I made this 30-day writing challenge for my own children because I want them to find reasons to write outside school. I’d love for them to reach for a pencil when they have a funny idea, want to leave someone a note, or need to explain the rules of a game they just invented.
When a phone or an iPad is right there, it’s easy to see why sitting down to write can feel like the less exciting choice. So I wanted to give my children something worth writing about. One day they might leave a secret message for someone at home. Another day they might invent a game and see if someone can play it by following their instructions.
There’s a new prompt every day, with one version for lower primary children and another for upper primary children. The free printable tracker gives kids a place to tick off each day and see how far they’ve come.
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Why Creative Writing Is Good Practice for Growing Minds
When children invent a riddle, they imagine possible clues, choose which ones to use, and think about what another person needs to know to guess the answer. If the riddle is too easy or too hard, they can try changing a clue. Playful writing prompts give children a reason to practise coming up with ideas, putting them in order, and seeing how their words make sense to someone else. Source: Teaching Elementary School Students to Be Effective Writers
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How to Do the 30-Day Writing Challenge
- Pick a time that fits your day. Try after a snack, while dinner is cooking, or whenever your child has a few quiet minutes. Start with about five to ten minutes. Some days a few words will be plenty. Other days they might want to keep going.
- Choose the version that suits your child. My daughter is in lower primary, but I noticed she could do the upper primary prompts, so I let her try them. If your child can get started and explain their ideas with a little help, let them try the more challenging version. If they’re struggling to get their ideas onto the page, try the shorter version. You can switch between the two from day to day, depending on the prompt and how your child feels about it.
- Let them finish their idea, then read it together. Start by responding to what they wrote. Then gently point out a spelling, punctuation, or grammar mistake they can fix. Give them a chance to spot it and make the change themselves. For example, “You’re asking me a question here. What mark could go at the end?” If there are several mistakes, start with one or two they can work on today.
- Tick off the day on the printable tracker. If you miss a day, pick up where you left off. If your child would enjoy a small prize at the end, choose it together before you start. They could pick a place for a family outing or choose something they like within a budget you agree on. Celebrate the effort they put into finishing.
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Download the Free 30-Day Writing Challenge Tracker
Print one tracker for each child. Keep it somewhere they’ll see it, like the fridge or inside the front cover of their writing notebook. After each prompt, let them tick the box, colour it in, or add a sticker.
All 30 prompts are below. A notebook or some scrap paper and a pencil are enough to get started.
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Day 1 · Leave a Secret Message
Lower primary
Write a short note for someone at home and hide it where they’ll find it. You could write “Look under your pillow” or “Will you play with me?” Sign your name or draw a little symbol so they can guess who wrote it.
Upper primary
Hide a small object somewhere at home. Write a secret message with two or three clues that lead someone to it. Hand over the note and see if they can find the object using just what you wrote.
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Day 2 · Open a Silly Café
Lower primary
Write a menu with three things to order. You can serve real food or make up dishes like rainbow toast and dinosaur soup. Ask someone to order from your menu.
Upper primary
Invent a café with a funny theme. Write a menu with three dishes, a price for each, and a short description of your house special. See if someone can choose what they want without asking you to explain the menu.
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Day 3 · Give Your Toy a Voice
Lower primary
Pick a toy and imagine what it would say if it could talk. Draw a speech bubble and write one thing it might say today.
Upper primary
Choose two toys and write a short conversation between them. One wants to tell a secret and the other keeps guessing wrong. Read it aloud with someone, taking one part each.
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Day 4 · Write a Shopping List You’ll Use
Lower primary
Choose three things you’d like for a picnic or snack. Write them on a list and tick off anything you can find in the kitchen.
Upper primary
Plan a snack for your family or a friend. Check what you already have, then write a shopping list for what’s missing. Include how much you’ll need so someone else could shop from your list.
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Day 5 · Draw a Map and Write the Directions
Lower primary
Draw a map from one room to another. Label two things you pass, like the sofa and the stairs. Write one direction, such as “Turn left at the table.”
Upper primary
Draw a map of a real or imaginary place and mark a starting point. Write directions to a destination without naming it. Give someone the map and your directions, then ask them to point to where they ended up.
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Day 6 · Send a Postcard From Somewhere Impossible
Lower primary
Imagine you’re visiting the moon, a castle in the clouds, or a town made of jelly. Draw the place and write one sentence about what you saw there.
Upper primary
Write a postcard to someone back home. Describe two things you’ve noticed and one thing you plan to do tomorrow. Add a detail that could only happen in the place you invented.
