Journal Writing Prompts For Middle School

writing prompts for middle school

Why should you use fun writing prompts for middle school? Learning how to write in middle school is essential for helping kids learn and perfect their skills in solving problems, opening up, showing their creativity, and perfecting their explanation skills.

Nowadays, journaling may seem outdated, especially with new technology everywhere we go. But having kids do a journal can be helpful in so many ways, that I don't think it should be passed up.

Putting pen to paper can help students in so many ways.

For example, middle school-aged children are going through a lot of physical and emotions changes because they are growing up and their body is changing.

Most middle schoolers become very self-conscious and are afraid to share their opinions due to the fear of rejection or being criticized.

It's not their fault and they can't really control those feelings either, unfortunately.

Having a journal can help them learn to express their feelings, fears, and desires. Sometimes, as they write, the words just flow and will empower them to write even more.

Get a fun journal kids will love writing in!

Here are a few of my favorite supplies and journals for writing prompts:

Fun Journal Supplies

Letting the kids use fun journaling supplies such as fun pens, notebooks, or doodles can help them get excited to write. They can also create their own doodles or draw their ideas as they describe them in their writing.

Erin Condren Notebooks

Not only does Erin Condren offer hardbound notebooks, but they have also introduced softbound notebooks and a variety of other fun kid-friendly notebooks. My daughter loves them because of how colorful they are.

They also have a ton of different pens and pencils that are colorful and easy to write with.

Journals on Amazon

You can find just about anything on Amazon. They have some fun notebooks that are both hardbound and softbound.

momAgenda - They have a notebook that we have previously used. momAgenda is focused more on daily and weekly planners though.

One of my favorite things to see is the progress the child has made throughout the year with their writing. Writing a journal piece each day can improve their writing skills and throughout the year you can see the improvements that have been made.

Kids learn better when things are entertaining and fun.

When they are doing things that they enjoy or they are having fun with, they may not notice it, but they are retaining that information better.

Having fun and interesting middle school journal prompts can spark creative thinking, problem-solving, and reflection in a not so boring way. This will allow them to keep their attention longer.

A few ideas on fun writing prompts for middle school:

If you could invent a new holiday, what would you call it? How would you celebrate the holiday?
If you found a genie in a lamp or a bottle and had 3 wishes, what would they be?
Who do you look up to most in your family? Why?
What is your favorite animal? What is your least favorite animal? Why do you like them or dislike them?
List 4 true sentences that start with "I will always remember…" or "I will never forget the time when…"
What are the 10 things you'd like to accomplish in life?
If your pet could talk, what would you do? What would he/she say? If you could say anything to your pet, what would it be?
If you started a restaurant, what would be on the menu? What are your favorite foods?
If you could travel back in time, what year would go to? Who would you want to meet and why?
If you had the power to help anyone in the world, who would you help, and why?
Would you rather be a dolphin or a snake? Why?
Write a poem about your family.
If you were stuck inside a video game, which game would it be? Why?
Think about the city you live in. What would you change? What would you not change?
How did you feel on your first day of school? Did you have any fears? What were you feeling?

These are just a few examples of middle school writing prompts for kids. There are so many different questions you can ask to spark their thinking and creativity.

You may also like these Fall Writing Prompts for Kids

Bonus Middle School Journal Prompts

You can even incorporate some questions that pertain to various life skills that children should be taught. For instance, many kids need to know about money and how to manage money.

One of the middle school writing prompts could be "If you have $300 to spend on your family for Christmas, what would you buy each person so everyone has what they want without going over $300?"

Write a letter to persuade your friend to do something.
What would you do if you could travel into the future?
If you could meet one celebrity, who would it be? What would you talk to them about?
If you could design a roller coaster, would it go fast? What would it look like? What would you name it?
Research one city. What did you learn? Would you move there?
What is your favorite outdoor fall activity?
What is your favorite fall fruit or vegetable? Name something you enjoy it in.

The possibilities are endless when it comes to middle school creative writing prompts. You can use anything that pops into your head. Your child might have some ideas as well! For instance, mine came up with the topic of what their favorite apple recipe was.

You may also like these Halloween Writing Prompts for Elementary That Are Spooky and Fun

Get Creative with Middle School Writing Prompts!

Usually, the crazier the better!

When the kids were younger, we did something very similar to the video below. We did random topics and chose random words to keep it fun and interesting.

Having crazy themes and different ideas or words to go with it, really seems to help inspire them to get creative and really think about where to take the story.

Ideas on way to get creative ideas for journal prompts:

Keep up with the news that might be of interest to their age group. Maybe there is a popular video game or movie that is out, make up interesting questions from those.
Let them explore their own topics. Skip the prompt for a day and just let them write whatever they want.
If they have hobbies, create prompts that revolve around those hobbies.
Use a black page notebook and let kids write using gel pens or bright colored pencils.

Journal topics for middle school can be fun and educational at the same time. Just remember to keep it fun and light-hearted so kids will want to write and explore their creativity and be interested in writing.

If you're looking for a journal, I highly recommend one that's called Rip The Page! Adventures in Creative Writing. It takes writing out of the box and will help get their imaginations going.

More helpful middle school journal prompt resources:

Unjournaling: Daily Writing Exercises That Are Not Personal
Journal For Girls and Teens With Writing Prompts For Self Exploration

Because the transition to middle school might be harder on some than others, there are some fun books with good points to them or comics that your middle schooler might be interested in. Here are my picks:

Middle School, The Worst Years of My Life - Written by James Patters, this is a comic of sorts that deals with middle schoolers' biggest issues (bullies, first crushes, etc).
A Smart Girl's Guide: Middle School - This book gives a little about what to expect in middle school. It's a good book for those students that are just going into middle school.