Help Fund IndyKids' 50th Issue!
Tax deductible
WHO WE ARE
IndyKids is a non-profit organization that engages young people to become informed world citizens through the production of a current events and social justice news source written by kids, for kids. Based in NYC, we work with youth ages 9-13 to produce a free, nationally distributed print newspaper published five times a year. IndyKids maintains an active website with exclusive articles, interviews, podcasts, and resources for youth and educators, including teaching guides.
IndyKids' Kid Reporters have written about current events issues that matter to them and to their communities, like the #BlackLivesMatter movement, climate justice, the problems with high-stakes standardized testing, bullying, military recruitment in schools, LGBTQ rights, immigration politics, raising the minimum wage, and much more. The newspaper also features the work of inspiring community leaders and activists whose work feeds the journalism of IndyKids' reporters.
This May we're publishing our 50th issue! Help us celebrate by donating to IndyKids so we can continue to empower the next generation of journalists, community leaders, critical thinkers, and activists.
HOW A SUCCESSFUL GOFUNDME CAMPAIGN HELPS US
We need you! With your donation, we'll be able to:
Print 10,000 copies of the 50th issue of IndyKids to distribute to classrooms, libraries, community centers, and families across the United States. IndyKids is a free newspaper, and we currently have subscribers and distribution points in 34 states across the USA. Want to see IndyKids in your local school or library? Contact us for more information and we'll help bring IndyKids to you.
Ensure the ongoing strength of our Kid Reporter Program. Tied to each issue, we run a three-part series of journalism and media literacy workshops five times a year during which established professionals in the fields of education and journalism work one-on-one with youth reporters to learn how to report, research, and tell stories that matter. Kid reporters pitch story ideas to our editors, meticulously research their ideas, conduct interviews with sources, and work through multiple drafts with the support of a mentor and a team of professional editors. Kid Reporters see the fruits of their work every two months when the latest issue of IndyKids hits the stands!
IndyKids keeps the costs of workshops low and offers scholarships to students who are in need. We rely on the generosity of a group of dedicated volunteer professionals to run our workshops and edit the paper.
We cannot do the work we do without financial support from people who believe in IndyKids. Please donate today!
Through our programs, we inspire a passion for social justice and learning. IndyKids encourages youth to think about how they get their news and why thinking critically about the media matters. Below, Irati, age 10, tackles how to organize her article on the economic crisis in Europe.
On September 21, 2014, IndyKids reporters were on assignment at the People's Climate. They spoke to some of the hundreds of thousands of people who descended on the streets of New York City to put pressure on the government and private corporations to take action on climate change.
WHAT KID REPORTERS, PARENTS, AND TEACHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT INDYKIDS
“Getting involved with IndyKids has made me more involved in what is going on in the world that I live in.”
—Shemar Wilson, age 13, IndyKids Kid Reporter, Brooklyn, NY
“Getting involved with IndyKids has made me proud of myself because I am doing something more in my life.
—Mariah, age 13, IndyKids Kid Reporter, Bronx, NY
“This paper gives kids a voice and that’s not what’s happening in our schools. Often, the curriculum in schools is not relevant to kids’ lives. IndyKids is about real issues that affect kids’ lives. There are real children asking real questions about real people.”
—Jylani Brown, parent of two kids, Brooklyn, NY
“There’s nothing like IndyKids. There’s nothing like it. My daughter and her friends sit around the table discussing what they read in IndyKids. She’s 10.”
—Brian Becker, National Coordinator of the ANSWER Coalition (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism), Washington, DC
“With the scripted curriculum we face, teachers are just looking for material like IndyKids. ”
—Bob Peterson, editor of Rethinking Schools and President of the Milwaukee Teachers’ Education Association
“As a former public school teacher, I think IndyKids is a valuable resource for children to be informed about and take an active interest in current events. It is important that at an early age, kids are engaged in world affairs and are encouraged to develop their own perspectives. Making this publication available to them will only strengthen our efforts to provide our children with a well-rounded education.”
—New York City Council Member Daniel Dromm (D-Queens)
“For teachers who want to introduce a variety of perspectives in their classroom, IndyKids is an invaluable resource. IndyKids is unlike virtually all other reading material for the elementary classroom—it is progressive, timely, well written and gives students a voice.”
—Bree Picower, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Montclair State University (NJ) and leader of the New York Collective of Radical Educators
“IndyKids is great for me because I want to learn about different things happening around the world. But every time I watch the news or read the newspaper the way that they explain it is so complicated. My favorite article is the one in issue #18 about a student who pretended to buy some land in Utah to save it from oil and gas industry.”
