creative writing tips for 11 year olds

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300 Fun Writing Prompts for Kids: Story Starters, Journal Prompts & Ideas

Are you a parent or teacher? Here are 300 fun and creative writing prompts for kids to spark the imagination of young writers everywhere. Use these kids writing ideas as journaling prompts, story starters or just for fun!

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It’s never too early to start writing, and so we’ve created this fun list of 300 creative kids writing prompts for teacher and parents to use.

You’ll love these fun ideas for kids writing prompts to use as creative sparks to get young imaginations writing in no time!

These are perfect to use as kids journal writing prompts, as short story writing prompts, or just for exercises to help students and children of all ages tap into their creativity. Maybe your kids will write an essay, maybe a poem, or maybe even a whole book!

Whether you are a teacher or parent looking to inspire your kids to write, or maybe even an adult who would like to practice writing with a more playful and young-hearted approach, I hope you find these creative writing prompts inspiring!

Buy the Printable Cards!  We will always have this list of 300 kids writing prompts available for free, but I’m very excited to now also offer an  ad-free printable version of these prompts  in my online Etsy shop. Thank you for your support!

The Ultimate List of 300 Fun & Creative Writing Prompts for Kids

#1. Imagine a giant box is delivered to your front doorstep with your name on it. What’s inside and what happens when you open it?

#2. Write a short story about what it might be like if you woke up one morning with a mermaid tail.

#3. Which is better, winter or summer? Write about the reasons why you think winter or summer is better.

#4. Write about what would it be like if you had an alligator as a pet.

#5. If you had $1,000, what would you buy and why?

#6. Write a story using these 5 words: apple, train, elephant, paper, banjo

#7. What do you want be when you grow up and why?

#8. Who is your favorite person on the planet? What do you like most about that person?

#9. If you could have any secret super power, what would you want it to be and why?

#10. Write about 3 places you would like to travel someday. What do these three places have in common?

#11. Write about a time you felt really happy. What happened? What made you feel happy?

#12. Imagine what would happen if someone shrunk you down to be only 1″ tall. How would your life change?

#13. If you were in charge of the whole world, what would you do to make the world a happier place?

#14. Write a story about what it would be like to climb to the very top of the highest mountain in the world.

#15. If you were in charge of planning the school lunch menu, what foods would you serve each day?

#16. What are some of your favorite animals? What do you like about them?

#17. Imagine that dogs take over the world. What do they make the humans do?

#18. Write a story about flying to outer space and discovering a new planet.

#19. You are a mad scientist and have invented a new vegetable. What is it called? What does it look like? What does it taste like? Most importantly: Is it safe to eat?

#20. You go to school one morning to discover your best friend has been turned into a frog by an evil witch! How do you help your friend?

#21. Describe what it is like when trees lose all of their leaves in the autumn season.

#22. Write about your favorite sport and why you like it so much.

#23. Imagine what it might be like to live on a boat all the time and write about it.

#24. If you had one wish, what would it be?

#25. Write about what you might do if you have the super power to become invisible.

#26. You are walking through the forest when one of the trees starts talking to you. What does it say? What do you do?

#27. The weather forecast is calling for a blizzard in the middle of the summer. What do you do?

#28. What types of transportation will people have in the future?

#29. What were some of your favorite toys when you very little? Do you still enjoy playing with them?

#30. What would a day in your life be like if you were a movie star?

#31. Imagine you’ve invented a time machine! What year do you travel to?

#32. What are your favorite things to do over summer vacation?

#33. What is your favorite holiday and why?

#34. If you could meet any fictional character from a book, who would it be?

#35. You are writing a travel guide for kids visiting your city. What places do you think they should visit?

#36. What is a food you hate? Write about it!

#37. Imagine what it would be like if there was no electricity. What would be different in your daily routine?

#38. You are building a new city! What types of things do you think your city needs? How will you convince people to move to your new city?

#39. What is your favorite movie? Write your review of the movie and why you think people should watch it.

#40. Imagine you get a magic sweater for your birthday. What happens when you wear the sweater? What do you do with these new found magical powers?

#41. You are the security guard at the zoo and someone has stolen a rhinoceros! How do you track down the thief?

#42. You have been invited to have lunch with the queen. What foods do you eat and what topics do you and the queen discuss?

#43. If you could design a school uniform, what types of clothes would you suggest? What colors would they be?

#44. Imagine you are a reporter interviewing a celebrity about their life. What questions do you ask?

#45. You are running a lemonade stand. Describe the steps for how you make lemonade and the types of customers you see during the day.

#46. Write a story about being the ruler of an underwater world.

#47. Write an acrostic poem for the word “treehouse”.

#48. You decide to grow a sunflower, but the sunflower grows so tall it reaches up to the sky! Write about what happens when you decide to climb to the top. What do you discover?

#49. Imagine you look out the window and it is raining popsicles from the sky! Write a story about the experience.

#50. If you could be any animal, which one would you be and why?

#51. If you were on a spaceship, what would you be most excited about seeing?

#52. Do you have any pets at home? Write an essay about how you take care of your pets. If you do not have a pet, what type of pet might you like?

#53. Imagine you are opening a store that only sells items which are blue. What types of items do you sell?

#54. Have you ever lost something that is important to you? Were you able to find it?

#55. Write a story about a kid who is moving to a new school. How do you think they might feel?

#56. Rewrite the ending of your favorite fairy tale. For example, what would have happened if Cinderella never went to the ball?

#57. Have you ever forgotten to do your homework? What happened?

#58. Do you have a favorite song? Write about the type of music you like to listen to.

#59. Imagine your parents wake you up one morning to tell you they will take you to do anything you want to do for the whole day – you don’t even have to go to school or do your chores. What would you choose to do and why?

#60. Do you like amusement parks? What are some of your favorite rides?

#61. Write a story using these three words: detective, piano, and pizza.

#62. Have you ever been to the beach? Write about your favorite things to do. If you have never been to the beach, what would you like to do the first time you visit?

#63. Is there a favorite tv show you like to watch? Write about your favorite character and why they are your favorite.

#64. Write a poem using onomatopoeia , where the words you use are pronounced similar to the sound they make. For example, buzz, bark, sizzle, slam and pop.

#65. Have you ever had to stand in line to wait a long time for something? What did you do while you waited? How did you feel while waiting? How did you feel once the wait was over?

#66. Is it a good idea to keep ALL secrets a secret? Write about examples of when it is okay to spill a secret – and when it isn’t.

#67. Is there something you are good at doing? Write about your best strengths.

#68. What historical time period and location would you go back to live in if you could? Write about it!

#69. Write about 5 things you can do that are important for you to stay healthy and safe.

#70. Do you think thunderstorms are scary? Why or why not?

#71. What would you most like to learn over the next year? Think about things that interest you or questions you might have about the world and make a list!

#72. You are going on a trip to a jungle safari! What items do you pack in your suitcase?

#73. Imagine you are sitting at home one day and you hear someone shrieking in the living room they see a mouse in the house! Write a story about what might happen next.

#74. You are writing a letter to someone who is having a hard time making new friends at school. What do you write? What advice do you give them?

#75. Imagine you just met a magician – but their beloved rabbit who they pull out of a hat for all the tricks has been kidnapped! How do you help find the rabbit?

#76. Do you hear what I hear? Set a timer for 5 minutes and write about all of the sounds you hear in those 5 minutes.

#77. Imagine you go to get a haircut and they accidentally shave your head! How do you feel about that and what would you do?

#78. Do you find it easy to talk to people you don’t know? What are some ways you can start up a conversation with someone you have never met before?

#79. Are there any chores you have to do at home? What are they? What do you like – and not like – about each one?

#80. Open up a random book to any page. Write for 5 minutes about the first word you read.

#81. Pretend you are a writer for your city’s newspaper. Who would you like to interview for a news story and why?

#82. There are many fictional characters who live in unusual houses, such as the old woman who lived in a shoe. What kind of unusual house would you like to live in? Write about what it would be like to live in an unusual house!

#83. Write a list of 10 things you can do to practice kindness to others.

#84. Is there a homework subject you dread? Why do you not like getting homework in that subject?

#85. What is your favorite month of the year? Write about why you like it and some of your favorite things to do during that month.

#86. Imagine you are planning a surprise birthday party for someone. How do you keep it a surprise?

#87. Pretend you walked outside to find a sleeping dragon in the grass! Why is the dragon there? Is it a friendly dragon? What do you do? Write about it!

#88. What are you grateful for today and why?

#89. You were on your way to a very important event when you fell into a puddle. Now what?

#90. Have you ever watched a movie and didn’t like how it ended? Write what you think should happen instead.

#91. Can you answer this riddle from Alice in Wonderland ? How is a raven like a writing desk?

#92. Imagine you are the captain of a pirate ship. Write a diary entry for what your day was like.

#93. If you could start any type of business, what kind of business would you start? What types of products or services would you provide?

#94. Write a sequel to one of your favorite fairy tales. For example, what was Goldilocks’s next adventure after she left the bears?

#95. What is something you are afraid of? What helps you to feel less afraid of something? What would you say to a friend who feels scared to help them feel less afraid?

#96. Write a letter to your future self in 20 years.

#97. In addition to basic survival needs such as food, water, air and shelter, what are 3 things you would you need to be happy?

#98. If you could invent a robot of any type who could do anything you imagine, what types of things would you would have the robot to do?

#99. Which do like better? Apples or Oranges? How are they alike? How are they different?

#100. Why did the chicken cross the road? You are a detective and are assigned to the case. How do solve the mystery?

#101. Write instructions for how to make your favorite snack. Be sure you add your favorite tips and suggestions for how to select the best ingredients!

#102. Imagine you borrowed a friend’s favorite lucky pencil to help you pass a math test – but then it snapped in half! How will you ever tell the news to your friend?

#103. Look around the current room you are sitting in and choose 3 random objects that are nearby. Now write a story or poem that includes those three items!

#104. Write a letter to the author of a book you recently read and tell them what you liked most about the book.

#105. Ernest Hemingway is famous for writing a six word story. Can you write a story in just 6 words?

#106. What do you think will be the future for cell phones? Will people still use them in 25 years or will something else take its place?

#107. Do you want to go to college? Why or why not?

#108. Write a story or poem about a kitten who wanders off and gets lost. How does the kitten find its way home?

#109. Currently, it is required by law that kids go to school. Do you think this is a good or bad idea?

#110. If you could invent a new board game, what would it be called? How is it played? What are the rules? What makes it fun to play? Write about it!

#111. Imagine you come home to discover your entire bedroom is covered in ketchup! What on earth happened? What is your reaction? How do you clean everything up?

#112. What is something you learned today?

#113. Would you rather have a goldfish or shark as a pet?

#114. From A-Z: make a list of something for every letter of the alphabet.

#115. Have you ever gone fishing? If you have, did you like it? Why or why not? If you haven’t, do you think you might want to?

#116. What is one of the most important things you do each and every day?

#117. Write a story about Gretchen the Grouch, a girl who is always angry! Will she ever be happy? Why is she so grumpy all of the time?

#118. How do you feel when someone takes something of yours without asking? What is a good way to deal with it when that happens?

#119. Write a poem that starts with the word “if”.

#120. Write a story about a family of rabbits who live in the woods. What are some of the challenges they face?

#121. What clothes do you think are the most comfortable? What kind of clothes do you like to wear the most? What clothes do you NOT like to wear?

#122. Imagine there are no grocery stores and you must get your own food. What are some of the ways you find food? What types of things do you eat?

#123. What are 3 things you can do that are good for the environment?

#124. If you could meet any famous person today, who would you want to meet and why? What questions might you ask them?

#125. A tongue twister is a quick poem where many of the words start with the same letter and are similar in sound. For example, “Peter picked a peck of pickled peppers.” Try writing your own with this fun kids writing prompt!

#126. What is the first thing you think of when you hear or see the word green?

#127. A hero is someone who is admired for their courage and achievements. What do you think makes someone a hero? Who are some of your heroes?

#128. What did you do during summer vacation last year? What do you want to do for summer vacation this year?

#129. Write a story about a super hero dog who saves the day! Who does the dog help and why?

#130. Would you rather live somewhere that is always cold, or somewhere that is always hot? Write about which one you would rather choose.

#131. Have you ever volunteered to help a charity? If so, write about the experience! If not, what are some charities you think you might like to volunteer for?

#132. What does the word courage mean to you?

#133. What makes you unique? What are some things about you that make you an individual?

#134. Have you ever been to a museum? What is your favorite thing to look at on display?

#135. What can you do to set a good example for others to be kind?

#136. A Tall Tale is a story that exaggerates something that actually happened. Write a tall tale about something that recently happened to you.

#137. What is one of your favorite toys that you think you might still want to have and play with when you are 22 years old?

#138. Oh no! Everyone around you is sick with a nasty cold! Write a silly poem about how you try to avoid catching their germs!

#139. Personification is when a non-living object takes on human characteristics. Write a story where you personify a common electronic gadget in your house, such as the Television or toaster.

#140. Write a poem using similes, which is when you say an object is like something else. Here is an example of a simile: “Her eyes were as blue as the sky.”

#141. Have you ever read a book written by Dr. Suess? Write your own “Suess-style” story, complete with rhymes and made up words.

#142. Do you have any siblings? Think about what it might mean to be a good brother or sister and write about it!

#143. Make a list of questions to interview your parents or grandparents about what it was like when they were growing up as a kid. Then, ask them the questions and write about their answers!

#144. You are in charge of writing a new radio show just for kids! What topics will you talk about? What music do you play?

#145. What do you usually eat for breakfast every day? What, in your opinion, is the greatest breakfast food ever created? What makes it so great?

#146. Write a 12 line poem where every line is about a different month of the year.

#147. What is something you look forward to doing the most when you are an adult?

Use these prompts in your classroom!  Get the  ad-free printable version of these prompts  to inspire your students to write! Thank you for your support!

#148. Do you like to try new things? What is something new you have tried recently or would like to try?

#149. Imagine what it might be like to be alive in Egypt when the pyramids were built. Write about what it was like.

#150. A credo is a statement of personal beliefs. Try writing your own credo for things that you believe in and feel are important.

#151. The circus has come to town but they have no place to perform! How do you help the ringmaster find a place to put on a show?

#152. Do you like to act? What are some of your favorite actors or actresses? What do you think makes someone a good actor or actress?

#153. “Practice makes perfect” is a popular saying. What is something you like to practice so you can become better at it? A sport? A musical instrument? A special skill? Do you like to practice?

#154. Write about what it might be like to be water drops freezing and turning into ice.

#155. Do you think it is important to keep your room clean? What do you like about having a clean room?

#156. Imagine your parents are sending you away for a two week summer camp trip. Would you be excited? Why or why not?

#157. What are you currently learning about in history class? Write a fictional story about someone from the past you are learning about.

#158. Many wars have been fought in the past. Instead of going to war, what do you think countries could do to resolve their differences peacefully?

#159. Every year over 8 billion plastic bottles and cans are thrown away. What are some things you can do to help encourage your family and friends to recycle?

#160. Imagine if you were the principal of the school. What might you do differently? What things would you do that are the same? Write about it!

#161. Pretend that one day you are at your neighbor’s house and you notice a strange noise coming from the basement. You go downstairs to investigate to see a large machine running with many lights and buttons. Why is it there?

#162. Write an essay that starts with the line, “Tomorrow, I hope…”

#163. If you could give one thing to every child in the world, what would you want to give them?

#164. Do you have a piggy bank at home? How do you earn money to add to your savings?

#165. What qualities make a house a home? What are 3 things you think every house should have?

#166. Would you rather go scuba diving or rock climbing? Write about which one you think you would like to do more and why.

#167. Do you think it is a good idea for kids to write a daily journal? What are some of the benefits of writing every day?

#168. Do you like watching fireworks or are they too noisy? Write about a time when you saw fireworks in the sky.

#169. Oh no! Your friend has turned into a statue! How did this happen? What do you do? Does your friend ever turn back into a person again?

#170. If you could be any movie character, who would you be and why?

#171. A mysterious message appears in code on your computer screen. What could it mean?

#172. If you could go to work with one of your parents for a day, what do you think the day would be like? What types of things do your parents do at work all day long?

#173. Imagine you are the President and you are creating a new national holiday. What is your holiday about? How is it celebrated? What day of the year do you celebrate? Write about it!

#174. You won a never-ending lifetime supply of spaghetti noodles! What will you do with all of these noodles?

#175. Would you rather be a bunny rabbit or a hawk? Why did you choose the one you chose?

#176. Your teacher has been acting mysterious lately. After school one day, you notice a weird green light shining through underneath the door of your classroom. What do you do? What is happening with your teacher?

#177. Write an article about tips for how kids can be more organized and study well for tests.

#178. Look at any product in your house and read the ingredients labels. Research what each ingredient is. Do you think these ingredients are good or bad for people?

#179. If you were a doctor, what do you think would be the most important part of your job every day?

#180. The school librarian needs your help! A truck just arrived with 2,000 books and she can’t fit all the books onto the shelves! What do you do? How do you find a place to put all these books?

#181. Do you think it would be fun to plant a garden? What types of plants would you want to grow? Write about your garden ideas.

#182. What is a sport or activity you would like to try playing for the first time?

#183. Do you think kids should be allowed to do the same things as adults? What things do you think kids should be able to do that only grown-ups can?

#184. Imagine you and your parents switch places for a day. Your parents are the kids and you are now in charge! What would you do?

#185. Write a get-well letter to someone who has been sick. What can you say to make them feel better?

#186. If you could visit any planet in the solar system, which planet would you like to visit the most and why? Write about what it might be like.

#187. Have you ever been to a farm? What did you like about it? If you haven’t been to a farm, do you think you might like to visit one? Why or why not?

#188. The mayor of the city has a big problem and needs your help! What is the problem and how will you solve it?

#189. Pretend your little sister ate carrots for dinner and the next morning woke up with rabbit ears!  How did this happen? What do you do? Will she be a rabbit forever?

#190. Imagine you wake up in the morning to find out you get to relive any day of your life again for the whole day. What day would you want to experience again and why?

#191. Do you think you might like to be a firefighter? Why or why not?

#192. You are a lawyer and your client has been accused of stealing a car. How do you convince the jury your client is innocent?

#193. Think of the four elements: fire, air, earth, and water. Which of these four elements do you like the best?

#194. What would you do if you could be invisible for a whole day? Do you think you would enjoy it or be glad to be back to normal the next day? Write about it!

#195. Imagine you are a meteorologist and people are starting to get angry that your weather predictions are always wrong. What do you do?

#196. If you could create any law, what would it be? Why do you think the law is an important one to have?

#197. You are going incognito and need to hide to your identity so you aren’t recognized or discovered while you walk through the city. What type of disguise do you wear?

#198. Write a persuasive letter to your parents explaining why you should get a new pet. Make sure you provide a convincing argument they won’t be able to refuse!

#199. Your friend wants to do something dangerous. What should you do?

#200. How do you think the world would be different if there were no oceans?

#201. What do you do when someone disagrees with your opinions? Is there a better way to handle conflicting opinions?

#202. What do you think you as a kid could do to help encourage more people to read?

#203. Do you have a good luck charm? What makes this item lucky? When do you use it? How do you use it?

#204. What is at the end of a rainbow? Imagine you follow a rainbow to the end. What do you discover? Is it a pot of gold, or something else?

Use these prompts in your classroom!  Get the  ad-free printable version of these prompts  to inspire your students to write! Thank you for your support!

#205. What do you think the consequences should be for someone who is caught cheating on a test at school?

#206. Imagine you are riding your bike one day when you encounter an older kid who wants to steal your bike. What do you do?

#207. You are the lead singer and star of a famous rock and roll band, but there is one problem – your drummer is jealous of your fame! How do you solve this situation?

#208. If you could help a group of kids in any part of the world, what kids would you want to help the most and why? What are some things you think would help these kids?

#209. Everyone knows the house on the end of the street is haunted. What are some of the strange things that happen there? Why is the house haunted?

#210. You notice at school one day there is a door to a secret passage next to the janitor’s closet and decide to explore. Where does it lead? Why is it there? Do you go alone or bring a friend along?

#211. A bucket list is a list of things you want to accomplish in your lifetime. What are 5 things on your bucket list?

#212. Imagine the perfect treehouse or clubhouse for you and all of your friends as a place to hang out. Describe what it is like inside.

#213. Do you get bored easily? Make a list of things you can do whenever you feel like you are bored and there is nothing fun to do!

#214. Now vs. Then: Think about how today is different from one year ago. How have you changed? What things in your life are different?

#215. Write your autobiography about your life.

#216. It’s a heat wave! What do you do when the weather is hot? What are some of your favorite ways to stay cool?

#217. What are three important safety tips every kid should know to stay safe?

#218. What genre of books do you like to read the most? Write about the characteristics of the genre and list some of your favorite books as examples.

#219. Holiday Traditions: How does your family celebrate the different holidays and events? What are some traditions you do each and every year?

#220. Imagine one day in science class a science experiment goes terribly wrong and now you and all of your classmates have superpowers! What are your superpowers and what do you do with them?

#221. Who is favorite teacher? Why are they your favorite?

#222. You are baking a cake, but you accidentally put salt in the cake instead of sugar. Nobody will eat it! How do you feel? What will you do next time?

#223. Do you think it is important to have good table manners? What do you think some good manners to practice might be?

#224. Many schools no longer teach cursive handwriting. Do you think this is a good or bad thing? Do you know how to write cursive handwriting? Would you like to learn if you haven’t?

#225. If you were the owner of a theme park, what types of rides and attractions would have? Describe what they would be like and why people would want to visit your park.

#226. Your parents give you $100 to spend at the grocery store. What do you buy and why?

#227. Some people who are alive today grew up without computers or video games. What would you do if you didn’t have a computer or video games? How would life be different?

#228. You walk into your living room and discover there is a giant elephant standing there. How did the elephant get there? What do you do about it? How do you explain the elephant in the living room to your parents?

#229. Have you ever had a weird dream? What happened in the dream? What do you think it means?

#230. Do you like to draw or paint? Write a story inspired by a painting, doodle, or sketch.

#231. You are being sent on a mission to outer space to live in a space station for 5 years. What supplies do you pack and why?

#232. What is the scariest creature alive on earth? Describe in detail what makes it so horrifying.

#233. What do you think your pet might say if they could talk to you?

#234. Imagine your school is putting on a talent show. What act will you perform? What other acts will be in the show?

#235. If you could breathe under water, what would you do?

#236. What time of day do you think school should start? Write a convincing argument on why or why not the time of day school starts should change.

#237. If you were to start your own YouTube video channel, what would the videos on your channel be about?

#238. Do you like to cook? What are some things you like to make and eat?

#239. Your school is having a field day and you are in charge of planning the activities and games. What types of activities and games would you plan for the event?

#240. If you had a remote control drone that takes video of everything it sees from the sky and you could take it anywhere, what would you film? For example, the inside of a volcano or soar it over the plains of Africa.

#241. The Bermuda Triangle is an area of the ocean where many ships and planes have gone missing. Why do you think this could be? Write a story about what it might be like to travel there.

#242. There are 7 great wonders of the world – which one do you think is the most wonderful?

#243. If you could speak any foreign language fluently, which one would you like to speak and why?

#244. You are inventing a new flavor of ice cream! What is the new flavor called and what ingredients do you need to make it?

#245. Would you rather go to a baseball game or read a good book? What reasons do you have for your choice?

