Groupon commissions 6th graders to write deals

It looks like Groupon is experimenting in the editorial department today. In conjunction with a non-profit that the company is promoting, for the first time ever, Groupon has outsourced its deal write-ups to…sixth-graders.

That’s right. Several of today’s Chicago deals were written by sixth-graders (with a little coaching from Groupon’s editorial team) from 826CHI, a Chicago-based non-profit dedicated to helping students between the ages of 6 and 18 develop their creative and expository writing skills. The volunteer-led program includes drop-in tutoring, after-school workshops, in-school tutoring, help for English-language learners, and more.

To highlight the non-profit deal, the Groupon editorial team held a series of workshops for the students, who authored ten daily deal write-ups (mostly for Chicago, and one for another market). And before you go thinking that this is another one of those tug-at-your-heartstrings cutesy kid stunts that all big companies inevitably pull to guilt you into checking out a promotion (where not checking out the promotion means you’re a jerk who hates kids), the write-ups are actually quite funny. I read them, thinking they were going to be a “kids say the darndest things” time-killer, and I totally LOLed.

Some 4,000 students from over 150 Chicago public schools participate in the 826CHI programs and have the chance to feature their own creative writing in a book that 826CHI publishes once a year. The book is a compilation of the best stories from 826CHI’s writing workshops and is distributed to the students, their families, and is sold to the public at the Boring Bookstore in Chicago. Each book costs $5 to publish, which is why today’s non-profit deal—which isn’t actually a deal—is looking to raise donations to fund the program and help get the books published.

The “deal” encourages subscribers to donate $10 to 826CHI—no savings, no discount, just good vibes all around. Groupon subscribers can “purchase” the deal the same way they do any other deal—by hitting “buy,” which then charges their card. It’s as easy as pie, or buying a Groupon.

So don’t be a jerk who hates kids. Go read the deals and donate. 

Image source: Groupon.com