Student Notebooks
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The passcode is: 888626
This Week’s Focus
Prompt: Someone receives something that was never meant for them.
This Week’s Assignment: The unexpected story.
Choose the strongest idea generated during your warm-up. Write a 750–1,000 word story based on the prompt above. Your challenge is to take an ordinary premise somewhere the reader could not have predicted at the beginning while making the direction feel believable once we arrive there.
Surprising does not mean random. Avoid adding a twist simply to shock the reader. Aim for the kind of surprise that makes a reader think: I did not see that coming, but of course.
Your originality might come from:
- The premise
- The character
- The perspective
- The conflict
- The consequences
- The structure
- The meaning
- The way several of these work together
Before you write, ask yourself:
- Am I choosing this idea because it is the easiest one to write?
- Have I encountered a version of this story before?
- What makes my version different?
- What possibility have I not explored yet?
- Is this the most interesting version of this idea?
Scholastic Art & Writing Competition 2026
Deadline: January 7, 2027
Sometimes an old piece contains an idea that is better than the writer you were when you first attempted it. This fall, you may choose one previous piece and reclaim it. This is not simply an editing assignment. You may change anything.
- Point of view
- Characters
- Structure
- Conflict
- Setting
- Genre
- Scenes
- Beginning
- Ending
The original draft is source material, not sacred text. For next week, bring 2–3 previous pieces that still have something you like about them. Do not revise them yet. For now, simply ask: What is the spark worth saving?
Homework
Week 1:
Homework is due by 7 am on the day of your class. Any homework submitted after that is considered late. That means, you are not allowed to finish it right before class. If you do, it will still be incomplete as I will have already checked your work. Please plan ahead!
- Finish your unexpected story. See above for details.
- Read through samples on the website and choose your Scholastic categories (This is tentative and can change later) www.artandwriting.org
- Brainstorm and choose your Piece #1 idea. You may not choose flash fiction for your first piece. It can be your second piece if you would like.
- Gather reclamation pieces (returning YWA members only).
Note: I have listed in parenthesis ( ) where each assignment should go in your notebook. If it is not in the correct section, I will think your homework is incomplete.
Inspire Kids 2 Write 