National Essay Contest 2025

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Enter the Make a Difference Essay Contest

Annual Spring 2025 Contest Details

Open to Students K-8th Grade Nationwide

Introduction

Kindness and thoughtfulness for others are values that are important for building character in our students while also creating a culture of kindness in our schools and communities. At The Be Kind People Project, we define kindness as intentionally extending good to others and we believe that everyone can make a difference.

The Be Kind Pledge lists 10 skills of intentional acts of kindness and when used as a habit can assist in making a lasting impact. Whether in school or online, ignite the power of kindness by allowing students to focus their attention and actions on making a difference through their relationships with others. Use this writing prompt to celebrate positive behavior, enhance the learning environment, and spark a culture of kindness in your schools, homes, and communities.


Topic

How I Can Make a Difference

Prompt: “This is how I can use the skills of The Be Kind Pledge in my community.”

Guiding Questions: While not required, you may use these additional questions and examples to inspire your submission.

  • How can I apply the skills of The Be Kind Pledge in my relationships with others at school, at home, in the community, and online?

  • Even when the world isn’t kind, how can I show resilience and initiate positive change?
  • How can my small, immediate acts of kindness make a long-term impact on those around me?
  • How can I make kindness a habit and intentionally choose to take kind actions?
  • How can I be considerate and make responsible decisions that positively affect those around me?
  • How can strengthening my body and mind help me build healthy and responsible habits?
  • How can I make a difference in my neighborhood by demonstrating empathy, inclusivity, respect, and kindness?

Brainstorming Exercises:


Rules, Selection Criteria, and Rubrics

Entries Due: Friday, March 14th, 2025 by 11:59 PM Mountain Standard Time

Winners Publicly Announced: Tuesday, May 6th, 2025

Students should write an original essay that answers the prompt, references The Be Kind Pledge™, and is based on real actions of kindness relating to the student’s life. To receive maximum points, each entry should be student-written, not AI-generated, and follow the corresponding rubric. Judges will be exclusively using the rubrics to evaluate the submissions.

For students with writing difficulties or who may need some additional support, we have created templates with sentence stems to help structure their essays. If a student struggles to write an essay, they are welcome to record a 90-second video of themselves sharing their response to the prompt orally. Please refer to the following sections for more information.

Rubrics

Written:
Kindergarten
1st-2nd Grade
3rd-5th Grade
6th-8th Grade
Video:
Kindergarten
1st-2nd Grade
3rd-5th Grade
6th-8th Grade

Kindergarten

This year, Kindergarten students must use one of our provided templates.

Option 1: Written Submissions

All written submissions should be mailed to 731 Grand Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85007. They should include a cover page with the following information, in addition to the student submission.

  • School Name
  • City
  • State
  • Teacher’s Name
  • Teacher’s Email Address

*For group submissions, please include a class roster with the parents’ contact information.

As indicated on the template, please write the student’s information on the back of the page to ensure that entries are judged anonymously.

Option 2: Digital Submissions

Here is the link to the online submission platform:

Individual Submissions:

Please complete all of the required fields and upload a PDF of the student’s submission. Make sure to include a photo of the front and back of the template.

Please use the following formula to label the student’s PDF: Grade Group_Individual Submission_Student’s Name_School.

Example: Kindergarten_Individual Submission_David Smith_Jefferson Elementary

Class Submissions

Please complete all of the required fields and upload one PDF with all student submissions. Make sure to include photos of the front and back of each student’s submission.

Please use the following formula to label the group’s PDF: Grade Group_Class Submission_Teacher’s Name_School.

Example: Kindergarten_Class Submission_Mrs. Jones_Northwest Elementary

For group submissions, please make sure to upload a class roster with the parents’ contact information.

Option 3: Video Submissions

If a student struggles to write an essay, they are welcome to record a 90-second video of themselves sharing their response to the prompt orally.

Here is the link to the online submission platform.

1st-2nd Grade

This year, 1st-2nd Grade students must use one of our provided templates. 

Option 1: Written Submissions

All written submissions should be mailed to 731 Grand Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85007. They should include a cover page with the following information, in addition to the student submission.

  • School Name
  • City
  • State
  • Teacher’s Name
  • Teacher’s Email Address

*For group submissions, please include a class roster with the parents’ contact information.

As indicated on the template, please write the student’s information on the back of the page to ensure that entries are judged anonymously.

Option 2: Digital Submissions

Here is the link to the online submission platform:

Individual Submissions:

Please complete all of the required fields and upload a PDF of the student’s submission. Make sure to include a photo of the front and back of the template.

Please use the following formula to label the student’s PDF: Grade Group_Individual Submission_Student’s Name_School.

Example: 1st-2nd Grade_Individual Submission_David Smith_Jefferson Elementary

Class Submissions

Please complete all of the required fields and upload one PDF with all student submissions. Make sure to include photos of the front and back of each student’s submission.

Please use the following formula to label the group’s PDF: Grade Group_Class Submission_Teacher’s Name_School.

Example: 1st-2nd Grade_Class Submission_Mrs. Jones_Northwest Elementary

For group submissions, please make sure to upload a class roster with the parents’ contact information.

Option 3: Video Submissions

If a student struggles to write an essay, they are welcome to record a 90-second video of themselves sharing their response to the prompt orally.

Here is the link to the online submission platform.

3rd-5th Grade

Option 1: Written Submissions

This year students choosing to handwrite their submissions must use one of our provided templates.

Submissions should be mailed to 731 Grand Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85007. They should include a cover page with the following information, in addition to the student submission.

  • School Name
  • City
  • State
  • Teacher’s Name
  • Teacher’s Email Address

*For group submissions, please include a class roster with the parents’ contact information.

