Middle School Prompts Archives - Page 10 of 19 - Writing with Sharon Watson-Easy-to-use Homeschool Writing and Literature Curriculum

What Happens When You Meet Your Doppelgänger?

True story: A few years ago when I was eating lunch at a rest area, I saw a man who looked just like my dad. It was freaky. They could have been twins.

Since I happened to be close to where my dad was originally from, I thought about talking to this man to see if he was related to my dad. Then I remembered that I was traveling alone, far from home. The idea of talking to a strange man didn’t seem so appealing anymore. But I always wish I had.

The Germans have a word for someone who looks just like another person. It’s called a doppelgänger. These look-alikes are fun to see and a little strange

Halloween: For or Against?

MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS

Okay, so we’re close to Halloween.

For some Christians, Halloween can be a controversial event.

Some families celebrate it as a harmless and fun day to dress up and collect candy. Others view it as having satanic or questionable roots and do not celebrate it.

Dreams

MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS

“All our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them.”

Do you agree with Walt Disney, the author of this quotation?

For a dream to come true, do you only need courage? Do your dreams come true simply because you pursue them? Or is there something else to add to the recipe? What do you think?

In-text Citations for Middle School Students

MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS

You want to avoid plagiarism in your writing. Yes. Yes, you do.

Plagiarism is using someone else’s quotation, facts, statement, idea, or story without giving them credit.

So, how do you let your readers know that you borrowed the quotation, fact, and so on?

You cite your source by using an in-text citation. This simply means you are giving credit to someone for their information, and you tuck it into your essay.

An in-text citation comes in tremendously handy when you are writing an essay that does not include footnotes, a bibliography, or a works cited page.

This is a tutorial on how to easily create in-text citations. Robin Hood may be involved.

Here we go . . .

What Is in Your Backpack?

MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS

Have you ever seen a man with his back pocket bulging from an overstuffed wallet? Do you know a woman who carries around a huge purse? Do you ever wonder what could be in there, like old rubber bands, ketchup packets, her kids’ Legos, or a stapler?

You can tell a lot about a person by what’s in their purse, backpack, or even bedroom.

Be Prepared

Earthquakes. Fires. Tornados. Hurricanes. Super viruses.

Breaking your finger before the big game. Using bleach instead of laundry soap on your favorite shirt. Losing your cell phone—again.

Where am I going with all of this?

Create a New Park

MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS

I recently visited The Headlands, an International Dark Sky Park west of Mackinaw City, Michigan, on the shore of Lake Michigan.

A dark sky park is an area set aside for night-sky viewing and is away from man-made lighting so that the night sky is clear. You can see so many more stars and night-sky features without artificial lighting nearby.

Although there are beautiful hiking trails in the woods for use in the daytime in The Headlands, its main feature is the large, open space created for night-time viewing.

The Hamburger Menu

MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS

McDonald’s Big Mac. Burger King’s Whopper. Hardee’s Thickburger. Rally’s and Checker’s Big Buford.

Is your mouth watering yet?

Let’s celebrate hamburgers and cheeseburgers with a menu of writing prompt choices.

So Long, Pluto!

MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS

Can you believe there’s a day named Pluto Demoted Day? It is August 24, when in 2006, Pluto was demoted from a planet to a dwarf planet.

Recent photos of Pluto by NASA’s spacecraft New Horizons have been fascinating. Here’s one of them, with a lighter shape informally named “the heart”:

Give Us a New Month

MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS

There are twelve months in a year. How many months have you lived through?

By now, anywhere from 120 to 168 months.

January is named after the Roman god Janus. He had two faces and could look forward and backward.

March is named after the god Mars. July is named for the famous emperor Julius Caesar. September, October, November, and December are derived from the Latin numbers for seven, eight, nine, and ten.

I think it’s time to