th, 7th and 8th grade, they have the mental acuity to process events in their world and in the world at large. It is also at this age that they are making subtle choices that can really impact their lives and DtWT can empower them to make good choices.
Writing Prompts
At the outset, DTWT understood that to address the problem of youth violence, we would need to identify and understand it. The premise was, and more than 25 years later still is, simple enough:
If we want to know what American youth are thinking, we should ask them. And even more importantly, we should listen. Therefore, we ask students to reflect on three questions:
What are the causes of youth violence?
How has violence affected your life?
What can you do to reduce youth violence?
Published Work
We compile the writings of our National Student Ambassadors into a book that is then presented to the Library of Congress in a special ceremony, where it will be housed indefinitely. By publishing their works and placing them in the world’s largest library, we aim to highlight our students as writers, amplifying their words and reminding them that every voice counts.
Classroom Discussions
DtWT builds bridges of communication between educators and students, often provoking conversations that may otherwise never occur, and shedding light on issues students may be facing unbeknownst to the educators in their lives. It also encourages conversation between students and their families, often alleviating the burden of secrecy while paving a path toward change. Families are able to provide better support once made aware that there is an issue. This release also directly benefits the students themselves, often impacting them in extremely meaningful ways.
Trip to Washington D.C.
National Recognition Week is all about amplifying the words of our students. Two students from each of our participating DtWT communities are selected as National Student Ambassadors to represent not only themselves, but their peers who participated in DtWT. They come to Washington, D.C. with a guardian and their educator, ready to speak out and speak up.
“Bullying, violence in one of its most fearful forms, radiates that pain. Contrary to common beliefs, bullying isn’t often limited to embarrassing or harassing someone, but can go to the extent of attacking physical and mental trauma. It is a blight that seeks to shatter worlds. Violence lurks everywhere, waiting to destroy a fragile society, so we must seek to eradicate violence for the sake of a more prosperous future.”
— Austin Johnson, National Student Ambassador, Dallas Texas
“In order to prevent youth violence, we need to understand what the causes are for violent youth behavior. Although the problem seems overwhelmingly difficult, the basic formula for successful treatment is quite easy: “reduce factors that place youth at risk for inflicting violence, and promote factors that protect youth at risk of violence.”
— Nevaeh Evans, National Student Ambassador, Charlotte NC
1.2 Million
students have pledged to end youth violence.
Will you join them?
Since its inception, it is estimated that over 2 million students have participated in the Do the Write Thing program. More than 1.2 million have submitted writings on the causes of and solutions to youth violence and how it has impacted their lives, making a personal commitment not to engage in violence. Their words have motivated thousands of adults across the country to volunteer their services to the program.
Join today and you’ll become part of a community of givers, invested in our youth and their futures.
Make YOUR impact today.