#246. You walk outside to get your mail and your mailbox starts talking to you! What does your mailbox have to say?

#247. Imagine you are a famous person. What are you most famous for? What is it like to be famous?

#248. What do you think would be the most fun job in the world to have? Give examples of why you think it would be a fun job to have.

#249. Write a poem about an object that is shiny and dazzling.

#250. Do you like to watch the Olympics? Why or why not? If yes, what is your favorite Olympic sport?

#251. What kind of car do you want to drive when you are older? Do you think learning to drive will be easy or hard?

#252. What do you think would make for a great gift to give someone on their birthday?

#253. Describe a time when you needed help and someone helped you. What did they help you with and how did it make you feel?

#254. If you could be any type of fruit or vegetable, what would you be and why?

Love these prompts?  Get the  ad-free printable version of these prompts  to use at home or in the classroom!

#255. Do you think it is more important to have a good imagination or have all the facts proven?

#256. Do you have a favorite aunt, uncle, or another relative? Write a story about their life and why you like to be with them.

#257. Think of a time you laughed really, really hard. What was so funny? Why were you laughing? Write about it!

#258. Write a poem about an emotion. For example: happy, sad, angry, embarrassed, guilty.

#259. Do you ever have a hard time falling asleep? What are some things that help you feel sleepy?

#260. If you could drive a car, where would you drive and why?

#261. Imagine you are trading places with your friend for a day. What will it be like to be at their house? What will your friend think while they are at your house? Write about it!

#262. If you could break a world record, what would it be? What do you think would be necessary to be able to break the world record?

#263. Imagine you live in Colonial times. What would it be like to grow up as a kid in Colonial America?

#264. You are building a new city. What is the name of your city? What is the weather like? What buildings will you build?

#265. What do you think it would be like to work as a sailor on big ship in the ocean each day?

#266. Imagine you are the teacher for the day. What types of activities do you make the students in the class do?

#267. How would you feel if your parents told you that you would be getting a new baby brother or sister? Write about it!

#268. Do you know any good jokes? What are some of your favorite jokes? What makes them funny? Do you think you could write your own?

#269. Imagine you are floating down a river on a raft. What types of things can you see from the river that you normally wouldn’t see from the land?

#270. You want to start a new hobby collecting something. What kinds of things would you collect and why?

#271. Your mom announces she is having a yard sale. Would you let her sell any of your things? Why or why not?

#272. Imagine you walk out your front door one morning and it is raining popcorn! What do you do?

#273.  You are camping in the woods one night and hear a scary noise. What do you do? What might be the cause?

#274. What do you think might make kids really happy to go to school? What are some things you think schools should do so that it could be more fun?

#275. Today’s lunch at the cafeteria was unusually horrible. You are a detective on the case to investigate. What do you think is the cause?

#276. If you had a tree that grows money, what would you do?

#277. What would you do if you had a unicorn as a pet?

#278. Would you rather go to the zoo or go to the aviary? Which one would you pick and why?

#279. What are some safety tips you should follow when riding a bike?

#280. You are designing the cover of a magazine. What are some of the headlines on the cover?

#281. Are you afraid of the dark? Why or why not?

#282. If you could learn to play any type of musical instrument, which one would you like to learn how to play and why?

#283. Imagine you are playing a sport that involves a ball, such as soccer, baseball or kickball. What would it be like if the ball could talk?

#284. You come home to discover a friendly alien has been living in your closet. What do you do? Why is there an alien in your closet?

#285. Is there something you are afraid of that you wish you weren’t afraid of? Write about it.

#286. Write about the best party you’ve ever been to. What made the day fun and special?

#287. What makes you feel loved and cared about? What are some ways people can show you that they love and care about you?

#288. There is a kite flying competition coming up and you are going to design your own kite. What will your kite look like? What colors will it be? Will it have any certain shape?

#289. You are given the challenge to drop an egg on the floor – without it breaking! What are some things you might try to make sure the egg won’t break?

#290. What are some of the things you can do every day to stay healthy?

#291. Do you think grown-ups are boring? Why do you think they are so boring all of the time? What is something fun that boring grown-ups could do instead of being so boring?

#292. Write a lyrical poem or song about what kids do while they are at school all day long.

#293. What are the first things you like to do when you are done with school each day? What are some of the activities you like when you are not at school?

#294. Imagine dinosaurs were still alive today. How do you think our lives would be different?

#295. Would you rather visit a volcano or a desert? Which one would you choose and why?

#296. Is there a sound you think is annoying? What types of sounds drive you crazy? Write about them!

#297. What do you think it would be like to be the size of an ant for a day? What types of things would you do?

#298. Imagine one of your stuffed animals comes to life and starts talking to you. What types of things will you talk about? What will you do?

#299. What makes you feel happiest? Write about the things in life that make you feel happy!

#300. Imagine there is no gravity. What kind of things would you do you for fun? How would some of the things you already do for fun be different?

Buy the Printable Cards!  We will always have this list of 300 kids writing prompts available for free, but I’m very excited to now also offer an  ad-free printable version of these prompts  in my online Etsy shop. Thank you for your support!

Parents and teachers, I hope you enjoyed these 300 writing prompts for kids and that you will use them to inspire your children’s creative imaginations.

These prompts of course can be used in a number of different ways and can be adapted for a variety of different styles of writing !

What do you think? Do you think these are good conversation and story starters for kids? Do you have any ideas for writing prompts you would like to share?

And of course, if you’d like to make it super fun and easy to use these prompts at home or in your classroom, be sure to get our ad-free printable version of these kids writing prompt cards now available in my Etsy shop.

We’d love to hear your thoughts on different creative writing ideas and topics for kids to write about! Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Chelle Stein wrote her first embarrassingly bad novel at the age of 14 and hasn't stopped writing since. As the founder of ThinkWritten, she enjoys encouraging writers and creatives of all types.

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Sat / act prep online guides and tips, 57 fun creative writing prompts for kids.

General Education

With many kids learning from home due to Covid-19, easy-to-organize educational activities for students are more important than ever. Writing helps improve students' creativity, communication skills, and ability to focus, among other benefits.

Whether you're a teacher, a parent now homeschooling, or a student looking for something new and interesting to write about, these writing prompts are for you. We've collected 57 writing prompts for students of various ages, from elementary school through high school. From spooky story writing prompts to debating how to improve schools, this article has writing prompts that will appeal to all students.

Tips for Using These Writing Prompts

What's the best way to use these creative writing prompts for kids? It depends on a lot of factors, including the student's age, current schooling structure, and their own interests and abilities. Here are some suggestions:

Use as a daily writing prompts exercise. You can assign one of these prompts at the beginning or end of the school day, as a way to prepare for the rest of the day or unwind after schoolwork.

Set up a quiet space to write. Many people have a hard enough time writing even with no distractions, and it can be nearly impossible to respond thoughtfully to a prompt if there's a television on, people talking, etc. Having a distraction-free space can help your student focus on the work at hand and produce their best writing.

Suggest an estimated writing length. Most of these journal writing prompts are designed to be answered both briefly or much more in depth. By giving a number of words/pages to aim for, you'll give your student a better idea of how detailed their response should be.

Consider having students handwrite their responses. Writing by hand can help students be more thoughtful about their responses because they'll typically write slower than they can type. It can also help students improve their handwriting skills.

57 Fun Writing Prompts for Kids

Below are over 50 journal topics for kids, organized into three categories: narrative writing prompts, fiction/creative writing prompts, and argumentative writing prompts for kids.

Narrative Writing Prompts for Kids

#1: What is your favorite holiday or holiday tradition?

#2: If you could go back in time for one day, which time period would you choose?

#3: If you could learn one thing about your future, what would it be? Or, if you prefer not to know anything, why would you make that choice?

#4: Pretend you're writing an autobiography and need to create a table of contents. What would you name each chapter?

#5: What is your earliest memory? Write every detail you can remember about it.

#6: If you had the power to change one thing about school, what would you change and why?

#7: Describe three goals you have for yourself.

#8: Imagine you are creating your dream restaurant. What kind of food would you serve, what would the menu look like, and how would the restaurant be decorated?

#9: If you could build your dream house, what would it look like? What rooms would it have? What would the yard be like?

#10: What is the bravest thing you've done in your life? Why did you make the choice you did? How did you feel during and after the situation?

#11: What is the funniest thing you've ever seen?

#12: What is your dream job?

#13: What is one thing you're really good at?

#14: Pretend you are a professional reviewer and write a review of a book you recently read or a TV show/movie you recently watched. How many stars would you give it? What did you like about it, and what didn't you like?

#15: Write about a time you did something kind for someone else. What did you do, how did it make you feel, and how did it make the person you helped feel?

#16: Imagine your life in ten years. What do you think you will be like? What will you be doing?

#17: Write about the craziest dream you've ever had.

#18: What would your perfect weekend look like? What things would you do? Who would you see? What would you eat?

#19: Do you like your name? If so, why? If not, what would you change it to?

#20: Make a list of your favorite activities for each season.

#21: Write about your least favorite chore. What don't you like about it? What would you invent to make the chore easier?   

#22: What three pieces of advice would you give to your younger self?

#23: If you could be famous for anything, what would it be? 

#24: If you could create a new law, what would it be? Do you think it would be hard to enforce?

#25: Write about a time you think one or both of your parents made a mistake. What did they do, and what do you think they should have done? Did they admit their mistake?

#26: How would your best friend describe you? How would you describe your best friend? (You can also have your friend do this prompt and read each other's responses.)

Fiction and Creative Writing Prompts for Kids

#27: Write a story about a character taking a submarine ride under the sea. What sort of things do you think they would see there? Would they be afraid or excited?

#28: Write a new chapter for your favorite book or new scene for your favorite movie. Which characters would be there, and what would they be doing?

#29: Invent a new pet. What would it look like, and what would you call it? What would it eat, and how would you care for it?

#30: Start a story with a lyric from a song.

#31: Pick something nearby (toy, pet, flower, etc.) and write a haiku about it. Bonus points if it rhymes!

#32: Write a story about a character who gets lost in the woods and discovers a mysterious person there.

#33: Write your own silly internet quiz.

#34: Choose an object in the house and describe it in as much detail as you can without saying what it is. Then, have a parent or sibling try to guess what you described.

#35: Write a scary story that includes: a spooky pumpkin patch, a vampire afraid of garlic, and a black cat.

#36: Do some people watching out your window. Write a story using one or more of them as the characters. Make up backstories and imagine what they're doing.

#37: Write a story about what you think your parents were like when they were younger.

#38: Your character survives a shipwreck and washes up on a mysterious island. What is on the island and how does (s)he get back home?

#39: Imagine you can choose to be any animal for a day. Which animal would you choose? What would you do?

#40: Write a poem about your favorite season.

#41: Imagine you are chosen for the first mission to Mars. What would you bring with you, and what do you think exploring the planet would be like?

#42: Write a sympathetic story from the point of view of the "bad guy." (Think fractured fairy tales like Wicked or The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs! , although the story doesn't have to be a fairy tale.)

#43: Imagine your pet gets a day to roam free before returning home. Where would it go, and what would it see?

#44: If you could have dinner with any three people (real or fictional), who would you choose and what would you talk about? What would you eat?

#45: Look through photographs, drawings, and paintings. Choose one and write a story about it, imagining where it is and the types of people/things there.

#46: Imagine aliens landed on earth. What would they look like, and how would they act? Would they be friendly or not?

Argumentative Writing Prompts for Kids

#47: Are there dangers of teenagers spending too much time on social media?

#48: Does homework actually help students learn?

#49: Should students doing e-learning this year get letter grades, pass/fail, or no grades?

#50: At what age should children get their own cell phone?

#51: Which is best: ebooks, audiobooks, or traditional print books?

#52: What's more important, PE classes or art classes?

#53: Which celebrity is the best role model for kids? Which is the worst?

#54: Should parents or teachers be able to ban certain books from schools?

#55: Which season is the best?

#56: Should students recite the Pledge of Allegiance in school?

#57: Should students go to school year-round and have shorter breaks throughout the year rather than one long summer vacation?

What's Next?

Also looking for science activities for kids?  Check out our 37 science experiments for kids that you can do at home!

Want to make some slime? We tell you how to make slimes without borax and without glue as well as how to craft the ultimate super slime .

Pipe cleaners can provide endless craft ideas. Read our guide for simple instructions for 31 fun pipe cleaner crafts for kids.

Christine graduated from Michigan State University with degrees in Environmental Biology and Geography and received her Master's from Duke University. In high school she scored in the 99th percentile on the SAT and was named a National Merit Finalist. She has taught English and biology in several countries.

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11+ creative writing guide with 50 example topics and prompts

by Hayley | Nov 17, 2022 | Exams , Writing | 0 comments

The 11+ exam is a school entrance exam taken in the academic year that a child in the UK turns eleven.

These exams are highly competitive, with multiple students battling for each school place awarded.

The 11 plus exam isn’t ‘one thing’, it varies in its structure and composition across the country. A creative writing task is included in nearly all of the 11 plus exams, and parents are often confused about what’s being tested.

Don’t be fooled into thinking that the plot of your child’s writing task is important. It is not.

The real aim of the 11+ creative writing task is to showcase your child’s writing skills and techniques.

And that’s why preparation is so important.

This guide begins by answering all the FAQs that parents have about the 11+ creative writing task.

At the end of the article I give my best tips & strategies for preparing your child for the 11+ creative writing task , along with 50 fiction and non-fiction creative writing prompts from past papers you can use to help your child prepare. You’ll also want to check out my 11+ reading list , because great readers turn into great writers.

Do all 11+ exams include a writing task?

Not every 11+ exam includes a short story component, but many do. Usually 3 to 5 different prompts are given for the child to choose between and they are not always ‘creative’ (fiction) pieces. One or more non-fiction options might be given for children who prefer writing non-fiction to fiction.

Timings and marking vary from test to test. For example, the Kent 11+ Test gives students 10 minutes for planning followed by 30 minutes for writing. The Medway 11+ Test gives 60 minutes for writing with ‘space allowed’ on the answer booklet for planning.

Tasks vary too. In the Kent Test a handful of stimuli are given, whereas 11+ students in Essex are asked to produce two individually set paragraphs. The Consortium of Selective Schools in Essex (CCSE) includes 2 creative writing paragraphs inside a 60-minute English exam.

Throughout the UK each 11+ exam has a different set of timings and papers based around the same themes. Before launching into any exam preparation it is essential to know the content and timing of your child’s particular writing task.

However varied and different these writing tasks might seem, there is one key element that binds them.

The mark scheme.

Although we can lean on previous examples to assess how likely a short story or a non-fiction tasks will be set, it would be naïve to rely completely on the content of past papers. Contemporary 11+ exams are designed to be ‘tutor-proof’ – meaning that the exam boards like to be unpredictable.

In my online writing club for kids , we teach a different task each week (following a spiral learning structure based on 10 set tasks). One task per week is perfected as the student moves through the programme of content, and one-to-one expert feedback ensures progression. This equips our writing club members to ‘write effectively for a range of purposes’ as stated in the English schools’ teacher assessment framework.

This approach ensures that students approaching a highly competitive entrance exam will be confident of the mark scheme (and able to meet its demands) for any task set.

Will my child have a choice of prompts to write from or do they have to respond to a single prompt, without a choice?

This varies. In the Kent Test there are usually 5 options given. The purpose is to gather a writing sample from each child in case of a headteacher appeal. A range of options should allow every child to showcase what they can do.

In Essex, two prescriptive paragraphs are set as part of an hour-long English paper that includes comprehension and vocabulary work. In Essex, there is no option to choose the subject matter.

The Medway Test just offers a single prompt for a whole hour of writing. Sometimes it is a creative piece. Recently it was a marketing leaflet.

The framework for teaching writing in English schools demands that in order to ‘exceed expectations’ or better, achieve ‘greater depth’, students need to be confident writing for a multitude of different purposes.

In what circumstances is a child’s creative writing task assessed?

In Essex (east of the UK) the two prescriptive writing tasks are found inside the English exam paper. They are integral to the exam and are assessed as part of this.

In Medway (east Kent in the South East) the writing task is marked and given a raw score. This is then adjusted for age and double counted. Thus, the paper is crucial to a pass.

In the west of the county of Kent there is a different system. The Kent Test has a writing task that is only marked in appeal cases. If a child dips below the passmark their school is allowed to put together a ‘headteacher’s appeal’. At this point – before the score is communicated to the parent (and probably under cover of darkness) the writing sample is pulled out of a drawer and assessed.

I’ve been running 11+ tutor clubs for years. Usually about 1% of my students passed at headteacher’s appeal.

Since starting the writing club, however, the number of students passing at appeal has gone up considerably. In recent years it’s been more like 5% of students passing on the strength of their writing sample.

What are the examiners looking for when they’re marking a student’s creative writing?

In England, the government has set out a framework for marking creative writing. There are specific ‘pupil can’ statements to assess whether a student is ‘working towards the expected standard,’ ‘working at the expected standard’ or ‘working at greater depth’.

Members of the headteacher panel assessing the writing task are given a considerable number of samples to assess at one time. These expert teachers have a clear understanding of the framework for marking, but will not be considering or discussing every detail of the writing sample as you might expect.

Schools are provided with a report after the samples have been assessed. This is very brief indeed. Often it will simply say ‘lack of precise vocabulary’ or ‘confused paragraphing.’

So there is no mark scheme as such. They won’t be totting up your child’s score to see if they have reached a given target. They are on the panel because of their experience, and they have a short time to make an instant judgement.

Does handwriting matter?

Handwriting is assessed in primary schools. Thus it is an element of the assessment framework the panel uses as a basis for their decision.

If the exam is very soon, then don’t worry if your child is not producing immaculate, cursive handwriting. The focus should simply be on making it well-formed and legible. Every element of the assessment framework does not need to be met and legible writing will allow the panel to read the content with ease.

Improve presentation quickly by offering a smooth rollerball pen instead of a pencil. Focus on fixing individual letters and praising your child for any hint of effort. The two samples below are from the same boy a few months apart. Small changes have transformed the look and feel:

Sample 1: First piece of work when joining the writing club

Sample 2: This is the same boy’s improved presentation and content

How long should the short story be.

First, it is not a short story as such—it is a writing sample. Your child needs to showcase their skills but there are no extra marks for finishing (or marks deducted for a half-finished piece).

For a half hour task, you should prepare your child to produce up to 4 paragraphs of beautifully crafted work. Correct spelling and proper English grammar is just the beginning. Each paragraph should have a different purpose to showcase the breadth and depth of their ability. A longer – 60 minute – task might have 5 paragraphs but rushing is to be discouraged. Considered and interesting paragraphs are so valuable, a shorter piece would be scored more highly than a rushed and dull longer piece.

I speak from experience. A while ago now I was a marker for Key Stage 2 English SATs Papers (taken in Year 6 at 11 years old). Hundreds of scripts were deposited on my doorstep each morning by DHL. There was so much work for me to get through that I came to dread long, rambling creative pieces. Some children can write pages and pages of repetitive nothingness. Ever since then, I have looked for crafted quality and am wary of children judging their own success by the number of lines competed.

Take a look at the piece of writing below. It’s an excellent example of a well-crafted piece.

Each paragraph is short, but the writer is skilful.

He used rich and precisely chosen vocabulary, he’s broken the text into natural paragraphs, and in the second paragraph he is beginning to vary his sentence openings. There is a sense of control to the sentences – the sentence structure varies with shorter and longer examples to manage tension. It is exciting to read, with a clear awareness of his audience. Punctuation is accurate and appropriate.

11+ creative writing example story

How important is it to revise for a creative writing task.

It is important.

Every student should go into their 11+ writing task with a clear paragraph plan secured. As each paragraph has a separate purpose – to showcase a specific skill – the plan should reflect this. Built into the plan is a means of flexing it, to alter the order of the paragraphs if the task demands it. There’s no point having a Beginning – Middle – End approach, as there’s nothing useful there to guide the student to the mark scheme.

Beyond this, my own students have created 3 – 5 stories that fit the same tight plan. However, the setting, mood and action are all completely different. This way a bank of rich vocabulary has already been explored and a technique or two of their own that fits the piece beautifully. These can be drawn upon on the day to boost confidence and give a greater sense of depth and consideration to their timed sample.

Preparation, rather than revision in its classic form, is the best approach. Over time, even weeks or months before the exam itself, contrasting stories are written, improved upon, typed up and then tweaked further as better ideas come to mind. Each of these meets the demands of the mark scheme (paragraphing, varied sentence openings, rich vocabulary choices, considered imagery, punctuation to enhance meaning, development of mood etc).

To ensure your child can write confidently at and above the level expected of them, drop them into my weekly weekly online writing club for the 11+ age group . The club marking will transform their writing, and quickly.

What is the relationship between the English paper and the creative writing task?

Writing is usually marked separately from any comprehension or grammar exercises in your child’s particular 11+ exam. Each exam board (by area/school) adapts the arrangement to suit their needs. Some have a separate writing test, others build it in as an element of their English paper (usually alongside a comprehension, punctuation and spelling exercise).

Although there is no creative writing task in the ISEB Common Pre-test, those who are not offered an immediate place at their chosen English public school are often invited back to complete a writing task at a later date. Our ISEB Common Pre-test students join the writing club in the months before the exam, first to tidy up the detail and second to extend the content.

What if my child has a specific learning difficulty (dyslexia, ADD/ADHD, ASD)?

Most exam boards pride themselves on their inclusivity. They will expect you to have a formal report from a qualified professional at the point of registration for the test. This needs to be in place and the recommendations will be considered by a panel. If your child needs extra arrangements on the day they may be offered (it isn’t always the case). More importantly, if they drop below a pass on one or more papers you will have a strong case for appeal.

Children with a specific learning difficulty often struggle with low confidence in their work and low self-esteem. The preparations set out above, and a kids writing club membership will allow them to go into the exam feeling positive and empowered. If they don’t achieve a pass at first, the writing sample will add weight to their appeal.

Tips and strategies for writing a high-scoring creative writing paper

• Read widely for pleasure. Read aloud to your child if they are reluctant.
• Create a strong paragraph plan where each paragraph has a distinct purpose.
• Using the list of example questions below, discuss how each could be written in the form of your paragraph plan.
• Write 3-5 stories with contrasting settings and action – each one must follow your paragraph plan. Try to include examples of literary devices and figurative language (metaphor, simile) but avoid clichés.
• Tidy up your presentation. Write with a good rollerball pen on A4 lined paper with a printed margin. Cross out with a single horizontal line and banish doodling or scribbles.
• Join the writing club for a 20-minute Zoom task per week with no finishing off or homework. An expert English teacher will mark the work personally on video every Friday and your child’s writing will be quickly transformed.

Pressed for time? Here’s a paragraph plan to follow.

At Griffin Teaching we have an online writing club for students preparing for the 11 plus creative writing task . We’ve seen first-hand what a difference just one or two months of weekly practice can make.

That said, we know that a lot of people reading this page are up against a hard deadline with an 11+ exam date fast approaching.

If that’s you (or your child), what you need is a paragraph plan.

Here’s one tried-and-true paragraph plan that we teach in our clubs. Use this as you work your way through some of the example prompts below.

11+ creative writing paragraph plan

Paragraph 1—description.

