One of the biggest benefits that I received from attending the Ypulse Youth Marketing Mashup a few weeks ago was the ability to meet some wonderful people that are interested in helping our youth. One of them, Ian Gold, former football player with the Denver Broncos has created WhatAreKidsSaying.com to provide youth with a platform to have a voice and express their views through creative writing and personal expression. WhatAreKidsSaying is an honest and safe venue for youth to write and express their opinions. It is free and open to all kids and teens between the ages of 7 and 18.
Members can either make their writings public or place them in their "Time Capsule", a private place for them to house their writing, music, videos, and pictures free of judgment. The website also offers weekly writing contests open to all kids 7-18 in the following areas: True Story, Short Story, Q&A, Music Lyrics, Poetry and Quote Board. The winner's posts will be featured on the homepage of WhatAreKidsSaying for a week and will then move into the Winners Archive.
Coming up in WhatAreKidsSaying are College scholarship drawings, Virtual Classrooms for teachers, and a variety of other ways in which kids and teens can creativly express their opinion. The National Spokeman for WhatAreKidsSaying is Greg Jennings, Green Bay Packers wide receiver. He also runs a charitable Foundation for Underpriveleged Children and makes a great role model.
Parents, there are many benefits for you also. You can read all the materials that the kids and teens make public and get a better view of what they are thinking and feeling. It is also a safe, kid friendly environment. There are no discussions, chat rooms or judgments. This website helps to build kids self-esteem and increase awareness of their feelings and what their peers are thinking. Founder, Ian Gold designed WhatAreKidsSaying.com to improve the lives of children, increase computer literacy, enhance creative writing skills and give kids a platform for self expression.
See also: SuperFutures Offers Teens Online Guidance Counselors
Whatarekidssaying.com is a wonderful resource for kids to express themselves, be heard, write creatively -- fantastic. We all ought to listen!
I want to also share a site that can help your child with creative writing. Think It Ink It Publishing (www.thinkitinkitpublishing.com) professionally illustrated wordless picture books in which your child writes the story and becomes the author.
Aside from the empowerment it is a great way to keep your child reading and writing over the summer so they go back to school prepared and not behind for the next school year!
My teen has been looking for a site similar to whatarekidssaying.com. I will point her in that direction. Thank you so much!