It’s never too early to get children interested in writing. Creative writing is a fantastic way to help kids tap into their imaginations, challenge their creativity, and hone their handwriting and typing skills. And in these days of distance learning, having an arsenal of educational tools and prompts up your sleeve is more valuable than ever.
But beginning a creative writing project can be tricky without a solid starting point. The possibilities of where a story can go are endless, and it’s easy for students to feel overwhelmed when the task is left wide open. So instead, why not try some tailored creative writing prompts to help them get started?
I’ve collected 90 fun and creative writing prompts suitable for various grades and abilities, from elementary through to high school age, so there’s something to inspire every type of student. I’ve included a mixture of story starters and personal narrative prompts to help fuel their imaginations and explore their writing potential.
Creative Writing Prompts for Elementary School Students
1. When I grow up, I want to be a…
2. My biggest goal for the future is…
3. The best book I ever read was…
4. The most interesting object I own is….
5. My favorite memory in my life is…
6. Three things I like about school are…. because…
7. Three things I don’t like about school are… because…
8. If I were the King or Queen of the world, the first thing I would do is…
9. I feel worried when…
10. My perfect day would be…
11. What is your favorite thing to do on a Saturday?
12. Which member of your family makes you laugh the most?
13. On my 16th birthday, I will…
14. The most interesting place I have been to was…
15. If I had a magic lamp that granted me three wishes, I would wish for…
16. My favorite animal is… because…
17. The happiest day of my life was….
18. Describe three reasons why going to school is important…
19. My most unusual talent is…
20. My favorite food is… because…
21. My least favorite food is… because…
22. How do children learn to be kind?…
23. My most embarrassing moment was when…
24. I want to invent a machine that can….
25. The best gift I ever received was…
26. The best decision I ever made was…
27. Describe your perfect vacation…
28. Use these words in a short story: angry, excited, summer, yellow, alligator…
29. I opened a door, saw a pink elephant, and I…
30. What makes a good friend?…
Creative Writing Prompts for Middle School Students
31. Describe your first memory in as much detail as possible…
32. I got out of bed this morning, and everything seemed normal until…
33. Is there a challenge that you have had to overcome in your life? If so, what did it teach you?
34. Michael ran faster than he ever knew he could do to escape from…
35. Talk about a time you felt afraid…
36. Do you have a favorite place? If so, what makes it special to you?
37. Write about a time you were worried about something, but everything turned out to be ok…
38. The last thing I remembered was the waves crashing against the ship. The next thing I knew, I was lying on the beach on a deserted island. Luckily, I still had my…
39. Write out a conversation you had with someone recently as if it were dialogue in a story. Would you say anything differently if you could have that conversation again?
40. The tigers were surrounding the camp, and the only weapon we could see was out of reach…
41. Katie thought she knew her friend well, but it turns out she was hiding a secret…
42. Write about a recent event that you remember well. Use all of your senses (taste, smell, sight, sound, and touch) to describe it in vivid detail.
43. I always thought my closet was just a regular old closet until I walked out the other side to discover…
44. Describe your day-to-day life over the course of a week. Which day is your favorite and why?
45. David couldn’t believe his eyes when he looked inside the old wooden box…
46. When you hear the word “culture,” what do you think of?
47. If you could grow up in any other part of the world, where would you choose and why?
48. The aliens spoke in a language that Tom couldn’t comprehend, but he knew one thing, he was in grave danger, and he needed to escape from their ship immediately…
49. The kindest thing I’ve ever seen anyone do is…
50. If I was a bird for the day, I would fly to…
51. Would you want to live forever?
52. The most frustrating thing I have to deal with in my life is…
53. Jeanie was confident she’d locked the door to her house, but when she returned home, it was wide open…
54. No one was more surprised than I was when the dog started to talk…
55. You have to act fast to escape a deadly stampede of wild animals, but there’s no vehicle in sight. What do you do?
56. I want to make the world a better place by…
57. The terrible smell was overpowering, like a…
58. Listening to music makes me feel like…
59. The best thing about growing up on Mars is…
60. You know the expression “money doesn’t grow on trees?” What else do you wish grew on trees and why?
Creative Writing Prompts for High School Students
61. You are tasked with inventing a brand new holiday. What time of year is it, how do people celebrate, and what kind of traditions, decorations, and food would it involve?
62. Josh picked up a pen to write a letter to the father he never met. “Dear Dad,” he wrote…
63. Write about your best or worst family vacation. Describe what happened from a fly on the wall/ observer’s perspective.
64. Write a letter to a person in another country that you don’t know much about. Think about what you would ask them, and what you would share with them about yourself and your own country.
65. How would you describe Earth to a first-time alien visitor?
66. Imagine a future where you have your own robot who will do whatever it is you need. What would your robot look like, what features and capabilities would it have, and how would you interact with it?
