Ripple Foundation

Ripple Foundation is a Toronto-based Canadian charitable organization that fosters and cultivates reading and writing in youth across Canada. Ripple creates and delivers community programs for children and youth all over the country to improve their reading and writing skills, while harvesting creativity, a deeper literary understanding and confidence. Ripple believes that unearthing the creative flairs of youth across the country has the potential to shape the leaders of tomorrow. Ripple Foundation was founded in 2015 and is a registered charity that is 100% volunteer-led and is supported by donations. All of Ripple’s programs are free of charge.
== Programs ==
Ripple Foundation’s goal is to empower the next generation of leaders by cultivating a passion for reading and writing while fostering creativity in youth. Ripple is grounded by three core pillars: Creativity, Education, and Leadership. Ripple offers the following programs that are intended to encourage these qualities in youth.
Ripple’s programs also give High school students the opportunity to earn volunteer hours either by writing for the Wave Blog or by working as a Write It Workshop Facilitator Assistant. Students can earn up to five hours per post on the Wave Blog and five hours per week working as a Write It Workshop Facilitator Assistant.
 
Ripple has three core programs targeted at different age groups and designed to give an all-encompassing approach and support network to individuals at different stages of their writing journey.
=== Kids write 4 kids ===
The Kids Write 4 Kids (KW4K) is a Canada-wide annual short story contest for students in grades 4-8. The program is the only one of its kind that gives youth the opportunity to become published writers before high school. 
Proceeds from book sales are donated to the winner’s charity of choice. Ripple Foundation does this with the intention of fostering a sense of philanthropy in youth. Also, the winner’s school has the opportunity to purchase 300 copies of their book at a discount, which then can be used for their school’s fundraising efforts.
A panel made up of renowned Canadian authors and the previous year’s KW4K winners selects which submissions will be published in both print and digital format for an international audience. Judging panels have been curated by many renowned Canadian authors, editors, and producers such as Kit Pearson (The Sky is Falling), Manjusha Pawagi (The Girl who Hated Books), Judith Pereira (Globe and Mail Books editor), and Jane van Koeverden (CBC Books producer).
The KW4K program has been running since 2012 and is Ripple Foundation’s signature program. As of 2020, fifteen Canadian Kids eBooks by winners of Kids Write 4 Kids has been published worldwide at Amazon Kindle and Paperback, Google Play, Apple iBookstore and Overdrive for public libraries. Since 2012, all net proceeds from book sales of these have benefited local schools and charities.
====List of books written by Winners of Kids Write 4 Kids====
Book 	Author 	Age	City 	Grade 	Contest Year
The Shores of Miami 	Lucy Szerminski 	12 	Barrie, ON 	Grade 7	2018 – 2019
The Third Floor 	Elijah Wachowiak 	12 	Barrie, ON 	Grade 7	2018 – 2019
Mrs. Smafpaf 	Emaan Ali 	9 	Toronto, ON 	Grade 6	2017 – 2018
How to be an Abbott 	Olivia Simms 	13 	Ottawa, ON 	Grade 8	2016 – 2017
Summon the Magic 	Emily Little 	11 	Port Elgin, ON	Grade 6	2016 – 2017
The Big Red Balloon 	Mya Barnett 	12 	Halifax, NS 	Grade 6	2015 – 2016
A Dog and a Squirrel 	Alexis Morales 	12 	Winnipeg, MB 	Grade 7	2015 – 2016
Escape from the Taco Shop 	Christopher Smolej	13 	Toronto, ON 	Grade 7	2014 – 2015
Mika’s Fortune 	Faith Emiry 	13 	Massey, ON 	Grade 8	2014 – 2015
A Murder of Crows 	Maisy Beo 	13 	Gatineau, QC 	Grade 8	2013 – 2014
Aristotle and Galileo 	Yeji Kim 	13 	Coquitlam, BC 	Grade 8	2013 – 2014
A Truly Gross Adventure 	Sofie Finn Storan 	10 	Victoria, BC 	Grade 4	2012 – 2013
Why Peacocks Have Colorful Feathers	Safaa Ali 	11 	Toronto, ON 	Grade 4	2012 – 2013
The Wish 	Hannah Rennie 	10 	Whitecourt, AB	Grade 5	2012 – 2013
Half Asleep 	Leah Oster 	12 	Napanee, ON 	Grade 6	2012 – 2013
====List of charities and schools that have received book proceeds====
* 2012-2013: First Book Canada
* 2013-2014: National Reading Campaign
* 2014-2015: St. Anselm Catholic School
* 2014-2015: St. Mary Catholic School
* 2015-2016: Arthur E. Wright Community School
* 2015-2016: Sackville Heights Junior High
* 2016-2017: Glashan Public School
* 2016-2017: Northport Elementary School
* 2017-2018: Water First
* 2018-2019: RVH Foundation
=== Write it workshops ===
The Write It Workshop program focuses on improving the writing skills of children and youth in grades 4 – 8 through a series of fun and interactive activities that encourage participants to find their voice and gain confidence as a writer. Each workshop is 60 minutes and focuses on one particular aspect of creative writing such as brainstorming ideas, developing characters, creating plots, fine-tuning details, and keeping focus. In 2019, Ripple Foundation facilitated 80 writing workshops at local public libraries across Canada as an after school program. The Write It Workshops lesson plan was developed by an Ontario Certified Teacher with over 20 years of experience in education and is approved by the Toronto Public Library System. There is no cost to participate; all workshops are free of charge.
 
