Writing Prompt Quick Guide
The
information listed by the grade levels are year end writing goals.
Kindergarten Writing Prompt Information
Benchmark #1
First Name and 10 High Frequency
Words
(See K/1 Benchmark
Assessment for more info about words)
Benchmark #2
Write a complete sentence including
capitals, spacing, and periods.
Ex: I see the dog.
I like mom.
The cat can run.
Benchmark #3
Write 5 complete sentences with
capitals, spacing and periods. Sentences
do not need to be related.
Benchmark #4
Write 5 complete sentences on one
topic to form a paragraph.
Examples: I like dogs. Dogs run fast. The dog is brown.
My dog is little.
GRADE
1 – WRITING PROMPTS: Select a focus when
writing, use correct punctuation and complete sentences.
BENCHMARK #1
NARRATIVE WRITING
PURPOSE: Think about an activity you enjoy
doing on a warm, sunny day.
AUDIENCE: Your friend
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Draw a picture to tell a
story about an activity you enjoy doing on a warm, sunny day. Then write about
the picture.
BENCHMARK #2
NARRATIVE
PURPOSE: Think about one thing you like to do
on the weekends.
AUDIENCE: Your family
WRITING DIRECTIONS: On a sheet of paper, draw
a picture that tells a story about you doing a weekend activity. Then write
words or sentences telling about the picture.
BENCHMARK # 3
EXPOSITORY/DESCRIPTIVE
PURPOSE: Think about your favorite animal.
Share some sense words with your parent that describes how the animal looks,
feels, smells, and sounds.
AUDIENCE: Your friend
WRITING DIRECTIONS: On a sheet of paper draw
the animal you would like to describe. Then write a description of how the
animal looks feels, smells, and sounds.
BENCHMARK #4
NARRATIVE
PURPOSE: To tell about someone who found a
lost kitten.
AUDIENCE: Your family
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Write a make believe
story about a character who found a lost kitten. Before writing think about who will be in the
story, where the story takes place, etc.
GRADE
2 – WRITING PROMPTS: Use editing and
proofreading strategies, use correct paragraph form for 1-2 paragraph essays,
know the personal letter writing format, legible handwriting.
BENCHMARK #1
NARRATIVE
PURPOSE: Think of writing a story about a
magic pair of shoes.
AUDIENCE: Your friend
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Write a make believe
story about a person who finds a
pair of magic shoes. Make an idea web before
you begin writing your story.
BENCHMARK #2
EXPOSITORY
PURPOSE: To describe your bedroom.
AUDIENCE: Your friends
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Write a paragraph that
describes your bedroom.
Include descriptive words and details. Plan
your description before you begin.
BENCHMARK #3
FRIENDLY LETTER
PURPOSE: To tell what you do on a specific
holiday.
AUDIENCE: Your friend
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Write a letter to a
friend telling what you enjoy doing
on your favorite holiday. Include details.
Make a web before you begin to write.
BENCHMARK #4
NARRATIVE
PURPOSE: To tell about kindness
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Write a personal
narrative about a time you went out of
your way to be kind to someone in your
family. Make a planning chart before you
write.
GRADE
3 – WRITING PROMPTS: Complete 2-3
paragraph essays, use correct paragraph form (topic sentence, supporting/detail
sentences, concluding sentence), adding detail and compound sentences, cursive
writing
BENCHMARK #1
NARRATIVE
PURPOSE: You are writing an imaginary story
about someone who meets a famous
person.
AUDIENCE: Your friend
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Write a short story about
a person who meets a famous person.
Use details to create a setting and events.
Write your ideas on a sheet of paper before you
begin your story.
BENCHMARK #2
EXPOSITORY
PURPOSE: You are thinking about your
neighborhood.
AUDIENCE: Your friends
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Write a description of
your neighborhood. Use sensory
language to help create a picture in you r
reader’s mind. Make a web to help organize your details before you begin
writing.
BENCHMARK #3
PERSUASIVE
PURPOSE: You are thinking about why you
should receive an allowance.
AUDIENCE: Your parent
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Write a persuasive essay
to convince your parent to give you an allowance. Make a web to plan reasons
that will persuade your parent to agree with you.
