Is copying words in worksheets not engaging enough for your beginning writer? Try these free printable writing prompts for kids who begin to write. They are short and fun, and they prompt children to write while making little books about themselves!

Learning to read and write is the beginning of a new epoch, and right now, I am watching my five-year-old son lingering on the very threshold of it. One of these days, all the pieces will fall together, and we will have a young reader in our house, but for now, all we can do is keep practising with the skills he has already got.

But it’s a rather strong-willed child we’re talking about, so learning better be fun! If the exercise involves a game or an art project, he can stick with it for a long time and learn some amazing things, but if not, learning turns into a struggle, which defies the very core of our homeschooling intentions.

Take writing, for instance. Making him do worksheets that require repeating a letter or a word is a struggle. He will complain, and I will feel like I am killing his natural curiosity and love for learning.

But this kid loves making his own books from folded sheets of paper! He makes illustrations and asks me to write sentences for him on a different piece of paper. Then he carefully copies them into his handmade book.

Well, if he likes making books, so be it!

Make the Book of Choices!

This is a book for beginner writers. On every page, children are prompted to make a choice between two things. What do they prefer: cats or dogs? cake or ice-cream? The choices given are simple, reflecting both the interests of this particular age group and their ability to read. Many of the cards, especially the ones with longer words, also have pictures that will help children to understand the meanings. Other cards are deliberately left without pictures though, so that the children can practice reading.

The main goal of this activity is to engage beginning writers and give them the confidence to write. Each card has the lines that are recommended for practicing handwriting and the usual handwritten forms of the letters. The children can see the word right in front of them, but the aim of the activity isn’t simply to copy it. They ponder over the question and write their answer down, creating a book about themselves at this particular moment in time. For that reason, there is a page at the beginning where they can write their name and their age. You can consider it a mini-journal for beginning writers. The writing efforts are minimal but meaningful.

Free Printable Writing Prompts for Kids

You can punch a hole in the corner of each page, then put the book together with a keychain ring or a bookbinding ring, then write in it. Alternatively, you can write on each little sheet individually and then turn them into a book.

Here is my son working on his first pages…

Not all of them got done, but it is okay!

This book is so compact that we can even bring it along with us when we go out and do some learning on the go.

Get the Free Writing Prompts for Kids!

More Writing Activities

Engage in writing using one of 70 creative writing prompts for kids that describe interesting techniques and offer captivating scenarios!

Compose a haiku or an acrostic; learn the use of alliteration, simile, and onomatopoeia; pen a letter to yourself in 5 years; brainstorm, summarize, and draft Venn diagrams; make a list of things to pack for an excursion to an uninhabited island; and many more!