Writing prompts are a great way to help your young writers practice their skills without overwhelming them with essays or long-form questions.
Sometimes it’s fun to have themed prompts, but shorter, quick prompts will do just as well for smaller assignments or work during quiet times between lessons.
Below, we’ve put together a list of quick writing prompts for occasions just like this.
How to use these Prompts
Our writing prompts are meant to engage students in fun and interesting writing assignments with different themes and degrees of difficulty.
This specific set of prompts should be used as quick writes—short writing assignments that can be completed in about ten minutes.
These informal writing assignments are meant to help students practice, process, and reflect without the pressure of formal grading and evaluation.
Quick writes are a great way to get reluctant writers to put words onto paper, or give more skilled writers a chance to practice skills that they are interested in improving.
Here are a few ways you can use this guide in your classroom:
- Use these prompts in tandem with your usual classroom curriculum.
- Challenge students to use one prompt every day for an entire week.
- Ask students to free-write using whichever prompt attracts their interest.
- Have students pick a number between 1 and 55 and use that number to choose their prompt.
- Keep these prompts handy for students to use during downtime between assignments or after tests.
Quick Writes and Short Prompts
- Write a paragraph about something new that you learned today.
- Free-write for ten minutes about your favorite hobby or sport.
- Explain the rules of your favorite board game to someone who has never played it.
- Make a list of ten things you’re looking forward to in the next six months.
- Write about a time when you felt fearless.
- Would you rather go on a vacation to a tropical beach or an exciting theme park? Why?
- What is the most bizarre thing found in nature?
- Write about a special bond you have with a pet.
- What is your favorite smell? Describe it.
- Who is your favorite YouTuber? Why are they your favorite?
- Write about a time when you told a white lie. Why did you tell it?
- Would you rather live in the city or the countryside? Why?
- If I had a superpower it would be…
- Describe the plot of your favorite movie.
- What is one thing you wish adults knew about kids?
- Describe a place where you feel safe.
- What’s your least favorite chore? Why?
- Describe your ideal weekend.
- Write about a time when you felt left out.
- Describe the room you are in using at least ten details.
- Use these words in a short story: cookie, timing, wonderful, silence
- Write about a time you felt embarrassed.
- Free-write for up to ten minutes about something that you’re looking forward to next week.
- Describe your favorite kind of weather using your five senses.
- Write a list of 5-10 things you like about yourself.
- Which fictional character do you wish was real? Why?
- What would you do if you were given a million dollars today?
- What is the biggest rule you’ve ever broken? Why did you break it?
- If you could have one meal every day for the rest of your life, what would it be? Why?
- Write a couple of paragraphs about someone you consider a hero.
- What’s your favorite food? What makes it the best?
- Free-write for ten minutes about your favorite season, using as much detail as possible.
- Why is your favorite music so special to you?
- Write a list of five things you like about the person sitting next to you.
- If you could make one thing in the world free for everyone, what would it be? Why?
- Pick an object in the room you are in, and try to convince someone to buy it.
- What color do you feel like today? Why?
- Write a short story using the following words: cat, potato, flower, brush
- Do you wish you had more siblings? Explain.
- Where is your favorite place to read? Why?
- What are five things you could do to keep busy if the power went out?
- What is something that makes you special or unique?
- What’s the funniest thing you’ve ever seen?
- What is your favorite kind of pizza? Why?
- Where do you like to go when you have outings with your family?
- What happened the last time you felt angry?
- Describe the last time you stayed home from school sick.
- Out of your five main senses, which do you think would be easiest to live without? Describe how you would live without it.
- When I grow up, I want to…
- Describe your best friend and how you became friends.
- Do you know anyone who shares a birthday with you? Are you similar or different?
- Write a short story using the following words: Minecraft, rain, smart, time
- If you could have any animal as a pet, what would it be? Why?
- If you could add one new room to your house, what kind of room would it be? Describe it.
- What is your favorite way to eat potatoes? Why?
Looking For More?
We offer an abundance of free educational resources for teachers, parents, and guardians to use in the classroom or at home.
If you are looking for something specific and we don’t have it, reach out and let us know! We’re here to make learning fun and exciting for everyone involved.
