April Writing Prompts

April is the month of showers or fools. Students and teachers will typically take their spring break during this month. 

Here is a writing prompt for each day of April that provides teachers with an easy way to incorporate writing in class. They can be used as straightforward writing assignments, warm-ups, or journal entries. Feel free to use and modify these as you see fit.

Notable April Recognition

• Autism Awareness Month
• Keep America Beautiful Month
• National Garden Month
• National Mathematics Education Month

Writing Prompt Ideas for April

April 1 - Theme: April Fool's Day
Have you ever been 'fooled' successfully by someone on April Fool's Day? Have you ever fooled someone else? Describe the experience. Note: Your answers must be appropriate for a school setting.

April 2 - Theme: World Autism Awareness Day
Use #LightItUpBlue to share your experience across social media and help light the world up blue this April!
OR  International Children's Book Day
International Children's Book Day encourages reading and promotes the love of books for children.  

The publisher Scholastic, Inc. compiled a list of the top 100 children's books of all time. Readers voted for the top five (5) selections: Charlotte's Web; Goodnight, Moon; A Wrinkle in Time; The Snowy Day; Where the Wild Things Are. Do you remember any of these books? What's your favorite children's book? Why?

April 3-Theme: Tweed Day
William Magear "Boss" Tweed, was born on this day in 1823. Tweed's claim to fame was being convicted of graft and corruption while serving as a U.S. House of Representatives and a New York State Senator. He was exposed because of political cartoons that were drawn by Thomas Nast that pictured him unfavorably. What political issues today are the subject of political cartoons? Try your hand at drawing one.

April 4 - Theme: Keep America Beautiful Month
What are your feelings about littering? Have you ever done it? If so, why? Do you think that the punishment for littering is too light or too heavy?

April 5 - Theme: Helen Keller 

On this day in 1887: The tutor Anne Sullivan taught Helen Keller the meaning of the word "water" as spelled out in the manual alphabet. This event is dramatized in the play "The Miracle Worker." Keller became deaf and blind after a childhood illness., but she overcame these obstacles to advocate for others. Who else do you know advocates for others?

April 6 - Theme: The North Pole was "discovered" on this date. Today, research stations relay information from the top of the world on the changes in the Earth's climate. What questions do you have about climate change? 

April 7 - Theme: World Health Day
Today is World Health Day. What do you think the keys to a healthy lifestyle include? Are you following your own advice? Why or why not?
April 8 - Theme: April is National Garden Month
Do you consider yourself an inside or outside person? In other words, do you like to hang out in your own home or spend time in nature? Explain your answer.

April 9 - Theme: National Name Yourself Day
Nick Harkway is credited with saying, "Names aren't just coathooks, they're coats. They're the first thing anyone knows about you."
In honor of National Name Yourself Day, go ahead and give yourself a new name. Explain why you chose this name.

April 10 - Theme: National Sibling Day
Do you have a sibling or siblings? If so, what is the best thing about them? The worst? If not, are you happy that you are an only child? Explain your answer.

April 11 - Theme: National Mathematics Education Month
Celebrate mathematics and statistics, both of which play a significant role in addressing many real-world problems: Internet security, sustainability, disease, climate change, the data deluge, and much more. Explain three reasons why learning math is important for everyone.

April 12 - Theme: Space Shuttle Columbia First Launched
Would you ever consider being an astronaut? If so, explain why and where you would like to visit. If not, tell why you don't think you'd like to be one.

April 13 - Theme: Scrabble Day
Sometimes, the two word combinations in Scrabble (Hasbro) can be high scoring such as the points given for these examples:: AX=9, EX=9, JO=9, OX=9, XI=9, XU=9, BY=7, HM=7, MY=7
Do you like to play word games like Scrabble? Why or why not? 

April 14 - Theme: The Titanic Disaster -1912
The Titanic was billed as an unsinkable ship, but it struck an iceberg on its first voyage across the Atlantic. Many saw the fact that it sunk as an example of what happens in extreme cases of hubris (arrogant pride). Do you believe that people who are overconfident and arrogant will always fail? Explain your answer.

April 15 - Theme: Income Tax Day
The 16th Amendment that created income taxes was ratified in 1913:
The Congress shall have the power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census or enumeration.
What are your feelings on taxes? Do you think that the government should take a higher percentage of money from the wealthy? Explain your answer.

April 16 - Theme: National Librarian Day.
Celebrate a librarian that you know from elementary, middle, or high school.
Visit the library today, and make certain to say hello and "Thank you" to all of the librarians.
April 17 - Theme: Daffy Duck's Birthday
Daffy Duck is a character foil to Bugs Bunny.
Do you have a favorite cartoon character? What characteristics make this character a favorite?

April 18 - Theme: Evolution
On this date in 1809, the botanist Charles Darwin passed away. Darwin had proposed a theory of evolution for living organisms, but there are other things that evolve, for example, technology, music, dance. Respond to his quote, "In the long history of humankind (and animal kind, too) those who learned to collaborate and improvise most effectively have prevailed."
What do you notice that has evolved in your lifetime?

April 19 - Theme: National Poetry Month
In honor of National Poetry Month, write a poem using the tanka format. The tanka consists of 5 lines and 31 syllables. Each line has a set number of syllables see below:

•  Line 1 – 5 syllables 
•  Line 2 – 7 syllables 
•  Line 3 – 5 syllables 
•  Line 4 – 7 syllables 
•  Line 5 – 7 syllables

April 20 - Theme: Volunteer Recognition Day
Pay tribute to someone who volunteers or (better yet) volunteers to help others. You will find out that the benefits can be fun and camaraderie. What could you volunteer to do?

April 21 - Theme: Kindergarten Day
Research shows that students who learn more in kindergarten are more likely to go to college and earn more. What skill(s) did you learn in your kindergarten class that help you today?

April 22 - Theme: Earth Day
Take the Earth Day quiz from the World History Project website.
What are specific actions that you and your fellow students could take to help protect the environment?

April 23 - Theme: Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was born on this date in 1564. His 154 sonnets can be read, analyzed, or used for Reader's Theatre. Turn one or two lines from Shakespeare's sonnets into a dialogue. Who is speaking? Why?

April 24 - Theme: Time Travel
Recent reports claim to supports time travel. Why might physicists be interested in time travel? Maybe because we want to test the boundaries of the laws of physics. If you could travel back in time, to which age and location would you go? Why?

April 25 - Theme: DNA Day
If you could determine the sex, eye color, height, etc. of a child in advance by using genetic advances, would you do it? Why or why not?

April 26 - Theme: Arbor Day
Today is Arbor Day, the day we are to plant and take care of trees. Joyce Kilmer started his poem "Trees" with the lines:

I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.

What are your feelings about trees? Explain your answer.

April 27 - Theme: Tell a Story Day
Write a short story about a funny event that occurred in your or your family's past.

April 28 - Theme: Astronomy Day-during Dark Sky Week
Download, Watch, and Share “Losing the Dark,” a public service announcement about light pollution. It focuses on the dangers of light pollution on a dark sky and suggests three simple actions people can take to help mitigate it It can be downloaded for free and is available in 13 languages.

April 29 - Theme: Film Genre Thriller.
Alfred Hitchcock died on this date in 1980. He was one of the most influential filmmakers in the genre of horror or thriller.
What is your favorite thriller or horror movie? Why?

April 30 - Theme: National Honesty Day
Honesty is defined as fairness and straightforwardness of conduct; an adherence to the facts. Does this definition apply to you? Do you consider yourself an honest person? Why or why not?