Imagine standing in the location and describe what is above the main character, what is below their feet, what is to their left and right, and what is in the distance. Try to integrate frontend adverbials into this paragraph (frontend adverbials are words or phrases used at the beginning of a sentence to describe what follows—e.g. When the fog lifted, he saw… )

Paragraph 2—Conversation

Create two characters who have different roles (e.g. site manager and student, dog walker and lost man) and write a short dialogue between them. Use what we call the “sandwich layout,” where the first person says something and you describe what they are doing while they are saying it. Add in further descriptions (perhaps of the person’s clothing or expression) before starting a new line where the second character gives a simple answer and you provide details about what the second character is doing as they speak.

Paragraph 3—Change the mood

Write three to four sentences that change the mood of the writing sample from light to gloomy or foreboding. You could write about a change in the weather or a change in the lighting of the scene. Another approach is to mention how a character reacts to the change in mood, for example by pulling their coat collar up to their ears.

Paragraph 4—Shock your reader

A classic approach is to have your character die unexpectedly in the final sentence. Or maybe the ceiling falls?

11+ creative writing questions from real papers—fictional prompts

• The day the storm came
• The day the weather changed
• The snowstorm
• The rainy day
• A sunny day out
• A foggy (or misty) day
• A day trip to remember
• The first day
• The day everything changed
• The mountain
• The hillside
• The old house
• The balloon
• The old man
• The accident
• The unfamiliar sound
• A weekend away
• Moving house
• A family celebration
• An event you remember from when you were young
• An animal attack
• The school playground at night
• The lift pinged and the door opened. I could not believe what was inside…
• “Run!” he shouted as he thundered across the sand…
• It was getting late as I dug in my pocket for the key to the door. “Hurry up!” she shouted from inside.
• I know our back garden very well, but I was surprised how different it looked at midnight…
• The red button on the wall has a sign on it saying, ‘DO NOT TOUCH.’ My little sister leant forward and hit it hard with her hand. What happened next?
• Digging down into the soft earth, the spade hit something metal…
• Write a story which features the stopping of time.
• Write a story which features an unusual method of transport.
• The cry in the woods
• Write a story which features an escape

11+ creative writing questions from real papers—non-fiction prompts

• Write a thank you letter for a present you didn’t want.
• You are about to interview someone for a job. Write a list of questions you would like to ask the applicant.
• Write a letter to complain about the uniform at your school.
• Write a leaflet to advertise your home town.
• Write a thank you letter for a holiday you didn’t enjoy.
• Write a letter of complaint to the vet after an unfortunate incident in the waiting room.
• Write a set of instructions explaining how to make toast.
• Describe the room you are in.
• Describe a person who is important to you.
• Describe your pet or an animal you know well.

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Creative writing techniques for kids: a step-by-step guide to writing a story

The way literacy is taught in primary schools has changed radically in the last couple of decades; when I was at school in the 80s we copied from blackboards, had whole hours of handwriting practice and sweated over spellings without any formal teaching of phonics whatsoever. While I think the more structured approach to literacy teaching we see in classrooms today makes learning more fun and accessible, my one worry is that there’s little time left for writing creatively.

When I was at school I adored writing stories – even stories with chapters and illustrations. I know my author brother did too – we found some of his old stories a few years back, and I felt so pleased he’d had the time to write these endless pages of action, adventure, characterisation and twisting plotlines.

As a primary teacher I ensured I would have a week each term when, during literacy sessions, we would focus solely on creating stories. I wasn’t deviating from the curriculum – far from it. During this week children would be consolidating their learning of phonics and  be ‘writing for purpose’, considering carefully the aspects of story and who their audience might be.

It may very well be that your children write stories at home regardless of whether they’re required to for school, because most children have a seemingly natural urge to want to do so from time to time. This is just a little guidance on how you can support them and encourage a more structured approach to their story writing.

Plot planning

Firstly, ask your child where the story is going to take place . It could be somewhere fictional or real, it could be a planet, a country, a town or a house – anywhere! 

Then, ask when the story is taking place – now? In the future? In the past? 

Finally ask what they think is going to happen . Remember that this doesn’t have to be accurate and they don’t have to stick to what they say; many of the best writers say that their plots develop organically as they write. If they do have a firm idea of where they want to go with the plot, though, they can create an outline by completing a story planner, which could look something like this:  

• And finally….

Download a FREE Creative Writing toolkit!

• KS1 & KS2 workbooks
• Bursting with fill-in prompt sheets and inspiring ideas
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Characterisation

Ask your child who is going to be in the story. How do they want their readers to feel about each character? Again, they may want to jot some ideas down. You could make a table for them to help them organise their thoughts, with these headings:  

• Name of character
• Relationship to other characters
• What he/she looks like

Story language

Ask your child to think of some fabulous words to use in their story writing . They might be long words or simple ones, or they might be great descriptive words or words that help create pace and tension. Encourage them to jot these down and refer to the list as they write their story.

Story starters

All writers know that you’ve got to capture the attention of your readers right from the start; you want to make them desperate to read on. Ask your child to think of some good story openers that’ll entice people to find out more. Here are a few examples:

First sentences that are mysterious… Molly had no sense of the day that lay ahead.

Story starters that use language tricks like alliteration… It was damp, dark and dreadfully dusty when Molly entered the house.

Story openers that create tension… Molly could hear her heart beating faster than ever before. Could this really be happening?

Stories that go straight into dialogue… “But I don’t want to go to school, Mummy,” groaned Molly.

Encourage your child to look at some of the books they like to read and see how they begin in order to offer inspiration.

Get writing!

Once they’ve got all of these ideas in place, they can start writing. They could do a draft in the first instance and then a neat, polished version later. They may wish to write in short chapters, use illustrations, or make their own book to write in – let them use their imagination and creativity when it comes to presentation, and make sure you show how much you value the end product by keeping it to read again with the other books in your house.

If your child finds writing a story a little daunting, start with something small from our list of 9 fun writing projects to do with your children .

We also recommend the free art and creative writing challenges on the Night Zookeeper website ; your child will be contributing to a co-created animated television show.

You could also try a great story-making app and get your child writing fiction on their tablet!

Plus, find out how to support storytelling skills for children in EYFS , KS1 , KS2 and KS3 to get them thinking about story elements, plot and character development.

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Eleven Ways to Use The Creative Writing Playbook with Your Kids This Summer

This post may contain affiliate links.

With over 110 opportunities for writing , drawing, doodling, and cartooning, The Creative Writing Playbook ( it’s not a workbook, it’s a play book!) has a little something for everyone. Firm fans of creative writing will pore over the writing tips and tricks and tackle page after page. And beginners might spend more time coloring the delightful Creativity Creature and Cleo, and then picking and choosing which activities to complete.

Equally informative, interactive, engaging, and inspiring, The Creative Writing Playbook is ready and waiting to help fill those long summer days and keep boredom at bay with a big dose of creativity! Read on for eleven ways you can use The Creative Writing Playbook with your kids this summer.

1. Start off the Summer with a Present

If a little splurge is in your budget, encourage summer creativity by gifting your child a copy of The Creative Writing Playbook , along with a blank or lined notebook, some gel pens, colored pencils, or markers. Ready, set, create!

2. Participate in the BIG Reading Challenge 

Check out the genre reading challenge found on page 145…and head to the library to help your child try out new genres and return to old favorites. Better yet, pick out books that are new to you, too, and stretch yourself right along with your child. After all, the best way parents can help kids become readers is by showing that they prioritize reading for themselves, too. How many books can you both read before the end of the summer ?

3. Borrow a Baby Naming Book

While you’re at the library, pick up a baby naming book. Your child can use it to help pick out names for pages 9-11, and beyond. (Yes, baby naming websites abound. But, this way, they can research names without getting distracted by screens.)

4. Make Mini Picture Books for Younger Siblings

It’s so exciting to get paid for your work. I remember making a stand in my house and selling pictures for loose change (yes, my parents were my only customers!). If your child has a younger sibling, contribute a small amount to their piggy bank in exchange for creating personalized mini picture books (page 72-23) for bedtime reading fun.

5. Help Your Child Be a Word Collector

After they’ve completed the word collecting activity on page 121, help your child take their love of language further by making a dedicated space for their word collection . Whether it’s a poster board, a small notebook, or a jar with slips of paper, create a place for favorite words to be recorded, remembered, and treasured. (Even grown up authors have “ cinnamon words ”!)

6. Set up a Creative Space

Whether by filling a caddy or a bag, or arranging a desk or a cozy chair, gather art and writing supplies and make them easy to access. Just like displaying an instrument on a stand (versus having it tucked away in a case) makes it easier to pick it up and practice, having art and writing supplies (and The Creative Writing Playbook !) at the ready, makes it easier to draw and write.

7. Pick a Pen Pal

Ask a reliable friend or relative if they would be willing to be summer pen pals with your child. (Or maybe your kid can do the arranging on their own!) Guide your child in addressing and stamping postcards to last the whole summer, so that it’s easy to pick one up, write a message, and pop it in the. Mail. Even more fun than writing their own postcards will be getting mail addressed directly to them in return. For kids raised with texting, getting snail mail can feel truly magical.

8. Complete the Activities as a Parent/Kid Team:

If your child prefers teamwork over time alone, buy two copies of The Creative Writing Playbook (or use one book and work on your own paper) and complete two to three activities or prompts each day, together. Celebrate your achievement at the end of the summer with a trip to a local bookstore!

9. Have a Favorite Writing Feast

After your child has completed pages 112-114 (using the five senses to write about an imaginary feast), make a feast of your own. It can be as simple as chicken nuggets and carrot sticks, or as fancy as an elaborate tea party—whatever sounds fun and doable! Have index cards and pencils at the table and take notes during the feast. What does the food—and eating together—look, smell, taste, feel, and sound like? Can you write a story inspired by this feast, too?

10. Make Heart Hugs

Use pages 126 and 127, which challenge the reader to fill in hearts with kind words about themselves and a friend or family member, as a jumping-off point to draw, cut out, and fill in more heart hugs to share with loved ones.

11. Keep Calm and Don’t Critique

If your child shares their writing with you, don’t jump in with suggestions for improvement. Instead, compliment their strengths. There’s plenty of time for improving writing on a more technical level later. Right now, keep the focus on fostering a love of creativity so that your child feels empowered to continue their creative journey.

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Megan Wagner Lloyd is the author of the bestselling kids' graphic novels Allergic and Squished, co-created with illustrator Michelle Mee Nutter, and the Super Pancake kids' graphic novel series, co-created with illustrator Abhi Alwar. Megan is also the author of the children's novel Haven: A Small Cat's Big Adventure, the kids' activity book The Creative Writing Playbook, illustrated by Madeline Garcia, the picture book Finding Wild, illustrated by Abigail Halpin, and several more picture books. Megan can be found online at meganwagnerlloyd.com and on IG at @meganwagnerlloyd. She lives with her family in the Washington DC area.

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Ten 11+ & 13+ Creative Writing Tips For Excellent Exam Stories

When my students get the hang of these techniques, it makes an enormous difference to their creative writing – but it takes practice.

M y advice for 11 plus stories in this article applies just as well to 8 plus, 13 plus or GCSE … in fact, although I have written with 11 plus creative writing in mind, my suggestions should be relevant at any level.

I’ve been teaching these things to young people for many years, and I hope you also find them useful. Please write a comment if you do!

The creative writing materials offered by 11 Plus Lifeline teach students to use all the techniques explained on this page.

Every writing paper has full example answers, as well as detailed step-by-step discussions, marking guidelines and story-planning advice. Papers are structured to help students develop high-level skills – and just as importantly, to enjoy themselves!

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1 – before you write, daydream.

If you can see your story’s world in your head, you will be able to describe it powerfully.

If you can’t, your descriptions risk being superficial and your writing uninteresting.

After a little daydream, your next step is to turn it into a simple plan:

THE STORY PLANNING PROCESS

1) the main event.

The first thing to write in your plan is the main event in your story (see point 2 , below). Keep this simple for now.

2) Your Main Character

Next, jot down a few notes about your main character (see point 3 ). What is interesting about them? Try to imagine them sitting in the place next to you. See them clearly in your mind. Who are they, really?

3) Getting There

Now note down some ideas for how you will get to the main event. Make this simple too: don’t write more than a couple of lines.

4) … And Getting Out Of There!

Finally, write a few thoughts about what will happen after the event: why does it matter, and – above all else – how does it affect your characters?

The reason I suggest this order of planning is that when you only have a short time to write, there are two important things which will hold your story together: the main event (what it is about ) and your central character (who gives us a reason to care ).

Everything else should be very simple, allowing you to focus on describing beautifully.

In fact, you can probably guess what the next of my 11 plus tips is …

2 – Keep things simple! In an 11 plus exam story, choose  one main plot event & bring it to life.

If there are too many things happening, your descriptive skills may get lost.

What’s more, once there are lots of dramatic events in a story, many students struggle to write about all of them properly.

Look at this example:

As they walked through the forest a tree fell and nearly crushed them. That was close , thought Claudia. Then they sat down to scrutinise the map.

It’s good to describe the small details of life – and especially with an interesting verb like “scrutinise”.

But if you forget to fully describe big events, such as a tree almost killing your characters, the effect is very peculiar. It implies that a near-death experience is no more interesting than reading a map!

Either give dramatic events their due importance, by describing them powerfully and giving a clear sense of your characters’ reactions, or steer clear of them altogether.

This is often a problem in exam stories with too much action, or with too many plot events in general.

It’s best to structure your story around one main event, which isn’t too extreme. Spend the rest of your time building up to it and showing its after-effects.

3 – Focus on one character

Just as it’s best to focus your writing around one main event, it makes sense to have one core character.

You probably won’t have time to make more than one person interesting and believable in a thirty minute writing exam. If you try, you’re at risk of coming unstuck.

(If you feel really confident, you might manage to develop two characters: a brother and sister, for example. But in the exam itself, ask yourself: Is it worth the risk? )

Make your main character really interesting, and only refer to others in passing.

4 – Put a little dialogue in … but don’t write a play script!

“Because writing dialogue is easier than thinking,” he said.

“That makes sense,” I said, “because otherwise I can’t explain why we’ve been chatting pointlessly for two full pages.”

Dialogue is excellent in an exam piece, and you should aim to include some in every story. However, there are risks, demonstrated by the example above!

Don’t let your story turn into a play script.

Use a little dialogue in 11+ creative writing, but focus on your descriptions of the setting, characters and events.

When you do write conversations, don’t stop describing. Avoid repeating “I said”, “she said”, “Mum answered”, and so on.

Instead, add little details which help the reader to imagine the scene as the characters talk.

Describe how people move around between saying things, the expressions on their faces, and so on:

“Because writing dialogue is easier than thinking,” he replied, a hint of a smile twitching like a worm at the edge of his mouth.

A quick note about paragraphing:

Examiners are likely to expect that a new speaker begins on a new line, if somebody else has already spoken in the paragraph.

This doesn’t happen in every book you’ll read, but it’s a convention – a normal way of doing things – which you are supposed to know about.

Look at this way of writing the example at the top, and think about where a sentence should begin a new line :

“Why are we still talking?” I said. “Because writing dialogue is easier than thinking,” he said. “That makes sense,” I said, “because otherwise I can’t explain why we’ve already been talking for two full pages.”

Now check the original again, to see whether you were right!

And now for the advertising break. Time to run away and make a cup of tea …

RSL Creative Writing is the children’s writing course from RSL Educational, written by Robert Lomax.

It’s perfect for Key Stages 2 and 3 and for 11+ exam preparation, at home or in the classroom. It’s also ideal for anybody aged 9 or above who enjoys writing and wants to do it better.

Click on the covers to learn more and view sample pages from the books:

RSL Creative Writing: Book 1

Rsl creative writing: book 2, rsl creative writing: book 3, the rsl creative writing collection (£40.47), 5 – short stories don’t need an introduction.

Robert was 33. He lived in a small flat with his cat and his wife. One day, he decided to go for a walk to the shops. The shops weren’t very far away: it took about ten minutes to get there. It was a cloudy day. It was the middle of February and it was a bit cold but not cold enough for a scarf. The road was in need of some repairs. He was wearing a blue jumper and black shoes and some fairly old jeans.

You don’t need to introduce your story as though it is a 300 page novel!

The reader doesn’t have to know everything about the main character, and especially not at the start. This way you waste a paragraph, when you might only have time for four or five in your whole story.

Anything that really matters about your characters can be mentioned along the way. In creative writing for 11 plus exams, everything else can be left out.

Get into the main business of your story from the very first line.

6 – Show, don’t tell … Whether you’re writing an 11 plus story, or whether you’re a famous novelist!

In real life, we can’t see what is in other people’s minds.

We have to work it out from what they do – and sometimes from what they say, although this can be very misleading!

For this reason, other people’s creative writing is often most interesting when we have to work out what characters are thinking and feeling.

This makes the characters seem like real people whose thoughts we can’t immediately know.

It also helps to get us – the readers – involved in the story by making us do some thinking for ourselves!

You might initially want to write this:

Simon looked up. He was angry.

But this is much more interesting to read:

As Simon looked up I could see his jaw muscles flexing.

Have a go at re-writing the following paragraph to make it more interesting . You can change things around as much as you like.

I admit: this is the sort of thing which you will sometimes read in a book. It isn’t necessarily  always bad writing, in itself.

However, it is a missed opportunity to bring a character to life. In a time-limited 11-plus exam story, you need to take advantage of such moments.

The rule is:

Where possible,  show me  what a character is feeling … don’t  tell me .

Have a look at my way of re-writing the paragraph above:

All Anna’s thoughts have gone.

Instead, there are some strong clues which steer you towards a particular idea about what she thinks and how she feels: but you still have to decide for yourself.

This forces you to imagine Anna clearly in your own mind.

How does my answer compare to your approach?

7 – Use a range of senses throughout your story

This is good writing. The trees may be “green” (which is a bit dull), but they are “swaying”, which is an effective detail and more than makes up for it.

The simile in the second sentence (“like wisps of cigar smoke”) is vivid and well planned.

The sandwich bag is “crumpled”, and “bag of bacon” is a nice moment of alliteration to emphasise this robust, commonplace item of food.

But imagine a story which continues in the same way, all the way through.

Everything is visual: a sight image.

For the reader, it is like being in a world without the ability to hear, smell, touch or taste.

Furthermore, the narrator seems to be looking around constantly, noticing everything. Is this normal behaviour?

It’s an unrealistic way of seeing the world, and after a while it becomes exhausting to read.

For a student, there are two simple but very useful lessons:

1) Always think about the five senses (sight, hearing, touch, taste, smell).

2) Sometimes avoid the most obvious sense when describing a thing (see point 8 below).

These tips are easy to apply in your creative writing for 11+, but they make a huge difference.

What’s more, unlike a clumsy simile (see point 9 ), a sensory description rarely ends up  harming  your writing. It can be effective or ineffective, but that’s another matter!

Take the example above:

“The trees were green and swaying”  could become:  “The trunks were groaning, and overhead I heard the dull rustle of a thousand fresh leaves slapping against one another.”

There’s nothing startlingly original here, but because it is a slightly less obvious way of describing trees, it creates a much more powerful atmosphere.

If you want a metaphor as well, try turning  “dull rustle”  into  “distant applause” , which makes the leaves seem like a mass of enthusiastic people.

Similarly,  “I looked at the bag of bacon sandwiches crumpled on the seat next to me”  takes on more life like this:

I smelt something like old sick; then I remembered the bag of bacon sandwiches crumpled on the seat next to me.

Notice how easily similes (“like old sick”) and metaphors happen, almost by themselves, when you focus on describing with a range of senses .

This is one of my most important 11 plus writing tips.

8 – Sometimes describe things using a less obvious sense

Using a range of senses, as I discussed in point 7 , is really, really important.

But how can you come up with surprising, powerful descriptions – descriptions to make the marker stop ticking your work for a second, raise their eyebrows and smile?

Imagine that you are just about to write the following sentence:

It was a cold morning.

But you stop yourself, think for a second, and write this:

I could hear the crackle of thawing ice on car windscreens.

This is much more interesting. Rather than using the sense of touch (a “cold” feeling), you are using a sound: “the crackle of thawing ice”.

There’s a good chance that the reader will think:  “Yes! I never considered it before, but you really do hear a sound when ice thaws quickly.”

This version also tells you much more about the weather:

The reader can work out that the night has been exceptionally cold, but also that the temperature is now rising quickly.

The thought process to produce descriptions like this is much simpler than it seems:

1) Think of the sense which is most obvious to describe the thing you are writing about.

3) Think of the second most obvious sense.

4) Ban that too!

5) From the three remaining senses, pick the one which is most useful.

6) Ask yourself how the thing would sound, feel, smell or taste – whichever three of these you have left (you’ve almost certainly banned sight!).

7) Write about it.

9 – Use similes and metaphors carefully in your creative writing

Similes and metaphors are useful (and can be impressive), but they have to make things clearer for the reader, not create confusion.

“She won the sprint like a racing car” asks more questions than it answers.

Was she noisy? Was she travelling at 150 miles per hour?

On the other hand, “She ducked her head and slipped across the line as cleanly as a racing car” helps me to picture the event exactly as intended.

Here’s another simile for speed, which I’ve seen a great many times (you’d hardly believe how many) in 11-plus stories:

Donald wrote like a cheetah.

Does this mean that Donald wrote savagely and meaninglessly, like a wild animal with a pencil jammed between its claws ?

Or perhaps that he wrote largely about the themes of hunting and sleeping ?

My guess is that Donald wrote quickly , but I’m not sure … because if that’s all you meant, WHY DIDN’T YOU JUST SAY IT?

This sort of thing is not really the fault of a young writer, who after all is (hopefully!) doing their best.

It is the fault of those dastardly teachers who advise children to include, for example, “at least one metaphor and two similes” in each story.

The result of this, for most children, is a succession of poorly chosen descriptive tricks, which add nothing.

Indeed, we’ve seen how these things can end up making a story comical for all the wrong reasons!

The right approach to creative writing doesn’t start with the need to include a simile: it starts with the need to describe effectively .

To me, this means allowing the reader to imagine the situation fully, and helping them care what happens.

Let’s play around with the image of Donald writing “like a cheetah”.

What happens if we just get rid of the simile?

Donald wrote quickly.

OK, but it doesn’t tell us much: did he write quickly because he wanted to finish his story before  Newsnight , or because he was really excited by his work?

Let’s say that it was the first reason: he wanted to get his work out of the way. Perhaps he was feeling annoyed, given that it might interrupt his favourite TV show.

When somebody is writing rapidly while annoyed, what might this look like?

I imagine Donald’s arm wiggling as the pen moves — especially the elbow. The movement is fast and constant because he is worried about getting the work finished, and because in his irritation he doesn’t much care about its quality.

So I ask myself: What moves to and fro constantly, performing a task in an unimaginative way?

And the first thing I think of is a machine in a factory:

Donald hunched over the page, his arm jerking to and fro with the quick, regular movements of a factory robot.

This sentence by itself would go some way to making your story the best in the exam room.

I hope I’ve persuaded you that with a well-organised thought process, a good simile isn’t too difficult to write!

Because children have been taught to work in this way, a story will often contain the required two similes, a metaphor, a personification, even an interesting alliteration …

… but everything in between is lifeless.

What students need is a different sort of checklist, to help them make the rest of their writing interesting .

I hope this article will give you some ideas!

10 – Stephanie was writing a beautiful story in the 11-plus exam hall. Or was she …?

