Print at home · For teachers and homeschool

Story Starters

Stuck for something to write about? Pick a card. Each shows a place, a few lines about it and a prompt: a news report on the day the Great Pyramid got its last stone, a diary from a home on the Moon, or a poem by a Roman lighthouse keeper on a stormy night.

Buy Story Starters · $3.99

Opens our store, a separate website.

  • Instant download
  • US Letter and A4
  • Print as often as you need
  • One payment
  • Grades 2 to 6
  • 70 prompt cards
  • 11 kinds of writing
  • PDF in Letter and A4

Perfect for writing centers, journals, homeschool and early finishers

Story Starters: a page of prompt cards from Ancient Egypt between the story planner and the guide.

How it works

  1. Print and cut. Ten cards to a page, one page for each world.
  2. Pick a card. Draw one at random, or choose a world your class is studying.
  3. Plan and write. Fill in the story planner, then write and draw on the writing page.

What's inside

  • 70 prompt cardsTen for each world, from the pyramids to a city in the clouds.
  • 11 kinds of writingStory, retelling, diary, letter, poem, description, explanation, opinion, news report, conversation and invention.
  • Something to start fromA few lines about the place on every card, and a page for every place on this site.
  • A story plannerWho, where and when, the problem, the beginning, middle and end, and good words to use.
  • A writing pageLines to write on and a box to draw in. Copy it as often as you need.
  • Bible storiesThe Heavenly City's cards retell Bible stories, like the boy who shared his five loaves and two fish.

Page by page

A PDF of 10 pages, in US Letter and A4.

  1. 1The guide: ways to use the cards, tips for grown-ups and the kinds of writing
  2. 2 to 870 prompt cards, a page for each world: Ancient Egypt, Ancient Rome, Medieval Kingdom, Modern Town, Green World, Robotic Future and the Heavenly City
  3. 9The story planner
  4. 10A writing page with a box to draw in

Questions

What grades is it for?

Grades 2 to 6. Younger writers can draw first and write a sentence or two; older ones can turn a card into a whole story or report.

Does it go with the Classroom Pack?

Yes. Every place on the cards has a fact card in the Classroom Pack, so students can look things up as they write.

Can I copy it for my students?

Yes, as many copies as your class needs. One purchase is for one teacher's classroom or one home; please don't share the file online.

Seventy ways to start writing

Buy Story Starters · $3.99

Opens our store, a separate website.

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