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Why schools should increase the amout of holidays

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Why schools should increase the amout of holidays

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It is important to decrease the amount of homework we do.

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It is important to decrease the amount of homework we do.

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(Yes)

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Should primary students be allowed to choose their own subjects

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Should primary students be allowed to choose their own subjects

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I believe I am best equipt to lead the school/class in the event of a zombie apocalypse

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I believe I am best equipt to lead the school/class in the event of a zombie apocalypse

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 Your shoe must have a story to tell.  Tell it.

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 Your shoe must have a story to tell.  Tell it.

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Write describe what is happening in this moment-in-time.

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Write describe what is happening in this moment-in-time.

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by Mr Smith

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Use these prompts to write a short narrative

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Use these prompts to write a short narrative

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1. Suppose you had invented a time machine. Write a story about what you did with it.

2. Write to tell of a day when you were the teacher. What did you do?

3. Write a story about trading places with your favorite TV, movie, or rock star.

4. One day a spaceship lands on the playground of your school . . .

5. Your shoe must have a story to tell. Tell it.

6. Your class grew plants as a science project. One day you looked at your plant and saw

something really strange had grown there.

7. Write a story about what it would be like if you woke up one morning with wings.

8. On your birthday, a strange-looking lady came to you door and handed you a wrapped present. You rattled it. It made a noise. Write a story about this present.

9. Your teacher one day announced that your class was going on a wonderful field trip. Write a story about this field trip. In your story, you can have your class go anywhere you wish.

10. One day, as you were petting and talking to your friend's dog, it answered back! Write a story about this.

11. Write a story about yourself as a hero. What did you do to become a hero? Tell your story.

12. As you walked down the hallway at school, you heard some strange music coming from the custodian's closet. What was it? Write a story about it.

13. Tell a story about children who live in a world where there is no such thing as television, computers, or electronic games.

14. A distant relative bequeathed you a strange ring. As you put this ring on, you discover that it has strange powers. What does it look like? What does it do? Tell a story about this ring.

15. Tell a story about your ideal place to live. What would it be like to live here?

16. The teacher comes into the room and places a bag on her desk then leaves. The bag moves and wriggles. Write a story about what is in the paper bag.

17. Everyone has a day in his or her life that was extra special or dreams about what he or she would do on a special day. Write a story about a special day you have had or imagine you might have.

18. Every day you pass a door. It's always closed and locked. One day, as you pass, you notice that the door is open. You step inside. Write a story about what was on the other side of that door.

19. Tell a story about what happened when you traveled on a wagon pulled by horses.

20. Tell a story about a day in which everything went wrong.

21. Imagine you could travel to the future and live there. Think of what you think the future would be like. How different would it be from today? Now, write a story about living in the future.

22. Imagine you could go to any place you wanted for as long as you wanted any time you wanted. What place would you visit? Think about what you would do there. Write a story about a visit to a really neat place.

23. Pretend that you lived in colonial times. Think about what your life would be like, how it would be different living more than 200 years ago. Now, write a story about a young person (or yourself) living in George Washington's day.

24. Novels are fun to read because the action keeps you interested, and the characters almost become your friends. Think of a book you really liked. Imagine that you were a new character in this book {choose a book your class has read}. Write a story about what happened.

25. Imagine you woke up one morning and found that you had switched places with a dog or a cat. Think what it would be like. What would you do? Write a story of your day as a dog or a cat.

26. What if you had a personal genie who would grant your every wish? What would your life be like? Think of some of the details. Write a story about having a personal genie.

27. Imagine you had a car that would take you anywhere you wanted to go for one day. Think of where you went in that car and what you did. Write a story about that day.

28. Everyone has a favorite season of the year. What is your favorite season? What do you like to do? Write a story about your favorite season.

29. Imagine one morning there's a knock at your front door. You open the door, and to your great surprise, you find an alien standing there. What do you do? What does it look like? Write

a story about your encounter with this alien.

30. On your way to school one morning you see a huge truck speeding down the road. Suddenly, the back door of the truck opens and a large, mysterious box falls off the back of the truck. It sits there in the road. What is in the box? What do you do? Write a story about this mysterious box.

31. One spring day a skunk wanders into your classroom. What are the results? Write a story about the skunk that visited school.

32. Imagine you had a time machine that you could take only to the past. Where would you choose to go? Think of what you would do there, what it would the like. Write a story of your adventure in the past.

