Description | Exposition | Narration | Opinion | Persuasion | All

middle school writing promptsGive your middle school students something intriguing to write about, whether they are reluctant, eager, or somewhere inbetween.

Free printables for how to create a paragraph, free tutorials on proofreading or in-text citations, current events, asking what they would read to a dog {and other important opinions}, story writing,  and much more—you’ll find it all here.

Looking for engaging prompts for your teens? You’ll find those here. >>

Interested in writing prompts for the whole family? Could you use an assortment of prompts bundled together for certain topics or for varying grade levels? Free tutorials and printables included. Find them all here. >>

Thanks for visiting the Middle School Prompts page. If you have a prompt you would like to submit, please contact Sharon Watson.

Do You Have Story Writers? They Will LOVE These Fiction Prompts!

Posted by on Nov 13, 2016 in High School Prompts, High School Tutorial, Literature, Middle School Prompts, Middle School Tutorial, Sharon's Blog, tutorial, Writing Prompts | Comments Off on Do You Have Story Writers? They Will LOVE These Fiction Prompts!

Do You Have Story Writers? They Will LOVE These Fiction Prompts!

SHARON’S BLOG

You know you have them—those story writers who won’t come out of their bedrooms, the ones who faint at writing essays but love writing stories.

They spend hours creating fictional worlds and populating them with characters in trouble who are looking for a happy ending.

Fiction is a powerful tool to influence readers’ hearts. Let’s equip our fiction writers with practices and insights that will give them success. You can read more about how authors grab readers’ hearts here.

As an added bonus, students who learn how to write more effectively in the world of fiction are absorbing communication skills they will use in their essay and research papers as well.

Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein before she was 19 years old. Christopher Paolini was only 15 when he wrote the first words to his best-selling Eragon. And Jane Austen wrote her first novel at age 14. When will your student be signing autographs?

These prompts are geared for students in 7th-12th grade. Use them now or bookmark them for later. (more…)

5 Prompts on the Reformation

Posted by on Oct 23, 2016 in High School Prompts, Middle School Prompts, Sharon's Blog, Writing Prompts | Comments Off on 5 Prompts on the Reformation

5 Prompts on the Reformation

SHARON’S BLOG

To say that the Protestant Reformation had a great effect on the world is a vast understatement. Kings, kingdoms, and even everyday people felt the sting—and the freedom—this new movement brought.

Your students will be writing opinions, stories, and more while exploring some of the issues and topics associated with the Reformation, no matter your religious persuasion.

If you’d like your students to learn more about Martin Luther in an interesting biography, check out When Lightning Struck by Danika Cooley of Thinking Kids Press.reformation-when-lightning-struck

These prompts are appropriate for students in 5th – 12th grade.

Let’s dig in . . .

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3 Election-themed Prompts

Posted by on Oct 16, 2016 in High School Prompts, Middle School Prompts, Sharon's Blog, Writing Prompts | Comments Off on 3 Election-themed Prompts

3 Election-themed Prompts

SHARON’S BLOG

Election-themed Prompts

Elections are fraught with anxiety, tension, and maybe even crying, but election-themed writing prompts do not have to be.

Your 5th – 12th graders will cast their vote for any of these interest-grabbing ideas.

No matter your political party, these prompts are winners, and you will be, too, when you share them with your students.

Stepping into the booth . . . (more…)

Compare and Contrast: 2 Solid Methods

Posted by on Oct 9, 2016 in High School Prompts, High School Tutorial, Middle School Prompts, Middle School Tutorial, Sharon's Blog, teaching aids, tutorial, Writing Prompts | Comments Off on Compare and Contrast: 2 Solid Methods

Compare and Contrast: 2 Solid Methods

SHARON’S BLOG

Compare and Contrast: 2 Solid Methods

Have your students ever been asked to write a compare-and-contrast paragraph or essay but don’t know where to begin? Do they have trouble organizing their thoughts and information before comparing and contrasting?

Your 5th – 12th graders will learn two solid methods for compare-and-contrast writing with this free tutorial. It’s packed with two separate exercises, one for each method,  and contains complete instructions and colorful worksheets. Your students will learn how to organize their thoughts before writing with either method, and then they’ll write two paragraphs using each method.

Students already know how to compare and contrast in real life: They do it every time they want to buy something and are torn between two choices. They go through the process mentally, and it’s likely automatic and subconscious. (more…)

Proofreading Tutorials Bundle

Posted by on Sep 25, 2016 in High School Prompts, High School Tutorial, Middle School Prompts, Middle School Tutorial, Sharon's Blog, teaching aids, tutorial, Writing Prompts | Comments Off on Proofreading Tutorials Bundle

Proofreading Tutorials Bundle

SHARON’S BLOG

Would you like your students to understand how to use proofreading marks? Do they know that they do not have to proofread for everything at once?

And did you know that it is easier for students to proofread if they practice on someone else’s mistakes?

Explore the posts below, appropriate for 7th – 12th graders. Click on any post’s image or link below to get started. FREE tutorials and printables included.

What will your students learn today? (more…)

Grammar Tutorials Bundle

Posted by on Sep 18, 2016 in High School Prompts, High School Tutorial, Middle School Prompts, Middle School Tutorial, Sharon's Blog, teaching aids, tutorial, Writing Prompts | 2 comments

Grammar Tutorials Bundle

SHARON’S BLOG

Looking for a fun way to teach grammar concepts to your 7th – 12th grade students?

This bundle of tutorials is geared to hold your students’ interest with colorful infographics and quirky sentences to work on. Each tutorial contains a lesson, an exercise, and the answers, all free for you to download and print at your leisure.

Commas with compound sentences, dialog punctuation, singular indefinite pronouns, and much more!

Use them now or bookmark them for future use.

Some of the tutorials below are featured in our eBook Let’s Eat Fifi. Read more about that 23-lesson grammar book here.

Click on the individual images or the links below for each tutorial. (more…)

Word Choices Bundle: Attention to Detail

Posted by on Sep 11, 2016 in High School Prompts, High School Tutorial, Middle School Prompts, Middle School Tutorial, Sharon's Blog, teaching aids, tutorial, Writing Prompts | Comments Off on Word Choices Bundle: Attention to Detail

Word Choices Bundle: Attention to Detail

SHARON’S BLOG

Do you “have a plan” or have you “hatched a scheme”? Are your students writing about the “circulation” of the blood or about how the blood “circulates”?

Do they understand how to use specific adjectives? Do they know the power of connotations? Do they turn sluggish nouns into working verbs? Do they define their terms?

Enjoy these nine tutorials that teach all of these things and much more. They will instruct your students in the finer art of using the elegant English language. Now students are not just writing; they are communicating.

Appropriate for 7th-12th graders. Use the lessons now or bookmark them for future use.

It’s time to dive into the splashy end of the pool . . . (more…)