In each week's class, students will learn a writing lesson, be shown a surprise picture to use as inspiration, and will be given 10-20 minutes to write a creative short story which they can share with the group at the end of class.

This class will meet 1 time per week for 24 weeks.

*Note: This class is a condensed version of my ongoing/weekly Surprise Picture Prompts class. There are a variety of options available for this same class that I have created to fit different schedules: 
- Ongoing/Weekly (does not end, has been ongoing since July 2020, topics repeat approximately every 2 years)
- 12 weeks, meeting 1 time per week
- 24 weeks, meeting 1 time per week


Class Activities: 

- Introduction

- Writing Lesson: 
          Students will learn about a specific writing topic that will help them to become better writers and/or implement new ideas into their writing.

Topics: 
Week 1: Characters Part 1
Week 2: Characters Part 2
Week 3: Conflict Part 1
Week 4: Conflict Part 2
Week 5: Story Starters Part 1
Week 6: Story Starters Part 2
Week 7: Story Endings Part 1
Week 8: Story Endings Part 2
Week 9: Adjectives Part 1
Week 10: Adjectives Part 2
Week 11: Instead of Said
Week 12: Sentences Part 1
Week 13: Sentences Part 2
Week 14: Dialogue
Week 15: Fiction Genres Part 1
Week 16: Fiction Genres Part 2
Week 17: Figurative Language Part 1
Week 18: Figurative Language Part 2
Week 19: Figurative Language Part 3
Week 20: Words Part 1
Week 21: Words Part 2
Week 22: Words Part 3
Week 23: Poetry Part 1
Week 24: Poetry Part 2

- Choose our surprise picture: 
          A student is randomly chosen each week to choose our surprise picture. The chosen picture (often a cute or funny, age-appropriate image) will be used as inspiration and the topic of the story each student writes. 

- Brainstorming: 
          The teacher will facilitate a time of brainstorming and answering questions about the picture to help students develop ideas for their stories before writing.

- Writing time: 
          Students will write their stories in a private (just one student) breakout room for 10 to 20 minutes. The time given varies based on the number of students in class and how long other activities take. Most weeks, most class sections will have 15-20 minutes. On some occasions, in full classes, or where there is more discussion during the writing lesson and brainstorming times, students may have less than 15 minutes, but never less than 10. Students are encouraged to write as much as they can in the time they have and are reminded that it is okay if their story is not completely finished when time is up.

- Sharing time: 
          Students are welcome to read their stories aloud (though not required). The teacher and students will offer positive comments, emojis, and reactions to each other. 

- After class: 
          Students will receive weekly post-class handouts that include a review page of our writing lesson topic, optional activities that students can complete for extra practice, and a resources page that often includes videos or book suggestions that relate to that week's lesson.

*Please note that this class does not focus on helping students improve spelling, grammar, punctuation, capitalization, or other writing mechanics.