====List of write it workshop locations====
Venue 	Location
Albion Public Library 	Toronto, ON
Cedarbrae Public Library 	Toronto, ON
Centennial Public Library 	Toronto, ON
Cochrane Public Library 	Cochrane, AB
Country Hills Public Library 	Calgary, AB
Crowfoot Public Library 	Calgary, AB
Cyril Clarke Public Library 	Brampton, ON
Deer Park Public Library 	Toronto, ON
Dufferin Clark Public Library 	Vaughan, ON
Fairview Public Library 	Toronto, ON
Forster's Book Garden 	Bolton, ON
Humberwood Public Library 	Toronto, ON
Jane Sheppard Public Library 	Toronto, ON
Junior Festival 	Harbourfront, ON
Kingston Frontenac Public Library	Kingston, ON
Mabel’s Fables Bookstore 	Toronto, ON
Main Street Public Library 	Toronto, ON
Maple Public Library 	Vaughan, ON
Millenium Public Library 	Winnipeg, MB
Pleasant Ridge Library 	Vaughan, ON
Queen’s Books 	Toronto, ON
Sanderson Public Library 	Toronto, ON
The Word on the Street Festival 	Toronto, ON
Vellore Village Public Library 	Vaughan, ON
Walter Stewart Public Library 	Toronto, ON
Due to COVID-19 and the subsequent closure of public libraries, in 2020 Ripple Foundation adapted its Write Workshops into an online format that included free, downloadable activity worksheets and virtual, interactive workshops hosted on social media.
=== Wave blog ===
The Wave Blog is dedicated to amplifying the voice of young Canadian writers. Posts are written by high school students in grades 8 – 12 and provide commentary and insight on various themes, topics and experiences that resonate with a youth audience. Blog posts can include book reviews/recommendations, creative writing tips, personal reflections, personal experiences, or unique perspectives.
The platform operates as the next step in youths’ writing journey, allowing writers to express themselves creatively to a different audience. The blog strives to increase the public’s awareness of young authors and their voices.
== History ==
Ivy Wong, founder of the Ripple Foundation, launched Ripple Digital Publishing Corp. in 2010, which focused on creating eBooks and apps that shared educational values. In 2012, Ivy decided that she wanted to give back to the community by creating a writing contest for kids. Ivy chose a writing contest because she wanted to encourage creativity and imagination, while also being a medium that avoids excluding those who could not express themselves visually or musically.
In 2012, Ripple Digital Publishing started Kids Write 4 Kids as a not-for-profit initiative, which encouraged kids to be creative, and to read and write.
In 2014, Ripple Digital Publishing created its free Next Sentence app, which allows its users to collaborate in the creation of a story by adding one sentence at a time. The app is designed to help with team building and inspire kids in the classroom to write creatively. The free version encourages kids in a classroom to create a story together by passing around one device. The paid version also allows its users to play online with other players. The app doesn’t require an account to play and Ripple Digital Publishing does not keep user data. This is to ensure that the app is private and safe for kids to play.
Before becoming a charitable organization, the Ripple Foundation’s programs were founded through Ripple Digital Publishing Corp. In 2016, thanks to the support of volunteers, Ripple expanded its programs to include the Wave Blog and Write It Workshops. In 2018, Ripple officially became a charitable organization.
== Ripple foundation timeline: ==
* 2012 – Launched Kids Write 4 Kids
* 2013 – Published four winner titles
* 2014 – Launched the Next Sentence app 
* 2015 – Registered Ripple Foundation as a not-for-profit organization
* 2016 – Launched Wave Blog
* 2017 – Held a youth author book reading event at Indigo books
* 2018 – Ripple Foundation becomes a charity and launched its Write It Workshops at Layup Summer Camp and at The Word on The Street Festival 
* 2019 – Secured Library Partnership
==In the media==
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== References == 
== External links ==
* Ripple Foundation · GitHub
* Ripple Foundation on facebook
* Ripple Foundation on twitter
* Ripple Foundation on instagram
* Ripple Foundation youtube channel
* Ripple Foundation on linkedin
* Ripple Foundation | Crunchbase
Category:Charities based in Canada
Category:Charitable organization (Canada)
Category:Organizations established in 2015
Category:Volunteer organizations
Category:Youth-led organizations
Category:Youth development organizations
Category:Youth organization stubs
Category:Educational organizations