At the inaugural MightyFest, writing is a superpower

The Mighty Writers, superheroes of literacy, celebrate MightyFest September 28 to 30. Comprised of free and paid events, the weekend has a dual mission: to spread the word about Mighty Writers and to raise funds to extend programming, which helps young people acquire a skill as useful as any superpower: writing. Mighty Writers programs are available free to schoolchildren in Philadelphia and Camden.

Dancing, music, breakfast, stories, and lots more

On Saturday, MightyFest’s free Writing Carnival will be held at Aviator Park next to the Franklin Institute, featuring surprise guests and themed activities for kids and families to sample. (Grownups are encouraged to register participating youngsters in advance.)

“These are bite-sized versions of programs that make writing fun, exciting, and accessible,” says Rachel Loeper, Mighty Writers education director. Included are first writing experiences, film scripting, revolutionary writing, bio-poems, flash fiction, slimy stories, and messages to the future. There are even booths featuring cursive writing, rescued from extinction by research proving its value to developing minds.

Paid MightyFest events include a Friday dance party at Fels Planetarium, a Saturday keynote by Nikole Hannah-Jones of the New York Times Magazine at Philadelphia Ethical Society, and a Sunday Gospel Breakfast Tribute to the Dixie Hummingbirds at Girard College. Tickets range from $75 for the dance party or breakfast to $100 for the keynote and discussion.

Proceeds benefit the expansion of the Mighty Writers Rec Center Initiative. The initiative, which began in two North Philadelphia locations last January, offers writing workshops in recreation centers, supplementing existing Mighty Writers neighborhood locations. Loeper says the group hopes to add workshops at two or three recreation centers in 2019.

Going wherever the need is

Mighty Writers was founded in 2009 to teach young people to write, in the belief that writing and thinking are inextricably linked. A good writer is a good thinker, and writing enables one to organize and express thoughts coherently. “We teach kids to think and write with clarity,” Loeper says, ”because we know that when young people can begin to express themselves and their stories, confidence soars and success follows.”

In Philadelphia, the poorest large city in America, the need for improved literacy is great. According to Philadelphia School District statistics, Loeper says, “For the 2016-17 school year, only 34 percent of Philadelphia youth in grades three to eight scored proficient or advanced for English Language Arts (ELA) on standardized tests.” (Source: SDP PSSA/Keystone results.)

Mighty Writers helps more than 3,000 Philadelphia children every year and wants to reach more. Staff and a network of volunteer writers, playwrights, artists, and business professionals engage young people from age two to college in workshops and after-school academies across the city and in Camden, going wherever the need is greatest.

Literacy = invincibility

Mighty Writers tackles elements that have challenged writers forever, but utilizes themes and methods that excite 21st-century youth. Whether it's immigration stories told through puppets, envisioning themselves as comic superheroes, or imagining their futures, from college to preschool, Mighty Writers meets young people where they are and helps them express themselves and explore the world through writing. Even two-year-olds participate. “We sing, we do storytelling, we do puppetry,” Loeper says. “We get them scribble-writing. The point is to get them comfortable with pens and pencils in their hands.”

The inaugural Mighty Writers MightyFest is happening at locations throughout the city September 28 through 30. For more information, visit online.