Narrative writing can be incredibly personal, which makes it easy for some students and difficult for others. Our narrative writing graphic organizer bundle can help students of all ages plan out and write strong narrative essays and creative stories. The organizers are simple to use and free to download.
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Narrative Writing Graphic Organizer Bundle
Grab your free graphic organizers by entering your email info in the form on this page. You’ll get immediate access to download and print!
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How To Use Our Narrative Writing Graphic Organizers
Here’s what you’ll get in the narrative writing bundle:
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One-Page Narrative Writing Worksheet
This worksheet is an all-in-one guide to narrative writing! Students can map out their composition, making notes about the topic, theme, setting, characters, and plot. It also includes a handy checklist to remind them to add details, ensure they have a beginning, middle, and end, and more.
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What’s Your Story? Topic and Theme
For students who are writing longer essays or need more guidance, try our set of detailed organizers. This one helps kids brainstorm ideas, choose a story they want to tell, and identify the theme that will tie it all together.
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Who, Where, and When? Setting and Characters
When it comes to narrative writing, the more details, the better! This organizer page will help students flesh out the characters in their narrative and find the right words to set the scene of time and place.
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Beginning, Middle, and End
Narrative writing tells a story—one with a beginning, middle, and end. Use this page to guide students in crafting the plot that makes up the bulk of their narrative composition. They can make notes of the words they want to use, as well as illustrations to help capture the mood.
What is narrative writing?
Narrative writing tells a story—whether true or fiction. This category includes creative writing like novels, short stories, and epic poems or ballads. It also encompasses memoirs, biographies and autobiographies, and personal narrative essays.
Describe a time when you did something you didn’t want to and ended up liking it.
What is your happiest memory?
Write about a time when you or someone you know displayed courage.
Explore a time when you felt you were treated unfairly.
When was the last time you questioned something you had thought to be true?
Describe a performance or sporting event you took part in.
Tell about a time when you made a mistake and had to apologize and/or fix it.
Write about meeting your best friend for the first time and how your relationship developed.
Tell the story of your first day of kindergarten.
Describe a time when you had to make a difficult decision.
More Writing Prompts for Kids
We’ve got so many ideas and prompts to spark young writers! Take a look at these:
Don’t forget to grab your free printable narrative writing graphic organizer!
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Just click the button and enter your email info in the form on this page to download and print your copy today. It’s an easy way to help kids get a jump-start on their compositions!
Students spend a lot of time on informative, or informational, writing (also called expository writing), especially as they get older. Research papers, biographies, informational essays, and how-to guides all fit into this category. This type of writing requires relevant details supported by reliable facts, presented in language that’s clear and unemotional. Introduce elementary students to this important composition style with our free printable informational writing graphic organizers!
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Informational Writing Graphic Organizers
Grab this bundle to help your students research facts, organize their thoughts, and write clearly and logically. Just enter your email info in the form on this page to get it!
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Informational Writing Graphic Organizer Pages
Here’s what’s included in our informational writing bundle:
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My Informative Writing Graphic Organizer
Use this one-pager to help students organize their thoughts before they write their first draft. It includes room for a topic sentence, three main supporting facts, and a conclusion. This is perfect for a simple expository topic or writing prompt, especially for beginners.
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Main Facts Organizer
Finding reliable facts that support your topic is a major part of informative writing. This page gives kids room to write their three main facts, including space for diagrams or other helpful pictures or images they may want to refer to. Remind them to make notes about the source and ensure that source is reliable.
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How to … Planner
Informative and expository compositions also include writing clear instructions about how to do specific tasks, like changing a tire or planning and cooking a meal. This page will help kids break a simple task into smaller steps, then write out sentences that flow naturally from one to the next with transition words.
Explain how a new law is passed in the United States.
Describe how to live a healthy lifestyle for someone your age.
Describe the life of a famous artist, musician, actor, or athlete.
Explain the difference between an alligator and a crocodile.
Write about the history of the internet.
Explain how to make a campfire.
Tell about how the average person lived during a specific historic time and place.
Describe the life cycle of any animal.
Write about the history of the Olympics.
Informational Writing FAQs
What is informative writing?
Informative writing (also called expository or informational writing) is intended to explain, describe, or teach readers about a topic. It uses facts and evidence to present the information in clear, detailed language. Examples of informational writing include research papers, lab reports, biographies, informative essays, and how-to guides.
How is informative writing different from opinion or narrative writing?