Suspense is good if it’s appropriate to the story, but don’t jack-knife it in clumsily!

“It was a calm, sunny day. Or was it?” doesn’t really make me curious.

It makes me think that you’re trying to pester me into being excited, rather than persuading me to feel that way through your excellent writing.

If you write in a way that builds suspense by making me interested in the characters and events in the story – while keeping some important information hidden from me, just out of sight – this will speak for itself.

However, not every piece of creative writing needs it!

If you found these story writing tips useful or if you have a question, please leave a comment below! I’d love to have your feedback. (Tick the “Receive email updates” box to receive an email when I reply.)

For the most comprehensive range of resources to help with preparation for the 11+ exam,  you might like to try 11 Plus Lifeline (with a money-back guarantee in the first month). Every practice paper has full example solutions, with a detailed discussion and explanation for every question – like being taught by an excellent private tutor. There’s lots of material to help develop creative, high-scoring exam stories!

According to Tutorful, it’s “ the gold standard for independent and grammar school 11-plus preparation ”.

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89 Comments

If you have any questions, feel free to ask me here. I’ll do my best to help you out!

Hi, I’m preparing my son for 11+. His story ideas are good but he needs to add more details/depth. How can I encourage that? Thanks

That’s a very difficult question to answer, because there is so much that I could say! Many of my suggestions are in the article above. The sample at http://digioh.com/em/27284/164929/84za5s4g4u may offer more ideas. If this is useful, then 11 Plus Lifeline offers many further resources.

What’s the syllabus of creative writing for 11plus. I understand there is no definitive one, it varies with target school as well, but still I’d like to know the min types of writing children should be knowing end of year 6 e.g. story writing, descriptive writing, poetry writing, persuasive writing, diary, reconnect, fiction, non fiction writing, script writing, book/film review, blog writing etc. Really confused with the list of categories and subcategories under each. I just need a good structure with every details. Please help with a detailed table of contents.

Hi Jay. I’m afraid I don’t have such a list – because there isn’t one. Schools can set anything that they like! However, I think getting children used to responding to a range of formats is more important than covering everything. The most common formats are probably: 1) A story based on a title or topic 2) A continuation of a passage (usually the passage already used as a comprehension text) 3) A story based on a picture

You provide excellent tips that we can use to guide our children. Done in a very simple but effective way. Even more – as times are hard and money is tight your generosity shows you truly do wish to help children and not just make money out of them. Thank you

Thank you Alison. I’m glad you found the article useful. Robert

Thank you ever so much for your very useful tips. Would you have some advice (or a sample essay) on writing a descriptive essay based on a given image?

Hi Aparna, There is some relevant content in 11 Plus Lifeline. For more along these lines, keep an eye on the website in the autumn …

Hi Robert, I found the article above very helpful. My daughter is in year 5 and we have just started our 11 plus journey. She seems to be struggling air with creative writing. She has such great ideas and an amazing imaginative mind, however she struggles to express this on paper as compared to her peers also studying for the 11 plus. How can I help her become a better writer?

Speaking as she writes might help: perhaps she will write more fluently if she just thinks of it as a way to record her verbal ideas.

My RSL Creative Writing books might help her to develop her ideas.

What is a good range for the word count for a “continue the story” creative writing task at 10+? I see suggestions of 4-5 paragraphs, but paragraphs vary hugely in length. My son is only writing around 150 words, and I fear this is taking “quality not quantity” to the extreme!

It really depends! Sometimes you’ll be given an 8-10 line answer space, in which case that would be appropriate. On the other hand, if you have 30-40 minutes, you should be pitching for 1 to 1.5 pages. Robert

Thank you so much! Very informative

I’m glad to help!

how much your fees for creative writing, and how many lesson? please let me know [email protected]

Hello Hemang. I’m afraid I don’t work as a tutor these days. However, you might be interested in my creative writing books at https://www.rsleducational.co.uk/rsl-creative-writing . These will take your child through their skills step by step, much as I would if I was teaching them. Good luck! Robert

Hi Sir! Sir, you suggestions are greatly useful. Sir, can you assist me on how to incorporate Strong Verbs in my writings as I do not know many and I struggle on account of it ?

There’s no easy answer, but the best starting point is to look for specific ways of describing things. For instance, instead of “he talked”, you might say “he muttered”, for example. You’ll learn more verbs if you look out for them as you read things, and perhaps note interesting ones down in a book. Good luck!

Dear Robert Hope you are doing well , my son is in year 5 and he is going to set for 11 plus exam for very highly competitive grammar schools , he need help for is creative writing . I advice that you are the best , I’m seeking help from you ,please . Yours sincerely Saha Mcewan

Hello. Have a look at 11 Plus Lifeline , perhaps, and my RSL Creative Writing books. I do intend to release some new things for creative writing in the future: watch this space!

Hi Robert. These are great tips. My question is how to come with effective descriptions that vary. When I do descriptive writing, I describe with only the five senses and often run out of ideas. Also, how can we write in a way that will make a clear image in the readers mind. Thanks for the time

Hi Yatharth! My video at https://youtu.be/LKnvrad6jpw is all about this, so why not have a look at that? If that’s useful, look at https://www.rsleducational.co.uk/product/rsl-creative-writing-1

I completely agree with your article, and as a teacher who prepares children for GCSE and the 11 tests, I employ a lot of the ‘strategies’ you mention. What children need ultimately is time to read, digest and above all enjoy stories and poems and then to talk about what they’ve read and in some ( or maybe a lot of cases) relate the themes and ideas etc in what they have read to their own lives. This I feel, can give a greater sense of ‘reality’ to what they can eventually write; and then we as teachers (and parents) can model how to write ‘good’ creative stories (and include all the SPAG) which can go a long way to ensuring children actually begin to feel that they themselves can be imaginative and write great stories.

Thank you for taking the time to comment, Molly. I very much agree with you.

What children need ultimately is time to read, digest and above all enjoy stories and poems and then to talk about what they’ve read and in some ( or maybe a lot of cases) relate the themes and ideas etc in what they have read to their own lives.

The only thing I’d add to this is that it works both ways: reading informs writing, but the very best way to develop critical reading skills is to become more sophisticated as a writer!

Hi Robert,l am a Creative Writing teacher for 8+ Do you think 6+ can be taught Creative Writing that will yield excellent result? I asked this question from my experience of teaching Creative Writing,I observe that more 6+ struggle with understanding and implementing Creative Writing stages than 8+ Also,I teach Creative Writing easily because I believe I have the skills to teach it but how can I come up with a special syllabus to teach my colleagues how to teach Creative Writing in the class that will be result oriented.

Hello Soremi.

I would not think too much about results, if by that you mean percentage scores, when children are 6 or so and developing their writing. I would focus on their enjoyment and on encouraging them to explore their imagination, creating interestingly described characters and environments. It’s a different situation in 11+ exams, where children must demonstrate certain skills and perform well in comparison with their peers.

However, it is very important to encourage the development of accurate and clear English from an early stage. Creative writing is a good opportunity to uncover and address problems.

I found this very useful and straightforward, and also very funny… The tips will take me flying in my writing!

Thanks Lily-Grace. The work you sent for me to look at this week was very impressive: you’re already flying!

Thanks Robert this description is very helpful

I’m very glad it’s useful. Thanks for commenting!

Hola me gustaria hacer unas infografias mas dinamicas

Thank you for the topic

It’s a pleasure. I hope the advice helps.

I thought that this was a brilliant summary. Thank you very much. Engaging and thoughtful. Very much appreciated.

I’m delighted to hear it. Thank you!

I found your creative writing tips very insightful, a real shame for us it was right at the end of our 11+/13+ preparation.

Thank you Sara. I hope they made some difference, even at a late stage.

Very useful tips! I like the way you have broken down the advice into bite-sized chunks! Thanks Robert

I’m glad you found them helpful! Thanks for commenting.

Great tips, thanks Robert. Do you have tips on non fictional writing as well? E.g. how a child can do a stellar job when asked to write a suggestion letter to the council. My child struggles with writing on everyday things that she deems uninteresting like describing everday things but is flying when writing on imaginary topics. Thanks in advance.

Hi Tolu. I have some resources for less creative subject matter in 11 Plus Lifeline .

I think the best way to add interest to potentially unexciting things, like letters, is with examples. “I think you should do more to reduce bullying, because it discourages children from studying” is not interesting. “Last week, a boy trudged towards me across the playground, clenching and unclenching his fists, with the dead-eyed look of meaningless aggression that I’ve come to know so well. This is happening too often in our school!” is much more impressive.

Thanks for these tips . Would you suggest any topics for DS to practice .

There are a great many writing topics with fully explained example answers in 11 Plus Lifeline . I might add a blog post with some suggested topics in the coming months. Robert

These SPECTACULAR tips helped me a lot when I was planning and writing a story. I think that these AMAZING tips will help me a lot when I am doing the exam. THANKS Robert!!!!

Thanks Raon! I hope you’ll share the link. Good luck in your exam. Robert

Thanks for the tips to improve the writing skill for the content writers and the students.

Thank you Nihal – I’m glad my advice is useful.

What can I Say?

My son is about to take the 11 + and part of the material is creative writing,

Can you recommend any good material please?

The key is reading and I don’t think he reads as much as he should do

Please advise

Hi Fazal. I would of course recommend my own creative writing material in 11 Plus Lifeline . There’s a free sample here .

Reading is certainly important, but it won’t do any magic without good writing practice alongside it.

If your son isn’t keen on reading, trying to push him to read more may not work. However, you can help to improve the quality of the reading he does do, by discussing it whenever possible in a way that encourages him to think about it in more depth. You can also introduce new vocabulary into your conversations, and so on.

Also, the reading list here may help him to find books that he does want to read!

Hi, my son 11, is really struggling with creative writing, the main problem being he can’t think of anything to write about. he’s a clever boy but more into science and computers. He thinks he can’t do it and I’m worried he’s going to freeze in the exam. how can i get him to access his imagination and not panic. Thanks

Practice is certainly the main thing. If he can start to “access his imagination” (a nice phrase) without exam pressure, he is more likely to be able to do so in the test.

When you say that he can’t think of anything to write about, you’re describing a problem that I can relate to. However, it should not be a big concern at 11+, for the simple reason that the best stories tend to be about very little! If he can construct a simple plot, focused on one event – even something very ordinary and apparently dull – then he has what he needs. From that point, all his effort should be focused on describing well, so that the story creates atmosphere and has a believable main character.

The real problem at 11+ is when children have too many creative ideas. They construct complex, overwhelming plots, about which it is impossible to write well – or even plausibly – in the time available.

Hi Robert Have you got any tips for the CSSE style quick 10 mins Continuous Writing tasks please. These have included instructions, descriptions and this year the exam paper included a picture to write about- what’s happening- story /description?

Many thanks for your help.

This is very difficult to answer in a brief comment. I do have some specially designed resources for these CSSE writing tasks in 11 Plus Lifeline , if that is of interest.

If writing creatively, keep the plot to an absolute minimum. Imagine that you are describing a ten second scene from a movie – not writing the plot for a whole film. Focus on effective use of the senses, in particular – very much as I outline in this article. Don’t waste any space introducing your writing.

If describing a picture, the same applies. Focus on details from it, and try to find a logical structure. For example, a character might move around the image, finding things; or you might imagine the scene changing over a period of time.

For instructions, try to visualise the activity as precisely as you can, then use words to convey your thoughts exactly. This will lead to good vocabulary. Rather than saying “Screw the lightbulb into the socket”, say something like this: “Steadying the socket with your spare hand, twist the bulb gently in a clockwise direction until you encounter resistance.” This doesn’t come from trying to be fancy: it comes from very clearly imagining the action before I write.

There is a great deal more to be said, but I hope these pointers are useful.

Great tips and advice here. I have 4 boys, all at different levels of education. This has helped me to help them. Thanks!

That makes me very happy. Good luck to your sons!

Anybody who found this useful might like to read more of my creative advice at https://www.rsleducational.co.uk/creative-writing-less-is-more .

This article is very helpful. Thank you.

Thanks for taking the time to say so!

I found this very helpful, thank you

Hello Good Afternoon and thank you very much for my help. I am a young child preparing the eleven plus. I don’t necessarily have any questions i just don’t have any questions. Good luck on your educative journey.

Good luck to you, Lukas! Well done for taking the initiative and researching your exams.

I am a 8 years old child and I am doing your 11+ RSL comprehension, do you have any tips that might help me improve my writing? Thank you for your help!

Hi Kate! I’d like to help, but I’m not sure how to. You’ve written this under an article about improving your writing, and you’re working on a book that also helps with this. I don’t know what tips to add here. If you could be more specific, perhaps I’ll be able to say something. Good luck with your work! Robert

Hi Robert! I really like your tips and they did improve my daughter’s writing! Thank you so much!

I’m so glad! Well done to her.

Hi Richard, Does cursive or printed handwriting affect the writing score a 11+ level? Thanks in advance.

No, it shouldn’t make any difference. All that matters is that the writing should be easy to read, and that the student can write reasonably quickly.

Hi there, I am doing 13+, My tutor says that I should not use metaphors or similes, but I think I should. Do you have any advice for me on descriptive writing? And can you explain what a metaphor is?

I think you are probably misinterpreting your tutor. A good simile or metaphor, in the right place, is a good thing, but I would guess that your tutor is concerned that you are over-using these things and that this is distracting you from simply writing well. An alternative is that you haven’t quite understood how to use them effectively. A misjudged simile can look odd: using no simile (or metaphor) is better than using a bad one!

For a good explanation of what a metaphor is, see https://www.grammarly.com/blog/metaphor/ .

Hi, I’m currently helping a student prepare for entrance exams, and I just wondered if you could help me with a question. He was struggling with the timed element of creative writing and wanted to know if he DID run out of time, what would a marker prefer? To just leave the piece unfinished, or to quickly make an ending for the story, even if it meant it was quite an abrupt ending that didn’t necessarily do the story justice?

I think it depends on the marker. I’d prefer an unfinished piece to one with something actively bad in it, like a bad ending. However, can they leave an unfinished ending that nonetheless has something final about it: for instance, zoom out and describe the trees swaying in the distance, or the waves, so that there’s a sense of the world rolling on, despite the events in the story? If this is done well, it might even appear that they intended to finish this way.

great work, keep it up.

Amazing website! The content is wonderful. Highly informative indeed.

That’s brilliant to hear. Thank you!

Do you have to pay to get your work marked?

Yes, that’s right. Most people do it via an 11 Plus Lifeline Platinum subscription .

My daughter is not good at creative writing and I am apprehensive as she writes her pre-tests on 11th November . How do I help her with the following formats?

1) A story based on a title or topic 2) A continuation of a passage (usually the passage already used as a comprehension text) 3) A story based on a picture

Hello! I cover all these things in my RSL Creative Writing books – see https://www.rsleducational.co.uk/rsl-creative-writing You will also find creative writing videos covering these things at https://go.easy11plus.org/VIDEOLIST Good luck! Robert

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15 Creative Writing Prompts for 11-year-olds Preparing for the 11 Plus English Exam

If your child is in year 5 of primary school, then chances are they may be sitting their 11+ exams soon.

In many of the 11 Plus exams will be an English paper that includes a creative essay, in which your child will be expected to demonstrate their literacy skills creatively by using extensive language, grammar and punctuation.

In order to put their best foot forward, your child will need to prepare adequately – there is no such thing as too much practice when it comes to writing. That’s why we have created some free creative writing resources , including the following 15 creative writing prompts to help your child exercise their creativity

Don’t forget – we have lots of writing prompts books and booklets, too! See below:

15 Creative Writing Prompts

• Let’s say you could create your own animal, what would it look like? How would you describe it in terms of size, colour and height? What would it sound like? What does it eat?
• Write a story about a day in your life from the viewpoint of a mouse.
• Imagine you are 10 years older. Write about what the 21-year-old version of you would be like.
• Imagine that you were chosen as one of the first people to visit Mars. What would you take with you and what do you think the planet would be like?
• If you switched places with your parents for a day, how would you run the house? What rules would you introduce and which rules would you change?

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127 Story Starters & Writing Prompts for Kids (Ages 10 – 14)

Coming up with story starters for kids can be difficult. This article provides 127 writing prompts that can get kids’ creative writing off to a great start. Download my three great creative writing lesson plans that I use as a supply teacher. They’re easy-to-use lessons that you can teach on the go.

Article Key Points

• Select from the list of 127 writing prompts below for story ideas that you like.
• Put these writing ideas in a hat and have students randomly pick out their assigned story.
• Use the 3 lesson plans provided for a ready-made creative writing lesson. Great for supply teachers!

You can get my printable story starters sheet at the end of this article

A full list of 127 story starters and writing prompts for kids

Writing prompts for adventure stories.

• A princess who needs to rescue a puppy from a river.
• A family on a road trip who got lost and ended up on a whole new adventure.
• Two friends who go on an adventure down a river on a rowboat.

A superhero who lost his superpowers in the middle of a rescue.

• A kid who wakes up one day to find out he / she was turned into a dog.
• The day in the life of an inanimate object (tree, statue, etc.).
• Three friends who can time travel forward in time. What will the world look like when they arrive?

The main character of your story has to escape a pirate ship after being captured in the night.

• Pioneers travelling the whole way across a new land in just a wagon. What challenges will they face?
• You’re a detective trying to uncover a crime: someone stole grandma’s apple pie when it was cooling on the windowsill!
• You walk past a phone booth that is ringing. You answer the phone. Who is on the other end?

You wake up one day to find out that you grew and you’re suddenly 12 feet tall! You try to go to school but you find life’s hard as a giant…

• A giant and a mouse live in a house together and are best friends. Tell a story about them preparing dinner together. What would each eat, and how would their preparations be different?
• You’re half way up Mount Everest when you drop your pack with all your climbing gear off a cliff. What are you going to do about it?
• A dorky kid suddenly develops superpowers and fights crime in the city at night.

A talking dog and his best friend race against time to defuse a bomb.

• A firefighter is in a race against time to put out a fire before it burns down a magical forest full of talking animals (who help him / her to put out the fire!). Help him put out the fire safely !
• You are walking along the beach and find a message in a bottle. The message provides the directions to something special – follow the directions!
• Write a story about a refugee. They have recently had to flee their home to go to a safer place. Explain their journey.

You wake up one day and you’re only 6 inches tall! Write the story of what happens next – will you go on an adventure? Will you go to school? What will your parents say when they see you?

• Write a story about being lost in a maze. How did it make you feel? What did you come across as you turned corners in your attempt to escape?
• You’re going camping but you’re only allowed to bring 5 belongings. What would you bring, and why?
• You’re the only survivor of a plane that has crashed in the wilderness. Describe how you will survive.

You’re a book that keeps getting passed from person to person and bookshop to bookshop. What sorts of people read your book and what crazy places do you end up going?

• You’re 5 feet tall and live in a garden. How will you make your own comfortable little home in amongst the leaves?
• You’ve found yourself trapped in a prison cell. What creative ways will you come up with to escape?
• You dig a hole in your backyard and find a treasure. What is the treasure and what will you do with it?

You have to set up a new colony on Mars. Who would you take with you and what struggles will you have setting up your new colony? Who would be king? What would be the rules?

• You have magical pockets. Every time you put your hand in your pocket, you pull something else out! Write a story of the 5 different, random things you pull out of your pockets. Will some of them be slimy and scary? Will some be alive? Will some be tasty?

Read Also: 25 Central Ideas for Stories

Writing prompts for stories about your life

• Your favorite memory with your family.
• The best vacation or adventure you ever had.
• A time you went to the dentist.

Your two favorite movies (and how they’re similar and different).

• What you think would happen at a dinner party involving any three of your favorite people (living or dead).
• Your hero and why they’re your hero.
• Write a story about your ideal day. Start with your alarm going off to wake you up, and end with you closing your eyes and falling asleep.

The happiest moment of your life. What was it that made you so happy?

• What a day in your life would be like if you had your dream job.
• You have swapped jobs with one of your parents. You have to go to work for the day and they have to go to school. What funny things will happen?
• Write a story about a dream you have had in your past. Was it a logical story, or did your dream defy the rules of the world? If you can’t remember your dream, you can make it up or fill in the gaps.

Write a story about a time you were wrong and how you felt. Were you glad you learned something new? Were you ashamed? Did you apologize?

• Write a story about your favorite place. If you don’t have a favorite place, invent one and explain why it would be your favorite place.
• Write about a skill you recently learned. Was it frustrating? After learning the skill how did you feel? How do you use the skill in your life now?
• Write a story about the things you think about just before you go to sleep at night.

Write about exactly what you’re going to do when you get home from school today.

• Write a story about all the things you’re grateful for and why you’re grateful for each one.
• Write about the moment your parents or grandparents met and how they felt at that time. If you don’t know about it, make it up!
• Write about your first day at high school or university. What will your emotions be? Will you meet anyone?

Read Also: A List of 107 Effective Classroom Teaching Strategies

Writing prompts for imaginative stories

• What you would do if you could travel back in time to hang out with one of your ancestors.
• You have a metal detector and are using it on a beach. What do you turn up? Describe it and what you would do with it.
• You invent your own tree house. Describe it – how do you get into it? How many rooms are there and what is in each room?

You could travel back in time to any time in world history. What is it and why?

• You meet a fairy who gives you any one gift – what would it be and how would you use it?
• You just bought a haunted house and are about to spend your first night in it. It’s run down and creepy. Describe your first night, starting with when you step in the door at 5 pm.
• You’re shipwrecked on a deserted island with only 5 of your belongings. Which would they be and why?

Imagine an older version of you has traveled back in time and has come to give you advice. What advice will they give you and what will your conversation be like?

• Imagine you’re a farmer. Describe the farm animals or plants you would farm and a day in your life.
• Write a story about having fear of the grass, but needing to walk through a park. How will you get across the park without touching the grass!?
• Imagine it’s the world 2100 and climate change has changed the climate where you live. Describe the new climate, the new plants that grow there, and whether it’s extremely hot or extremely cold!

Imagine an ice age has arrived and the whole world is -30 degrees! How will you live? In an igloo? What clothes would you wear? Would the cities be made of ice? Explain a day in the life.

• You have created your own personal robot. What does the robot do and how does this improve your life?
• You wake up one day and the only people left in the world are 3 of your closest friends. How will you survive?
• Your house has been converted into a spaceship and you’re flying to the mysterious planet Obertoron. What is the climate like in this new planet? What challenges do you face settling into this new planet?

You are in the middle of a lesson at school when … suddenly gravity stops working and everything starts floating into the air!

• You can breathe underwater and go on underwater adventures to a city under the sea. You’re on a mission to save the city from an evil octopus.
• You wake up in the morning and suddenly you’re 30 years old. What is a day in the life of the 30 year old version of you?
• Make up the rules of your own sport. You can get inspiration from real sports or a made up sport like Quidditch.

Write a story about the most peaceful place you could imagine. What is surrounding you that makes it so peaceful?

• Peter Pan flies in through the window to teach you to fly. Describe how it feels to fly out the window and look down on the streets below.
• You’re in a garbage dump sifting for goodies. What do you find and what do you do with it?
• You receive a mysterious item in the mail. Describe the item and why you might have received it.

You can read minds. What are the thoughts in the heads of people around you? Are you glad you can read minds, or will you end up regretting it?

