500 Writing Prompts for Kids - Review and Giveaway

When Bryan Cohen contacted me about reviewing his book, 500 Writing Prompts for Kids First Grade through Fifth Grade, at first I thought I would say no, since Bear isn't even remotely close to first grade. However, around that time, she started coming home with stories she had written, so I decided it would be interesting to see if I might be able to use writing prompts at home with Bear.

The first thing I liked about Bryan Cohen's book is that the introduction is conversational, making it appealing to read, especially for a busy mom or teacher.  

The book is separated into sections: Memorable Events, Imagination, Relationships, Activities, School Days....  Each of these sections is broken down into subtopics.  This categorization makes finding a topic of interest for a particular child much easier.

Some prompts encourage prose, while others encourage nonfiction.  Some prompts are personal. Some, like prompt number 423 ("There are a lot of countries in the world that are in conflict with one another. Sometimes this conflict can even lead to war. What do you think are the issues between some of these countries? Why can’t they get along?") encourage deeper thinking.  I like that there is such a wide variety of prompts.

This is a book it wouldn't hurt to add to your bookshelf as it can be used over the course of many, many years.  Many prompts would encourage my 3.5 year old with story ideas that go beyond a walk to the park to buy icecream (she's written 4 of those already this week).  Many of the prompts could be used into middle school, with changed expectations about vocabulary, depth of ideas, and length of output. 

What I like most about the prompts is that they don't even have to be used for writing.  I have a plan to print some, cut them into strips and put them in a jar to pull out at dinner and use as prompts to practice the art of conversation.

The book comes in kindle edition or as a paperback.

Would you like this book?

Author Bryan Cohen is doing a giveaway of his book 500 Writing Prompts for Kids for the next week along with a grand prize drawing for a $50 Amazon gift card! Simply comment with your e-mail address and you are entered in the drawing for one digital copy of the book on this site (there are over 10 sites involved in the giveaway, with one winner of a book per site). One lucky winner will be picked from all the sites to win a $50 Amazon gift card. If Bryan's book, 500 Writing Prompts for Kids reaches the top 500 in sales this week, he will add another $50 Amazon gift card to the drawing. The drawing will occur on June 22nd, so post away! Visit his website at Build Creative Writing Ideas.

For an extra entry, follow The Adventures of Bear on Facebook.  Just make sure you leave your email in the comment to tell me that you do.

Disclaimer: I received a free digital copy of the book in exchange for a frank and honest review.