Informational writing sticks strictly to facts presented in a neutral tone by an unbiased author, without offering an opinion or trying to persuade the reader. Opinion writing uses facts, but the tone is different—it includes personal anecdotes and language meant to play on a reader’s emotions. Narrative writing tells a story (true or fictional), with a clear plot that includes a beginning, middle, and end.
For example, an encyclopedia entry on Kamala Harris is informational writing. A letter to the editor asking people to vote for Kamala Harris in the next election is opinion or persuasive writing. A personal account of what it was like to work for Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign is narrative writing.
What are the key components of strong informative writing?
Informational writing includes a clear main idea, well-organized and reliably sourced facts and supporting details, and logical transitions and conclusions. It may use technical language specific to the topic. This type of writing often requires a bibliography or list of research sources.
Why should students use graphic organizers for informational writing?
Informational writing requires research and planning. One common mistake student writers make is including too much information—a graphic organizer can help narrow down the important facts and supporting details. Planning ahead with an organizer leads to stronger main ideas and clearer structure overall, with logical transitions and coherent explanations. Using graphic organizers is especially important for those new to informative writing or students who struggle when writing in general.
How can I help students find reliable sources for informative writing?
Start by teaching students to think critically about the sources of their facts and use primary sources whenever possible. (Wikipedia is not a reliable primary source!) Show them how to identify potential bias, and choose sources that are reliable, neutral, and widely trusted whenever possible. Learn more about helping students find reliable sources for informational writing here.
Get your free informational writing graphic organizers!
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Just click the button below and enter your email information in the form on this page to download and print these free resources.
Break through writer’s block and sharpen communication skills with this list of writing prompts for high school students. Use them for daily warm-ups, journal entries, creative writing, narrative essays, and so much more.
Check out our engaging writing prompts for high school students. Just fill out the form on this page to download your free slides.
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Benefits of Writing Prompts
The more writing practice kids get in high school, the better. Here’s how they benefit from using writing prompts in any classroom.
Improve written communication skills
In today’s world, many careers require people to be able to communicate clearly and succinctly through the written word, whether in emails, online messages, reports, or other communications. Writing comes easily for some students, but in general, the best way to get better is to practice, practice, practice!
Overcome writer’s block
Teachers hear it again and again: “I don’t know what to write about!” Specific prompts help overcome those complaints, helping students get started by providing a focus, style, or other instructions.
Build critical thinking skills
Challenging writing prompts and essay topics encourage students to think more deeply about topics, approaching them from different points of view. Writers practice evaluating cause and effect, weighing evidence, and taking a stand on issues.
Invite personal reflection
Journal prompts and personal narratives inspire students to consider their own emotions, reactions, and behaviors. They can spur students to build resilience, mindfulness, and personal strength as they write.
Encourage self-expression
Creative writing and journal prompts are especially good for emboldening students to share more about themselves. This helps build self-confidence, as well as offering ways for them to process experiences and emotions.
How To Use Writing Prompts With High School Students
Wondering how to work writing prompts into your classes? Try these ideas:
Daily warm-ups: Start with a short writing prompt to get kids thinking and ready to participate.
Journal writing: Give kids space to write personal and private thoughts and reflections each day.
Creative writing practice: Help students write stories, plays, poems, and more.
Discussion starters: After students spend some time writing on a topic, put them into pairs or groups to talk about their thoughts.
Test prep: Give prompts that students might find on SAT, ACT, AP, or other standardized exams to practice timed essay writing.
Substitute plans: Writing prompts make easy sub plans! Leave substitute teachers a list for students to choose from, and class will take care of itself!
End-of-class reflection: Use prompts as exit tickets or a way for students to summarize what they learned and make real-life connections.
Journal Writing Prompts for High School
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What do you value most in a friend?
What’s one thing you’d like to improve about yourself, and how could you start?
Write about a quality you admire in yourself.
What are you most afraid of? How could you overcome that fear?
Describe a place where you feel completely comfortable.
Which subject is hardest for you, and how do you handle it?
Write about a teacher who made a positive difference in your life.
Do you prefer working alone or in groups? Why?
What motivates you to keep going when life feels difficult?
How do you feel about homework?
Describe your ideal classroom environment.
Who do you look up to and why?
What makes someone trustworthy?
What role does social media play in your friendships?
How do you cope when you’re feeling anxious or worried?
What’s a lesson you’ve learned from a relationship that didn’t go well?
How do you show appreciation for others?
What matters more, honesty or kindness?
Do you think high school friendships can last a lifetime? Why or why not?
What does happiness mean to you?
Creative Writing Prompts for High School
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The power goes out across the world. Write about what happens during the first 24 hours afterward.
