×
Grades level iconsGrades 1–2, k
Genre information iconNarrative, Poetry
Resource type iconSparks

Summer Writing Tic-Tac-Toe

by 826 National
This summer is all about writing for fun! Students will engage in a variety of writing prompts, while playing tic-tac-toe, to keep their skills sharp over summer break.
What Your Students Will Learn

 Students will learn how to keep their writing a consistent practice by engaging with a variety of joyful and simple prompts throughout the summer.  

What Your Students Will Produce

Students will produce at least three  pieces of writing in a variety of genres in response to prompts on the Summer Writing Tic-Tac-Toe Board.

What You Will Do

Writing is an act of joy and freedom. At 826, we believe it’s always a good time to write—especially during the summer! This Spark includes two tic-tac-toe boards, with a variety of prompts that give students the opportunity to engage in writing across a variety of genres. The Summer Writing Tic-Tac-Toe—Handout also includes different styles of writing pages.  You can use the paper provided or use paper that your students are already familiar with.

Student should complete a minimum of three prompts in order (horizontal, vertical, or diagonal) to win tic-tac-toe. If you prefer to create a personalized tic-tac-toe board for your students or to create one together, you can use the provided blank template and the list of prompts below. When students complete three prompts in a row, they can cut out the “I Am an Author!” badge included at the end of the handout.

The following...

Login Blurred Image

See More Sparks at this Level

Grades 1–3
Sparks
Spooky, Silly Stories

by 826 National, inspired by Julianna Lee Mariano, 826NYC

Narrative

Calling all ghostbusters! In this Spark, students will learn more about what makes a spooky story and then develop their own creepy characters, with a silly twist.

Grades 1–3
Sparks
Overcome the Overwhelm

by Molly Sprayregen, 826CHI

Informational
Narrative

In this social-emotional learning writing prompt, students help their new friend Olly the Octopus overcome his feelings of overwhelm by writing about strategies that work for them.

Grades 1–5
Sparks
Nature Writing

by 826 National

Poetry

Students will write a poem about nature using sensory details to capture the sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and feeling of the subject.

Grades 1–5
Sparks
Sensory Heart Mapping

by 826 National

Narrative
Poetry

Students will identify their favorite sensory memories and transfer them to a visual heart map.

Grades 1–3
Sparks
Feeling Words & Healing Words: A Poetry Journey

by Molly Sprayregen, 826CHI

Poetry

In this collection of poetry activities, young writers will explore a range of feelings and strengthen their emotional vocabulary. Activities are available in print and web versions!

Grades 1–5
Sparks
Say Something
by Cartoon Network

by 826 National and Cartoon Network

Students reflect on what it feels like to stand up to bullying and write about a time when they used their voice to make a difference.

Grades 1–3
Sparks
What’s Your Happy?

by Molly Sprayregen, 826CHI

Poetry

In this social-emotional learning writing prompt, students create a poem that shares the "happys" in their life.

Grades 2–12
Sparks
Author Bios

by Cristeta Boarini, 826 MSP

Narrative

Author bios offer students another opportunity to express themselves through writing and to feel like a real author. This Spark walks students through the process of writing one.

Grades 1–12
Sparks
A Good Time to Write: Remote Learning Kit

by 826 National

Informational
Media
Memoir
Narrative
Persuasive
Poetry

Engage young writers of any age at home with this collection of 826 Digital writing prompts and activities.

Grades 1–3
Sparks
What Do Feelings Sound Like?

by Molly Sprayregen, 826CHI

Poetry

In this social-emotional learning writing prompt, students reflect on the sound of feelings and use onomatopoeias in their poetry.

Grades 2–5
Sparks
Diamante Poetry

by Brittany Thierry, 826 New Orleans

Poetry

In this Spark, students will write a diamante poem, using specific parts of speech to beautifully describe a topic of their choice.

Grades 1–3
Sparks
Kindness Counts
by Cartoon Network

by Nicolien Buholzer, 826LA

Informational
Narrative
Persuasive

Why does kindness count? Students consider acts of kindness that they’ve experienced and reflect on the difference that kindness makes in the world.

Grades 1–6
Sparks
Creative Recipes

by Jillian Wasick, 826 Valencia

Narrative
Poetry

What are students made of? This activity prompts students to reimagine recipes and write about their life experiences.

Grades 1–5
Sparks
On the Inside
by Cartoon Network

by 826 National and Cartoon Network

Narrative

Students are inspired to write about a time that they felt accepted and appreciated for who they are.

Grades 1–5
Sparks
Friends Help Friends, Always
by Cartoon Network

by Sarah Kokernot, 826CHI

Media
Narrative

Students use illustrations as entry points to write stories about friendship from a new perspective.

Grades 1–5
Sparks
Me, Myself, and I
by Cartoon Network

by 826 National and Cartoon Network

Memoir
Narrative

After writing about their personal and social identities, students discover that sometimes what makes us unique is what brings us together.

Grades 2–6
Sparks
Poetry Hunters: Finding Poems Where You Never Thought to Look

by Kiley McLaughlin & Dana Belott, 826 Valencia

Students experiment with alternative ways of writing poetry by reordering and rearranging pre-existing text.

Grades 1–3
Sparks
Make Me Laugh

by Molly Sprayregen, 826CHI

Poetry

In this social-emotional learning writing prompt, students write a poem describing the silliest creature they can imagine.

Grades 1–5
Sparks
If Poems

by 826 New Orleans

Poetry

Students will imagine what they would do if they were someone or something else.

Grades 1–5
Sparks
My Name Is

by 826 National

Poetry

In this Spark, students will write an acrostic poem that can be used as a tool to introduce themselves to their classmates.

Grades 1–5
Sparks
Feelings to Action
by Cartoon Network

by 826 National and Cartoon Network

Narrative

Students write similes to express what their emotions feel like and build plans to treat others with kindness and empathy.

Grades 1–5
Sparks
Writing to Process (Elementary)

by Asia Calcagno, 826CHI

Memoir
Narrative
Poetry

Writing can be a powerful tool when working through feelings of grief, sadness, or anger. This Spark creates an intentional opportunity for youth to write and speak about what is on their minds.

Grades 1–5
Sparks
Super Sentences: Adverbs

by Mandy Seiner, 826NYC

Narrative

Nouns, adjectives, verbs—and in this case—adverbs are the building blocks of super sentences. In this Spark, students will practice identifying and using adverbs in their writing.

Grades 2–5
Sparks
An Ode to Pieces

by Lauren Rudewicz and David Hutcheson, 826michigan

Poetry

Students will define the word “ode” for themselves and identify the people and moments in their lives they’d like to celebrate in a poem.

Grades 2–4
Sparks
Representation, Self-Advocacy, & Marley Dias

by Ashley Houston-King, 826 Digital Educator Leader

Informational

Students will learn about representation, self-advocacy, and the work of Marley Dias before writing about this young advocate.

Grades 1–5
Sparks
Super Sentences: Verbs

by Mandy Seiner, 826NYC

Narrative

Nouns, adjectives, adverbs—and in this case—verbs are the building blocks of super sentences. In this Spark, students share action words that bring them joy and incorporate those verbs into a story.

Grades 1–5
Sparks
Backward Storytelling

by 826 National

Narrative
STEM

In this Spark, students will use backward thinking to create a four-panel comic strip story using the backward problem-solving skills of software developers.