This blog post is part 3 of my creative writing blog post series. In part 1, I shared how you can use one simple activity: 5 Senses Brainstorm to start creative writing in your classroom. Part 2 included 3 creative writing exercises for daily warmups, and now in part 3, I will share 15 categories of creative writing prompts!
These 15 creative writing prompts are better for intermediate to advanced students. Any world language class can use them, with minor adjustments.
I broke the list of creative writing prompts into two main categories: content and grammar. So, no matter what you are teaching, you will be able to find prompts for your students!
Content-Based Creative Writing Prompts
Family Life
Similitudes y diferencias: How are you similar to and different from your family members?
Celebrations and Holidays
Una fiesta tradicional: Write a story about attending a traditional festival in a Spanish-speaking country. What activities take place, and what do you learn about the culture?
Here are some ideas for teaching about traditional Spanish holidays and festivals: La Tomatina, La Noche de Rábanos, Día de muertos, and La quinceañera
School
¿Tarea o no? Should we have homework? Yes or no? But more importantly, why? Really focus on defending your opinion here!
Animals
Un animal fantastical: Create an alebrije animal, a fantastical creature from Mexican culture that is a combination of multiple animals. What is this animal’s personality? What abilities does it have?
Food
El tamale mágico: One day, you bite into a tamale your mom made, and suddenly, you’re transported to a magical land where everything is made out of food! What do you see and do in this magical food world?
Los tacos que hablan: Every Tuesday, your family makes tacos, but one Tuesday, something strange happens: the tacos start talking! What do they say, and what do you learn from your taco friends?
You can add these fun food writing prompts to your food unit – here are 15 food activities!
Travel
Un mundo mágico: Create a story set in a magical world where Spanish is the primary language. What are the rules of this world, and who are its inhabitants?
Diario de vacaciones: Keep a diary of your imaginary vacation in a Spanish-speaking country. Write about your daily activities and experiences.
Personality and People
Hispano más influyente: Choose a famous Hispanic person. Write a persuasive speech for the “Most Influential Hispanic” award from their point of view. List their accomplishments and why they deserve to win.
El superhéroe hispano: Create your own superhero inspired by Hispanic culture. What powers do they have? What is their mission? How do they help the people of their Spanish-speaking country?
For a more general writing prompt, have students create their own superhero with any powers! Don’t limit them to a specific type of person, type of power, etc. . Describe their abilities and a situation where they use their powers.
Around Town Creative Writing Prompts
El parque de mis sueños: Create a story around the theme park of their dreams. Students must create characters, rides, games, and adventures. The more they use their imagination, the better the theme park description will be.
*You can also do the Ciudad de mis sueños, Restaurante de mis sueños, Escuela de mis sueños, etc. depending on your unit and vocabulary.
Daily Routine
Una rutina diaria diferente: Pretend you’re someone else—a celebrity, a farm animal, a person from the future or past —and write about “your” daily routine.
Art
La galería: Choose a famous Hispanic painting. Write a story to describe what is happening within the painting. Then, you can post these paintings and stories around the room for an art gallery walk. Here are my favorite ways to teach art in Spanish class.
Grammar-Based Creative Writing Prompts
Past Tense
El viaje en el tiempo: Describe a day in the life of a character who travels back in time to a significant moment in Spanish history. What do they see and experience?
¿Qué pasó?: Use various creative writing images as prompts. Show students an image and they will write a story to explain what happened. *You can even use these prompts for present progressive or future tense (what will happen next?)
If you need to teach preterit vs imperfect, get my foolproof lesson plans here.
Future Tense
En el futuro: Write a story about what you think the world will be like in 50 years. What technologies and cultures will exist?
Mis metas para el futuro: Describe your goals for the next five years. What do you hope to accomplish, and how will you get there
Conditional Tense
Mi casa ideal: Describe your ideal home, including details like the location, size, rooms, features, etc. This is great after learning about houses with authentic activities like this!
Si fuera: Imagine you were the president, the teacher, an animal, etc. Write about what your life would be like or what you would do.
Subjunctive Tense
Un brindis: Write a wedding toast for a famous couple like Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce or Romeo and Juliet. Espero que tengan una vida llena de risas, amor, etc.
Direct Object Pronouns
Un objeto misterioso: Imagine you discover a mysterious object in your backyard. (It doesn’t have to be a UFO—it can literally be anything!) Write a description of the object with great detail.
Un regalo inesperado: You receive an unexpected gift or package at your front door. Use direct object pronouns to describe the gift and what you will do with it.
When teaching about DOPs, here is the BEST way to introduce them so your students grasp the idea… I Spy Books! Learn more about this strategy here before using the DOP creative writing prompts.
Don’t worry about perfection and accuracy when doing creative writing. This is supposed to be fun and low-pressure. Students should not focus on accurate proficiency, rather work on expressing their ideas in the target language.
So grab your pen and get writing! These creative writing prompts will turn your Spanish class into a fun and exciting adventure. What story will you tell today?