• You’re born into royalty and will be the future king or queen. How are people treating you and what will be your responsibilities? Are you happy about being the future monarch, or will you end up just wishing you were a normal person.
• You’re the president, king or prime minister for the day. What will you do today to improve your society or change the world?
• Invent your own movie. What is the main character’s name and what is the movie’s plot? How will the movie end?

Imagine you’re a mermaid for a day. What sea creatures would you talk to? Where would you sleep and live under the sea?

• Imagine you are a teacher. What would you teach and why?
• Imagine you have a secret hatch under your bed that takes you into your own private cave. What will you keep in your cave that makes it the prefect secret room for you?
• Imagine you woke up one morning and there was no electricity for the next year. What would change about your life?

Write a story that involves the following 5 objects: a foot, a lake, a spaceship, a pizza, and a dinosaur.

• Imagine you’re from a tribe that has never had contact with anyone else in the world. You go for a walk and stumble upon a city. Explain how you feel and what you see.
• Everything you touch with your right hand turns to candy. Write about a day in your life and the sorts of issues you might come across during your day.
• You feel the emotions of all the people around you. Write about a day walking through a city, the people you see, and how your emotions go up and down like a roller coaster.
• Imagine your toys have come to life (like in Toy Story!) What sorts of things will they get up to while you’re at school?

Writing prompts for descriptive stories

• Write a story about the weather. Choose one type of weather (thunderstorm, sunny day, humidity, rain) and describe it. Use adverbs, adjectives and superlatives to describe how the weather makes you feel.
• Write a story about a delicious feast you made for your friends. What will be served? Describe its taste in your mouth. Don’t forget to describe the appetizers, main course and dessert!
• Pretend you are the god of your own little world and you can invent an animal. What would its features be? Think about its head, body and limbs. Don’t forget to describe its skin (fur? Scales? hair?), eyes, mouth (or is it a beak or bill?), ears, fingers, etc.

You are on the train observing other people and listening in to their conversations. Describe the people on the train and what they’re doing with their lives.

• You are Santa Claus and you’re reading children’s wish lists. Describe three different children’s wish lists. The children need to have different personalities and this needs to be reflected in their wish list.
• You’ve been given $100 to spend in the supermarket. Start the story of you walking down the aisle trying to pick out what you want. First you’ll describe 7 objects that you find, but then you can only choose 3. Explain your choice.
• Describe the taste of chocolate to someone who has never tasted it before. How will you explain it?

You’ve met someone who has never smiled before. Explain to them how to smile without using the word ‘smile’.

• Describe what it’s like to see to someone who was born blind.
• Describe what it’s like to hear to someone who was born deaf.
• You start your own club. What would the club be, and what would be the conditions for entry to the club?

You’re about to take an exam. Describe your feelings before the exam begins, then your feelings during the exam, and finally your feelings after you leave!

• You’re walking through a refugee camp. Describe what you see.
• Write a story about how you feel on the first warm, sunny day of the year.
• Describe snow to someone who has never seen or touched it.

Write a story about how it feels to be cold to someone who’s from Jamaica and has never felt the cold!

• Write a story about how it feels to be hot to someone from the North Pole who’s never felt the heat!
• You invent your own board game . What is the theme and what are the rules?
• Describe what it feels to walk through a city to someone who has never been in the city before.

Describe what it feels like to be all alone in the forest to someone who’s never been in among trees before.

• You move into a new house and have to set up your new bedroom. What would its theme be? What posters would you put on the walls?
• You’re an architect and can design your dream house. What would it look like? What rooms would there be? What cool things would you include in your new house?
• If there was one thing you could invent, what would it be? Describe it and how it is used.

A fire has started in your home. You can only save 3 of your belongings. What are they and why would you save them?

• You make a new friend. Describe the friend’s personality and why you like them so much.
• You have to plan a birthday party for yourself. What will be the party’s them? Where will it be?
• You can invent your own car. What special features will it have that will make it your ideal car?

You are going to go a full year without creating and trash. Write about the lifestyle changes you will make in order to prevent making trash. How will you get food without wrappings?

• There is a new kid who has arrived at school today. Write about what you will do to make them feel welcome.
• You have to buy Christmas gifts for all of your family members. Describe what the gifts will be and why you think they’re ideal for each family member.
• You can change your style to any style you like: what would you wear, what would your hair look like, and what sort of music would you listen to?

Describe what it’s like to feel hungry to someone who’s never felt hunger before in their life.

• You have $50 to buy food for a week. What foods will you buy and why? Will you focus on health food to keep yourself healthy, or binge on junk that tastes so yummy?
• Imagine you work for the post office. What is a day in your life? What dogs will you come across? What different sorts of letters will you deliver? Happy letters? Sad letters?
• Describe what it feels like to take a shower to someone who’s never had a shower before.

It’s opposite day and you have to lie about everything. What sorts of trouble are you going to get into from all of your lies?

• Explain how you would start a fire without a lighter or matches.
• Describe the feeling of being sticky to someone who has never felt the feeling of being sticky. You can’t use the word ‘sticky’.
• Describe the feeling of being dirty to someone who has never felt being dirty. You can’t use the word ‘dirty’.

Write a story about how it feels to be bullied, and someone who arrives and is kind to you. Describe how it feels to have a friend who is kind after you’ve been bullied.

• You have been asked to create a new game show on TV (Think: Family Feud or Wheel of Fortune). What will be the rules of your new game show?
• You are a genetic scientist and can create a new fruit. Describe the fruit: how it feels, tastes, and looks. What does the tree that it grows on look like? In what climate does it grow?
• You’re an architect and you’ve been asked to design the ideal playground. What sort of cool play equipment will you place in your playground?

3 Great Writing Prompts and Story Starter Lesson Plans

Lesson 1: mix-and-match story starter lesson.

Printable 1: Fun Story Stater and Writing Prompt Mix-and-Match Lesson (Takes you to a Google Doc)

This lesson plan download has a list of mix-and-match story starters. Cut up each story element and put them into three hats: Character, Setting and Plot (you might also want to read my article about about all 8 elements of a story ). The students are blindfolded and must take one story element out of each hat and make a story out of the three elements they get!

Lesson 2: Planning your Creative Story Plot

Printable 2: Story Planning Template (Takes you to a Google Doc)

Teach students about the important elements of a story using this story planning lesson template. Your students need to describe their main character, plot and setting before they tell their story. It’s a great scaffold to ensure your students follow the conventions of story writing.

Lesson 3: Random Creative Writing Story Prompts

Printable 3: A List of 127 Story Starters (Takes you to a Google Doc)

I love this one for an easy afternoon. Simply cut up the 127 creative writing story ideas below, place them in a hat, and have students close their eyes and pick out the story that they will have to write about.  

Chris Drew (PhD)

Dr. Chris Drew is the founder of the Helpful Professor. He holds a PhD in education and has published over 20 articles in scholarly journals. He is the former editor of the Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education. [Image Descriptor: Photo of Chris]

• Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd/ What is Educational Psychology?
• Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd/ What is IQ? (Intelligence Quotient)
• Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd/ 5 Top Tips for Succeeding at University
• Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd/ 50 Durable Goods Examples

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25 Creative Writing Prompts for Kids

Writing is a transformative skill that nurtures a child's ability to articulate thoughts, understand emotions, and express themselves with confidence. While some children find joy in putting pen to paper, others may need a gentle nudge into the world of writing. Recognizing this, we're committed to providing engaging and enjoyable resources that make the journey of learning to write both accessible and exciting!

We've gathered 25 creative writing prompts created to spark creativity and inspire storytelling adventures. Whether you're navigating the homeschooling landscape or seeking enriching activities for the weekend, these prompts promise endless possibilities for exploration and growth in your child's writing journey:

• You find a door in the school that you have never seen before. You peer through the large keyhole and see something that resembles a time machine… What happens next? Do you try to open the door?
• Write a story about a Monster that shows up at your birthday party.
• Write a story about a magical ring that can grant all your favorite things. Until…
• You are the main character in your favorite video game. What happens?
• Story starter: You’re watching your favorite movie when suddenly, you get pulled into the screen! After a moment of confusion, you discover that you’ve replaced the main character... What happens next?
• You’re building your dream treehouse, but first you need to get all the materials you need to complete it! Can you write a list of everything you need to build your treehouse?
• Your best friend gives you their favorite book, and you find out it has magical powers! What are its magical powers? How will you use them?
• Once upon a time, in a magical forest filled with talking animals, a curious fox discovered a hidden path leading to an enchanted castle. Follow the fox and write about your quest!
• Time for an adventure story: you wake up in a spaceship and a fellow astronaut tells you that you’re there to explore outer space. What happens? Do you discover a new planet? Who do you meet?
• What is your favorite animal, and what is the funniest thing about them? Write a report on this and include as many fun facts as you can!
• As the clock struck midnight, strange glowing lights appeared in the abandoned house at the end of the street, catching your attention... What happens next?
• Can you describe your favorite food? Is it ice cream? A burger? Pasta? Tell us all about it!
• You’re walking through the park when you spot a group of older kids playing your favorite sport. As you approach them to ask if you can join them, you spot a very shiny object by a tree. As you get closer, you can’t believe what you’ve discovered... What is it?
• You find yourself stranded on a desert island. As you search for other people and food, you find a cell phone that seems to be giving you directions to a mysterious location. Are you accepting the quest? What challenges do you face? Do you find a treasure, or something more dangerous? Write an exciting adventure story based on your quest to solve this mystery.
• Write an acrostic poem about your favorite season.
• You discover an animal that you’ve never seen before and it bestows some magical powers on you that change your life! Write a letter to a good friend explaining this.
• In a bustling city where robots were the norm, a young inventor stumbled upon a hidden button that activated something extraordinary. You are that young inventor. Write an exciting story about what happened after activating this button.
• Pretend that you are a “grown-up” who is 70 or 80 years old. Write a complaint about what is wrong with “kids these days”!
• If your favorite holiday is Christmas , we’ve got a secret mission for you: write a story persuading Santa that you could be his very best elf.
• Chindōgu (珍道具) is the Japanese art of inventing useless gadgets. Design a useless gadget and persuade people to buy it!
• What superpower would you NOT want and why?
• If you could create the perfect TV show, what would it be? What would happen?
• Write a story about what you think it’d be like to visit another planet for the first time.
• Can you invent your own company and write about what it would do?
• Journal writing prompt: What are your favorite things about yourself? Write a list of all the things that make you unique and special.

More Writing Resources for Kids

We hope you’ve enjoyed this collection of creative writing prompts for kids! For more creative writing ideas and prompts, check these out:

• Elementary Writing Prompts
• Picture Writing Prompts
• Writing Activities For Kids

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11 Plus creative writing tips and examples

Preparing for your  11 Plus creative writing  exam doesn’t have to be a worry. We help you here with 11 Plus creative writing tips and examples to prepare you for the exam. We're here to help you practice and improve your writing techniques and creative writing skills so you’re ready for your 11 Plus exams . 

Creative writing can be really fun – you can explore something you really want to and write about something that means a lot to you. Although, we know it can be a little bit worrying for some students that don’t enjoy writing as much or don’t feel confident in their writing skills. 

So, ahead of your  11 Plus exams  we want to help you prepare with these 11 Plus creative writing tips and strategies.

What Is 11 Plus Creative Writing?

The 11 Plus creative writing exam assesses a child’s ability to compose structured and engaging pieces of written work. It’s designed to evaluate a student’s fluency, imaginative capabilities, grammar, punctuation and overall ability to write creatively.

What does the 11 Plus creative writing exam include?

The 11 Plus creative writing exam is usually 25-30 minutes and could involve the continuation of a storyline that you’ll be provided with. Alternatively you might be asked to write a short piece of your own in response to a visual stimulus – this could be describing a character or writing something from their perspective, like a diary entry. 

Here are some the potential writing tasks you could be given for your 11 Plus creative writing exam: 

Descriptive task – continuing on a short story that you’ll be provided with, or describing a place or situation that your character finds themselves in. 

Persuasive task – you could be asked to write a letter or an article with the goal to persuade the reader to feel or act in a certain way after reading it by using emotive language. 

Narrative task – this would usually involve writing your own short story. 

Expository task – this could involve writing an article or set of instructions designed to inform the reader how to go about doing something properly. 

What are the 11 Plus creative writing topics?

Prior to starting your creative writing piece, you’ll need to have a topic. It’s important that the topic remains at the centre of everything you’re writing, as it will shape the direction of the story and the characters

You can think of a topic as a theme for your story. This can be really simple, as a simple theme will really help write a story in your own way. 

For your 11 plus creative writing exam, you’ll likely be presented with a topic that you then have to write about. Often these topics will have you writing about: 

Being lost or scared, capturing the feeling of being alone and writing a story about overcoming it.

Doing something exciting or achieving something impressive, the best day of your life so far. 

A holiday or an adventure

Travelling to the city or countryside and what you might experience there.

Writing a short story on each of the topics above can be a great way to familiarise yourself with creative writing.

What do examiners look for in creative writing?

Successfully passing your creative writing 11 Plus creative writing exam is a lot less daunting if you know what the examiners are looking for in your creative writing. 

Unlike other exams, it can be difficult to prepare the exact answers. It’s not like a sum in maths, where there’s only one correct answer after your working out. That doesn’t mean there aren’t specific things that examiners are looking for. Let’s take a look at those:

A well planned piece of writing

Strong creativity and good imagination

A fluent writing style

Good and correct use of punctuation 

Good use of English grammar

Complex sentences that are broken in an easy-to-read way with commas

Good spelling

Good and exciting vocabulary

Neat, easy-to-read handwriting

You can use those things as a checklist for your creative writing. When you write practice pieces, read them back and see if you can check off everything on the list of things that examiners are looking for. This will not only highlight areas needing improvement but will also act as a confidence-building tool.

11 Plus creative writing marking scheme

Your creative writing task will be worth 50% of your  English 11 plus exam  paper. So, you’ll want to make sure you’re well prepared!

Part of preparing for the creative writing task is ensuring you know how the exam will be marked. Here’s what your examiner will look at when they mark your work: 

The plot – you need to write a piece that’s got an engaging plot, but more importantly it needs to follow a strong beginning, middle and end structure. We’ll be getting more detail about that further on. Make sure you plan your story to ensure you have a well-structured and easy-to-follow plot. 

Vocabulary – Make sure you’re using a wide range of adjectives, nouns and adverbs. Rather than describing everything the same way, come up with some other engaging ways to write something. Use a good amount of complex words that you normally wouldn’t use (and make sure you understand what they mean so you use them correctly). 

Writing devices – no, your examiner isn’t looking at what pen you used to write the exam. Writing devices refer to things like metaphors, similes, tension building short sentences, alliteration and irony. Try sentences like “he was as fast as a runaway train,” for a simile example. See if you can write a few sentences that each use a different writing device to practice.

Grammar – now is a good time to start practising your grammar skills. Make sure you’re using commas correctly when you write long sentences, and that you format your character dialogue properly. There are a few common grammar mistakes that may catch you out, so keep practising. 

Spelling – While avoiding spelling mistakes is good, to get great marks on your exams you’ll want to use complicated words and spell them correctly. It might be tempting to avoid complicated words if you’re not sure how to spell them but it’s actually not a bad idea to use one or two complicated words and spell them so they’re recognisable than to use no complicated words at all.

11 Plus creative writing tips and techniques

Every great writer has one thing in common – writing techniques! Everyone can develop their creative writing skills by practising these creative writing tasks.

Getting creative 

If you want to write a story this should be your starting point! Have a good think about the topic for your story and the character you’ll be writing about. Take a minute to sit back, close your eyes and think about the world of your story. Can you see it? 

If you can visualise the world of your story, then you’ve got a good idea to work with! Get creative about the story and think about directions that it can go, and the characters you can work with. 

Planning and structure

Once you’ve got your theme in place you need to have a think about the direction of your story. Think about how your story starts, how you want it to end and then think about how you want your main character to get there. 

Remember the classic story structure of beginning, middle and end:

Use the beginning of your story to introduce your character, where they are and maybe one of two of their friends. Maybe even try to set them a goal at this point, what’s something they really, really want? 

Introduce the middle of your story with a problem or an obstacle for your main character to overcome. This is going to be the longest section of your story, so make sure you don’t spend too long with the opening! Think about how your character would overcome the problem you’ve introduced for them. 

In the end your main character overcomes the problem that you introduced for them. Think about what they would feel, the relief they’d experience and how you can sum that up in a paragraph or two. 

There are lots of different ways to write a story, but following the beginning, middle and end structure like this will really help you plan. Try to just write a few short sentences from the beginning, middle and end, then expand it out from there. 

If you need more inspiration to improve your writing skills, why not see David Walliam’s top ten writing tips ?

Creative writing examples: using the senses

Remember – writing descriptively helps your ideas to really come across in what you’re writing. The person reading your creative writing piece can’t read your mind!

A great way to really set a scene in your creative writing is to use the senses:

Sight – what can your character see? Describe how the scene around them looks, and be sure to use some good adjectives.

Sound – can your character hear anything? Even if your character can’t hear anything, that can sometimes be a great way to set a scene. Or maybe your character can hear lots of noise? Either way, make sure the reader knows that.

Smell – what does the place your character’s in smell like? You can make a disgusting, murky bog seem even filthier by describing how smelly it is to the reader. We all react strongly to smells, good or bad, so make sure you’re describing them to your reader.

Touch – what can your character feel? Are they sitting on a really soft sofa? Is the cat they’re stroking extra fluffy? Describe everything your character feels!

Taste – is your character tasting anything? Of course, if your character’s eating you need to describe it. How sweet are the sweets they’re eating? How bitter is the medicine they had to take? You could even get creative and describe a smell so bad that your character can almost taste it!

Get creative when you write about senses. You don’t have to cover every sense in order, you can mix things up in a paragraph or two, and sometimes you only need to cover two or three senses in a particular scene. Make sure you’re always telling your audience what your character is experiencing so the reader can put themselves in your character’s shoes. Utilising this technique ensures the reader engages with your creative writing piece.

Fluent writing

Practice makes perfect when it comes to fluent writing. To practice fluent writing, set yourself a creative writing task as if you were taking your 11 Plus creative writing test.

Try keeping the stories short. Just a few paragraphs so you can do a few attempts. When you’re finished, read them back to yourself out loud. See if the sentences are easy to read out loud. If they’re not, it might be good to rewrite them in a way that makes them easier to say. Try doing this out loud too, rephrase the sentence so it means the same thing but is easier to say. 

Reading out loud is not something you will be doing at the exam, so practicing your fluency at home is the key. Never be scared to do a few practice stories before your 11 Plus creative writing exam.

Proofreading Your Creative Writing

Finally, once you’ve finished writing and you’re happy with how fluent your piece sounds you’ve got to proofread it! That means checking your grammar, your punctuation and spelling. 

Make sure you’ve only used capital letters where they need to be used – the start of sentences and the names of people and places. 

Make sure you’ve used quotation marks correctly – start a new paragraph for when a character starts speaking, open with a quotation mark and then write what they said before closing with a quotation mark. Make sure you carry on writing after they’ve finished speaking with a new paragraph!

Have you checked the tenses? Make sure you’re not mixing up  past, present and future tenses !

Have you used enough punctuation? Make sure all your sentences end with full stops, but also that questions end with a question mark. Space out long sentences with a well-placed comma and make sure if a character says something loudly or is surprised that you’re using exclamation marks. 

Check your spelling! Are there any words you struggle with? Go back and check them to make sure they look right. If you’re really struggling to spell a word, maybe use a different one for your creative writing piece – lots of writers do this! If you do this a lot, then it might be worth doing some spelling practice. 

How do I prepare for creative writing? 

When it comes to 11 Plus creative writing exams it’s difficult to find something specific to revise – unlike exams in maths or English spelling, creative writing exams don’t have a right or wrong answer. So, don’t get overwhelmed by reading countless creative writing books.

The best way to prepare for a creative writing test is to practice all the key points we mentioned above. Set yourself some small creative writing tasks, practice your spelling and get some help fromyour teachers. You could also ask your parents or guardians about tuition to help you prepare for your creative writing .

We also have some creative writing book suggestions and worksheets that could help you prepare. 

11 Plus creative writing examples books

If you’re looking for some books to help you prepare for your 11 Plus creative writing exam or want to find some creative writing examples, here are some of our favourites:

11+ Essentials Creative Writing Examples Book 1 (First Past the Post)

11+ Essentials Creative Writing Examples Book 2 (First Past the Post)

Bond 11+: English Focus on Writing: 9-11 years

RSL Creative Writing, Book 1: KS2, KS3, 11 Plus & 13 Plus – Workbook For Ages 9 Upwards

11+ Creative Writing

Remember to always ask a parent or guardian before buying anything online.

11 Plus creative writing tasks and worksheets

Here are some of our own worksheets that’ll help you prepare and improve your creative writing skills: 

Creating characters

Creating dilemmas

Creating settings

My favourite author

Try an 11 plus creative writing tutor

If you’re worried about your 11 plus creative writing exam, that’s okay. There are numerous ways you can prepare without getting yourself overwhelmed. We’ve already covered how practice makes perfect when it comes to writing, so creative writing courses could be a great way for you to improve your confidence.

11 Plus tuition  will also help with your creative writing. Explore Learning’s expert tutors can help you work on your story planning and structure, grammar, writing fluency and vocabulary. 

Don’t let yourself get overwhelmed about your 11 Plus creative writing task, we’re here to help you do your best.  

Tuition from £175 / month

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11 Plus creative writing FAQs

How to prepare for 11 plus creative writing.

Prepare by understanding the 11 Plus creative writing requirements. Engage in regular practice on various topics like adventures, challenges and feelings. Focus on grammar, punctuation, fluency, spelling and vocabulary. Always proofread and consider getting feedback.

Is there creative writing in the 11 Plus exam?

The 11 Plus exam may include a creative writing component, often lasting 25-30 minutes, where a student demonstrates their narrative and language skills.

What are the different types of creative writing 11+?

The 11 Plus creative writing includes descriptive, persuasive and narrative tasks. Studentsmay be asked to craft or add to stories, describe scenarios, write persuasive letters or informative pieces.

How do I study for a creative writing exam?

Study by practising various creative writing tasks regularly. Focus on language proficiency, structure your narratives and proofread. For tailoredsupport, consider 11 Plus tuition .

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• Writing Prompts

300+ Writing Prompts for Kids (+ Free Printable)

This is the ultimate bank of over 300 writing prompts for kids. From creative writing prompts to journal ideas and even quick poetry prompts . Whenever you’re bored or need a little inspiration, here are some fun ideas for kids writing prompts that can be used over and over again.

This list of creative writing prompts for kids includes a mixture of writing exercises, short story ideas, creative prompts and image prompts . All perfect for beating writer’s block and even for helping you write a whole story . If this list is too difficult to read through, you can use the writing prompts generator below to get some quick random ideas. And there’s even a free PDF version of this post available right at the end of this list – Just keep on reading!

