Preschool, K-2

Ask a grown-up to tell you 3 random words. Make up a story that uses all three.
Write and illustrate a story about someone having a funny adventure when they stay home sick.
Draw a picture of what you think a virus looks like. Tell about the different parts and how you think they work.
Set a timer for 4 minutes. Write as many words as you can before it goes off. Any words will do, and don’t worry about spelling - just keep writing!
Write an email to someone you love asking them to tell you their favorite song.
Write a letter to a friend recommending a story you think they would like.
After you read a story, write a postcard to the author asking them a question about it. You can mail it to the publisher’s address, printed on the book.
Start a science journal. Each day when you go outside, find 3 things you notice with your 5 senses. Draw a picture of each one, and write a word that describes it.

Grade 3-5

Write a funny or exciting adventure story about what happens when school is closed.
What are you excited or worried about?
Write a letter to yourself 10 years in the future. What do you want to tell your future self?
Write a 3-word story that uses the words “giraffe”, “pancake” and “oops”. Tomorrow, write a new 3-word story using 3 random words - ask a grownup or sibling to give you words, or use a word generator, like (link)
Start a science journal. Each day when you go outside, write down 5 observations using your 5 senses. After you’ve collected a few days of observations, see if your notes inspire a nature poem!
Which is cooler, kittens or puppies? Pick a side, write a list of reasons, and find a sibling or grownup to debate against you. Can you convince them? Then pick two new things to debate!

Grade 6-9

Write a 5-word story that uses the words “friend”, “pancake”, “sleepover”, “thunderstorm”, and “oops”. Tomorrow, write a new 5-word story using 5 random words - ask a grownup or sibling to give you words, or use a word generator, like (link)
You wake up with a superpower of your choice. What's the first thing you do with it?
A genie living in your salt shaker gives you the power to talk to animals—but only one kind of animal. Which one do you choose?
On the ground floor of the place where you live, there is a rumbling sound—suddenly, a TINY GNOME emerges from the floor, piloting a little car with a drill on the end of it. She invites you to come with her to her underground city; what do you see there?
One of the books on your shelf suddenly comes alive and spits out a character—a living, breathing character. Who is it, and what adventures do you have with them?
Uh oh! You opened a door in the kitchen and now you're on another planet. Fortunately, you can breathe there; unfortunately, the aliens who live on the planet have decided they don't like you. How do you make peace with them?
Congratulations! You've been appointed Chief Architect of Ciudad de Luna, the first big city on the Moon. Write a memo to your staff about what you want the city to look like.
Practice noticing. Each day when you go outside, record 5-10 things you notice with your senses. Describe your observations with vivid language. You could record in a science journal format and collect questions about the natural world, or in a writer’s notebook format and turn them into poetry or prose.

Grade 10-12

Imagine that it’s the last day of high school and you’ve been asked by a teacher to say a few words that summarize the events that have occurred over the last four years that are most meaningful to you. What do you say?
What are three of your most profound learning experiences? Where and when did they occur?
Envision a future in which you have a personalized robot who does all of your work. What features would your robot possess? How would you interact with it? What would it be capable of doing? Include a diagram!
There are a lot of different types of blogs. Choose a topic that you’re interested in and create a list blog about that topic. It may be a “Top 10 Things You Should Know About X” or “What I Wish I Didn’t Know About X” or any other list-form blog that you can imagine.
This prompt is inspired by NPR’s old radio series “This I Believe.” In the show, people from all over the world send in messages expressing a core idea that can be serious or silly, such as “I believe in mechanics.” They then expand on that thought with specific, brief examples of why they hold that belief and how they came to believe it. Use powerful and descriptive sentences to capture your own “This I Believe” statement.
What do you think about when you’re trying to go to sleep? Turn it into a piece of writing.
Write from the perspective of an inanimate object that you see every day. What desires does that object have? What does it wish humans would do? Try writing in a diary format, or making a comic strip.
If you were invited to contribute five items to a city time capsule to be opened in 50 years, what would you include and why?
Practice noticing. Each day when you go outside, record 5-10 things you notice with your senses. Describe your observations with vivid language. You could record in a science journal format and collect questions about the natural world, or in a writer’s notebook format and turn them into poetry or prose.