Free Rice and vocabulary too

Imagine playing a vocabulary game and at the same time donating food to hungry people of the world. This is better than Solitaire! And it is not an Urban Legend. The food really goes to those who need it. For every correct answer you make in the vocabulary game, the United Nations World Food Program donates twenty grains of rice. Visit the web site at www.freerice.com

The brainchild of a computer programmer named John Breen, the site was developed for his teenage son who was studying for the SAT. This was a fun and philanthropic way to improve his score. Free Rice started out giving 10 grains of rice for every correct answer in the game. Sponsors advertise at the bottom of the page and they are paying for the rice. Now 20 grains of rice are purchased with each correct answer. On the opening day of the site, October 7, 2007, there were 830 grains donated. As of this writing, 9,123,269,430 have now been "earned."

I received an email about Free Rice, visited the site, and now everywhere I turn I see references to it. No one needs to convince writers that a good vocabulary is helpful. So spread the word and maybe we can make a difference while we play and learn. The more you play, the better your vocabulary gets, but also the more people are fed. What a great idea!

Happy holidays!
Becky Hall