The Situation You are in need of a short story planner, including characterisation and plot planning. The Solution Download and use the following printables for students. Students first design their character using the STEAL acronym before planning out their plot on the following page. Short Story PlannerDownload plot-diagram-1Download

The Situation You want to engage your students in some creative writing, but are lacking prompts. The Solution Print these off, laminate and dice them. When students arrive to class provide them with one each and set the timer for 5 minutes. After the allocated time, allow students to read what they came up with … Continue reading Creative Writing Prompts

2.1 Content and teaching strategies of the teaching area 2.3 Curriculum, assessment and reporting 3.1 Establish challenging learning goals Earlier this term, I was looking over an assessment that I had used the previous year. It was reliable: a clear outline, connection with student learning and a rubric that was both challenging and offered breadth … Continue reading Subverting the Stock Standard Assessment: Encouraging Students to Design Their Own Assessments

Stories are everywhere, we just need to discover them. If you look around your house, I am certain you could find an object placed on a shelf, long forgotten. These items have histories. Some might be dull and largely irrelevant. Others might contain the memories of the past. Students can always find inspiration in their … Continue reading Imagining the Unimaginable: Pushing the boundaries of the narrator

Too often, students get stuck with writing something unique in their stories. They may revert to what they know, play it safe, rather than exploring new ideas that might challenge or subvert the expectations of the reader. It is easy to provide students with a problem that a character must overcome, such as a physical … Continue reading Creative Writing Ideas: Discovering conflict by challenging point of view