33. One day you are sitting under a large tree. An acorn hits you on the head, and you look up. There, on the branch above you sits a squirrel, laughing at you. The squirrel then looks you square in the eye, begins to talk to you, and asks you to return its acorn. What would you do?

What would happen if you encountered a talking squirrel? Write a story about the experience.

34. Imagine a world where there was no money. What would people do? What would life be like? Write a story about living in a world without any money.

35. There are times when we all wish, even for just a moment, that we could be someone else for a day. Who would you choose to be for that day? What would you do? Think of some details of your day. Now write a story about what your day was like as that person.

36. In a recent disaster, there were some kids who did some heroic things. Think what constitutes (makes) a hero. Imagine yourself as one. Now write a story in which you were a hero/heroine in a tough situation.

37. A little old lady gave you and a friend some magical glitter and told you to sprinkle it on your hair and something special would happen. What happened when you tried it? Write a story about this mysterious magical glitter.

38. One day you and your friends walked up to an old, seemingly abandoned house. You couldn't see inside due to the dust and cobwebs on the windows. You decide to see if the door is locked. You try the knob, and it turns. The door creeks open as if it has not opened in years . . . What happens next? What do you find? What do you and your friend do? Write a story about entering that old, seemingly abandoned house.

39. Love comes in all forms. We can love our parents, a boyfriend or girlfriend, a favorite pet, a brother or sister, a place, even a thing. Thing about someone or something you love. Write a story about that person or thing that involves your feelings.

40. Imagine that your sense of smell was more highly developed than everyone else's. What experiences might you have? How might your life change? What would you be able to smell? Write a story about a person with a very highly developed sense of smell.

41. Imagine yourself temporarily lost in a foreign country where you do not know the language. How do you manage to communicate? What might happen to you? Write a story about a day you might have spent lost in a foreign country without knowing the language.

42. Imagine a city project to have every school student do some hours of community service as a part of the required curriculum. What would you choose to do? What do you think it would be like? What people might you meet? What would you be doing to help? Write a story about your day of community service.

43. Sometimes family members or friends embarrass you when other people are around. Think of some times this has happened to you. Think of what could happen. Write a story about some embarrassing incident you might have had and how you coped with it.

44. Now and then you, without meaning to do so, break something that belongs to someone else. Think about what might be broken. Think about what might happen as a result. Now, write a story about accidentally breaking something that belonged to someone else and the story of what happened as a result.

45. One day your teacher must go home. Your teacher leaves, telling you that someone else will teach the class for the rest of the time. Who do you think will replace the teacher? What happens as a result? Write a story about a time your teacher had to go home, and someone

else took over the class.

46. Imagine you opened your own restaurant. Tell the name of your restaurant. Explain what the restaurant looks like, who works there, and what you serve.

47. Describe your favorite character from a book, a movie, or television.

48. Write a story titled, "My Journey on a Pirate Ship." You and your friends can star in the story.

49. If you could have any animal for a pet, what would it be? Describe the pet and how you would take care of it.

50. Do you have any brothers or sisters? If you do, tell what they're like. If not, tell whether or not you would like to have a brother or sister.

51. If you could have lunch with any famous person who would it be? What would you talk about with this person?

52. How old were you four years ago? Describe some things you can do now that you could not do then.

53. If you could be on any game show, what would it be? Describe what happens when you're on the show.

54. Describe several ways a person your age can earn money.

55. If you could spend an afternoon with one member of your extended family, who would it be? Tell why you chose this person and tell what you do together.

56. Which superpower would you most like to have- invisibility, super strength, or the ability to fly? Describe what kids of things you would do with your powers.

57. Think of a time when you've won something. Tell what you won and how you won it.

58. Invent a new kind of sandwich. Describe what is on it and how you would make it.

59. Describe one thing you're really good at.

60. Imagine you were twenty feet tall. Describe what life would be like. How would it be different from your life now?

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1. Suppose you had invented a time machine. Write a story about what you did with it. 2. Write to tell of a day when you were the teacher. What did you do? 3. Write a story about trading places with your favorite TV, movie, or rock star. 4. One day...

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Should cameras on drones watch all public spaces to prevent crime, or is that a violation of privacy?

Do you agree or disagree?

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My favourite:

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation hires you as a consultant to determine how best to use $20 billion to save the world. What’s your plan?

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Sometimes students need a little push to activate their imaginations.

The collection of prompts below asks young writers to think through real or imagined events, their emotions, and a few wacky scenarios. Try out the ones you think will resonate most with your students.

