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Writing Prompts for 1st Graders

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Story, opinion and informative prompts with a picture box, a word bank and first grade lines, plus planners, journal pages and research pages.

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Story writing prompts

Tell about a real or made-up event in order, with details and an ending.

Opinion writing prompts

Give an opinion and a reason, and close with an ending.

Informative and how-to prompts

Teach facts about a topic or the steps to do something.

Writing planners

Plan an opinion, a story or an informative piece before writing.

Research, how-to and interview pages

Gather facts from books and people, plan how-to steps, and interview a friend.

Journal pages and revising

Write about feelings and the week, and practice adding details to make sentences stronger.

Print at 100% (actual size) for the cleanest tracing lines.

About these writing prompts worksheets

First graders write in three ways: telling a story about something that happened, giving an opinion with a reason, and teaching facts about a topic. These writing prompts for 1st graders cover all three, five prompts each, plus pages that help children plan, revise and gather facts.

Each prompt page has a short prompt children can read, a picture, a few words they might want to spell, a box to draw a picture or plan, four lines ruled for first grade (5/8 inch with a dotted middle line) and a check box strip: capital letters, spaces, end marks and I reread it. The first line starts with a few traceable words so no child stares at a blank page.

Three planners help children organize an opinion, a story and an informative piece before they write. An I Wonder research page, a how-to plan, an interview page, two journal pages and an add more details page round out the set.

Standards

  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.1.1Write opinion pieces in which they introduce the topic or name the book they are writing about, state an opinion, supply a reason for the opinion, and provide some sense of closure.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.1.2Write informative/explanatory texts in which they name a topic, supply some facts about the topic, and provide some sense of closure.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.1.3Write narratives in which they recount two or more appropriately sequenced events, include some details regarding what happened, use temporal words to signal event order, and provide some sense of closure.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.1.5With guidance and support from adults, focus on a topic, respond to questions and suggestions from peers, and add details to strengthen writing as needed.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.1.7Participate in shared research and writing projects (e.g., explore a number of "how-to" books on a given topic and use them to write a sequence of instructions).
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.1.8With guidance and support from adults, recall information from experiences or gather information from provided sources to answer a question.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.1.3Ask and answer questions about what a speaker says in order to gather additional information or clarify something that is not understood.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.1.5Add drawings or other visual displays to descriptions when appropriate to clarify ideas, thoughts, and feelings.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.1.2.ESpell untaught words phonetically, drawing on phonemic awareness and spelling conventions.

How to use them

  1. Read the prompt together and talk about ideas before anyone writes.
  2. Have your child draw first. A picture is a plan, and it helps children remember what to write.
  3. Use the words you might use list for spelling, and encourage children to sound out other words.
  4. Aim for three to five sentences in first grade, with a beginning, a middle and an ending.
  5. When the writing is done, go through the checklist together and fix one thing.
  6. Use a planner page before a longer piece, then copy the plan onto the prompt page or lined paper.

Teaching tips

  • Opinion writing needs a clear opinion, a reason with because, and an ending.
  • Story writing uses words like first, next, then and last to show order.
  • How-to and all about pages teach facts. Have your child pretend to teach a younger child.
  • Praise ideas first. Spelling can be fixed later.
  • The interview page is a good way to practice asking questions and listening.

Questions teachers and parents ask

How much should a first grader write?

By the end of first grade, most children can write three to five connected sentences on a topic, with a beginning and an ending.

What are the three kinds of writing in first grade?

Narrative (telling a story in order), opinion (stating what you think and why) and informative (teaching facts or steps).

What size lines do these pages use?

The lines are ruled for first grade: 5/8 inch from the top line to the baseline with a dotted middle line.

Do writing prompts have answer keys?

No. Writing answers vary. The add more details page shows example answers.