–Julian Rocha, age 10, Vancouver, Canada
“I use IndyKids to present information to [my students] about issues affecting children worldwide that they haven’t heard of before. The students, especially middle schoolers, love to have a copy of a paper for themselves to use in class and behavior on the days the paper comes in is generally very good.”
–Anne Bowles, Teacher, Harlem, New York
“My students look forward to IndyKids. They usually bug me about when the next issue will be out. IndyKids has really made teaching current events a lot easier. The kids are finally motivated to read, and more importantly, to discuss and get active.”
–John Yanno, 6th grade teacher, Brooklyn, New York
“Your newspaper for young people is amazing! We were able to use this wonderful resource with our eighth grade students for the past two summers as they prepared to enter high school. … The newspaper articles were a source of high-level discussion, allowing the students to see that other young people were making a difference in their communities. The articles encouraged several of our student groups to actually implement their projects within the four short weeks of our program.”
–Chris Johnson, Teacher, GEAR UP Chicago
“IndyKids is among the most important pieces of literature that I distribute. Usually it is the only piece of educational material that is actually written with children in mind and the only substantive material that demonstrates our sincere interest in reaching out to young people. Adults read it as much as young people. Through IndyKids, we are providing a way for the adults at our meetings to connect to the children and grandchildren in their own homes. Often I hear people say how much the child in their life enjoyed an earlier issue and that the content of IndyKids was inter-generational dinner table conversation.”
–Kenneth Miller, co-founder of the Pittsburgh Anti Sweatshop Community Alliance
OUR HISTORY
IndyKids was formed in 2005 by a group of independent journalists, students, parents, teachers and activists who saw the need for a progressive, ad-free news media to be presented in a way that would interest and engage young kids. Since publishing its first black-and-white issue in the fall of 2005, IndyKids has grown into a vital, multi-platform current events and social justice news source that is produced by kids, for kids.
IndyKids attained 501(c)(3) non-profit status in 2010. Our organization and programs are supported by individual donations, in-kind support, government funding and private foundation grants. In keeping IndyKids free from commercialization, we do not accept advertising income or corporate sponsorship.
IndyKids is a non-profit organization that engages young people to become informed world citizens through the production of a current events and social justice news source written by kids, for kids. Based in NYC, we work with youth ages 9-13 to produce a free, nationally distributed print newspaper published five times a year. IndyKids maintains an active website with exclusive articles, interviews, podcasts, and resources for youth and educators, including teaching guides.
IndyKids' Kid Reporters have written about current events issues that matter to them and to their communities, like the #BlackLivesMatter movement, climate justice, the problems with high-stakes standardized testing, bullying, military recruitment in schools, LGBTQ rights, immigration politics, raising the minimum wage, and much more. The newspaper also features the work of inspiring community leaders and activists whose work feeds the journalism of IndyKids' reporters.
This May we're publishing our 50th issue! Help us celebrate by donating to IndyKids so we can continue to empower the next generation of journalists, community leaders, critical thinkers, and activists.
HOW A SUCCESSFUL GOFUNDME CAMPAIGN HELPS US
We need you! With your donation, we'll be able to:
Print 10,000 copies of the 50th issue of IndyKids to distribute to classrooms, libraries, community centers, and families across the United States. IndyKids is a free newspaper, and we currently have subscribers and distribution points in 34 states across the USA. Want to see IndyKids in your local school or library? Contact us for more information and we'll help bring IndyKids to you.
Ensure the ongoing strength of our Kid Reporter Program. Tied to each issue, we run a three-part series of journalism and media literacy workshops five times a year during which established professionals in the fields of education and journalism work one-on-one with youth reporters to learn how to report, research, and tell stories that matter. Kid reporters pitch story ideas to our editors, meticulously research their ideas, conduct interviews with sources, and work through multiple drafts with the support of a mentor and a team of professional editors. Kid Reporters see the fruits of their work every two months when the latest issue of IndyKids hits the stands!
IndyKids keeps the costs of workshops low and offers scholarships to students who are in need. We rely on the generosity of a group of dedicated volunteer professionals to run our workshops and edit the paper.
We cannot do the work we do without financial support from people who believe in IndyKids. Please donate today!
Through our programs, we inspire a passion for social justice and learning. IndyKids encourages youth to think about how they get their news and why thinking critically about the media matters. Below, Irati, age 10, tackles how to organize her article on the economic crisis in Europe.