BENCHMARK #4
FRIENDLY LETTER
PURPOSE: You are thinking about a gift you
have just received.
AUDIENCE: Your friend
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Write a letter to a
friend describing a gift someone gave to you.
Explain why the gift is special. Plan your letter before you begin to
write.
GRADE
4 – WRITING PROMPTS: Multi-paragraph
compositions (Introductory paragraph, supporting paragraphs, concluding
paragraphs that summarizes main points), point of view based on a purpose,
cursive writing, cite references in research paper, complete writing process
without adult help
BENCHMARK #1
NARRATIVE
PURPOSE: You are thinking of a memorable
event in your life that changed you in some way.
AUDIENCE: Your friend
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Write a paragraph paper
describing a time in your life that changed the way you think or feel Include
an introduction, supporting paragraph and conclusion. Use an idea web to plan
your narrative.
BENCHMARK #2
RESPONSE TO LITERATURE
PURPOSE: You have read a story about Martin
Luther King, Jr. You are thinking about how Dr. King’s message of peace affects
you.
AUDIENCE: Your family
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Write a response to
literature essay explaining what you learned about Dr. King and how it applies
to you. Use a graphic organizer to plan your response.
BENCHMARK #3
EXPOSITORY
PURPOSE: You are thinking of a place you know
well. You want your reader to experience this
place as if he or she were there.
AUDIENCE: Your friends
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Write an essay that
describes a place you know well. Use exact, vivid words to create a picture of
the place in the reader’s mind. Make an idea web to plan your description.
BENCHMARK #4
EXPOSITORY
PURPOSE: Think about what you do to get ready
for school
AUDIENCE: Your parent
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Write instructions that
tell how to get ready for school. Include steps you do and what you need to get
ready for school. Plan you instructions before you begin to write.
GRADE
5 – WRITING PROMPTS: Complete
multiple-paragraph narrative/expository compositions with increased
independence, establish detailed plot, rich vocabulary and figurative language,
variety of sentence types, spelling/punctuation errors are minimal
BENCHMARK #1
NARRATIVE
PURPOSE: You are thinking about a short
adventure story.
AUDIENCE: Your friend
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Write a short adventure
story about a character that has
landed on a deserted island. Include setting,
characters, and conflict/problem. Use a
graphic organizer to plan your story.
BENCHMARK #2
NARRATIVE
PURPOSE: You are thinking about a time when
you had to deal with disappointment.
AUDIENCE: Your friends
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Think about a time when
things didn’t turn out the way you
wanted. Write a personal narrative about how
you felt and how you overcame your
disappointment. Use a sequence of events
chart to plan your narrative.
BENCHMARK #3
RESPONSE TO LITERATURE
PURPOSE: Read a short story
AUDIENCE: Your family
WRITING DIRECTINS: After reading the short
story write a response to the story and
describe how the story made you feel.
BENCHMARK #4
PERSUASIVE
PURPOSE: Your parents have decided to extend
your school day by one hour. You are
taking a position on this.
AUDIENCE: Your parents
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Think of the advantages
and disadvantages of being in school
for an extra hour. Write a persuasive essay
either supporting or opposing the decision.
Give support.
GRADE
6 – WRITING PROMPTS: In-depth organization of information, 5 paragraph essays,
transitions sound natural, strong supporting sentences
BENCHMARK #1
NARRATIVE
PURPOSE: You are remembering a time in your
life when you had to overcome an obstacle to
achieve a goal.
AUDIENCE: Your friend
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Write a personal
narrative that tells about a goal you reached. Include the challenges and
obstacles you faced. Use a graphic organizer to plan your narrative. Go back
and reread to show editing process.
BENCHMARK #2
NARRATIVE
PURPOSE: You have discovered a time machine
in your backyard. The machine can travel forward
or backward in time.
AUDIENCE: Publisher of Adventure Magazine.
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Write a short adventure
story around a character traveling in time.
Describe the setting and develop a plot with
a problem/conflict. Use a story events sequence chart to plan your story.
BENCHMARK #3
PERSUASIVE
PURPOSE: Your parents have just told you that
you will not be able to do any extra activities such
as sports, gymnastics, piano, etc.