As indicated on the template, please write the student’s information on the back of the page to ensure that entries are judged anonymously.

Option 2: Digital Submissions

Here is the link to the online submission platform:

This year, all digital submissions will be handled by the students themselves. Students MUST use one of the provided fillable digital templates. They will type their essays into the template, save the template, and then upload their essays digitally.

Teachers, feel free to complete this page with your class information and share it with your students to give them all of the necessary information to complete the submission form. 

Option 3: Video Submissions

If a student struggles to write an essay, they are welcome to record a 90-second video of themselves sharing their response to the prompt orally.

Here is the link to the online submission platform.

6th-8th Grade

Option 1: Written Submissions

This year students choosing to handwrite their submissions must use one of our provided templates.

Submissions should be mailed to 731 Grand Avenue, Phoenix, AZ 85007. They should include a cover page with the following information, in addition to the student submission.

  • School Name
  • City
  • State
  • Teacher’s Name
  • Teacher’s Email Address

*For group submissions, please include a class roster with the parents’ contact information.

As indicated on the template, please write the student’s information on the back of the page to ensure that entries are judged anonymously.

Option 2: Digital Submissions

Here is the link to the online submission platform:

This year, all digital submissions will be handled by the students themselves. Students MUST use one of the provided fillable digital templates. They will type their essays into the template, save the template, and then upload their essays digitally.

Teachers, feel free to complete this page with your class information and share it with your students to give them all of the necessary information to complete the submission form. 

Option 3: Video Submissions

If a student struggles to write an essay, they are welcome to record a 90-second video of themselves sharing their response to the prompt orally.

Here is the link to the online submission platform.


Prizes

Based on their submission, first, second, and third place winners will be selected in each of the following grade levels: Kindergarten 1st-2nd grade, 3rd-5th grade, 6th-8th grade. All winning students will receive a BE KIND Make a Difference Essay Contest Certificate, a prize of their choice, and an invitation to join the BE KIND National Youth Leadership Board. All teachers of winning students will receive free access to The Be Kind Academy™ online classroom resources for the 2025-2026 academic school year.

Winners will be notified on May 06, 2025, and first, second, and third-place winners will choose one of the following grand prize options. Specific product details and options (including model, color, brand, size, etc.) will be shared with parents and student winners upon prize selection.

Grand Prizes

First-place winners choose from:

3D Pen

11-in-1 Gaming Table

30 Days Lost in Space Circuit and Coding Kit

Air Hockey Arcade Table

Botanic Laboratory Kit

Dixit + Expansion Pack

Dry Erase Easel

Lego Mandalorian Grogu Set

Electronic Chess Set

Giant Jenga

Kids Fire Tablet

Kids Ninja Warrior Obstacle Course

Kindle

Lego Botanicals Set

Lego Fortnite Peely Bones Set

Lego Mona Lisa

Lego Retro Radio

Marble Run

Pastel Set

Pharaoh’s Unboxed History Kit

Prismacolor Colored Pencils – 75 Count

SmART Sketch Projector

Tabletop Foosball

Talking Interactive Globe

Waterdrop Bean Bag Chair

Wilson Evolution Indoor Basketball


Second-place winners choose from:

Arcade Basketball Game

Baketivity Cinnamon Buns Baking Kit

Castles of Mad King Ludwig Board Game

Cellulose Plant Biology Game Board Game

DIY Pinball Machine Game

Electronic Dance Mat

Explore Japan Cooking Kit

Fluid Dynamics Set

LED Ultimate Frisbee Disc

Lego Fortnite Llama

Lego Moana Chicken Hei Hei

Light SnapCircuit Kit

Magnetic Tile Construction Kit

Makey Makey Kit

Pindaloo Toy

Prismacolor Set – 23 Pencils

Science Experiment Kit

Soapstone Carving Kit

The Comfy Dream

Ticket to Ride Europe Board Game

Unicorn No Sew Pillow Kit

Volcano Bean Bag Toss Game


Third-place winners choose from:

3-in-1 Lego Robot

Adsumudi Wild Ones Math Game

Beat That! Whacky Challenge Game

Clay Mini Desserts Kit

Crayola Inspiration Art Case

Foil Fun Art Kit

Guess Who Game

Hand2Mind Scooter Toy

Hedbanz Game

Hopping Ball Toy

Lego Burger Truck.

Lego Ferrari

Lego GearBots

Lisa Frank Kit

Money Bays Coin Value Game

My First Castle Panic Game

My Mine Probability Game

Mythical Creatures Drawing Game

One Night Werewolf Role Play Game

Prime Club Math Game

Prismacolor 24 Pencils

Squishmallow

Sum Swamp Addition and Subtraction Game

The Complete Cookbook For Young Chefs

The Science Chef 100 Fun Food Experiments

Water Marbling Paint Kit

Watercolor Pens

Past Make a Difference Essay Contest Winners

2021

2022

2023

What Parents & Teachers Are Saying About the National Essay Contest

  • “This was the perfect way to motivate students to practice their writing skills before state testing.”
    6th Grade Teacher
  • “This has been such a positive experience, we are glad she gets to participate!”
    Parent of a Winner
  • “Thank you for sponsoring a contest about a topic that means so much to me. I am grateful for my students who also feel passionately about showing and spreading kindness.”
    6th Grade ELA Teacher
  • “We sure do appreciate everything we have learned this year from participating in The Be Kind People Project! And we appreciate everything y’all have done to put the project on and share such wonderful resources for building up our kids and communities!”
    2nd Grade Teacher

Questions? Comments?

Reach out to us! Email writing@bkpp.org or call 602-559-9399.

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