About this phrase
“Choose Kindness” became the most prominent school-culture phrase of the 2010s, following the publication of Wonder. In morse it's longer than its siblings but carries enormous cultural weight.
Cultural context
The phrase gained its greatest modern traction from R.J. Palacio's novel Wonder (2012), whose protagonist Auggie Pullman, a child with facial differences, navigates school with the motto 'When given the choice between being right and being kind, choose kind.' The book was adapted for a 2017 film and became required reading in thousands of schools. Before Wonder, 'choose kindness' appeared in educational literature and positive psychology frameworks, but the novel made it the dominant elementary and middle school moral value slogan of the decade. In morse jewelry it appeals to parents, teachers, and anyone who has internalized Wonder's message.
When to gift this phrase
For educators, parents of school-age children, anti-bullying advocates, and anyone who took Wonder to heart. Also a strong children's first value piece — a bracelet that encodes their school's motto.
When this phrase is the wrong fit
The specific association with Wonder and elementary school culture may make it feel age-inappropriate for adult recipients without a teaching or parenting context.
Variations you might prefer
- be kind
- kindness first
- lead with kindness
How the morse encodes
'CHOOSE KINDNESS' is fourteen letters. KINDNESS: K (dah-dit-dah), I (dit-dit), N (dah-dit), D (dah-dit-dit), N (dah-dit), E (dit), S (dit-dit-dit), S (dit-dit-dit) — eight characters including double N and double S. The phrase ends with six consecutive dots across the two S characters — a light, quick finish contrasting with the heavier opening of CHOOSE.
Most common use cases
- Anti-bullying piece
- Teacher appreciation gift
- School or classroom keepsake
- Child's first value piece
Letter-by-letter breakdown
Here is “Choose Kindness” spelled out one character at a time, so you can copy it by hand, check a tattoo stencil, or space the beads on a bracelet correctly:
| Letter | Morse |
|---|---|
| C | -.-. |
| H | .... |
| O | --- |
| O | --- |
| S | ... |
| E | . |
| ␣ | / |
| K | -.- |
| I | .. |
| N | -. |
| D | -.. |
| N | -. |
| E | . |
| S | ... |
| S | ... |
A single space between letters and a slash (/) between words keeps the pattern readable — the most common mistake in engraved and tattooed morse is running the letters together with no gaps.
Six dashes in, six dots out
The phrase is bookended by two mirrored runs, and it is genuinely rare to find both in one line. CHOOSE carries a double O — each O is three dashes, so the middle of the first word is six unbroken dashes: --- ---. KINDNESS closes on a double S — each S is three dots, giving six unbroken dots: ... .... The phrase therefore opens heavy and lands light, six long marks answered by six short ones at the opposite end. Sent by ear it is a slow, deliberate start that accelerates into a quick patter. Whether or not you believe form should echo meaning, the arc of the sound does the phrase no harm at all.
Mostly dots — and what that means as a design
Across all fourteen letters the phrase runs thirty-seven symbols: twenty-four dots against thirteen dashes. That is close to a two-to-one ratio, which is unusually dot-heavy for a phrase this long, and it changes what the finished object looks like. Rendered as beads it is dominated by small round elements with long bars used sparingly — visually light, soft, and busy rather than bold and blocky. A phrase like NO MATTER WHAT, which is nearly dash-balanced, produces a much heavier-looking piece. If you want a delicate, quiet-looking bracelet rather than a statement bar, this phrase's arithmetic is already working in your favour.
A classroom decoding exercise, not just a slogan
Thirty-seven symbols is long for jewellery but close to ideal for a wall. Teachers who already use the phrase as a classroom motto can put the morse line above the words and let children decode it themselves — it is long enough to be a real puzzle, short enough to finish in a lesson, and it contains several of the teaching cases worth meeting early: a double O, a double N, a double S, and a word gap between the two words. Split it across two lines, CHOOSE on top and KINDNESS beneath, and the mirrored dash-run and dot-run land one above the other where the class can actually see the symmetry.
Buy "Choose Kindness" in morse
Custom-phrase morse jewelry and prints from independent sellers. Send them this page and they'll match the layout above.
Turn it into something physical
This phrase fits a range of keepsake formats:
- Bracelet mockup — if the phrase is short enough (37 morse symbols here).
- Necklace mockup — best for longer phrases.
- Ring design — only works if the phrase is under about 10 morse symbols.
- Tattoo designer — exports an SVG in three layouts and three weights.
Related phrases
- Beautiful — -... . .- ..- - .. ..-. ..- .-..
- Hope — .... --- .--. .
- Love — .-.. --- ...- .
- Live Freely — .-.. .. ...- . / ..-. .-. . . .-.. -.--
- Live Fully — .-.. .. ...- . / ..-. ..- .-.. .-.. -.--
- Burn Bright — -... ..- .-. -. / -... .-. .. --. .... -
Frequently asked questions
What is "Choose Kindness" in morse code?
"Choose Kindness" in international morse code is -.-. .... --- --- ... . / -.- .. -. -.. -. . ... ....
How long does this phrase take to send?
At 15 WPM this phrase takes about 4.2 seconds to transmit. You can hear it at any speed between 5 and 40 WPM by pressing Play above.
Can I put "Choose Kindness" on a bracelet or necklace?
Yes — use our bracelet or necklace mockup tool to preview how it will look as beads, then screenshot and send to a jeweler or an Etsy seller specializing in morse pieces.
How many dots and dashes are in CHOOSE KINDNESS?
Thirty-seven symbols across fourteen letters — twenty-four dots and thirteen dashes: -.-. .... --- --- ... . / -.- .. -. -.. -. . ... ...
Why does CHOOSE have six dashes in a row in morse code?
Because of the double O. Each O is three dashes (---), so the two together make six unbroken dashes in the middle of the word.
How do you lay out CHOOSE KINDNESS in morse on two lines?
Put CHOOSE on the first line and KINDNESS on the second, replacing the word gap with the line break. This also stacks the six-dash run directly above the six-dot run.