I’ve never had my 6th graders respond to a writing prompt. GASP!
I mean, yes, they have answered questions about a text, etc., but never just an open ended writing prompt.
I’m taking an online class about teaching middle school writing, and writing prompts were our lesson for last week. We had to read an article about them and then create one.
Here’s mine:
Emotions and feelings are a daily part of our lives. They include happiness, sadness, anger, embarrassment, and many others. We may feel one or many throughout our lives. Some emotions stay with us for a short period of time, while others have a bigger impact on us and tend to stay with us longer.
Think of an emotion that you have felt in your life. Did it stay with you for a short or long period of time? What caused it?
Write about this emotion in a way that your reader will truly understand how you felt and why you felt this way. Your writing should be ABOUT a page long.
This is the first writing prompt I’ve ever written. What do you think? Do you use writing prompts?
I’m going to have my kids respond to it this Friday as their English assessment. We will see how it goes.
I’m telling you that writing is HARD to teach!
Well, so is math. And reading. Hmm… 🙂
i run read teach 
Love the prompt, may need to borrow it. Yes, writing is difficult to teach. Currently teaching fifth grade writing. The informative essay is our current topic.
We’ve been working on informative writing in science. I’ve really guided them so far-like REALLY guided them. They aren’t used to writing at all. And we are doing SOME kind of writing everyday- a quickwrite, a paragraph using the english skill, something. Hopefully it will pay off. Hopefully. 🙂
We write every day and yes I use open ended prompts. Like Patti I may have to use your wonderful prompt. is difficult to teach writing but so rewarding. .
Yes, it’s VERY difficult to teach writing!! We will see how my kids did with their 1st writing prompt they wrote to today!
I often try to get my kids to respond to writing prompts.I feel like it’s harder than we think though. Something that comes so natural to us…like writing….can be so hard for a student who just literally doesn’t know how to put their thoughts on paper.
Andrea,
I agree with you. And I wonder if sometimes I forget how hard things were when I was their age? Or if maybe I expect too much from them- more than they are ready for? 🙂
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