AUDIENCE: Your family
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Write a persuasive essay
either supporting the importance of the extra activities or supporting the
decision to cancel them. Use logical reasons and specific examples to support
your opinion. Use a graphic organizer to plan your essay.
BENCHMARK #4
EXPOSITORY
PURPOSE: You are thinking about what makes a
person a good friend.
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Consider the special and
unique qualities of a person you consider to be a good friend. Write a personal
essay that explains what you admire most about your friend. Use a graphic
organizer to plan your essay.
GRADE
7/8 – WRITING PROMPTS: Use various
graphic organizers with confidence, effective transitions to unify important
ideas, create complex plot, create complex major and minor characters,
quotations used correctly, summarizing skills, independent editing/proofreading
skills
BENCHMARK #1
NARRATIVE
AUDIENCE: Your friend
WRITING DIRECTIONS: (7th) Write
a fictional narrative about a job you were just hired for. Include the
challenges and obstacles you faced getting the job.
(8th) [Lightbulb Moment] Think of an experience when you realized that you
suddenly understood an idea, a skill, or a concept you had been struggling with
-- it might be something related to a class that you took or a specific
athletic skill you were trying to perfect. For instance, you might think about
trying to understand how to identify iambic pentameter in a poem or how to
complete a Taylor Series problem in your Calculus class. Or you might consider
trying to perfect your free throws and suddenly understanding how your
follow-through was affecting your success. Write a narrative that tells the
story of your movement toward understanding. How did you finally come to
understand? What changed your perceptions and gave you a new understanding?
Your paper should help readers understand how you felt to struggle with the
idea or skill and then to understand.
Use a graphic organizer to plan your narrative.
BENCHMARK #2
PERSUASIVE
AUDIENCE: US Postal Service
WRITING DIRECTIONS: (7th) -The
U.S. Postal Service has honored many individuals from presidents, to singers,
to characters, by placing their portraits on a stamp. Write a persuasive essay
about whom you would nominate to honor with a stamp. Persuade the reader to
your side.
(8th)
-Persuade the school
board to pay for your class to go to Disney World or
Use a graphic organizer plan your essay.
BENCHMARK #3
RESPONSE TO LITERATURE
PURPOSE: Read a story of your choice. This can be from your regular literature book.
AUDIENCE: Your friends
WRITING DIRECTIONS: After reading the story
consider the similarities and differences between the characters in the story.
Write an essay that compares and contrasts the two characters. 7th
and 8th graders answer the same prompt but use a different story
each year.
Use a Venn Diagram to organize your essay.
BENCHMARK #4
EXPOSITORY
PURPOSE: You are thinking about what makes a
person a good friend or a good leader.
AUDIENCE: Judges in an essay contest.
WRITING DIRECTIONS: (7th) - Consider the special
and unique qualities of a person who you consider to be a good friend and write
a personal essay that explains what you admire most about your friend.
(8th)
– Consider the special and unique
qualities of a person who you consider to be a leader. Explain why this person should be
regarded a leader.
Use a graphic
organizer to plan your essay.
GRADE
9/10 – WRITING PROMPTS: Compositions have clear themes, detailed supporting
paragraphs, well-supported conclusion, connect own responses to author’s view,
advanced vocabulary and sentence development, independent spelling and
punctuation skills, site references – 5-7 paragraph essays
BENCHMARK #1
NARRATIVE
PURPOSE: To write a short story.
AUDIENCE: Your friend
WRITING DIRECTIONS: (9th) -
Pretend that you woke up one morning and you were a tiny rain drop in a storm.
For that one day you get to go where a raindrop goes. Think about what you
would do during your day as a raindrop. Use a graphic organizer to plan your
story. (10th) - [Childhood Event] Choose a vivid time from your childhood — You might think
of the first time that you rode a school bus, of a time when you went to the
principal's office, the first A you earned on a test or paper, earning money to
buy something that you really wanted, and so on. Narrate the events related to
the childhood memory that you've chosen so that your readers will understand
why the event was important and memorable.
