A major concern of The Way To Happiness International is to help school-age children develop their own standards for right and wrong conduct, standards by which they themselves can guide their lives and chart their futures. This is accomplished most notably through three programs:

The Youth Essay Contest sponsored by The Way To Happiness International reaches approximately 90,000 students annually, primarily in the United States. Entrants are challenged to write essays based on the booklet’s precepts, gaining the opportunity to try out new values and learn how they fit their lives.

Here is what a nine-year old student wrote:

“Good examples can be set in different ways.... You can teach a younger brother or sister to make friends and that you care. You can teach them by talking to them if they have any problems or comforting them when they are scared. Setting a good example also means always trying to do the right thing because whatever you do to everyone else, the little kids will want to do the same thing.”

Approximately 1,500 schools participate annually in a sister contest, the Youth Poster Contest. Here students design posters to illustrate the importance of the precepts of The Way to Happiness.

The largest Way to Happiness contest is the Set A Good Example Contest, sponsored by the Concerned Businessmen of America Association. This program has reached into more than 10,600 schools, contacting over 12 million students. Classes work out projects putting into use the precepts of the booklet. Whether the project entails cleaning up litter on a beach or roadway, running a bake sale for a local hospital, or helping siblings and parents, the children learn the satisfaction of helping and working positively with others.

An independent study surveyed some of the teachers and students who participated in one of these campaigns and found:

63% of the teachers who signed up for the contest and 85% of those submitting a project for judging noticed a positive change in their students’ understanding of moral values.

61% of teachers who signed up and 90% of teachers submitting a project noticed a positive change in their students’ attitudes.

85% of the students reported that they learned something from The Way to Happiness booklet. This included learning the importance of manners, of treating others with respect, of taking responsibility for their actions and of being competent.

If you would like to get this book in use in your community, click here:
Or call The Way to Happiness Foundation
1-800-815-0242
Or e-mail: twthfoundation@thewaytohappiness.org