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Day 7 · Invent a Game Someone Can Play
Lower primary
Make up a game with things you already have, like rolled-up socks and a basket. Give it a name and write one rule. Invite someone to play a round with you.
Upper primary
Write the rules for a game that takes less than five minutes to play. Include what players need, how to take a turn, and how the game ends. Let someone try it, then add a line if they get stuck.
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Day 8 · Leave a Thank-You Note
Lower primary
Think of something kind someone did for you. Finish the sentence “Thank you for…” and give them your note.
Upper primary
Write a short thank-you note about something specific. Tell the person what you noticed and why it mattered to you. You could thank a sibling for saving you a seat or a friend for helping you join a game.
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Day 9 · Make a Lost-and-Found Poster
Lower primary
Imagine your toy has gone missing. Draw it, write its name, and add one clue that would help someone recognise it.
Upper primary
Make a lost-and-found poster for something unusual, like a tiny dragon or a dancing umbrella. Describe what it looks like, where it was last seen, and what someone should do if they find it.
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Day 10 · Write a Recipe Someone Can Follow
Lower primary
Write or draw the ingredients for a snack you know how to make. Write one instruction, such as “Put the banana on the toast.”
Upper primary
Write a recipe for a simple snack. Include the ingredients and put the steps in order. Ask someone to read it and point out any step they’d need you to explain.
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Day 11 · Interview Someone at Home
Lower primary
Write one question you’d like to ask someone at home, such as “What games did you play as a child?” Ask it and write down one word or detail from their answer.
Upper primary
Write three questions about what life was like when someone in your family was your age. Ask a follow-up when an answer surprises you. Write two or three sentences about the best thing you found out.
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Day 12 · Make Up a Joke
Lower primary
Pick an animal or an object and imagine it doing something silly. Finish the question “Why did the ___ ___?” and write a funny answer. Try it on someone.
Upper primary
Write two punchlines for the same joke. Try them on different people, or read both aloud to one person. Circle the ending that gets the best reaction and write the joke out with that punchline.
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Day 13 · Recommend Something You Love
Lower primary
Pick a book, game, or place you like. Write its name and finish the sentence “I like it because…”
Upper primary
Write a mini review for a friend who’s deciding what to read, play, or visit. Give your opinion, describe one thing you enjoyed, and say who you think would like it.
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Day 14 · Make a Three-Panel Comic
Lower primary
Draw three boxes. In the first, someone finds a box. In the second, they open it. In the third, show what happens. Add a word or a speech bubble.
Upper primary
Use the same three panels to tell a story with a surprise ending. Write a caption or a line of dialogue for each panel. Give your comic to someone and see if they can follow the story on their own.
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Day 15 · Design an Invitation
Lower primary
Invite someone to something you can do together, like a teddy bear picnic or a living-room show. Write what it is, where it will happen, and when to come.
Upper primary
Plan a small event at home and write an invitation with all the details a guest needs. Add one line that makes them want to come. Give it to someone and ask them to write back.
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Day 16 · Report the News From Home
Lower primary
Pretend you’re a reporter. Pick something you saw today and give it a headline. “A snail crossed our path” can be big news if you were there to see it.
Upper primary
Write a headline and a short news report about something real or make-believe that happened at home. Tell the reader who was there, what happened, and where. Add a quote from someone who saw it.
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Day 17 · Write a Riddle About an Object
Lower primary
Choose something in the room and keep it secret. Write two clues about it. You could start with “I am round” or “You use me when it rains.” See who can guess.
Upper primary
Write a three-clue riddle. Put the trickiest clue first and the easiest one last. Read the clues one at a time and see how many it takes for someone to guess the answer.
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Day 18 · Make Up an Invention
Lower primary
Draw a machine that does a job you’d like help with. Give it a name and write one sentence about what it does.
Upper primary
Invent something that solves a small problem at home. Draw and label two parts, then write a short pitch explaining who would use it and how it would help. See if you can convince someone they need one.
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Day 19 · Describe It Without Naming It
Lower primary
Pick something you can see. Write two words about how it looks or feels, like “smooth” and “yellow”. Let someone guess what you chose.
Upper primary
Choose a familiar place and describe it without using its name. Include something you could hear, smell, or touch there. Read your description to someone and ask which detail helped them guess.
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Day 20 · Write to Your Future Self
Lower primary
Write down one thing you love doing right now. Add a picture or one thing you’d like to try before your next birthday.
Upper primary
Write a letter to yourself to open in six months. Include something you’re proud of, something you’re working on, and a question you’d like your future self to answer. Put it somewhere you’ll find it and write the opening date on the envelope.