BENCHMARK #2
PERSUASIVE
AUDIENCE: Your parents/ little brother or
sister
WRITING DIRECTIONS: (9th) -
Your parents are thinking of keeping you in school 12 months a year without
breaks except weekends. Think about the effects of 12 months of school. Do you
agree or disagree. Write an essay in which you persuade the reader why this is
or is not a good idea. Defend your position with specific reasons supported by
several examples. (10th) - Persuade your little
brother/sister to do your chores. Write an essay in which you persuade the
reader why this is or is not a good idea. Defend your position with specific
reasons supported by several examples.
Use a graphic organizer to plan your essay.
BENCHMARK #3
RESPONSE TO LITERATURE
PURPOSE: Read a story of your choice. This can be from your regular literature book.
AUDIENCE: Your friends
WRITING DIRECTIONS: Both 9th
and 10th graders can complete this assignment using a different book
each year. After reading the story, consider the similarities and
differences between a characters thoughts and actions at the beginning of the
story with his/her thoughts or actions at the end of the story. How does the character change? Write an essay
that compares and contrasts the changed in this character.
Use a Venn diagram to organize your essay,
labeling one circle “beginning of the story” and the second circle “end of the
story.”
BENCHMARK #4
EXPOSITORY
AUDIENCE: Judges in an essay contest.
WRITING DIRECTIONS: (9th) -Consider
the special and unique qualities you have and write a personal essay that
explains what you admire most about you. (10th)- Explain
why some cities have curfews for teens.
Use a graphic organizer to plan you essay.
GRADE
11/12 – WRITING PROMPTS
BENCHMARK #1
NARRATIVE
PURPOSE: To write a short story
AUDIENCE: Your friend
WRITING DIRECTIONS: (11th)
- Write a fictional story about being the
first person in outer space including detail.
(12th) - [Standing Up] Choose a time when you did something that took a lot of
nerve, a time when you didn't follow the crowd or a time when you stood up for
your beliefs. Perhaps your friends were urging you to do something that you
were uncomfortable with and you chose not to cave into peer pressure. Maybe you
took a stance on a political issue that was important in your community, or you
might have. Whatever you choose, think about the details of the event and write
a story that tells about what happened. Your narrative should show your readers
why you decided to make a stand or try something that took nerve, give
specifics on the events, and share how you felt after the event. Add specific scenes, incidents and places.
Describe with concrete details using sight, sounds, and smells.
Use a graphic organizer to organize your
story.
BENCHMARK #2
NARRATIVE
AUDIENCE: Your parents
WRITING DIRECTIONS: (11th) -
Think about a time when things didn’t turn out the way you wanted. Write a personal narrative about how you felt
and how you overcame your disappointment. Use a sequence of events chart to
plan your narrative. (12th)
- [Personal
Rituals] Describe a personal ritual that
you, your friends, or your family have. Think about the personal steps that you
always go through when you prepare for an exam. Do you sit at a desk, spread
books and notes across your bed, or use the kitchen table? Do you have to have
something to drink...soda, water, jolt? There are numerous things that we do
for which we create our own personal rituals. Choose one event — studying for a
test, writing a paper, dressing and warming up before a game, or preparing and
having a special family meal. Narrate the events that take place when you
complete your ritual so that your readers understand the steps that the ritual
includes and why you complete them. Use
a sequence of events chart to plan your narrative.
BENCHMARK #3
RESPONSE TO LITERATURE
PURPOSE: (11th) -Read a
selection of American Literature- You can Google American Literature of
websites that have American Lit short stories.
AUDIENCE: Your friends
WRITING DIRECTIONS: (11th) -
After reading the selection consider the similarities and difference between
the characters in the selection. Write an essay that compares and contrasts the
two characters. Use a Venn diagram to organize your essay. (12th) – Choose three short
stories that you have already read this year.
Complete a three way diagram comparing these stories. Remember that similarities are recorded where
the circles overlap and the differences where they do not. Write an essay
recording how these stories are similar and different.
BENCHMARK #4
EXPOSITORY
AUDIENCE: Your friends
WRITING DIRECTIONS: (11th) - Consider the special and unique qualities a
person needs in order to be the President of the
(12th)
– Describe three things you would like to change about the world and explain
why you would change them.