Random Writing Prompts Generator

We put some of our favourite writing prompts in a video for quick viewing:

Over 300 Writing Prompts for Kids

• “Ready or not, here I come!” shouted Millie in the distance.
• 2 million years ago, one curious caveman makes an interesting discovery, which takes him to a city in the year 2020. Here’s a video for more inspiration on this prompt.
• A box is delivered to your house. You open it and find…What’s inside the box? Continue this story.
• A girl at your school has been hiding her true identity for years. Until one day it’s revealed that she is an alien from outer space with mysterious powers.
• A group of young puppies are separated at birth. One of them becomes a circus performer. The other, a well-pampered house pet and the final one a stray dog.
• A kind princess gets locked in a tower which once belonged to a powerful wizard. Instead of waiting for a prince or knight to save her, she creates her own spells to get out. Soon the spells start taking over and turn her into an evil witch.
• A man obsessed with comic books starts thinking that he is actually a supervillain from one of his favourite comic books. And now he is plotting world domination.
• A mastermind supervillain is tired of people always booing him and wishing him to disappear. He decides to become a good guy or a superhero and tries to get people to like him.
• A monkey at the zoo wants to run away from the zoo to join a circus.
• A mouse believes that he can talk to cheese. The other mice think he’s crazy – but is he?
• A new magic shop has just opened in town. You decide to get your brother a magic playset for his birthday from this shop. Instead of just playful magic, the magic set turns your brother into a warlock capable of turning humans into frogs and more
• A physics professor at a top university creates a gadget that can turn back time. He starts using it for his own personal gain, such as winning the lottery. Then he realises that he has created multiple timelines, where multiple versions of himself have been created.
• A superhero who catches the bad guy, but actually helps the “real” bad guy escape.
• A vegetarian shark explains how he feels like an outsider and doesn’t fit in anywhere. 
• A witch kidnaps you and locks you up in a tower. How will you escape? Why have you been kidnapped?
• A young Prince has locked himself in his castle to avoid eye contact with any human person. One look could turn them to stone.
• A young witch turns her three older sisters into dolls and plays with them every day. How will the three older witches become real again?
• A zombie who wants to become a vegetarian.
• After 30 years in prison, the big bad wolf is finally out. Write a short story about the big bad wolf’s life after prison. You can watch this video for further inspiration and clues.
• After a thunderstorm, you find a mysterious egg in your backyard. It starts to hatch and out comes a baby dragon! What do you do next? For help take a look at our dragon invasion video prompt .
• After eating a strange-looking vegetable, your pet bunny becomes a disgusting zombie bunny.
• After reading a magical book, you gain some magical powers. However, it turns out that you always had these magical abilities inside of you.
• After the accident, Nelson never felt safe again.
• Aliens are coming to invade Earth! Send them a letter to convince them to stop invading Earth.
• All humans eventually get a superpower. However, David is the only kid at school with no superpowers at all.
• All your life you knew your best friend. But one day you find out that your real best friend passed away years ago and was replaced by a robot.
• An adventurer discovers a glowing cube inside a dark cave in South America. But when they try to leave the cave, the cube summons a secret league of assassins.
• An everyday boy walks up from a coma to discover the world has been taken over by aliens – But is this all a dream?
• An evil conman (or any other type of villain) turns out to be your hero’s only saviour.
• An expedition in the Amazon rainforest gets deadly when you and your team encounter a group of warriors protecting the rainforest from outsiders.
• Another tea party, another game.
• Blinded by a bright light outside his window, Jake jumped up in horror.
• Bridget has been best friends with Charlie since elementary school. Everything changes when a new girl Chrissy becomes Charlie’s other best friend.
• Can you help Freddie the ninja cat write up a game plan to rescue his best friend and save the day? Here’s a video for more inspiration on this prompt.
• Can you write a how-to guide on how to make friends at a new school? Watch this video prompt for more inspiration.
• Can you write a short fantasy story about a strange key that opens up portals to new worlds? Here is a video to help you out with this creative prompt.
• Can you write a short story about a group of forest animals working together to save their home from deforestation? You can watch this video to inspire you further with this prompt.
• Can you write down at least 10 ways to show love to someone you care about, such as friends and family? You can use this video to help you out with this prompt.
• Describe the city of the future. In 100 years time, what will the world look like?
• Do you have a favourite magazine that you read? Write a letter to your favourite publication telling them how good their recent issue was.
• During a family camping trip, you find a backpack containing a strange-looking map, compass and a solid gold snake ring. What do you do next
• During the night, your house gets robbed. Now you’re on a mission to find the stolen items and punish the robber.
• Every night the same whispers. Every night the same cries. Who could this be and what do they want?
• Everything he touches turns to bananas that must be the worst superpower ever. When will it ever come in handy?
• Everything will be automated in the future. Humans won’t even need to walk or get up. The robots can do that for them. In fact, humans don’t do anything, apart from just exist in the world. This gives aliens from a nearby planet, the perfect opportunity to invade and take over planet Earth (see our planet name generator for more inspiration).
• Finish this sentence: For lunch today, I…
• Finish this sentence: If I could change one thing about myself, it would be…
• For years you have had breathing problems and suffered from asthma. You also had an extreme phobia of the ocean and deep water. Then one day, someone from your school invites you to a beach party. At the party, you learn that you’re a mermaid.
• For years you have played the role of a good superhero. Always saving lives and watching the people you love disappear. Now you had enough, it’s time to be the bad guy, it’s time to play the villain.
• Gavin was always getting the best presents. For once I wish I could be like him.
• Having a superpower was cool until Mindy started losing control of her power. It was like the darkness was taking over her whole body. She is now a danger to everyone, including herself.
• How was the very first superhuman or human with superpowers created?
• If dogs could speak, then Spike would be thanking Chris right now.
• Imagine if animals could write. Choose an animal of your choice and write a letter to them.
• Imagine that you are a fork. What would your life be like as a fork that humans use for eating with? As a talking fork, what would you say?
• In a futuristic world, humans are fighting against robots to keep their race alive. However, it turns out that everyone is a robot anyway and the true human race died out years ago.
• In a war between humans and aliens, you lose your best friend. However, he/she is really alive and working with the aliens.
• In the damp streets of Manhattan, there lived a fierce little cat.
• In the story of Hansel and Gretal, write from the perspective of the witch that lives in the Gingerbread house. 
• Is your family wealthy or short on money? Money can be a strong motivator and a source of conflict for many people. How does money make you feel?
• It’s ‘Bring a Parent to School Day’. But your main character’s parents are so busy that they can’t make it, so they bring their much older brother to school instead.
• It’s the 1930s and you are making your first debut as a circus clown. However, on the first night of the circus opening, things end very badly.
• It’s the annual snail racing championships. Pretend that you are a commentator for a snail race.
• It’s the year 2070 and crime is at an all-time high. To combat crime, one town has completely replaced its police officers with robot officers. However, the robot police officers malfunction and start thinking that all humans are criminals.
• Legend says that if you breathe in and out ten times in front of a mirror something strange happens.
• Life is good, life is perfect until you realise everything is a hologram and the real world is a dark and broken place.
• Life wasn’t great at all for Mr Pea. It wasn’t even mildly good.
• Loneliness is a strong emotion. Write about a time when you felt alone and what did you do to cheer yourself up.
• Look through some old family photos and pick one at random. Use this photo as inspiration for your next story.
• Make a bucket list of all the places you want to visit.
• Meeting a group of talking monkeys in the jungle.
• Mother has always warned me about not eating too much cheese before bedtime and now I know why! Cheese makes your nightmares come true!
• On her 13th birthday, Cassie was cursed to never speak again. She was such a loud, outgoing girl, now she’s almost invisible.
• One day, you notice that cats keep following you home from school. You eventually find out that you’re slowly turning into a cat yourself. How will you stop this from happening?
• People ran inside their homes, as the alarm rang.
• Pick a fairytale character of your choice and write a letter to them.
• Pick an inspirational quote and design a whole page around it in your journal.
• Robbie the robin thinks that he is the best singer in the world. But all the other birds think he sounds like a broken flute.
• Sitting alone in the dark, Jesse feared the outside world. She just wants to be alone.
• Sitting at his computer, Martin noticed something odd about his favourite computer game.
• Some say the number 7 is unlucky, but to me, it wasn’t.
• Superman, Wonder Woman, Captain America, Spiderman – Whoever your favourite superhero is, write an imaginary letter to them.
• Tabitha the house cat knows there’s a mouse hiding in the kitchen. Write a monologue scene of Tabitha dreaming about catching the mouse.
• Talk about the struggles of being the most popular girl or boy in school. Think about the peer pressure you face daily.
• The desert-like sun burned his skin as he lay scorching in the sand.
• The room was a dump, as Jack frantically searched every corner.
• The same words over and over again scattered all over the floor.
• The sun shone brightly on the Oakland farm, but not all was bright.
• The world’s longest game of tic-tac-toe – For some reason, it just never seems to end.
• There’s an old ancient belief that the ocean is alive. When pirates pollute it with rubbish and hurt the sea creatures it makes the ocean angry. Write a short story from the perspective of the ocean.
• Think about a difficult decision you had to make recently. For example, did you have to choose between going to your best friend’s birthday party or visiting your dad in another country?
• Think about how your self-image has changed over the past few years. Has your confidence grown or withered away? Use this as your inspiration for your next short story.
• Think about the first time you met your friend. Write a letter to them reminding them of this time.
• Think about the funniest thing that happened in your life and use it as an inspiration for your next short story.
• This Halloween you decide to go as a simple ghost. What you didn’t realise is that by wearing the costume, you actually became a ghost. And your best friend dressed up as a vampire, is now actually a vampire!
• Thomas Saint designed the first-ever sewing machine. Write a story from the perspective of Thomas and how he came up with the idea.
• Three brothers are fighting with each other to be the next king of their kingdom – who will win?
• Tick… tock… tick… tock… time was going so slow.
• To make some extra money on the side, a farmer decides to open a knock-off version of Disneyland.
• Weather is a common theme in poems. Pick any weather of your choice, such as rain, snow, a sunny day and then write a poem about it.
• What do you think the world will be like in 10, 50 or even 100 years time?
• What hobby do you enjoy the most and how did you get into it?
• Write a biography of your life, as the child of an infamous pirate living out at sea. You can view this video for more inspiration.
• Write a day in the life story of a talking ice-cream family. You can watch this video prompt for further inspiration.
• Write a fairytale about a young prince cursed with the power of darkness. Take a look at this video for more inspiration.
• Write a letter to a company that you want to work for in the future. Tell them why you would make a good worker and why they should hire you.
• Write a letter to cheer someone up who is sad. You could include a funny story or joke in this letter.
• Write a letter to your favourite celebrity.
• Write a script of a conversation between you and a talking tree. You can view this video for more inspiration.
• Write a short story about a dog travelling across America to find his mother.
• Write a short story about being turned into a rat. You can use the clues and questions in this video to help you with your story.
• Write a short story about the life of being a husky dog working in Alaska to help pull equipment and people around in the snowy landscape.
• Write a short story titled, Raining Doughnuts. You can use the information in this video to help you out with this prompt.
• Write a story about a young boy or girl, who leaves their home to find that everyone is gone. Their friends, family, neighbours, pets – Everyone is gone. Watch this video prompt for more inspiration.
• Write a story dedicated to the best teacher or mentor you ever had so far in your life.
• Write about a nightmare you recently had.
• Write about a recent achievement or goal you accomplished. 
• Write at least 7 journal entries about being lost on a deserted island . You can use this video prompt to help you out.
• Write out a simple storyline for a new video game. Think about the year your game will be set in, who the enemies will be and how the game will start and end? Watch this video for more clues on what to include in your video game.
• You and your friends finally find the courage to enter the haunted house in your neighbourhood. But what exactly lurks inside the house?
• You are a master chef at a top restaurant. To keep the restaurant going, you need to come up with a new recipe or dish to include on the menu. Can you invent a new dish or menu item? Watch this video for more inspiration.
• You are going to visit your grandma. It’s a two-hour car drive to get and the traffic is extra busy today. While stuck in the traffic you have some funny, yet strange encounters with other drivers.
• You are researching your family tree for a school project. You thought your family was small until you stumbled upon some old family photos All those aunts, uncles, cousins that you never saw your whole life. Why keep them a secret?
• You are the best dark assassin in the kingdom. The king’s son has hired you to kill the king in secret. What do you do?
• You are the most famous superhero of all time. But what you don’t know is that your father is actually a supervillain which you’ll have to take down.
• You become the very first superhuman in the whole world after discovering that you can move objects with just your mind. You decide to keep it a secret and only ever use it when you’re really desperate. But this all changes one day
• You finally solve a Rubix cube to get trapped inside a life-size cube. Where you have to solve many cube-like puzzles to get released.
• You get an unknown phone call from someone. The person tells you that someone will knock at your door very soon and that you should not open it. You hear a knock at the door – What do you do?
• You just landed on a new planet. Describe this new planet to the other people on your spaceship. Watch this video for some clues and ideas to help you with this prompt.
• You’re the son of a mad scientist who rides a snail to school every day.
• You’re leaving a long adventure and you don’t know when you’ll be back. Write a goodbye letter to your loved ones and friends.
• Your best friend and you sneak into the school cafeteria after school to steal some food. But as soon as you open the door you hear the dinner ladies chanting some spell over something that looks like a smoking cauldron.
• Your long, lost sister who you thought was dead knocks at your door.
• Your main character is a poor farmer’s boy. One day his fortune turns around when he finds a magician’s spellbook deep in the forest.
• Your main character is a street thief and a shapeshifter. They can change into any human or animal. As the lowest ranking member of society, your main character is tired of being treated like dirt, so they decide to impersonate the king and take over the kingdom.
• Your main character is a werewolf hunter, but it turns out that he himself is a werewolf.
• Your main character is plotting the greatest revenge in history in their own mind.
• Your best friend died years ago and was replaced by a cyborg. And you only just found out recently.
• After going through some old stuff in the attic, you learn that your great grandfather was a war hero.
• Earth’s weather system has dramatically changed in the future. Now the weather forecast talks about balls of fire falling from the sky and tornadoes made of water flooding random towns.
• Everyone looked up to Lava Knight until he accidentally hurt someone with his superpowers. Now all humans are protesting against superheroes. They demand that all superheroes are stripped off their superpowers.
• On your 12th birthday, you’ll be old enough to join any of the four clans: Steel Warriors, Earth Souls, The Healers or the Wise Ones. But a secret group living underground called the Dark Assassins want to recruit you. What will happen next? (If you like cats and warriors, take a look at the Imagine Forest Warrior Cat name generator .)
• Your character has a big confession to make to the world.
• Your family is hiding a big, dark secret and they’ll do anything to keep it a secret from your other relatives.
• Alone sitting at a dinner party fit for 20 people, the main character explains how they lost it all for nothing.
• Have you ever felt pressured to do something? Write about this peer pressure from the perspective of your future self in 5 years time.
• Write a short story from the perspective of an alien living on Mars. You can use the following sentence as inspiration, “Humans are real! We are not alone! Humans are real” Chanted the crowd.
• Every year your family goes on a family vacation. But this year, the annual family vacation has been cancelled.
• “Master Jewel Thief Caught And Locked Up!” – That’s what the newspaper headline read on Saturday morning. It’s now Wednesday morning and another diamond robbery took place last night.
• During a cruise ship holiday, the ship starts sinking. You end up stranded on an island, where you have to survive until someone rescues you.
• You and your best friend find a beautiful sports car parked outside your home. The keys are inside and the door has been left open.
• Write a short story about a mad scientist who has found a way to combine human DNA with animal DNA to create superhumans.
• As an orphan child, Cassie always felt alone. Until she joined an art club and met her two best friends, Edwin and Miranda. Now she found a family that she never thought she’ll have.
• Each snowflake is unique and delicate. With only a few seconds before you melt, write a short monologue from the perspective of a snowflake falling from the sky.
• A cure for a rare disease mutates humans into flesh-eating zombies.
• Who raised you the most when growing up? What lessons did they teach you? How do they inspire you?
• There are many benefits to being a middle child. You don’t have the responsibility of being the eldest and you aren’t treated like a baby like the youngest. But still, you always feel misunderstood by your family and are always on the outside.
• Earth was created as a prison for all badly behaved humans. And now that the prison sentence is over, everyone can finally go home to their real planet.
• Your main character follows a street cat and ends up in a world where cats rule the planet and humans are their pets.
• The lights turn off, as your master goes to sleep. One dog sits by the bed of his master – What is he wondering about?
• You find an old pen in a magic shop. Every time you write something down using that pen it becomes true.
• A hard-working lawyer decides to leave the city life behind to start a new life in the country. As he ventures off to the country he realises that country life is not as calm or as relaxing as he thought it would be.
• Your main character is a spy in the year 1570. They have been hired to protect the queen from a secret league of assassins.
• It’s the year 2135, every household has their own robot servant. After years of learning from human behaviour, the robot servants develop a mind of their own and start to attack humans.
• For two whole years, you thought Catelyn was your best friend. So many secrets shared. So many moments shared. But she was just a fake friend – She was never there when you really needed her.
• One by one students from your class are going missing. It’s up to you to find out what happened to them.
• Everyone thinks that you’re this big, tough guy, but really you’re struggling on the inside. In a monologue, talk about your struggles and the judgement, you face every day.
• Write about something that brings you great joy in your life.
• Jerome the chameleon hates people staring at him, so he always camouflages. One day he sees a human and wants her to adopt him. But she never sees him. From that moment, Jerome doesn’t want to hide away anymore.
• It’s the 1930s and you are making your first debut as a circus clown. However on the first night of the circus opening things end very badly.
• Sarah can move objects with her mind, but her power is super weak. Until she connects with a group of girls from another high school. Together their bond forms the greatest power that anyone has seen.
• In the future, there has been a serious drop in the human population. After viruses, war and human nature have killed the majority of Earth’s population. Now humans are considered an endangered species.
• How was the first-ever newspaper or media company started? Your main character in this story is the first-ever reporter.
• Your little sister is always bugging you to play with her dolls, but you’re too old to play with dolls. Until one day you actually become a doll. Your parents think you ran away, but really you are in your sister’s bedroom on a shelf with all the other dolls.
• After years of horrific weather conditions and natural disasters, humans have learned to adapt to the various environmental changes.
• Not everything is rainbows and cotton candy on the planet of unicorns. Something deadly lurks underground.
• On a bus ride to an important college interview, your character goes through many self-doubts.
• An alpha wolf is kicked out of his pack for playing around with humans. Will he ever become alpha again?
• It has always been you and you mom. Until one day your mom introduces you to a lady and tells you that they are getting married.
• Mysterious symbols are appearing all over town. It is up to your main character to decipher the code and find out the meaning of these symbols.
• It’s the year 2,075 and scientists have discovered a way to make humans immortal. But only the rich and important people are offered this treatment.
• Write a monologue scene from the point of view of one of the ugly step-sisters in Cinderella. The scene can be set right after Cinderella’s wedding.
• During a football game, the ball falls into the forest behind your school. When you go to find the ball, you discover small fairy-like creatures in the forest. No-one believes you when you try telling them, but you know the truth.
• Your main character hasn’t seen their father in over 10 years. Suddenly out of the blue their father turns up asking for a place to stay.
• For centuries humans have evolved. From apes to modern-day men and women. This evolution has not stopped. In the year, 2200, some humans have special abilities or superpowers, such as mind-reading powers or the ability to fly. This has caused great destruction on Earth.
• After a huge argument, you learn your parents are getting a divorce. Your mom wants you to stay with her, while your dad wants you to come with him. What will you do?
• Write a short story about a magpie with a stealing problem. No matter what this magpie does he/she just can’t help stealing shiny things.
• Dragons are at war with humans. While foraging for food near the mountains you find a small ice dragon that helps hunt for food. Together you end the war between dragons and humans.
• Scientists invent a teleportation machine which allows people to travel all over the world within a few seconds. However, the machine goes bust and starts sending people into different dimensions.
• Complete the following story starter: The music stops, everyone turns around and they see…
• After the death of your uncle, you inherit his magical sword. When held in a fighting position, the sword turns you into a legendary superhero, called the crimson knight.
• A family camping trip gets dangerous when a pack of wolves start circling your tents in the middle of the night.
• Cats and dogs rule the world and humans are their pets.
• Little Red Riding meets the wolf in the forest. Instead of being scared of him, they become close friends.
• It’s Halloween night and you just finished carving a pumpkin with your parents. Later that night when you are alone in the house, the pumpkins start talking to you with the mouth you carved on them.
• After years of getting all the attention from your parents. Your parents bring home a baby boy and now it seems like no-one even notices you anymore. It’s all about your baby brother now.
• Known as the Floral Slayer, there is a serial killer on the loose. They are going around town destroying all flowers in public places, people’s gardens and front yards. Why are they doing this and who can stop them?
• When the world is about to end, a superhero and supervillain must work together to save it.
• A poem dedicated to your mother.
• Going to Paris on holiday.
• Dedication poem to your favourite celebrity.
• The creepy shadows in your room remind you of… 
• What is life like on a fluffy white cloud?
• Being on stage with everyone looking at you.
• Can you think of some common stereotypes that people have of women? Why are these stereotypes wrong? For example, some people think women should stay at home and not work – do you agree or disagree with this statement?
• Think about something your mom is always saying and write down how you can help out.
• You’re on the beach collecting seashells. You then hear a calm whisper from one of the seashells. It whispers, “Come, find me…” What do you do next?
• We all heard the legend of mermaids and the loch ness monster. But can you write your own legend about a mysterious sea creature? 
• Write a limerick about the summer sun.
• Write one journal entry into your nature journal about the great outdoors. 
• Your favourite celebrity is about to give a talk on violence against pets. Can you help them by writing a powerful speech for their talk?
• Your new pet dog has superpowers! Create a comic strip about this super dog’s adventures. Who’s the villain? What are its powers?
• Write a short story which must include the following items: Vanilla Ice-Cream, Jam Sandwiches and a monkey. 
• You are the manager of your favourite football team. Create a game plan on how they can win their next game.
• Crystal was one of the most powerful witches of all-time. She defeated many evil warlocks and villains. But now she’s locked up in a mental institution. Is she really a witch or is she just crazy?
• After reading a forbidden book, the most horrific and disgusting creatures from hell crossover to Earth.
• A boy helps out an old lady, in return, he is given magical powers. Instead of using his powers for good, he uses it to destroy the world.
• Scientists accidentally create a vaccine which gives humans super strength, along with other traits.
• A hurricane destroyed a whole city. Write a story about a search and rescue dog.
• You find out that your cat is actually the king of a secret kingdom of cats.

• Write a short story including the following elements: An elephant, a balloon, pyjamas and a watermelon.

• How do rabbits celebrate a holiday like Easter?

• Complete the following story starter: The moon’s light reflected on the ocean. Maisie sat with her toes deep in the sand, thinking about her future. What would happen next? Now that everyone knows her secret.
• Complete the following story starter: Soon I will be powerful enough to beat them all!
• Write a story including the following elements: A lobster, two pairs of socks and a party balloon.
• Use a good memory from your life as inspiration for your next story.
• Use a bad memory from your life as inspiration for your next story.
• Complete the following story starter: The nightmares never ended for Clara.
• Write a story including the following elements: Your favourite celebrity, a hobby you enjoy doing and your dream holiday destination.
• Rewrite your favourite fairytale .
• Rewrite the lyrics of your favourite song. But this time make it all about food!
• Write a scary story about an evil prince who collects bugs.
• Write a short biography of a beautiful lady who ages 10 years in one day.
• Describe to your friend a brainy rockstar who hates school.
• Describe a day in the life of an old owl who tries to get into the Guinness Book of World.
• Write a rhyming story about an old movie star who collects bugs.
• Make up a conversation you might have with a nerdy alien who lives on a faraway planet.
• Describe the personality of a self-conscious fox who wants to win a dance contest.
• Write a short biography of an evil dragon who won a million pounds.
• Write a funny story about an ugly knight who tries to get into the Guinness Book of World.
• Make up a conversation you might have with a self-conscious ogre who discovers they have superpowers.
• Write a travel log for a devious dentist who is lost on an island.
• Describe the appearance of a smelly alien who gets lost in the Amazon rainforest.
• Write a detective story about a million-year-old zombie who is always getting into trouble with their parents.
• Describe to your friend a devious pirate who discovers a talking frog.
• Write a rhyming story about a smelly prince who has to save the world.
• Describe a very unusual day for a nerdy witch who has to save the world.
• Write a scary story about a million-year-old cat who ages 10 years in one day.
• Write a scary story about a nerdy rockstar who is lost on an island.
• Write a travel log for a devious dog who rides a giant snail to school.
• Write a story including the following elements: A magical pencil, a dog and a mischievous eraser.
• Complete the following story starter: Darren sat on the bus watching the rain pour down.

