empathy

Story·Lyla Lawless, age 13 — A straight-A student wrongly accuses a shy new girl of stealing her homework, leading to a cafeteria confrontation and a chance at redemption through detention.

Story·Sage Behr, age 12 — An elderly woman in the 1850s recalls how witnessing a slave auction led her to become a conductor on the Underground Railroad, risking everything to help families escape.

Story·Rie Maeda, age 13 — A girl resents her attention-stealing stepsister until a horseback riding accident forces her to save Amber from drowning, transforming their relationship.

Story·Annakai Hayakawa Geshlider, age 12 — A boy discovers his grandparents' chest of diaries in the attic, reading accounts from a homeless man, a Japanese-American internment camp, and a 90-year-old woman, ultimately deciding to start his...

Story·Claudia Ross, age 13 — Walking a valley trail after elementary school graduation, a girl finds a broken eggshell and realizes the hawks circling her are searching for it.

Story·Alison Buick, age 13 — A young ballet dancer auditions for Odette in Swan Lake, loses to her rival Michelle, but gets to perform when Michelle injures her ankle during opening night.

Poetry·Malini Gandhi, age 13 — A seven-year-old in New Delhi sees street children from her car window and understands for the first time what her mother meant about children dying in the world.

Story·Erik Dinardo — In the antebellum South, an enslaved girl named Hope learns her mother will be sold, prompting escape plans, while the master's daughter Abigail faces a moral choice.

Story·Danny Singer, age 12 — A six-year-old's dinner at Atlantic Grill for his father's 41st birthday becomes unforgettable when the family encounters Giants player Tiki Barber, leading to a cherished autographed photo.

Story·Jordan Coble, age 13 — A teenage girl moves to a California cottage and befriends her reclusive neighbor, discovering the woman's tragic past and learning not to judge by appearances.