A character writes a letter but never sends it. What does it say, and who was it meant for?
You discover an old photograph taken decades ago—and realize you’re in it.
Write about a day in a world where emotions are sold in bottles.
Describe a UFO landing in your backyard and who or what is inside.
Write about a superhero with a silly superpower and how the “real” superheroes treat them.
Write about a day when every thought you have is visible to everyone around you.
Describe a world where music has magical powers.
Today you realized your whole life is a reality TV show—and everyone else is actors. Now what?
Imagine a day in the life of a pet (yours or someone else’s).
Write about the first people to visit another planet and find life there.
Write an episode of your favorite show with you as a guest star.
Choose a book or story and write a different ending for it.
Write a story set in a world where people age backward.
What would happen if people could no longer see colors, only black, white, or shades of gray?
Write the news article for this headline: Scientists Discover the Secret to Eternal Life.
Write a story set in a world where people communicate through dance instead of spoken language.
You’ve been accused of a terrible crime you didn’t commit. Write about your experiences.
Write a story set on a spaceship that travels the galaxy but never lands anywhere.
Write a conversation between two historical figures from different eras.
Short 5-Minute Writing Prompts for High School
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What’s one skill you’d like to learn that isn’t taught in school?
Describe your mood right now using only weather words.
What sound do you find particularly annoying?
What’s one thing you’re grateful for today and why?
Give today a movie title, and explain why you chose it.
What’s one school rule you would change if you could?
List five things you’d put in a time capsule being buried today and opened in 50 years.
Write a complete story in five sentences or less.
What’s something small that made you feel happy recently?
What’s one small thing you could do today to make the world a better place?
10-Minute Writing Prompts for High School
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Write a letter to someone you love, telling them why you love them.
Write about a smell you associate with a happy memory.
Set a small goal for yourself, and explain how you’ll accomplish it.
Write a text message exchange between two fictional characters.
What’s going really well in your life right now, and what is most challenging?
Choose a favorite song and describe how it makes you feel.
How do you cheer yourself up on a bad day?
If money were no issue, what career or job would you choose?
List three new things you’ve learned recently, then explain which is the most important.
If someone offered you the thing you want most, what would you be willing to give up for it in exchange?
Fun Writing Prompts for High School
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What’s the funniest joke you know? Why does it always make you laugh?
Describe the perfect meal from start to finish.
Would you rather be able to fly or be invisible?
How would you fight a monster 50 times your size?
Write a commercial for shoes that let you walk on the ceiling.
Create a new holiday, and explain how it’s celebrated.
List the five funniest excuses for being late to class.
Make up a sport that could only exist on another planet.
What if every time you sneezed, you switched bodies with the person closest to you?
Write a letter to your personal hero, then imagine their response to you.
Writing Prompts for High School Seniors
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Which grade year of school has been your favorite?
Which grade year of school was your least favorite?
When you look back over your K-12 years, what do you wish you had done differently?
What class do you wish you had been able to take (real or imaginary)?
Do you think your K-12 years have prepared you to be an adult? Why or why not?
Compare and contrast the friends you had when you were in elementary school and the friends you have now.
List 10 things you hope to have accomplished 10 years from now. Which of these is most important to you?
What teacher has had the greatest impact on your life over the years?
What advice would you offer to kids just starting kindergarten?
Fill in the blanks, then explain your answers: Graduation is the end of ____________ and the beginning of ____________.
Narrative Writing Prompts for High School
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Describe a time when you did something you later regretted.
Write about your proudest moment.
Describe your favorite field trip of all time.
Write about the best party or celebration you’ve ever attended.
Write about a time when you or someone you know displayed courage.
If you could relive any day in your life, what would it be? Would you want it to be the same or different?
Explore a time when you were treated unfairly.
When was the last time you questioned something you had thought to be true?
Choose one of the communities to which you belong and describe that community and your place within it.
Describe a time when you had to make a difficult decision.
Persuasive writing is one of those skills that can help students succeed in real life. Learn the basics of this valuable skill, then use our big roundup of persuasive essay topics for practice.
Plus, fill out the form on this page to grab our free printable persuasive essay graphic organizers to pair with your lessons!
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What is persuasive writing?
In a persuasive essay, the writer uses a combination of facts and emotion to sway a reader to adopt their own point of view or take a specific action. Here are the general steps to writing persuasively:
State your position: Clearly and succinctly, state your desired opinion or outcome up front. This could be the point of view you want the reader to adopt (“Pineapple has no place on a pizza.”) or the action you want them to take (“All adults should educate themselves and vote in every election.”).
