Mission Statement
826DC is a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting students ages 6-18 with their creative and expository writing skills, and to helping teachers inspire their students to write. Our services are structured around our understanding that great leaps in learning can happen with one-on-one attention and that strong writing skills are fundamental to future success.
With this in mind we provide drop-in tutoring, field trips, after-school workshops, in-schools tutoring, help for English language learners, and assistance with student publications. All of our programs are challenging and enjoyable, and ultimately strengthen each student's power to express ideas effectively, creatively, confidently, and in his or her individual voice.
Sep
Upcoming Events
09.15.2010 - September 2010 Volunteer Orientation
10.13.2010 - October 2010 Volunteer Orientation
11.04.2010 - November 2010 Volunteer Orientation
NOTE: Unfortunately, our September, October, and November orientations are FULL. Please check back for later dates.
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Sep
Get Used to the Seats, 826DC’s newest publication, is on sale now. The seniors of Wilson and Cardozo High Schools came together in this poetic, practical high school how-to for freshman about surviving love, bullies, the perils of cheating and much more. Purchase your copy of Get Used to the Seats now.
The Way We See It: Complete Coverage of the Nation's Capital From the Inside Out is on sale now! Fiction, poetry, essays, and journalism by students at Cardozo High School offer a unique take on one of the most famous but most misunderstood cities in the world.
Purchase your copy of The Way We See It today.
Sep
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Sep
Operating Status
826DC (formerly Capitol Letters Writing Center) is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit corporation based in the District of Columbia. Our tax ID
number is 26-2426166. Find out more about how you can help. Or see a list of things we need. Or see a list of our donors.
Sep
Mailing List
Sign up for our e-mail announcements list to receive updates on our status and upcoming events!
Sep

On Sunday, April 26, 2009, Capitol Letters volunteers led a dialogue workshop at Politics & Prose with a talented, large group of middle schoolers and preteens. Students took inspiration from a collection of photographs to create their own fictional characters. They started out with some prewriting exercises in which they identified their character's voice.
In a lively discussion, students asked themselves, "Why is dialogue important to a story?" Once their characters had taken shape, students paired up and wrote a twenty-line conversation between their characters. Students performed the dialogues in front of the group and received feedback from the audience. What a great collaborative experience!
-Erin J
Students writing dialogue at Politics & Prose.
Posted on Saturday May 2, 2009 by William B