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Day 21 · Make a Sign That Helps Someone
Lower primary
Choose a place where a sign would help, like a box for finished drawings or a shelf for library books. Write a few words and put your sign where people can see it.
Upper primary
Make a sign for a shared space at home. Think about who will read it and what they need to do. Keep the wording short enough to read at a glance, then see if someone can explain the instruction back to you.
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Day 22 · Finish the Mystery
Lower primary
Start with this sentence. “When I opened my school bag, something inside squeaked.” Draw or write what you found. Add one sentence about what you did next.
Upper primary
Use the same opening. Write a short scene that gives the reader one clue before you reveal what’s making the sound. Read up to the clue and let someone guess what happens next.
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Day 23 · Teach Someone a Skill
Lower primary
Choose something you know how to do, like making a paper fan or drawing a cat. Draw the first two steps and write a short instruction for each.
Upper primary
Write instructions for something you can teach another person. Include what they’ll need and a tip for the step that might be tricky. Let them try while you watch, then fix any instruction that confused them.
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Day 24 · Write a Tiny Poem
Lower primary
Look out the window or step outside. Write three short lines beginning with “I see,” “I hear,” and “I feel.” Read them aloud to hear how they sound.
Upper primary
Write a short poem about a small moment, like rain hitting the window or the first bite of cold watermelon. Use a detail someone could picture and another they could hear, taste, or feel. Read it aloud and try changing one word to make the image clearer.
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Day 25 · Plan a Family Outing
Lower primary
Pick a place you’d like to go with your family. Write its name and one thing you’d like to do there. Show your plan to someone at home.
Upper primary
Write a short proposal for a family outing. Say where you want to go, why you chose it, and what you’d need to bring. Include a backup plan in case it rains or the place is closed.
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Day 26 · Write a Caption for a Funny Picture
Lower primary
Pick a family photo, look at a picture in a book, or draw your own funny scene. Write one line about what’s happening.
Upper primary
Write two captions for the same picture. Make one sound like a serious news headline and the other like a joke. Read both to someone and ask which one they’d put under the picture.
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Day 27 · See the Same Day Through Someone Else’s Eyes
Lower primary
Imagine you’re a pet, a teddy, or a shoe in your house. Write one sentence about what you saw or did today. A shoe might say, “I waited by the door all morning.”
Upper primary
Write a short diary entry about an ordinary family moment from the point of view of a pet, toy, or household object. Give the narrator a problem that the people in the room wouldn’t notice.
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Day 28 · Ask for a Small Change
Lower primary
Think of one thing you’d like to change for a family activity, such as picking a new game for game night. Write what you’d like and give one reason.
Upper primary
Write a short letter suggesting a change at home. Explain your idea, give two reasons, and suggest a way to try it for a week. Ask the reader to write back with what they think.
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Day 29 · Make a Mini Book
Lower primary
Fold a sheet of paper to make a little book. Give it a title, then draw and label three things you want to show the reader. You could make a book about your favourite snacks, an imaginary pet, or a very silly day.
Upper primary
Make a mini book someone could read in a minute. Give it a cover and write a short piece for each inside page. Try a tiny field guide, a mystery with a clue on each page, or a guide to surviving a day in your imaginary world.
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Day 30 · Write a Message to the Next Writer
Lower primary
Pick your favourite day of the challenge. Write a note to a child who’s about to start. Tell them which day you’d try again and why.
Upper primary
Write a short letter to the next person who takes the challenge. Recommend a prompt, share one thing that helped when you got stuck, and finish by inventing a new prompt for them to try.
Keep One Writing Habit After Day 30
After the last tick on the tracker, ask your child which kind of writing they’d like to do again. Maybe they want to keep leaving notes, make a second comic, or write a new menu every time they play café. Give that one idea a place in your week. You could keep a notepad by the kitchen bench for shopping lists or leave a notebook where siblings can write to each other.
That’s what I hope to see in my own home after this challenge. A child thinks of something they want to say, reaches for a pencil, and leaves a little piece of writing for someone else to find.
If your family tries the challenge, I’d love to hear which day your child asked to do again.
More Fun Challenges to Try With Your Kids
If your child enjoys having a new activity to try each day, keep the fun going with a maths or art challenge. And if they liked spotting and fixing mistakes in their writing, let them try being a mistake detective.
- 30-Day Art Challenge for Kids — Try a small creative project each day.
- Spot the Mistake Activities for Kids: Become a Mistake Detective!
- 30-Day Maths Challenge for Year 2
- 30-Day Maths Challenge for Year 1
- 30-Day Math Challenge for Preschoolers