Creative Writing: The Three Minute Challenge (Tween/Teen)
Taught by an award-winning published author! Boost creativity with this fun, social writing game. We'll write three minutes in three sentences on two totally random topics. This class is ideal for reluctant and enthusiastic writers alike.
What's included
1 live meeting
35 mins in-class hours per weekClass Experience
US Grade 6 - 9
Beginner - Advanced Level
✨New to Outschool? Use code JACKSON20 to save $20 on this class!✨ 𝗕𝗼𝗿𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗺𝘆 𝗮𝗯𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝘃𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝗲𝘅𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗶𝘀𝗲𝘀, 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗯𝗶𝗴 𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀, 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘇𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗮 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗸𝗶𝗰𝗸 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝘂𝘁𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗱. *𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘴𝘶𝘣𝘴𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘴𝘵𝘺𝘭𝘦 𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘴-- 𝘴𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘫𝘰𝘪𝘯 𝘰𝘳 𝘥𝘳𝘰𝘱 𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦, 𝘢𝘴 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥 𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘬-𝘵𝘰-𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘬!* Together, we choose two totally random topics-- like whales, ghosts, high heels, Italian restaurants, the last day of school, ponies, explosions, or the King of Spain. We then each write a three sentence story that includes both topics in three minutes or less! My students and I love this exercise because it helps calm the anxieties of perfectionists, focus the minds of dreamers, and encourage the minds of both to run with their first creative instincts. Stories are sometimes ridiculous, sometimes genius, but always fun to share. Students will receive light feedback on their piece, but the focus of the class is to get minds moving and forge new creative paths. This class is a great supplement to other English or Creative Writing courses, especially for students who may need reminding just how fun writing can be. It is suitable for all writing experience levels! This class does tend to go a bit longer than scheduled at times-- students are absolutely free to leave at the thirty minute mark if they need to. Please note that while this is a weekly class, we also take the first week of the month off-- parents, you will not be charged that week. Here are some examples: Topics: Cake and Fortresses "The witch had worked in a variety of mediums—gingerbread, cookies, candy—and yet the cake fortress was no doubt her finest work. Sure, the gingerbread house was effective-- it had lured in Hansel and Gretel after all—but the cake fortress was more spacious and, if the witch were being honest with herself, she rather liked the scent of buttercream frosting. There was just one problem, though: every time it rained, the exterior wall would collapse into the chocolate ganache moat." Topics: Goblins and Swimming Pools "Everyone agreed that it was only fair to give the Goblins access to the county swimming pool-- they worked hard, after all, mining all day, and while the sight of bumpy green skin in a bikini was a little alarming, it hardly hurt anyone. The trouble, however, was the stealing—the snack bar, people’s purses, even the diving pennies at the bottom of the pool. The Goblins couldn’t help themselves, and pocketed it all before scampering off to the parking lot, swimsuit bottoms lumpy and jingling from their bounty." Topics: Robots and Squirrels "The robots had easily overpowered the humans—they were slow, couldn’t fly, and were always looking at their phones rather than at their impending doom. Now, however, the robots were up against the world’s most formidable force—the common gray squirrel. There were thousands of them, and the squirrels roamed in packs, taking refuge in trees and dropping bombs made of acorns and dynamite, shaking their tails at the robots in furry mockery."
Learning Goals
The goal of this class is to eschew perfection in favor of creativity, fun, and progress. Students will learn to think on their feet, to be unapologetically weird, and to shout their ideas from the rooftops. Students who take this class regularly will be more willing to share ideas-- creative or otherwise-- with others, embrace imperfection, and experiment without fear. They will learn that failure is NOT the worst thing-- fear is!
Other Details
Parental Guidance
Below are my general classroom rules and policies. These will also be explained to students when we begin class!
-For everyone's safety, and to ensure an engaging and social experience, students are required to have working microphones and video for the entirety of this class, positioned such that we can both hear and see them.
-Students are asked not to use filters or virtual backgrounds-- though if there is an important reason to use a virtual background, please just let me know ahead of time that your student will be using one (no questions asked!).
-Students will be asked to introduce themselves by sharing their name, pronoun, and a favorite book.
-The Zoom text chat is set to "host only", meaning students can chat with me, but not to one another or the entire classroom.
External Resources
Learners will not need to use any apps or websites beyond the standard Outschool tools.
Teacher expertise and credentials
1 teacher has a teaching certificate
Georgia Teaching Certificate in Secondary Education
1 teacher has a Graduate degree
Master's Degree in Education from Lehigh University
3 teachers have a Bachelor's degree
Bachelor's Degree in English Language and Literature from Davidson College
Bachelor's Degree in English from The University of Georgia
Bachelor's Degree in English from Agnes Scott College
I am the author of sixteen books for tweens and teens, including the 𝘗𝘪𝘱 𝘉𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘵'𝘴 𝘎𝘶𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘔𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘊𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘴 series (Scholastic), the 𝘌𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘦, 𝘌𝘯𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘳 series (Bloomsbury), and the 𝘋𝘰𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘴 series (Bloomsbury). My books are published in twenty-three languages around the world, and have won multiple state and national awards. I have taught creative writing classes across the country at schools, libraries, colleges, and camps, and have taught over 5000 students here on Outschool!
Reviews
Live Group Class
$17
weekly1x per week
35 min
Completed by 706 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 11-16
3-10 learners per class