Houston, we have 2023 finalists

May 12, 2023
CHALLENGE SITE | Houston

Congratulations to our Houston-Harris County 2023 National Finalists:

Kayleen S. of Galena Park ISD’s Cunningham Middle School and Edmundo J. of Waller ISD’s Waller Junior High.

Houston materials available 9-26-22

September 20, 2022
CHALLENGE SITE | Houston

Materials for the 2023 Do the Write Thing Challenge will be available online September 26, 2022 for Houston and Harris County.

Click here for Houston/Harris County materials

Congratulations to our 2022 Houston/Harris County Finalists

June 8, 2022
CHALLENGE SITE | Houston

Rahul Senthil of Pearland Junior High West – Pearland ISD:

Isabella Shaw of St. Martha Catholic School – Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston:

Feelings on bullying in schools

October 14, 2021
CHALLENGE SITE | Houston

Amely Duran of Lamar CISD’s Briscoe Junior High shares her feelings on bullying in schools.

2021 Houston/Harris County National Finalists

October 6, 2021
CHALLENGE SITE | Houston

Congratulations to our 2021 National Finalists from the Houston/Harris County site:

Kayla Juarez
La Porte ISD

Eli Pascual
Lamar Consolidated ISD

Important Updates for Houston/Harris County 2021

January 18, 2021
CHALLENGE SITE | Houston

Essay deadline delayed until FEBRUARY 16, 2021

Due to the ongoing issues some schools are experiencing with alternating between remote and in classroom learning, we have made the decision to accept essays for judging until FEBRUARY 16, 2021.

We do not want any school who wishes their students to participate to feel they cannot because of time and logistic constraints.

For those teachers who use Do the Write Thing as a stand-alone writing assignment and not for judging, we will accept essays through the end of February.

If you have any questions, please contact us at 713-447-4942.

Nearpod tool help

Some have expressed that they are still encountering difficulty gaining access to the Nearpod tool.

If you have already contacted Amber with no luck, text your preferred email address to 713-447-4942 and I will make sure you gain access ASAP.

Welcome to the Do the Write Thing Challenge for 2021!

October 20, 2020
CHALLENGE SITE | Houston

This promises to be a school year that is all about adjustments and accepting new challenges.

Students are going through what is often a traumatic and uncertain period. Do the Write Thing has always been a program that was designed to help students guide their way through a time when they are going through a lot of changes in their lives.

It is not just a program that talks about violence in its many forms; it is one that encourages kids to think about themselves, their actions and how those actions affect others.

With all the recent changes to their schools and way of learning, they are forced to deal with a lack of structure; missing the interaction between themselves, their friends and teachers.

This can lead to frustration and the urge to act out those frustrations in a negative manner.

Do the Write Thing is designed for students to examine their feelings about their world and express themselves in a way that encourages both creativity and freedom of expression. Do the Write Thing essays are evaluated by content alone.

Every month, we will be sending out a newsletter with three new articles and scenarios that can help educators add to the Do the Write Thing discussion.

It will also have the most up-to-date information regarding submissions dates and status of the program.

We also encourage you to visit our Houston-Harris County page for the background of our program along with the Teachers’ Packet, Lesson Plan and all forms. Our Facebook page will also post any up to the minute changes.

SEE THE REST OF OUR NEWSLETTER

2020 National Ambassadors for Houston/Harris County

July 12, 2020
CHALLENGE SITE | Houston

We are pleased to announce the 2020 National Ambassadors for the Houston/Harris County Do the Write Thing Challenge:

Madison Osazuwa of O’Donnell Middle School in Alief ISD

Zane Ziad of Macario Garcia Middle School in Fort Bend ISD

The reading and judging of the writings submitted by the 14,005 students in 61 Houston-Harris County and surrounding area school districts who participated in the 2020 Do the Write Thing Challenge was an enormous undertaking.

The Challenge would not be possible without the assistance and support of the dozens of Community and VIP Readers who made sure that every student who submitted an eligible essay was considered.

Houston/Harris County at National Recognition Week in Washington DC 2019

October 31, 2019
CHALLENGE SITE | Houston

St. Martha Catholic School’s Ethan Shaw and Deepwater Junior High’s Evelyn Flores along with other Houston and Harris County middle school students had a wonderful trip in Washington DC for the national Do the Write Thing program.

The trip was even featured in the Washington Post.

Pasadena student featured in Washington Post

August 14, 2019
CHALLENGE SITE | Houston

Deepwater Junior High’s Evelyn Flores is a 2019 National Finalists from Pasadena ISD, and her trip to Washington DC was featured in the Washington Post.

On the second floor of the Supreme Court building, in a room not open to the public, a 14-year-old girl stood in front of a lectern and described the moment she learned to stop trusting strangers.

“My tears blurred the object held in the man’s hand,” Evelyn Flores said.

“My mind was aware of my younger sister in her stroller about three feet away, but my feet were glued to the harsh concrete of the street. The gun was aimed at my dad, and he was brought to his knees. My strong father who was always a constant beam of support was weakened by a piece of metal.”

Flores described the scream she couldn’t summon and what happened next: How, through a haze, she could hear taunts thrown at her father by the man, a neighbor. How she ran home to grab a phone so her mother could call the police and how that, at last, made the man flee. How she went to bed that night with red and blue lights flashing outside her window and woke up changed. READ MORE

Columnist Theresa Vargas  of the Washington Post

Flores and other Do the Write Thing Challenge finalists gave a leather-bound book to the Library of Congress containing 50 essays from across the United States.