Free 150 Writing Prompts For Kids PDF

Now it times to Download your free printable writing prompts for kids PDF ! This printable pdf contains 150 writing prompts for kids, which you can print-out and use as inspiration for your next story! For more fun writing prompts, take a look at our dedicated writing prompts section .

This collection of writing prompts for kids are great for both young writers and experienced writers. We guarantee that you’ll feel more inspired and ready to beat writer’s block with these creative writing prompts. Share your writing prompts and tips in the comments below.

Marty the wizard is the master of Imagine Forest. When he's not reading a ton of books or writing some of his own tales, he loves to be surrounded by the magical creatures that live in Imagine Forest. While living in his tree house he has devoted his time to helping children around the world with their writing skills and creativity.

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Hundreds of Awesome Creative Writing Topics for kids

Creative writing is a great way for children to express themselves using imagination. At Kids Play and Create, we value young writers, and we are constantly updating our list to bring you new, fun, and imaginative writing prompts for kids.

We have story starters, icebreakers, fiction writing prompts, and fun topics to inspire kids through writing. From young students to middle school students and even high school, we have great writing prompts for all writing styles and even the most reluctant writers.

We started out with 50 creative writing topics for kids but have added many more. Check back regularly for newly added writing topics. 

                Check the end of the article for updated Creative Writing Topics for Teens. Are you looking for Creative Writing topics for 1st grade and 2nd grade with free printables? We have that too!

What is Creative Writing?

Creative writing can be used to explain many types of writing. It is a writing style that lets the writer express themselves.  Some forms of creative writing entertain the reader, while others are therapeutic.  Creative writing lets the writer use their imagination and takes the reader on a journey into their thoughts.

Is Creative Writing Important?

Creative writing is a great way to learn more about the children you work with.  You can find out things about what they like and don’t like.  Depending on the topic you choose, you can also find out things about their personality, what kind of friends they are, how they feel about themselves, and if they set goals and more.  

There are many benefits to writing. Creative writing helps build critical thinking skills and writing skills. These writing prompts will build a child’s confidence to write their own stories.

How do you get kids to want to write without complaining?  Give them fun topics that they will learn about themselves while writing.  On this list, you will find various good topics for both younger and older children.

Creative Writing is fun for All Ages.

Creative writing isn’t just for older children. It can be for the little ones too. Young students as early as Preschool or Kindergarten may not have the ability to write but can express themselves through drawing.

Have young students concentrate less on the writing and more on drawing a picture that goes with the topic. Children are great at expressing themselves through art.

Awesome Creative Writing Prompts for Elementary Students

1. Have the children write on top of the page:  I Am Special Because… This is a good topic to help children express themselves.

Have the children think about why they are special and ask themselves questions, here are some examples: what am I good at? Who have they helped? How have I made a difference? What special talent do I have?

2. If I was a superhero, what kind of superhero would I be, and what powers would I have? (This can also be done using villains)

 Examples of powers they can write about: are flying, super speed, eye lasers, walking through walls, shooting ice, shooting fire, changing the weather, camouflage, shapeshifting (changing shape), and turning invisible. 

Activity:  Keep track of who chose a superhero or a villain. Do not let the children know that another activity will follow after the writing activity. When the writing activity is over, split the children into two teams, the superhero team and the villain team.  Have them vs. each other in a game of tag.  Who will champion the superheroes or the villains? 

3. What do I want to be when I grow up and why? This a great way to get to know children.  By asking what they want to be when they grow up, you can find out what the children like.  It’s also a great way for children to start thinking about the future.

4. If you were given three wishes, what would they be and why? This is a fun topic.  Children can think about having anything in the world.  Will they pick something like peace on earth or go the million-dollar route?  

5. If I could invent a new animal, what animal would it be?  Have the children ask themselves the following questions: What does the animal look like (what color, is it big or small, is it a combination of two animals)?  What sounds does the animal make?  What does it eat?  Where does it live?  Describe the animal’s habitat.

Creative Writing Topics for Kids

6. If I could invent a new toy, what kind of toy would I create and why? Or, If I could improve a toy, which toy would I improve, and how would I make it better?  You can talk to the children about the creative process:  First, you come up with an idea, then you have to get it made.  You can talk to the children about manufacturing toys.  Here are some questions you can ask the children about improving a toy.  How do you want to make the toy better?  Do you want to make the remote control car faster?  Is the game challenging enough?  Do you want your doll to have more features or do more?  These are all questions you can ask the children to get their brains thinking.

7. If I could make something disappear in my life, what would it be and why? Ask the children if there is something in your life that makes them unhappy.  Is there a problem you are having?  

8. All About me essay. Some sample questions the children can ask are:  What are my likes and dislikes? What is my favorite subject in school? What do I want to be when I group up?  Who is their favorite actress/actor?  Where do they want to visit? They can name the people in their family, talk about any extracurricular activities they do, etc.

In what ways do I help my family? Have children write about the ways they help their families.  Do you have chores?  If so, what are they?  Do you help your mom or dad cook?  Do you talk out the garbage? Do you take care of your siblings?  Do you have a job to help pay bills?  

10. How can I be a better friend?  Have children think about what type of friends they are.  Are they good listeners?  Are you kind?  Do you talk about your friends to other people?  Have them think about how they would like to be treated by a friend, do they treat their friends the way they want to be treated?

The Best Creative Writing Topics for 4th and 5th grade

11. If you could be invisible, what would you do and why? Have the children think about what it would be like to be invisible.  Would they use this new power for good or would they try to do something bad?

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12. What do you think about bullies and why? Have the children define what a bully is to them in their paper.  Do they think they are a bully?  Do they think bullying is wrong?  Remember, these are things the children are feeling, there are no wrong answers.

13. Why is it important to be honest and not lie?  To them, the children with their writing ask them the following questions. What does it mean to be honest?  Have you ever told a lie that turned into another lie?

14. What would you do if you won a million dollars?  This question is usually a favorite topic with the children.  Ask them if they think one million dollars is a lot of money.  Depending on where you live, it might be just enough to buy a small house and a car.  What are some things you would buy?  Would you save some or spend it all?

15. If you could change the world, what would you do and why? This is a good question for older children.  Would they change things, such as ending hate and violence in the world? Would they change things such as making gas or food free for everyone? You will get various answers, making this a fun and interesting topic.

Fun Writing Prompts Ideas

16. If you were a king/queen, what would you do and why? This is a fun topic for both younger and older children.  Activity: Have the children draw their kingdom and a picture of them as king or queen

17. If you could invent a video game, what kind of game would you create and why? This topic is also great for older children and young er children.  Children love playing video games, they may not realize that they can make video games for a living.  Talk to the children about video game developers and the process of creating video games.  Have them brainstorm ideas for games, and find out what they can come up with.

18. Write about a time when you had to be brave, what did you do, and how did it feel?  Ask the children if they have ever been afraid. What were they afraid of? Did something scary happen to them?  What did they do to get through it?

19. Write about a trip to the moon, how did you get there, what did you see, it was fun or scary?

20. Write about something you are good at?

21. Write about one thing you want to learn about?

22. Write about a time when you worked hard to get something. This can be a thing or an accomplishment, like making a team, finally getting that cartwheel, or passing a test.

23. Write about five things you could be better at if you worked hard and gave more effort.  There is always room for improvement.  Talk to the children about the importance of trying hard and working towards a goal.

24. If you had to give away $1,000, what would you do with it, who would you give it to? This is a great question when talking to children about being kind and helping others.  

Journal Prompts or Kids

25. What is the best thing someone has ever given to you?

26. What is the nicest thing someone has ever done for you?

27. Write about what you can teach others. Everyone is good at something.  This question helps children think about what they’re good at and how they can help others.

28. Did you ever get into an argument with a friend or family member? How did that make you feel?  

29. Did you ever hurt someone’s feelings?  Explain what happened and how it made you feel.  

30. Did someone ever hurt your feelings? How did it make you feel? Did you talk to that person about it?

31. Is there anyone you would like to switch places with? who and why?

32. What does it mean to be loyal?

33. When was a time you were loyal to a friend or a friend who was loyal to you?

34. What famous person would you like to meet? Write about a day spent with a famous person.

Self-Esteem Writing Topics

34. Has a friend ever betrayed you? How did it make you feel? What do you think your friend should have done differently?

35. Have you ever been friends with someone who was unpopular or not part of the group?  This is a great question to ask children when teaching them about acceptance and how it feels not to be part of a group.

36. When was a time you felt you were treated unfairly? How did it make you feel?

37. Is it fair to give someone a head start in a race?  When is it fair? When is it not fair?

38. Write about a time when you had a strong opinion about something? Why did you feel so strongly about it?

39. Write about a time you made a big mistake.  How did you fix it?  Everyone makes mistakes.  This writing topic helps children understand that mistakes are part of the learning experience.

40. Write about a time when you were very angry.  What happened? How did being angry make you feel? I find that many times children will feel sad when they are angry.  Did I make a good choice when I was angry? This is a great writing topic when discussing feelings with children.  It is important for them to understand that anger isn’t wrong, and you are allowed to feel angry.

41. If you heard a rumor about a friend you knew wasn’t true, what would you do? How would it make you feel?

42. Write about a time when you cheered someone up. What did you do? How did it make you feel? How did it make that person feel?

43. Write about a time you used your inner strength to get through a tough situation.

44. Write about three things that are hard for you and why.

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45. When was the last time you were afraid? What scared you? How did you react?

46. What is the bravest thing you’ve ever done?

47. Who is your hero, and why?

48. What do you think risk-taking is?  Have you ever taken a risk?

49. Write about your best friend. Who are they, how long have you known them, and why are they your best friend?

50. What does it mean to have good character? Do you think you have good character, why?

Short Story Writing Topics for Kids

51. Think about something you are not allowed to do but wish you could.  Write about why you want to do it and why you should be allowed to do it.

52. If you could be on a t.v show, which one would it be and why?  

53. If you had to choose to be one age for the rest of your life which age would you want to be?  Why?

54.  If you could pick the perfect job, what would it be?

55. You just found a treasure map, write about what you would do next.  Do you decide to look for the treasure?  Who is going to help you?  What supplies do you need? Did the map lead you to the treasure, or was it fake?  If you found the treasure, what was it?  What did you do with it?

56. You just built a time machine.  Where in time would you go?  What did you do?  What did you see?  Would you want to stay there or come back to the present time?

57.  You just discovered a new land.  What are you going to call your land?  What kind of animals live there?  Have you discovered anything on your land?  What are you going to build on your new land?

58. Challenge the kids to write a scary story.

59. If you are working with younger children, instead of having them write, you can have them draw and answer questions about their drawing.  Try some of these topics.

1  Create a monster.  Your monster can be silly, scary, funny, big, little, colorful, etc..  What is your monster’s name?  What does your monster eat?  Where does your monster live?  Is your monster nice or mean?  You can write the answers to the questions on the paper for the child or have them come up and share their drawing, while they are showing their picture, ask them questions about their monster.

2.  Create an animal.  This is the same as the monster but just an animal instead.

3. Create new food. What kind of food is it?  Is it a dessert, is it something spicy, is it a combination of both?  Have the children draw a picture of their new food.

Group Writing Prompts for Kids

I’ve been working with kids on group writing and art projects.  The kids enjoyed these topics the best.

58. Create a fairy tale. have each group member write one part of the story. Then have each member of the group draw one part of the story. When the children are finished writing, have them come up in front of the class and retell their story.   

59.  Create an amusement park.  Discuss as a group the name of the park.  Have each member of the group write about the parts of the park. 

A. What is the theme of your park?  Adventure, thrill rides, water rides, safari, etc.

B.  Write about the type of rides in the park.  Are there shows in the park?

C. Describe places to eat at the park and what type of food they serve.

D. Do they have a gift shop?  What do they sell at your park?

Art Project:  On a large poster board, have each group member draw a park map.  List of attractions, games, food, restrooms, gift shops, shows, etc..

 60. Create a planet – Your group has just discovered a new planet.  Have a group discussion about the planet.  What is the name?  Do anyone live on the planet? Is there water on the planet? Did you find fossils, aliens, or animals?  Is there oxygen? Are there plants, trees, or water?  Have each member of the group write something about the planet.

Art Project: Make a planet out of paper mache.  Once dry, paint, and decorate the planet.

Newly Added Creative Writing Prompts

61. Create a new food/or meal and make a recipe to teach others how to make it.  Have the kids draw a picture of the new food/meal.

62. Create a new game and describe how to play.  This writing topic lets children use their imaginations.  Have the children draw out the game on paper.  If creating a  board game, have the children turn the paper into a board game.

63. Write about a time you lost a game, didn’t do well on a test, or made a mistake, what lesson did you learn? This is a great writing topic to use when teaching children about losing.  Everyone loses sometimes.  losing actually makes you better.  Without losing, sometimes, you won’t strive to become better.

64.  Your video just went viral on Youtube.  What did you do in your video? These days children spend so much time looking at videos on Youtube.  Have them imagine what it would be like to become famous overnight with a viral video.

Fabulous Creative Writing Prompts for Kids

65.  Pretend you had an evil twin.  Write about some things your evil twin does.

66. What is the grossest lunch you have ever been served?  Write about this gross meal.  Remember to add many details about what the food looked and tasted like.

67. What is your sorcerer’s name?  What kind of sorcerer would you be?  Would you be evil or nice?  What kind of powers would you have?  What is something that you did as a sorcerer?

68. What are your personal superpowers?  Are you a great friend, are you smart, do you have a hidden talent?  Write about the superpowers that you already have.

See also   Black History Month Writing Prompts for Students .

69. Write about a time when you were proud of your work and did your best.  How did that make you feel?  Do you always try your best?  Why or why not

70. You have been working hard on your schoolwork/project all for a while, and your mind and body are tired, and you need a break.  What are some ways that you like to take a break?  Do you like to color, take deep breaths, play your favorite game, nap, or have a snack?  Tell us about how you like to take a break.

• Invent a new holiday. What would you call your holiday? When is it celebrated? How is it celebrated?
• You became a movie star overnight, what movie were you in? What character did you play?
• Write about your favorite sport. Why is it your favorite? Give directions on how to play.
• What is your favorite thing? Describe it and tell why it is your favorite.
• Who is your favorite teacher? Explain why they are your favorite.

The Best Creative Writing Prompts and Topics for Teens

• Have you ever seen somebody being treated unfairly?  If so, did you do anything about it, or did you ignore it and walk away?
• Do you talk to people the same way in person as you do on social media?
• How do you think social media has changed or is changing the world?
• What kind of America do you want to live in?
• What are your plans after high school?
• What do you think college life is like?
• Do you think it is important to save money at your age?  If so, how do you save money?  Why do you think it is important?
•  Do you know what it means to have good credit?  Do you think it is important to have good credit?  Why?
• Would you ever join the military?  Why?
• Who is your idol, and why?
• What is your favorite childhood memory?

New Creative Writing Prompts for Middle School and High School Students

• If you could take a trip anywhere in the world, where would you go?
• Write about something you would love to try and why
• Write about something you did but then felt guilty about it later.  How did you handle the situation?
• What is the hardest experience you have ever been through?  How did you handle it?
• Have you ever been to a job interview?  Where are you prepared?  Did you get the job? Would you say something different if you could do it over? Would you be better prepared next time?
• How do you think the world will be 50 years from now? How do you think people will treat each other?  How do you think the internet/social media has changed the world?  What kind of cars do you think we will be driving?  Will we still be using gas?
• Write about your dream home.  Would you live in a house or an apartment in the city?  Do you want a big house or something small?  What kind of fun features would your dream home have?
• If you were a parent, would you let your child have a social media account?  Why or why not?
• Would you rather work in a team on a project or alone?
• Write about your favorite song, why is it your favorite?  What is your favorite verse?  How do you feel when listening to it?
• If you were a clothing designer, what kind of clothes would you design?
• You have to spend one year stranded on a deserted island, you can bring five things or people with you, what do you bring?
• You are a superhero, you have to use your powers to make a positive change in the world.  What powers do you have?
• You are given the power to change one thing you don’t like about yourself, would you change anything?  If yes, what would you change and why?
• Write about your future self. What is your life like?

Updated Creative Writing Topics for Middle School and High School

• You are creating a new amusement park.  What kind of park would it be?  What kind of rides does it have?
• Write about the best Christmas gift you have ever received. Explain what it was, why it was your favorite, who gave it to you, do you still have it.  
• You were given 1 million dollars, but you must give it away.  Who would you give it to?  would you give it to one person or a couple of different people?  Would you donate it to an organization? 
• Name 5 of the most important things in your life ( house, family, health, etc..); now you just lost all of them.  How would you feel, what would you do?
• You just became a YouTube sensation.  What did you do that made you famous?  How does it feel to be recognized by people on the street?
• A friend of yours has been depressed and said that they told you they don’t want to live anymore.  What do you do and why?
• How would people describe you and why?
• Do you think that violent video games make people violent?  Do you think there should be age restrictions on video games?
• You have a choice of giving up social media or hanging out with your friends for a week, which one do you choose and why?
• Do you think what you learn in school can help you in the real world?  What topics do you think you should be learning and why?

The Best Creative Writing Prompts for Teens Continued 

• Do you think that money can buy happiness, why or why not?
• Do you think you need higher education to become successful?
• How important is your cell phone with you? I rather give up….blank…. than my cell phone (explain).
•  Describe the perfect day. What would you do?
• Have you ever been faced with discrimination?  Were you the one being discriminated against, or were you a witness to discrimination, How did you feel?
• If you were given the opportunity to meet anyone in the world, living or dead, who would you want to meet and why?
• Why do you think we pay taxes?  Do you believe taxes are necessary?  What do you think our tax money is used for?

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A Guide to 11 Plus Creative Writing Preparation

Updated: December 1, 2023 Author: Creative Hare

Introduction:

As children gear up for their challenging 11 Plus English exams, creative writing often stands as a significant hurdle. Mastering this section requires not just a solid grasp of ambitious vocabulary and literary techniques but also the ability to think outside the box and express ideas in a compelling manner. This takes confidence and experimentation. In this blog, we’ll delve into effective strategies to prepare for the 11+ creative writing exam and unlock the doors to imaginative excellence, happiness and success! 

Understand the Exam Format:

• Before diving into preparation, it’s crucial to familiarise yourself with the exam format. There is no singular 11-plus exam format so it is best to check with the admissions team at your target schools what specific format they use. 
• Understand the time constraints, the types of prompts, and the criteria by which your writing will be assessed. You generally don’t find mark schemes readily available on school websites. Although 11+ creative writing criteria is devised by the individual schools, aside from spelling and grammar, the skills and techniques commonly assessed include:

Where your child can win marks:

• Use of ambitious vocabulary
• Literary devices (personification, simile, metaphor, repetition, emotive language)
• Imaginative and descriptive writing
• Overall narrative flow and coherency
• Ensure your child practises reading creative writing questions carefully so their written piece  addresses the exact question, rather than an interpretation. Click here for a creative writing mark scheme example which can be found on the Latymer School website. 

Read Widely and Often:

• A well-read mind is a fertile ground for creativity. Encourage your child to explore a variety of genres, from fiction to non-fiction, poetry to prose.
• Exposure to diverse writing styles enhances vocabulary and fosters creative thinking.
• Use the Christmas holiday to visit your favourite book shop and encourage your child to browse freely - notice the types of books they are drawn to….light, frothy and funny books or perhaps fantasy books?

Build a Strong Vocabulary:

• 11 Plus creative writing flourishes on a rich tapestry of words.
• Make vocabulary building a daily habit.
• Introduce new words, explore their meanings, and encourage their use in everyday conversation.
• Children who take charge of their learning by recording words that they come across are empowered learners.

"The beautiful thing about learning is that no one can take it away from you."

Practice, Practice, Practice:

• Creative writing is a skill honed through practice. Set aside dedicated time for writing exercises regularly. Provide prompts that challenge your child’s imagination, encouraging them to create stories with a distinct beginning, middle, and end. Check out 6 Creative Writing Tips for Children for the best websites for free, fun writing prompts.

Develop a Writing Routine:

• Establishing a writing routine creates a sense of discipline and familiarity. Consistent practice helps build confidence and improves the ability to think creatively under pressure.

Explore Different Genres and Styles:

• The 11 Plus English exam might present prompts from various genres. Prepare your child by exposing them to different styles of writing—mystery, adventure, fantasy, and more. This versatility will prove invaluable during the exam. My new Bright to Brilliant 12-week Creative Writing programme equips children with the full-range of 11-Plus creative writing question types. 

Encourage Thoughtful Planning:

• Before jumping into writing, teach your child the importance of thinking ahead. Whether that’s sitting quietly with their ideas or jotting down their ideas in a quick planning format, this will help ensure their writing stays on track! 

Seek Constructive Feedback:

• Share your child’s writing with teachers, peers, or family members. Constructive feedback is an invaluable tool for improvement. Encourage your child to identify their strengths and areas to further improve to refine their creative writing skills. This is isn’t easy, it takes practice. However, empowering your child to self-evaluate their writing in a positive light is a key characteristic of awesome, confident writers. 

Learn from Examples:

• Analyse various pieces of creative writing. Identify what makes them compelling—the use of descriptive language, character development, plot twists. But encourage your child to ask how they could improve the writing. Children love to offer improvements on what they could do better, so it’s a great way to engage them. Learning from other’s writing can inspire and guide your child’s own writing.

Time Management Skills:

• The 11 Plus exam is as much about managing time as it is about writing skills.
• Practice timed writing sessions to ensure your child can express their ideas effectively within the given constraints.
• Ensuring your child is confident in expressing their ideas in writing before introducing exam style timing will make the experience more comfortable and worthwhile for them.

"I can see my competitors sweating, and I am cool as a cucumber."

Adam Rippon

Preparation for the 11 Plus Creative Writing component is not just about mastering accurate spelling; it’s about cultivating a creative mindset. Through a combination of regular practice, diverse reading, and constructive feedback, students can sharpen their creative writing skills and approach the exam with confidence.

Remember, creativity is a skill that can be nurtured and developed with dedication and the right strategies. Best of luck to all the young writers embarking on this exciting journey!

Interested in exploring a creative writing class?

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How Matteo reaped the benefits of 11+ success

Matteo was in Year 4 and attending a small independent school in North London when we first started working together. 

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Blog • Perfecting your Craft

Last updated on Aug 02, 2023

How to Write a Children’s Book Families Will Love (+Template)

Many authors' dream is to write a children's book, and to inspire young minds with heartfelt stories and playful imagination. Many assume that writing for kids is easier, but writing great children's literature is no easy feat, especially if you're brand-new to the game.