67. Pick any color and personify it. Think about its energy, how it looks, tastes and smells. If it had emotions, how would it feel?
68. Describe a dream you’ve had that made an impact on you. Use vivid imagery and descriptive language to bring it to life.
69. What about your culture seem perfectly normal to you, but would be very strange through the eyes of another?
70. If you were born as a member of the opposite sex, how might your life be different today?
71. What keeps you awake at night?
72. What do you want your life to look like when you are 30 years old?
73. Pick a new subject or class that is currently not taught in schools. Consider what the students would learn and who would teach it, and create a convincing argument for why it should be included in your school’s curriculum.
74. Choose a subject or class that is currently taught in school, and create a convincing argument for why it should be dropped from the curriculum.
75. Imagine you are due to graduate soon. Write a graduation speech to deliver to your fellow students, thinking about how you would encourage and inspire them for the future.
76. We’re always told that … is true, but how do we know for sure? What if…
77. You are burying a time capsule in your city. What five items would you include and why?
78. If you could travel back in time to the year 1600, where would you go and why?
79. Think about a social justice issue that doesn’t affect you personally. Now imagine that you are directly impacted by that issue, and write about how and why people should support you and others like you.
80. What words of wisdom have been helpful in guiding you throughout your life?
81. If today was your last day on earth, where would you go, who would you see, and how would you spend your time?
82. Mike’s prom date went … not so great. Why?
83. Do you see yourself as more of an introvert or an extrovert? Do you think you are this way because of genetics, social conditioning, or both?
84. The temperature is rising, and it keeps on getting hotter. Everyone is panicking, and things are getting weird. Describe the events, actions, and reactions that follow…
85. Upon his death, a man has a rare opportunity to come back as a ghost. The first thing he does is…
86. When all is said and done, nothing really matters. Do you think this statement is true or false? Why?
87. What does “success” mean to you? How might other people define it?
88. Lisa comes home with a detention slip from school. Usually, her mom would be furious, but not today. Why?
89. You meet your doppelganger. They’re just like you in every way, except that you each speak a different language. Write about your day together.
90. Think of a job that is often undervalued. What would the world be like if there was no one to do that job? Upon reflection, do people in that line of work deserve a pay rise?
Tips for Encouraging Kids in Creative Writing
These prompts will help students to get their creative juices flowing, but how, when, and where they use them will have a big impact too. Here are a few tips on how to implement these creative writing prompts in the classroom or at home.
- Set a daily writing task. Assign one of these prompts as a daily writing task either at the beginning of the end of the day. A short creative writing session in the morning helps students to engage their brains and stimulate their curiosity, setting them up for success throughout the rest of their day. It can also be a great way for kids to unwind and decompress before the final bell rings.
- Narrow down the options. Presenting students with a huge list of writing prompts and asking them to pick one can be overwhelming. They’re likely to spend half of the allotted time just choosing which prompt they’d like to use. Instead, offer just 2 or 3 choices, or you could even pick a particular one that the whole class will work on simultaneously.
- Set a word length. Some of these creative writing prompts are designed for short assignments, whereas others can be elaborated on and turned into multiple pages of text. Set a rough word count or a number of pages to aim for so that students know how to structure their story and how detailed it should be.
- Create a quiet environment. This is especially important if your kids are remote learning from home right now. There are distractions everywhere; notifications pinging on phones, the noise of the TV in the background, siblings or other family members who are using the same space, etc.
Where possible, try to set up a quiet and calm environment where your child can focus on the task at hand and produce the best writing possible.
- Encourage handwriting. In today’s digital age, students are in danger of losing their handwriting skills. These creative writing exercises are a great way to help them practice the art of handwriting, and studies also show that handwriting can help a writer feel more connected to their work.
- Step into someone else’s shoes. Many of these prompts ask students for their own personal thoughts, feelings, or responses. A great way to get kids thinking outside of the box is to have them produce two sets of writing; one from their own perspective, and the other from someone else’s point of view, for example, a family member, a friend, or famous person.
- Make it fun. Remind students that this is their chance to be the boss, and they can take the writing assignment in whichever direction they choose. So often in educational settings, children are presented with a right or wrong answer, but in the case of creative writing, anything goes! Many of these prompts don’t require them to be bound by the rules of reality, and they can make their stories as fantastical and far-fetched as they please.
- Invite them to share. In a class situation, you might want to encourage your students to share their writing in front of the class if they feel comfortable doing so. This helps to build their confidence, and it can lead to fun and engaging class discussions, especially when everyone uses the same prompt.
For more tips on creative writing for both children and adults, take a look at our in-depth beginner’s guide to creative writing. It’s packed with tips to help writers hone their skills, engage their readers, and develop their individual writing styles. And for more creative writing prompts, check out this list of 30 creative fiction writing prompts for adults.