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Writing Prompts for 2nd Graders

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Narrative, informative and opinion writing prompts with plan boxes, word banks and room to write, plus planners and a revise-and-edit page.

Download the writing prompts worksheets

Narrative writing prompts

Real and make-believe stories, with a Beginning, Middle and End (or First, Next, Last) plan before the lined space to write.

Informative writing prompts

How-to and all-about pieces, with step or fact boxes to plan in first.

Opinion writing prompts

Pick a side and back it up with two reasons.

Planners and revising

Planning pages for stories and informative writing, and a page for revising and editing a short draft.

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

About these writing prompts worksheets

Second graders write real paragraphs. They tell a story with details about actions and feelings, teach a reader how to do something, and share an opinion with reasons. A good prompt gives them something worth writing about and a simple plan to follow.

These writing prompts for 2nd graders each have a clear prompt, a short list of words children might use, a row of small boxes to plan in, and a full page of second grade writing lines. Story prompts plan Beginning, Middle and End. How-to and all-about prompts plan steps or facts. Opinion prompts plan an opinion and two reasons. A checklist at the bottom helps children check their own writing.

Two planners and a revise-and-edit page help children plan any piece and make a draft better.

Standards

  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.2.1Write opinion pieces in which they introduce the topic or book they are writing about, state an opinion, supply reasons that support the opinion, use linking words (e.g., because, and, also) to connect opinion and reasons, and provide a concluding statement or section.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.2.2Write informative/explanatory texts in which they introduce a topic, use facts and definitions to develop points, and provide a concluding statement or section.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.2.3Write narratives in which they recount a well-elaborated event or short sequence of events, include details to describe actions, thoughts, and feelings, use temporal words to signal event order, and provide a sense of closure.
  • CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.2.5With guidance and support from adults and peers, focus on a topic and strengthen writing as needed by revising and editing.

How to use them

  1. Read the prompt together and talk about ideas before writing.
  2. Have your child jot a few words in each plan box, not full sentences.
  3. Use the plan to write: one or two sentences for each box.
  4. When the writing is done, use the checklist at the bottom, then read the piece aloud.

Teaching tips

  • A sentence starter is printed on the first line. Your child can use it or cross it out.
  • Time-order words (first, next, then, finally) help stories and how-to pieces flow.
  • For informative pieces, remind your child to start with a sentence that tells the topic.
  • Celebrate effort and ideas first; fix spelling and capitals during editing.

Questions teachers and parents ask

What should a 2nd grader be able to write?

By the end of second grade, children write a short story with events in order and details, an informative piece with facts and a closing, and an opinion with reasons and linking words.

How much should my child write?

Most second graders write one paragraph of five to eight sentences on a page like these. The lines leave room for more.

Do these prompts have answer keys?

No. Writing prompts have no single right answer. Use the checklist at the bottom of each page to talk about the writing.