In this post, we cover everything you need to know about writing a children's book, borrowing insights from experienced children's book editors like Anna Bowles, Jennifer Rees, Cara Stevens, and others. 

How to write a children’s book in 8 steps: 

1. Start with a simple, fun idea

2. cast a relatable main character, 3. structure your plot like a fairy tale, 4. consider repetition and rhyme, 5. make the story easy to follow, 6. write with illustrations in mind, 7. work with a children’s editor, 8. get an illustrator to add some visual magic.

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The best picture books are simple stories that engage children, and show them a fun or valuable perspective. Think about Dr. Seuss’s classic Green Eggs and Ham : the whole story premise is that the main character, Sam-I-Am, tries to convince his friend, a picky eater, to try green eggs and ham. It engages children with something relatable 一 being reluctant to try new foods 一 and it shows that perhaps it’s not so bad to give it a try.

If there’s one thing that most classic picture books have in common, it’s that they look at the world from a child’s perspective. 

Address children’s hopes and doubts

It can help to write your story with a specific child in mind — one you know personally. If you are a parent, a teacher, or have dealt with kids personally, think of them as you write your story. Connect with the way they experience life and the things they value. Remember the sorts of things that make them laugh. 

Most importantly, consider what’s compelling to them. Maybe your story can address some of their fears and doubts, or evoke their most cherished moments. Wemberly Worried by Kevin Henkes is about a little mouse who’s concerned about all kinds of things — especially starting school. The story reflects an anxiety many children experience and provides a hopeful message that things will be okay. 

Dianne Ochiltree’s picture book It's a Firefly Night tells the story of a girl who catches fireflies in a jar on a warm summer night, but ultimately makes the decision to release them. This is an experience many kids will relate to 一 and will make them feel good as our young hero learns to care for and respect the little creatures around her. 

But before you run with your story idea, it’s important to validate its market potential.

Know which themes are selling right now

Try to assess what's working in the marketplace already, and if your book idea fits in. What are the most popular picture book themes?  

As long-time children’s book editor Brooke Vitale points out, the most popular picture book concepts haven’t massively changed over the years. “Across the board, the top-selling themes for picture books have been bedtime, farm, and ABC.” This is because they’re subjects kids can relate to: bedtime rituals, farm animals and their sounds, and learning to read.

“Also high on the list have been holidays, in particular Christmas, Easter, and Halloween, and the reason for this is because they're marketable.” By marketable, Vitale means that these sorts of picture books are ones that people could easily buy as gifts for children. 

Some smaller holidays are on the rise too, like Mother's and Father’s Day, as well as graduation celebrations. But you don’t have to tie your story too closely to the specific holiday you’re targeting 一 a Mother’s Day book can be about a mother-and-daughter relationship, or a graduation title can be an aspirational tale set around education, making the story evergreen and relevant year-round. 

There are always new themes bursting onto the scene, like empowerment or mindfulness, which you can tap into to bring fresh stories to market. For example, in The Princess and the Pizza , Mary Jane Auch subverts the classic princess story: instead of accepting her fate and marrying into another royal family, Princess Paulina becomes a self-sufficient founder of a pizza empire. And of course, this idea ingeniously combines three things that many children love: princesses, carbs, and cheese.

Once you’ve landed on a great story idea, don’t forget that you’ll need a memorable lead character.

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The most iconic children's book characters have distinct and relatable personalities. Think of Leo Lionni’s Frederick, a field mouse whose fondness for poetry and art is seen as distracting from his family’s efforts to gather supplies for winter. Or take Jim Panzee from Suzanne Lang’s Grumpy Monkey , another outsider who struggles with his “bad temper” while everyone around him is having fun 一 something many kids will relate to. 

Whether your main character is a child, robot, animal, or sentient gas cloud, what matters is that they feel real — with specific abilities and challenges.

Define their strengths and flaws

Young readers don’t want to read about perfect heroes, but rather characters they recognize. Memorable characters should come with their own fully realized strengths, weaknesses, conflicts, and motivations that make them compelling to their young readers. 

To help you create great new characters, we have some additional resources for you:

• A list of character development exercises to test your knowledge of your characters.
• A free 10-day course on developing memorable characters , taught by a successful professional editor.

Reedsy’s Character Profile Template

A story is only as strong as its characters. Fill this out to develop yours.

Besides being relatable in their behavior, your main character should have their own sets of dreams and desires — and the willpower to realize them.  

Give them agency to reach their goals

If there’s a younger character in your book, it’s usually their story you should be telling. It should be about their dreams, and they should be the ones making decisions that drive the narrative forward. 

As Reedsy Children's editor Anna Bowles suggests, don’t forget who the heroes are. “A lot of beginners write about children as we adults often see them: as cute and slightly comical little beings. But what children actually want is stories where they are the heroes, driving the action, facing challenges, and making choices.”

Patrick Picklebottom and the Penny Book is the story of a young boy who goes to buy his favorite book. On the way home, his friends invite him to fly a drone, play video games, or scroll through social media — but he declines and gets home to read instead. In real life, a child might have a parent giving them advice, but in the book, it’s Patrick himself calling the shots. He buys the book, he says no to the various temptations, and he gets himself home to read it.  

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Once you’ve got a great story and some interesting characters, it’s time to consider your story structure. 

Even within the word limits of children’s books, you need to create a satisfying story arc that captivates young readers from the very start, takes them on an exciting journey, and culminates in a gratifying and memorable conclusion. One way to achieve this arc is to think of your story as a simple question and answer.

Ground your premise in a simple question

Picture book editor Cara Stevens , who in her long career has written and edited for Nickelodeon, Disney, and Sesame Street, believes that every story should begin with a dilemma and end with a resolution. “There's usually a question: Will Mr. Frumble get his hat? Why doesn't Priscilla like chocolate? Why doesn't Elmo want to go to the dentist? These questions are a vital point in diagnosing your story or giving it direction when you're not sure where it's going.”

📼 Watch the Reedsy Live in which Cara Stevens reveals the 20 questions that can help picture book authors turn their ideas into finished manuscripts.

Once you’ve identified the story-driving question, you then want the character to face some challenges and doubts. 

Add conflict to the mix

Novels are often about characters dealing with a challenge, and how they change as a result of it. Children’s books are no different. Even in the simplest of narratives, the character should grow and learn something by overcoming internal and external conflicts .  

In Richard Scarry’s Be Careful, Mr. Frumble! , the title character goes on a walk on a windy day and his hat is whisked away by the wind. Will he get it back? After chasing it through trains, trees, and the sea, he does. Despite the initial worry, he finds that he’s grateful for the fun that losing his hat brought with it. 

Or think again of Patrick Picklebottom, who just wants to read his book: his conflict is created by his friends’ requests to do other things. By the time he reaches home, he has learned to say no and prioritize what he values most.   

Whatever journey you set your characters on, it’ll have to fit within the standard picture book’s length.

Keep it under 30 pages

It’s easy to fall in love with your story and characters and find yourself overwriting as a result. Children's books have rather standard lengths, depending on their type, and it’s important to try and stick to them to ensure your book is readable for your target audience. 

The average word count for a standard picture book falls between 400 and 800, with a length of 24 or 32 pages. The page count includes the copyright and dedication page , as well as your author bio , which means your story has to be told within 30 pages or less. With so little room, you’ll have to be mindful of the number of characters you introduce and the number of plot points they will encounter.    

At this point, you have a lot of story elements cooking and a structure to mix them in. But before you do that, you’ll want to think about the secret ingredient — style. 

Picture books often feature repetition, rhythm, and rhyme. These literary devices add a musicality to books, making them a pleasure to read or listen to. Children will want to have their favorite stories read to them repeatedly, so parents will greatly appreciate it if the words fall trippingly off their tongues when doing so. 

🤔 Should your picture book rhyme? Listen to editor and children's author Tracy Gold's opinion on Reedsy Live .

Let’s have a closer look at why repetition and rhyme are so common in kids’ books.

Repetition facilitates understanding

You can use different types of repetition in picture books, such as for words, entire sentences, or sounds. You can use it to structure your story, pace it, or reinforce a certain point or concept. When executed well, it can create a nice build-up that kids can pick up and easily follow.

The Wonky Donkey by Craig Smith uses repetition in a few different ways. It starts with the narrator walking down the road and spotting a donkey. The first sentence is repeated in every scene, along with the donkey sound (Hee Haw!) Then it adds a line describing the donkey 一 its appearance, mood, and music taste (a sort of donkey dad joke). But that’s not all: each scene adds a short, rhyming description of the donkey, which, as the book progresses, keeps building up into an amusing climax.  

Building the story incrementally through repetition and rhyme can be powerful. But remember, it’s not compulsory — and not all rhymes are created equal. 

Not all picture books rhyme

In recent years, many children’s book editors have advised against rhyming in your book. That’s because it’s quite difficult to rhyme well, and children's book agents are able to spot a bad or derivative rhyme from a mile away. That said, if you’re a master of the perfectly unexpected rhyme and you think your book demands them, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t go for it. 

Llama Llama Red Pajama is packed with rhymes from start to finish. It’s a simple story of a cria (that’s a baby llama!) waiting for their mother to comfort them at bedtime. The story’s simplicity and very short lines are perhaps some of the reasons it works so well.   

If you’re writing in verse and rhyme, always read it aloud. Ask yourself if it feels forced, excessive, or awkward in any way, and whether the rhyme contributes to building the story. If it doesn’t sound quite right, you can always see what it’s like without the rhyming.

According to writer and editor Jennifer Rees , you can sometimes achieve even better results without forcing it. “So often, I get some really sing-songy stuff that forces the reader into a rhythm that people think is fun — but in truth, it just drags on. 

“There are so many gorgeously written picture books that do not rhyme but they just sound beautiful. Someone has really paid attention to how the lines read and how each and every single word sounds when you read it out loud.” 

There are also a few more literary choices to consider as you write your story…

Your core audience is at a crucial stage of their mental development and is currently mastering basic literacy skills. This calls for a few considerations as you write and edit your children’s book .

Start the story quickly

Even at the best of times, kids have limited attention spans. It's essential that you jumpstart the action with some sort of hook in the first few pages. This ‘hook’ could come in the form of an intriguing character or an inciting incident . 

The inciting incident of Dr. Seuss’s classic The Cat in the Hat , as you might recall, is an intriguing character. After setting up a scene with two bored siblings, Seuss introduces a mysterious cat who invites himself into their home. Is the cat good or bad? Should he stay or should he go? The reader understands that the cat brings chaos with him, and the story is set in motion. 

Once the story has started, it’s just as important to maintain a good pace. Each scene should ideally act as a little hook that builds the tempo or raises the stakes until the story's resolution.

Another important thing to consider is your choice of words. 

Use age-appropriate vocab

There are many great places to show off your bombastic grandiloquence, but a kid’s book is not one of them. Children won't be impressed by four-syllable words — they'll only be confused by them. That said, children's editor Jenny Bowman often tells her authors that, when used intentionally and sparingly, the occasional big word can be welcome. “Children are smarter than you think, and context can be a beautiful teacher.” 

To figure out the most fitting vocabulary for your story you can read other books for kids in your age group, or browse famous word sets for early readers, like the Fry and Dolch lists or the Children’s Writer Word Book , which feature the most commonly used words for children’s books depending on their age. 

It’s not just the vocabulary that needs a double-check. Also consider your characters, their behaviors, and the environments they inhabit 一 they should all be tailored to resonate with a child’s life experience. A talking eagle who’s a corporate lawyer working on a big M&A case might not be as relatable as a little mouse on her first day at school.  

To know if you’re on the right track, the best thing you can do is road-test your early drafts with their intended audience.

Ask a child what they think

Read your story out loud to children and parents in your social circle. Pay attention to how it sounds with an audience, and whether it invokes an emotional response. Kids are usually pretty honest, so their feedback will be some of the most valuable you’ll receive. 

Aim for a few rounds of reactions, and incorporate their suggestions as much as possible. Only once you have thumbs-ups from your young beta readers should you begin to think about your next step, which is to start combining your words with powerful visuals. 

In contrast to many other types of books, where words alone are sufficient to tell a story, in picture books text and illustrations complement each other to create a more immersive experience. Whether you’re planning to bring in an illustrator or pick up a pen and brush yourself, you should always be thinking of pictures when you’re drafting your manuscript

Think in terms of scenes

Think of your book like a (very) short movie. Every time you flip a page, you enter a new scene that holds the potential to surprise your young readers. To achieve this effect, consider placing your surprises strategically on the other side of page turns. 

To help you visualize the flow of your story and its pacing, try using a storyboard template to mock up your visuals and match your text to the right scenery.

Children's Book Storyboard Template

Bring your picture book to life with our 32-page planning template.

Let the visuals do the talking

When self-editing your manuscript, try to cut unnecessary sentences and let the visuals do the talking instead (by showing, instead of telling .) There’s no need to squander your precious word count describing the weather or a character’s clothes if the pictures can do the same. So instead of writing them into your manuscript, include those details in your art notes so that your illustrator will know precisely how to represent them. 

Once you’ve written and rewritten your children’s story, consider bringing on board a children’s book editor to polish it further. 

If you've gotten feedback, self-edited extensively, and still feel your children's book isn't quite there, consider hiring a professional children's editor . Their years of experience will both improve your storytelling and make sure that your book is ready for the market.

Fortunately, we have the best children's editors right here on Reedsy, many of whom have worked with major authors like Daisy Meadows (author of the Rainbow Magic series) and R.L. Stine!

MEET EDITORS

Make your story sing

Work with a professional children’s book editor to take your book to the next level.

There are two types of picture book editors you may be looking for:

Developmental editors. These editors will look at your story’s backbone, from characters and settings, to the story plot and concept, and make sure it’s solid and ready for the market. They will also comment on whether you used rhyme and repetition wisely, if you need to change the time frame or point-of-view, and suggest other potential improvements.  

Copy editors. The copy editor will correct your typos, spelling, and grammar, assess your choice of words, and make comments to ensure your text is perfectly polished. 

Very often, you can find a single editor to handle both services — they’ll give your book a developmental edit, provide any notes for revising your draft, then copy-edit the manuscript once you’ve made the changes.

Read our post on children’s book costs to find out the average price for each service. If you’re self-publishing, there’s one important part of your budget you’ll want to put aside: that would be to hire a skilled illustrator to bring your words to life.  

If you want to publish your book traditionally, don’t bother looking for an illustrator. It will be handled by the company who will represent your work, as they prefer to be in charge of that. Just prepare your picture book query letter and start pitching agents. 

If instead you’re self-publishing your picture book , you’ll have to locate your very own Quentin Black. We wrote an in-depth guide on how to hire a children’s book illustrator , but one of the most important points is to determine your ideal illustration style.

MEET BOOK DESIGNERS

Dazzle children with design

Enchant kids and their caregivers with a professionally designed book.

Identify the visual style for your book

What style best captures the mood and world of your story? Perhaps your book is for very young readers, who will enjoy bright, bold, and graphic illustrations. Perhaps you’re aiming at a slightly older audience, who’ll appreciate whimsical characters and a more muted color palette.

Each illustrator brings a distinct touch to their human characters, from intricate linework to striking realism, edgy designs to gentle human-like figures. You’ll have plenty of options to choose from, depending on what you’ve envisioned for your book. 

To find your ideal professional, gather a range of references to make sure you have ample inspiration and “mentor texts” to refer back to. Browse through your favorite kids' books, or the portfolios of some professionals, and identify what you like — and, perhaps just as importantly, anything you definitely don’t like. This post on 20 children’s book illustrators will be a helpful jumping-off point in finding visual references and the vocabulary to describe what you’re looking for.

While some artists might welcome a challenge, and enjoy trying out a new style, the best way to guarantee results that you like is to find an artist whose style already matches your vision fairly closely — rather than asking them to fit a square peg into a round hole.

And there you have it! Once you've completed these steps, you'll have a completed children's book ready for publication. Make sure to check out our guide on how to publish your children’s book for more information on how to get your story in the hands (and hearts) of your young readers.

6 responses

10/02/2019 – 10:53

Where can I listen to my target audience if the kids around me don't speak English?

↪️ Reedsy replied:

11/02/2019 – 09:08

Thanks to the internet, that's not so much of a problem anymore. Social media and online communities can make it a lot easier to find your ideal audience. Check out this post we wrote about target markets from children's books: https://blog.reedsy.com/childrens-books-target-markets/

Jeff Dearman says:

08/05/2019 – 12:28

There's also newer illustrators looking to get their foot in the door who might be willing to help for relatively cheap compared to the more establish artists the more establish artists will want a lot more $$$$ , so look around. if youre on college campus or recent grad and know some illustrators or a friend or family member who does great art. ask them . Offer like $100-300 for black and white story boards and maybe a couple colored cover designs or what not and give them full authority and ownership over the art and development of the characters. Once the work is done maybe offer them a bonus if they do good work. There's plenty of newer illustrators with extremely good talent who are looking for opportunities.

You can also go to places like the New England film board and or other boards or even reddit and put out a post saying you're looking for an illustrator interested in getting material for their portfolio and offer them the ability to develop the characters etc. and such and offer lke a couple hundred bucks for sketches/character storyboards. - also state you'll put them into a writers' contract and split any royalties once the time comes if the book is susccessfl and write out an agreement you both sign. and agree to.

Penelope Smith says:

24/08/2019 – 04:32

Writing a children's book does seem like it could be tricky. I liked that you pointed out that you should look at that an illustrator past work. Also, it seems like a good thing to consider asking them to draw a sample page for the book. After all, you would want to check they draw in a style you like.

Sjsingh says:

20/11/2019 – 14:04

"pug"book writer Sharma is said a sardaarni, she is not a "Kaur", Kaur can be said as sardaarni. And what a mockery she has done for tying pug, real sardaarni never can dare to do that. Pug is very respectful in Sikhs and many other cast too, and she has made it joke, she has done very wrong to the sentiments and feelings of many Indians. And you have any humanity you should Apologize for this heart breaking act , Publisher has done not less than you. Have you ever thought , write a book on tying a saari or lungi in same style and illustration used in "pug"?

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11 Plus Creative Writing Help: How to Ace the Exam

• May 23, 2021
• Posted by: Tutor Rise
• Category: 11 English 11 plus Creative Writing 11 Plus Preparation How to pass 11 Plus exam

The 11 Plus exams are meant to test children’s understanding of subjects, such as; Maths, English, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning. In some 11 Plus English exam papers, children will be asked to complete a creative writing test – an important component that, unfortunately, many students fear.

At Tutor Rise , we are dedicated to helping your child succeed. In this article, we have prepared a comprehensive guide for your child to help them with their 11 Plus Creative Writing component.

11 Plus Creative Writing: Complete Guide

Creative writing for the 11 Plus Exam can last anywhere between 20 and 50 minutes. It may require you to either complete a continuous prose exercise (where you have to continue the start of a story) or write an original story from scratch. With either task, the goal is to examine your ability to plan and write in a structured and engaging way.

Below, you can find some tips that will help you to unleash your creativity and convey your writing abilities.

Free Your Imagination

Before you start to write (or even plan), take a little time to daydream and let your imagination do the work. If you can clearly see your story in your head, you will be able to describe it in a powerful way, with deep descriptions and engaging writing.

Create a Plan

Your next step is to create a simple plan. When you have a short time to write, there are two crucial things that will hold your story together: the main event and your central character. As such, your plan should include:

• The main event
• Your main character
• Where and when the story is set
• Getting there or how you will get to the main event
• The ending or what will happen after the event

Choose One Main Event

For an 11 Plus Exam creative writing story, we recommend choosing a single main plot event – if there is too much happening, your descriptive skills may simply get lost. If there is a dramatic event, make sure to describe it powerfully and give a clear sense of the reactions of your characters.

Focus on a Single Main Character

Similarly, it is best to focus on only one core character. You likely won’t have enough time to make more than one person believable and interesting in a short thirty-minute exam. Therefore, make your main character stand out and only refer to others in passing.

Don’t Be Afraid to Skip the Intro

If you are writing a short story, it does not need the same introduction as a 300-page novel would. You do not have to give a full background on your character, and especially not in the beginning of the story.

Writing a full introduction will waste a paragraph, when you might only have enough time to write three or four five paragraphs in your entire story. Instead, you can mention any important information about your characters somewhere along the way.

Include a Little Dialogue

Including a dialogue in your exam story is an excellent way to showcase your punctuation knowledge and make your piece a little different. However, be careful not to turn your story into a script. Include a little dialogue for your 11 Plus creative writing test, but keep the main focus on your description of the characters, settings, and events.

Be Descriptive

Many creative stories have core themes or emotions embedded within them. To give you a better idea of what to expect, below are some common topics and tasks that have come up in 11 Plus writing exams:

• You may be asked to write a story about your favourite animal, an animal you are afraid of, or your pet.
• Activities you like. This is an opportunity to describe the activity itself, as well as how it makes you feel.
• Emotions and feelings. Many times, stories include a requirement to describe a specific emotion like joy or fear that you have experienced in a certain situation.
• The built environment. You may need to describe a build environment, such as office blocks or houses, castles or cottages, roads, churches, and more.
• The natural world. Finally, another popular topic includes the description of the natural world. Think mountains and hills, streams and rivers, rain and sunshine.

To help you prepare, think about how you would describe any of these themes well before your exam. Show, not tell! Use a range of senses throughout your story and do not forget to include similes and metaphors where appropriate.

How is 11 Plus Creative Writing Evaluated?

Creative writing skills evaluated in the 11 Plus Creative Writing exercise include the following components:

• Creativity and imagination. Some people are naturally creative, but do not be desperate if you are not. You can improve your imagination over time by reading a variety of books.
• Effective planning. Never jump to writing right away. Creating a plan will help you organize your thoughts and give a structure to your story.
• Correct use of English grammar . You will be expected to correctly apply the rules of grammar throughout your writing. All sentences should be complete and make sense, all word groups should be used correctly, and correct forms of verbs should be applied.
• Correct use of punctuation. It is important to use all the correct punctuation marks in your writing piece. Review the standard simple forms of punctuation, along with less common punctuation marks like ellipses, brackets, hyphens, apostrophes, colons, and semicolons.
• Correct spellings. Needless to say, correct spelling is essential in any type of writing. Review and practice spelling rules, as well as the spelling of irregular words.
• An interesting and “fluent” writing style. Each person has an absolutely unique writing style. Aim to demonstrate your ability to write in an entertaining way that will keep your reader engaged.
• A good structure of your text. Make sure to demonstrate that your text has structure with clear paragraphs that are organized by topic, characters, and time.
• An interesting and extensive vocabulary. It may take years to develop an extensive vocabulary, but a proven method is to read numerous books and search for new words that you can use in your own writing.

Get Ready for 11 Plus Creative Writing Exam with Tutor Rise

Without a doubt, passing the 11 Plus Creative Writing aspect of the exam is no easy task. From use of advanced punctuation and grammar rules, to correct spelling and interesting vocabulary, there is a lot to keep in mind.

Fortunately, you and your child are not alone in this. At Tutor Rise , our 11 Plus Writing Course was created by 11 Plus exam specialists who have years of teaching experience. We are truly dedicated to using innovative strategies and tools to help your child progress quickly and truly excel in their exams and beyond.

Contact us today to learn more.

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