Provide evidence and support: Use facts to support your point of view, citing sources whenever you can. Explain how those facts back up your position, using logic and reason.
Anticipate counterarguments: It’s important to know your audience so you can anticipate any counterarguments they might make and try to overcome them.
Use emotional appeals: Persuasive essays are similar to argumentative essays, but they incorporate more emotion rather than sticking to facts and logic. For instance, you might try to anger, scare, or create a sense of pride in your reader so they’ll be more likely to agree with you.
Make a call to action: Finish strong with the specific action you’d like the reader to take, whether it’s voting responsibly or never putting pineapple on a pizza again.
Do the benefits of nuclear power outweigh the risks?
Is it right for countries to still maintain nuclear weapon arsenals?
Should testing on animals be made illegal?
Will expanded use of artificial intelligence be good for humanity?
Should all people have free internet access in their homes?
Is there intelligent life on other planets?
Does technology create more jobs than it eliminates?
Should parents use their children’s cell phones to track where they are?
Should scientists try to develop a way for people to live forever?
What’s the best type of smartphone: Android or iPhone?
Which is better, Macs or PCs?
Do people rely too much on technology in the modern world?
Should cryptocurrencies replace cash?
Should there be a minimum age requirement to own a smartphone?
All people have a responsibility to help combat climate change.
Is it important to keep spending money on space exploration, or should we use the money for other things?
Should kids under 13 be allowed to use social media sites?
Should we ban cigarette smoking and vaping entirely?
Is it better to be an animal that lives in the water or on land?
Are humans responsible for an increase in climate change?
Should all communities be legally required to recycle?
Sports and Entertainment Persuasive Essay Topics
Should kids be allowed to watch TV on school nights?
Which is better, paper books or e-books?
Is the current movie rating system (G, PG, PG-13, etc.) effective?
Are video games better than board games?
Sports teams should have to pay to build their own arenas or stadiums rather than relying on the community.
Movie theater tickets are too expensive.
Should we allow little kids to play competitive sports?
Youth sports have become too competitive.
Which is better, reading books or watching TV?
Are celebrities obligated to be positive role models for their fans?
Does playing violent video games make people more violent in real life?
Video games need more inclusive and diverse characters.
Are graphic novels just as valuable as traditional fiction books?
Women’s sports deserve equal funding and coverage as men’s sports.
Should everyone play on the same sports teams, regardless of gender?
Choose a book that’s been made into a movie. Which was better, the movie or the book?
Who is the world’s best athlete, present or past?
Are professional athletes/musicians/actors overpaid?
Is hosting the Olympics a waste of a country’s money and resources?
College athletes should be allowed to accept a salary for playing.
Which is better, fiction or nonfiction?
The best music genre is …
What is one book that everyone should read?
What new sport should be added to the Olympics?
What’s the best video game system?
Does playing video games make you smarter?
Should high school athletes be required to maintain a minimum GPA to continue playing?
Contact sports like boxing and football are too dangerous.
Does reality TV actually depict real life?
Should all neighborhoods have free parks and playgrounds?
Are awards like the Grammys and Oscars biased and in need of reform?
Just for Fun Persuasive Essay Topics
What’s the best holiday?
The very best food of all time is …
Which make better pets, dogs or cats?
Which is better, artificial Christmas trees or real ones?
What’s the best season of the year?
Should you put ketchup on a hot dog?
Is a taco a sandwich?
Does fruit count as dessert?
Everyone should eat dessert first.
Should people have to go to school or work on their birthday?
Are clowns scary or funny?
Which is more dangerous, werewolves or vampires?
The best pizza topping is …
What would be the best superpower to have?
Should everyone make their bed every day?
Which came first, the chicken or the egg?
Should you put pineapple on a pizza?
Should you eat macaroni and cheese with a spoon or a fork?
Describe the world’s best ice cream sundae.
Is Monday the worst day of the week?
Would you rather travel back in time or forward in time?
Is it better to be too hot or too cold?
Are there aliens living among us here on Earth?
Get my free printable persuasive essay graphic organizers
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Download our persuasive essay graphic organizer bundle to pair perfectly with your lesson and allow your students to plan their writing with helpful visuals. There are two worksheets, one with a simple layout for younger students and one with a detailed layout that’s best for older students. Both graphic organizers feature a road map theme that walks your students through all the steps, such as stating their claim, providing reasons and supporting facts, and restating the claim. These graphic organizers work for both persuasive and argumentative essays. Just press the button below to grab them!
