176 Writing Prompts to Spark Discussion and Reflection

Each day of the school year we publish a Student Opinion question inviting students to share their own opinions and experiences in response to New York Times stories on the news of the day. To introduce each question, we provide an excerpt from a related Times article, interactive or video as well as a free link to that piece.

The 176 questions we asked during the 2023-24 school year are available below and in this PDF. The prompts are organized into three sections: questions that lend themselves well to persuasive writing, questions that encourage narrative writing, and additional Student Opinion forums.

Teachers can use these prompts to help students practice narrative and persuasive writing, start classroom debates and even spark conversation between students around the world via our comments section. For more ideas on how to use these Student Opinion prompts in your classroom, you might consult this comprehensive teacher’s guide, which includes practical strategies from a dozen educators.

Questions for Narrative and Personal Writing

1. Do You Multitask? Is It Helpful or Harmful?
2. How Did You Grow and Change This School Year?
3. What Accomplishments Are You Most Proud Of?
4. Have You Ever Been Injured? Tell Us the Story.
5. Where in the World Would You Most Like to Travel?
6. Who Is Your Hero?
7. How Well Do You Get Along With Your Siblings?
8. What Is Teenage Bullying Like Today?
9. Are You a Joiner?
10. When Have You Felt That You Mattered?
11. How Hard Is It to Wake Up in the Morning?
12. What Have You Learned From Failure?
13. Where Is the Line Between Helping a Child Become More Resilient and Pushing Them Too Hard?
14. If You Had $1 Billion to Give Away, What Charity Would You Support?
15. What Are the Small Ways You Show Love to Those You Care About?
16. How Do You Feel About High School?
17. What Activities or Hobbies Do You Do With Your Family?
18. Do You Use, Like, Too Many Filler Words?
19. What Is Your Relationship With Fast Food?
20. What’s the Greatest Gift Your Parents Have Given You?
21. What Is Your Favorite Word?
22. Are You Good at Apologizing?
23. What Is Your Dream Job?
24. What Amazes You Most About Animals?
25. Which Toy Would You Want to Help Design or Update?
26. What Are the Best, and Worst, Recommendations You’ve Gotten From Social Media?
27. What Small Wins Have You Had Recently?
28. What Do You Like About Playing Games?
29. What Everyday Object Deserves More Love?
30. Are You Too Critical of Yourself?
31. Do You Spend Enough Time in the Dirt?
32. What Got Your Attention in the News Recently?
33. Has Your Birth Order Shaped Who You Are?
34. What Elective Do You Wish Your School Offered?
35. How Far Would You Push Yourself Physically to Meet a Goal?
36. How Often Do You Take Breaks From Your Phone?
37. How Do You Deal With Conflicts?
38. What Children’s Book Worlds Do You Wish You Could Visit in Real Life?
39. Has Your Relationship to School Attendance Changed Since the Pandemic?
40. What Can You Make or Fix With Your Hands?
41. What Have You Learned From a Grandparent or Elder?
42. Do You Wish You Had More Places to Go?
43. What Author Would You Most Like to Meet?
44. Have You Ever Lost Someone as a Friend?
45. Do You Keep a Journal?
46. Are You Tired of Influencers?
47. How Did the Covid-19 Pandemic Affect You, Your Family and Your Community?
48. To Whom Would You Write an Open Letter?
49. What’s the Best — and Worst — Part of Being a Sports Fan?
50. How Much Exercise Do You Get Each Week?
51. Do You Have a Hard Time Saying ‘No’?
52. What’s Your Favorite Kind of TikTok Video?
53. What Are Your Favorite Local Businesses?
54. How Involved Do You Expect Your Parents to Be in Your Adult Life?
55. How Important Is It to You to Keep Mementos From Your Life?
56. Who Are Your Favorite Athletes to Watch Right Now?
57. How Does Your School Address Students’ Mental Health Needs?
58. What Communities Are You a Part Of? What Communities Would You Like to Explore?
59. What’s Your TV ‘Comfort Food’?
60. What Sad Songs Do You Listen to When You’re Feeling Down?
61. Will You Be Watching Super Bowl LVIII?
62. What Was Your Most Memorable Field Trip?
63. What Is Unique About Where You Live?
64. What Is Your Experience With Group Chats?
65. Are You a Fan of Movie Remakes?
66. What Brings You Delight?
67. Do You Ever Host or Attend Sleepovers?
68. Here Are 15 Winning Tiny Memoirs. Which Ones Most Resonate With You?
69. What Is Your Reaction to Trump’s Conviction on 34 Felony Counts?
70. Do You Enjoy Keeping Secrets?
71. Are You Growing Tired of Superhero Movies?
72. What Do You Wish You Could Do Well?
73. Do You Think Any of These Mythical Creatures Might Be Real?
74. What Are Your Thoughts on Last Names?
75. Which TV Show or Movie Would You Want to Live?
76. Do You Ever Feel Envious of Others?
77. What Do You Want to Do Differently in the New Year?
78. What Is the Best Month of the Year? What Is the Worst?
79. What Will You Remember About 2023?
80. Do You Prefer Gifts That You’ve Asked For or Ones That Are a Surprise?
81. How Do You Feel About Holiday Music?
82. What Do You Appreciate About Winter?
83. Do You Like to Dance?
84. Do You Ever Feel Sentimental About the Past?
85. What Slang Do You Use?
86. Do You Like Spending Time Alone With Your Thoughts?
87. Do You Like Watching Other People Watch Sports?
88. What Role Does Humor Play in Your Life?
89. What Are You Grateful For?
90. Do You Trust Online Reviews?
91. What Have You Changed Your Mind About?
92. Do You Use Swear Words?
93. The North American Total Solar Eclipse Is Here. Are You Watching?
94. What ‘Oddball Rituals’ Do You Have?
95. Do You Ever Feel Pressure to Post About Your Outrage Online?
96. What Do You Enjoy That Others Think Is Cringe, Played Out or Just Uncool?
97. What Small Moments From Your Life Do You Think About Often?
98. Are You There for Your Friends When They Need You?
99. What Misconceptions Do People Have About Where You Live?
100. What’s Your Take on Beige Flags in Relationships?
101. Do You Share Music Tastes With Your Parents?
102. What Does Hip-Hop Mean to You?
103. What Do You Think of Barbie?
104. How Concerned Are You About the Cost of College?
105. What Has Been Your Best Secondhand Find?
106. What Household Items Can’t You Live Without?
107. How Do You Feel When You’re Interrupted?
108. At Which Museum or Venue Would You Like to Spend the Night?
109. What Were the Best and Worst Parts of Your Summer Vacation?

Questions for Debate and Persuasive Writing