Is winter weather and Christmas impatience taking its toll on your kids – and your sanity? Get their holiday-inspired, creative juices flowing – and banish the boredom – with these fun writing prompts for kids with a winter theme…
Channel some Dickens.
Have your child write a poem or a story featuring three different versions of themselves getting a Christmas wish granted: one in the present, one in the past, and one in the future.
Make a parody.
What’s your child’s favorite Christmas poem, story, or song? Parodies are one of the most fun writing prompts for kids, especially if you let them really get creative when choosing a topic. Perhaps siblings can have a writing duel, casting each other off as the Grinch. Children might also enjoy making a mockery of how their parents handle “the night before Christmas.” And what topics couldn’t be creatively blended with a few “fa la la la la’s”? The possibilities are endless. Just be sure to drop a quick reminder it’s fine to be funny – not mean – and keep it in the spirit of the holiday.
Experience a total transformation.
Write a story from the point of view of someone waking up to find themselves transformed into an elf, a reindeer, or another Christmas character. Want to take it a step further? Consider transformations into inanimate objects for an endless array of fun writing prompts for kids that can really help them delve into perspective. Interesting choices might include the Christmas angel atop the tree, a gingerbread man cookie, or a Santa hat.
Write an acrostic poem.
An acrostic poem features a topic idea running down the left side. Each letter in the topic word begins the line of text, which can be a single word or multiple words. For example, take the word Christmas:
Christmas
Happy
Reunite with family
Icicles
Santa’s gifts
Turkey’s in the oven
Memories
Angels
Singing carols
Get a head start…
Is your child not sure where to start when it comes to thinking of fictional story ideas? Try these Christmas story starters:
- Granny took the last tray of gingerbread men from the oven. Suddenly…
- “Ho-ho-help!” came a voice from the chimney…
- All the elves in Santa’s workshop work hard every holiday season… all but one, that is…
- A loud noise awoke me with a start. Something red was shining through the window. (Gasp!) It’s a reindeer nose! …
- After searching every store for 100 miles, I discovered there was not a single tree left – real or fake. But then I had an idea…
Ally yourself with alliteration.
An alliteration is the repetition of an initial consonant in two or more neighboring words or syllables. Comic book writers are often fans of alliteration when naming their characters. Peter Parker. Clark Kent. Bruce Banner. Sound familiar? Have your children create a short list of holiday-themed alliterations, then incorporate them into a short holiday story. For example:
Silly snowmen. Ridiculously romping reindeer. Snarky Santa. Grumpy grandma…
Once upon a time, ridiculously romping reindeer crashed into six silly snowmen, resulting in an astonishing avalanche that ruined grumpy grandma’s garden. Snarky Santa sent his regrets.
Create a few “reindeer games.”
It’s the First Annual North Pole Olympics. What games would your children create for Santa, the elves, and the reindeer to compete in? What might the awards be?
That’s it. Snatch those “smart” devices that are tuning your kids out and turning their brains to jello. Re-introduce them to the here and now. Sharpen their minds and give your kids the gift of inspiration with these fun writing prompts for kids this holiday season… And give yourself the gift of peace of mind!
Photo by woodleywonderworks, ND Strupler, Caitlinator, Alexandratx
Suzy S.