It’s that time of year again. Families are getting ready with back-to-school supplies, clothes, and haircuts. Meanwhile, teachers have to get prepared too. They head in early to set up the classroom, bulletin boards, and lots of fun activities. Plus it’s back-to-school writing time!
The first few days or even weeks of school are a great time to build a positive classroom community and get to know each other. There are so many ways to engage students through icebreakers, games, and activities.
One of the best ways to get to know kids and practice skills is through writing. The students enjoy getting their ideas down on paper and sharing responses with the class. As a teacher, I also find this helpful as an informal assessment. It gives me an idea of the overall strengths and weaknesses. Plus this information is so helpful when planning the first writing lessons of the year.
Back to School Writing Ideas
A great way to include writing at the beginning of the school year is through prompts. This gives students an idea of what to write about and helps them get started more easily. The prompts can lead to students writing sentences or paragraphs depending on their grade level and abilities. Some teachers even use sentence starters as a way to incorporate writing in the first few days.
Having students write a personal narrative story is also a helpful way to get to know each other. Kids can share their stories with a partner, a small group, or the whole class. It’s a wonderful way to build a positive classroom community and help everyone feel more comfortable.
Back to School Writing Prompts
I like to focus on two different types of back-to-school writing categories. Prompts can be broken down into summer and school ideas. One focuses on the past and the other focuses on the future. Here are some examples of each to try in the classroom.
Summer Writing Ideas:
- What is your favorite memory from this summer?
- If you could go on a dream vacation, where would you go and why?
- Would you rather swim in a pool, lake, or ocean?
- What was the most surprising thing that happened to you over summer break?
- How would you convince your family to take you on a trip to Disney next year?
- Finish this story: It was the biggest heat wave ever . . .
School Writing Ideas:
- What are you looking forward to most this year in school?
- Finish this story: I was on the way to my first day of school when the bus broke down . . .
- What is something people would be surprised to learn about you?
- How can you make a new friend this year in school?
- My teacher should know that I’m deathly afraid of . . .
- What is your biggest strength and biggest weakness?
- Would you rather be in a class with only a few students or lots and lots of kids? Explain why.
- Should a classroom have rules? Why or why not?
- It was the first day of school. When I arrived there was a sign on the door that said . . .
- What are 3 things you want to accomplish this year?
Creating Ideas for the Classroom
There are so many wonderful writing ideas for the beginning of the school year. These prompts or sentence starters can be created by the teacher or students. I like to come up with some ideas for the first few days of school. Then I challenge the kids to write down their own prompts for the class and collect them. Here are some ways to use these prompts in your classroom:
- Project on the board for morning work or centers
- Create sentence strips to cut and glue in a notebook
- Use prompts on a choice board or calendar
Final Thoughts
Remember to keep back-to-school writing fun and interesting. Students should be engaged and eager to write. After a long summer, some kids may need these prompts to get their creative juices flowing again.
Remember to grab your Free Writing Prompt Guide. This valuable resource will supply everything you need to know about writing prompts. They are ideal for morning work, writing time, centers, and even homework. Check out some helpful resources below.
Writing Prompt Resources
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