On September 21, 2014, IndyKids reporters were on assignment at the People's Climate. They spoke to some of the hundreds of thousands of people who descended on the streets of New York City to put pressure on the government and private corporations to take action on climate change.
WHAT KID REPORTERS, PARENTS, AND TEACHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT INDYKIDS
“Getting involved with IndyKids has made me more involved in what is going on in the world that I live in.”
—Shemar Wilson, age 13, IndyKids Kid Reporter, Brooklyn, NY
“Getting involved with IndyKids has made me proud of myself because I am doing something more in my life.
—Mariah, age 13, IndyKids Kid Reporter, Bronx, NY
“This paper gives kids a voice and that’s not what’s happening in our schools. Often, the curriculum in schools is not relevant to kids’ lives. IndyKids is about real issues that affect kids’ lives. There are real children asking real questions about real people.”
—Jylani Brown, parent of two kids, Brooklyn, NY
“There’s nothing like IndyKids. There’s nothing like it. My daughter and her friends sit around the table discussing what they read in IndyKids. She’s 10.”
—Brian Becker, National Coordinator of the ANSWER Coalition (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism), Washington, DC
“With the scripted curriculum we face, teachers are just looking for material like IndyKids. ”
—Bob Peterson, editor of Rethinking Schools and President of the Milwaukee Teachers’ Education Association
“As a former public school teacher, I think IndyKids is a valuable resource for children to be informed about and take an active interest in current events. It is important that at an early age, kids are engaged in world affairs and are encouraged to develop their own perspectives. Making this publication available to them will only strengthen our efforts to provide our children with a well-rounded education.”
—New York City Council Member Daniel Dromm (D-Queens)
“For teachers who want to introduce a variety of perspectives in their classroom, IndyKids is an invaluable resource. IndyKids is unlike virtually all other reading material for the elementary classroom—it is progressive, timely, well written and gives students a voice.”
—Bree Picower, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Montclair State University (NJ) and leader of the New York Collective of Radical Educators
“IndyKids is great for me because I want to learn about different things happening around the world. But every time I watch the news or read the newspaper the way that they explain it is so complicated. My favorite article is the one in issue #18 about a student who pretended to buy some land in Utah to save it from oil and gas industry.”
–Julian Rocha, age 10, Vancouver, Canada
“I use IndyKids to present information to [my students] about issues affecting children worldwide that they haven’t heard of before. The students, especially middle schoolers, love to have a copy of a paper for themselves to use in class and behavior on the days the paper comes in is generally very good.”
–Anne Bowles, Teacher, Harlem, New York
“My students look forward to IndyKids. They usually bug me about when the next issue will be out. IndyKids has really made teaching current events a lot easier. The kids are finally motivated to read, and more importantly, to discuss and get active.”
–John Yanno, 6th grade teacher, Brooklyn, New York
“Your newspaper for young people is amazing! We were able to use this wonderful resource with our eighth grade students for the past two summers as they prepared to enter high school. … The newspaper articles were a source of high-level discussion, allowing the students to see that other young people were making a difference in their communities. The articles encouraged several of our student groups to actually implement their projects within the four short weeks of our program.”
–Chris Johnson, Teacher, GEAR UP Chicago
“IndyKids is among the most important pieces of literature that I distribute. Usually it is the only piece of educational material that is actually written with children in mind and the only substantive material that demonstrates our sincere interest in reaching out to young people. Adults read it as much as young people. Through IndyKids, we are providing a way for the adults at our meetings to connect to the children and grandchildren in their own homes. Often I hear people say how much the child in their life enjoyed an earlier issue and that the content of IndyKids was inter-generational dinner table conversation.”
–Kenneth Miller, co-founder of the Pittsburgh Anti Sweatshop Community Alliance
OUR HISTORY
IndyKids was formed in 2005 by a group of independent journalists, students, parents, teachers and activists who saw the need for a progressive, ad-free news media to be presented in a way that would interest and engage young kids. Since publishing its first black-and-white issue in the fall of 2005, IndyKids has grown into a vital, multi-platform current events and social justice news source that is produced by kids, for kids.
IndyKids attained 501(c)(3) non-profit status in 2010. Our organization and programs are supported by individual donations, in-kind support, government funding and private foundation grants. In keeping IndyKids free from commercialization, we do not accept advertising income or corporate sponsorship.
Organiser
Jyothi Natarajan
Organiser
New York, NY
IndyKids
Beneficiary