National Writing Day
From First Story
Resource type: Event
Price band: Free
Key stage: KS2, KS3, KS4
Region(s): All of UK
National Writing Day is an annual celebration of creative writing for young people. It is provided by a coalition of literacy organisations and publishers, led by First Story. National Writing Day 2024 takes place on 19th June.
The First Story website hosts a number of free resources that schools can use to engage and encourage writers of all ages and abilities. Resources include:
- A National Writing Day activity for everyone to try. The 2023 activity was ‘Roll the Dice’ and used random words and number generation to spark young writers’ creativity.
- A series of ‘Inside the Writer’s Mind’ videos with accompanying teaching resources, created in partnership with BBC Teach.
- Creative writing exercises and activities for primary and secondary schools from First Story and partner organisations, Arvon, the British Library , CLPE, the English & Media Centre, the Forward Arts Foundation and the National Literacy Trust .
Cost: Free.
About First Story: First Story is charity that aims to provide high quality creative writing opportunities for students in non-selective state secondary schools in low-income communities. The charity runs writers-in-residence programmes, CPD courses for teachers, regional and national events and writing competitions.
Further resources:
- Find additional free creative writing exercises suitable for KS3 and KS4 (National 4 and 5) students on the First Story website.
- Get involved with author Andy Shepherd’s mini writing challenge based on her best-selling The Boy Who Grew Dragons series.
- Explore the creative writing for schools resources on the Scottish Book Trust website, including Phil Earle’s creative writing masterclass, a series of five videos in which Phil Earle introduces and explores different themes and creative writing activities.
- Sign up to Authorfy for access to a range of Author Masterclass videos, where top children’s authors talk about their inspiration and writing process.
- Young Writers run themed writing competitions all through the year with supporting resources for teachers.
- There are two poetry competitions running through the summer term – The Foyle Young Poets of the Year Award and the LoveReading4Kids Poetry Prize.
- Magical Story Jars contain themed story prompt cards to inspire young writers’ imagination.
- The English and Media Centre produce illustrated creative writing workbooks for secondary pupils. Just Write and Write On each contain over 40 writing activities for pupils to choose from to explore their own creativity.
- Celebrate young people’s writing by publishing their work using the Make Our Book platform.
- The latest Children and Young People’s Writing report from the National Literacy Trust calls for ‘urgent coordinated action’ in the light of a significant decline in writing enjoyment and engagement amongst children and young people. Read the report here.
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