As with all prompts, inform students that their answers should be rated G and that disclosing dangerous or illegal things they're involved in will obligate you to file a report with the administration or school counselors. Finally, give students the option of writing "PERSONAL" above some entries that they don't want anyone to read. We all need to let scraggly emotions run free in our prose sometimes.

If your class uses daybooks (an approach recommended in Thinking Out Loud: The Student Daybook as a Tool to Foster Learning), wait for composition notebooks to go on sale at Target, the Dollar Store, or Walmart for $0.50 a piece. To organize the daybook, direct young writers to leave the first three pages blank and number and date each entry-adding these entries to a table of contents that they create as they work so they can return to specific entries later.

Should cameras on drones watch all public spaces to prevent crime, or is that a violation of privacy?

Do Americans have it too easy? Why do you think that?

What causes racism?

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation hires you as a consultant to determine how best to use $20 billion to save the world. What's your plan?

What's the worst thing about the internet?

Would you rather be very beautiful or very smart? Explain.

You can save one object before your house burns down. What is it? What makes that object important to you?

How much control over your life do you have? What makes you say that?

Describe your ideal life 15 years from now. What is something you can do every day to reach that goal?

What would your friends say is your most lovable quality? Describe that quality.

What is something scary that you would like to try? What makes it scary for you? How might you overcome that fear?

What things do you conscientiously do to feed your brain?

What are three of your most profound learning experiences? Where and when did they occur?

By age 18, the average American has seen 200,000 acts of violence on TV, including 40,000 murders. What is it about television violence that is so compelling to people?

Would you rather be loved or respected? Because?

Does social media represent individuals authentically? Explain with examples.

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?

High School Prompts

Which classmate would be the best to lead us through a zombie apocalypse? Why?

What real-life situations would work out better for you if you were a different gender? Why?

How can you tell when someone your age is feeling insecure? Are most people more insecure or anxious than they let on?

If the internet were to crash forever, what would the benefits be for you? The drawbacks?

Write a scene that features a) a classmate, b) $100 million, and c) magical shoes.

What three features should your future house have? Why?

If you starred in a television show about your life, what would the show be called? What genre would it be? (Examples: comedy, drama, thriller, romance, action-adventure, fantasy, superhero, soap opera, reality, game show, space adventure, Western, tragedy, etc.) Summarize the plot of an episode.

In the future, what extreme sports will people be talking about?

Is your ethnicity an important part of your identity? How so?

You get to take one book, one food item, and one famous person (living or dead) to a deserted island. What and who do you take? Why?

Write a powerfully supportive email to yourself 10 years from now. Send that email to yourself using FutureMe.org.

You have been selected to be king or queen of your school. What are five rules that every kid should follow at your school? What should the punishment be for rule breakers?

What do the five friends you hang out with most have in common? How are you most like them? How are you different from them?

What contributes to someone becoming a bully? What can help stop someone from bullying?

Do you make friends slowly or quickly? Describe how one of your important friendships evolved.

Should we fear failure? Explain.

If a wizard could tell you anything about your future, what would you most like to know?

Do you believe in luck? Are you superstitious? How so? If not, why do you think some people are?

Middle School Prompts

I wish my teachers knew that . . .

What's the most beautiful person, place, or thing you've ever seen? Share what makes that person, place, or thing so special.

Which is better, giant muscles or incredible speed? Why?

What is your most difficult subject in school? Why is it difficult? What can you do to get better at that subject?

Rewrite "Hansel and Gretel" from the witch's perspective.

Describe a scary situation that you've experienced.

What is your first memory? Describe it.

You wake up tomorrow with a silly superpower that makes you famous. What is that silly power? How does it lead to your becoming an international superstar?

Are you a good loser? Explain.

What are examples of things you want versus things you need?

Last Friday, you were given one wish by a magical panda. You tried so hard to make the wish positive, but after the whacked-out events that unfolded over the weekend, you regret ever meeting that tricky panda. What did you ask for, and what happened?

I wish my friends . . .

Describe a routine that you often or always do (in the morning, when you get home, Friday nights, before a game, etc.).

What things do all kids know that adults do not?

What TV or movie characters do you wish were real? Why?

Elementary School Prompts

After they've finished an entry, ask students to read their work aloud or exchange daybooks for a read-around. If you give the entries written feedback, show that their work is respected by using a sticky note or scratch paper.

Don't forget to write along with your students. Why should they have all the fun?

What are your students' favorite writing prompts?

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Sometimes students need a little push to activate their imaginations.

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Use these images as settings for narratives or descriptions

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Use these images as settings for narratives or descriptions