Harshita is a graduate in commerce and holds a PG Diploma in Patent and Copyrights Law from NALSAR University. She has also pursued CA and has more than three years of internship experience in auditing. Her love for travelling has taken her to various parts of the world, and writing the travelogues was what brought out her love for content writing.
A story starter is a prompt that helps a child build a story. You can pick any theme, word, or sentence and give it to your child to start weaving a story around it. Using story starters for kids to engage in story writing can help enhance their conversational skills. It can also boost a child’s imagination and creativity. And, they can also learn to express ideas and thoughts with ease.
Here is a comprehensive list of story starters for children. You can pick one based on your child’s age and interest to help them write one themselves. To make it more fun, you can also write a story on the same prompt so the child can understand how there can be two perspectives around the same thing.
150 Story Starters For Kids
Fun Story Starters For Kids
Grade 1
What is your favorite toy? If it could talk, what would it say?
I made someone laugh when I..
What would you do if no one could see you?
If I made breakfast, it would be..
One morning, you wake up to find you’ve grown a tail..
Grade 2
One day, I met a talking mouse..
What if snow was made of chocolate?
You get home from a trip to the zoo and find a baby panda in your trunk! What do you do?
I found the perfect tree to climb in the park but..
Your baby sister ate mashed carrots for dinner. The next morning she woke up with rabbit ears! What do you do?
Grade 3
You won a never-ending lifetime supply of candies! What will you do with all of these candies?
Write a story using these three words – chimpanzee, pies, and newspaper.
Pretend you are a goldfish in a bowl, and your owner gets a new pet..
You’re a brilliant scientist, and you just invented a new vegetable. Describe what it looks like, how it tastes, and what name would you give it?
You arrive at school one day to find your best friend turned into a frog by an evil witch! How do you undo the spell?
Grade 4
Imagine people born old and getting younger every year?
Disney has given you a chance to create your animated show. Name and describe the main character.
At the local zoo, a zebra and a giraffe become good friends. They decide to escape from the zoo. How do they plan the escape, and would they be successful?
It’s “take your pet to school” day, but you’re not sure if you should take your pet to school as your pet is…
You get up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom and step on your brother’s toy dinosaur. You hear a roar and lift your foot to discover tiny teeth ready to bite you..
Grade 5
Write about the most fun job in the world? Give some examples of what makes it exciting.
You learn that you are an heir to a throne in a faraway land that you have never heard of till now..
He rounded the corner at full speed and collided head with the new school principal.
Your luggage gets exchanged at the airport, and you accidentally open the wrong suitcase to find..
It was the first day of school for the new students. “There’s a secret we haven’t told you yet,” the principal said to the children. “Our school is a…”
Grade 6
Imagine you have four hands, and you have to spend the entire school day. How are things different for you?
One day, while walking through the forest, you hear a whisper, and it’s not the wind. To your amazement, you realize a tree is talking to you..
Write about your favorite toys when you were too young. Do you still play with them?
You forgot to do your homework. How do you get away with it without getting into trouble with your teacher?
I was amazed when my cat turned into a..
Creative Story Starters For Kids
Grade 1
You can’t use your hands for a day. Tell us what happens..
Your mom or dad has to go to first grade for a day. Describe their day.
What if you could only bark instead of talk?
You wake up to find out you are the president..
Imagine you look out the window, and it is raining lollipops from the sky!
Grade 2
If you could meet any famous person today, who would you want to meet and why? What questions would you ask them?
You can switch places with your mom or dad for a day..
You wake up in the middle of the night to find yourself in a different house..
As you cut your birthday cake, you close your eyes and make a wish. When you open your eyes..
You get to choose the seasons all year, what would you prefer winter or summer? Why?
Grade 3
Write an ending for your favorite book or movie.
Your imaginary friend starts to disappear when you don’t think about him. Tell us how you can keep them all there.
Write a story about the future world, 400 years from now. What will be different? Will anything be the same as it is now?
You wake up one morning to find the streets flooded. How do you get to school? What floating device can you create?
Write about a dream you had that made you feel happy for a long time.
Grade 4
Your ordinary day turned into..
Pretend you are a famous person. Write about what you are famous for and what is it like to be famous?
You try a new shampoo that makes your hair grow flowers! How do you manage?
You can understand what animals are saying! You start translating for them..
You have to plan a holiday that everyone will celebrate every year all over the world. What will you call it, and how would you want people to celebrate?
Write a fictional story about someone from the past.
Write a speech that tells the junior school why they should elect you as the student leader.
I couldn’t believe I had won a chance to hang out with my favorite celebrity! The first thing we did was..
Suddenly, there is a power cut, and you are home alone..
Grade 6
You’re the host of a new game show. Write about what happens in the first episode.
Now vs. Then: Think about how today is different from one year ago. How have you changed?
You get a chance to choose one new subject or sport to be taught at your school. What would you choose and why?
I couldn’t believe our ship sank, and I got washed up on a desert island alone. Luckily, the one thing I still had was my..
Recount a “quarantine story” told by someone stuck in a single house.
Adventure Story Starters For Kids
Grade 1
You have wings and can fly anywhere you like. Which place would you want to go?
Write about the adventures you had with your pet dog.
Who is your favorite holiday character? Write about what they do when it is not their holiday season.
You are small enough to ride an ant. Imagine the adventures you would have and where all you would go.
Imagine the food in the fridge coming alive when the door is closed..
Grade 2
The dinosaurs are back, and they’re in your street. What happens next?
You see huge footprints in the snow, write about what you find when you follow them.
You get pulled into the pages of your favorite book. What happens next?
Your bicycle disappears one night. How do you solve the mystery?
You discover a big box on your porch with your name on it. You open it to find..
Grade 3
You are walking on a beach and suddenly see a mystery chest on the shore. Write a story about what happens next.
You’re handed a letter with your name on it. When you open it up, you can’t believe your eyes..
You discover a trapdoor under the carpet in your lounge. What happens when you open it?
You are the captain of a pirate ship. Start writing a diary explaining how your day would be.
You discover your parents are secret agents..
Grade 4
You get transported into the last video game you played. Where are you?
Write about a journey to the top of a huge mountain.
“Don’t look down,” I told myself. But then I..
You take a ride on a tornado, and..
Right across the street, there is an old house behind tall trees in the dark. No one dares to enter the house as it looks haunted. Then..
Grade 5
Start by imagining that you are one-inch tall. How will your life change?
What it would be like to climb to the top of the highest mountain in the world.
You find a map that guides you to the treasure, but the catch is it is buried under the school warden’s house!
You’re trapped on a desert island with only the things in your school bag. What do you do?
You met a magician, and your beloved rabbit is kidnapped! How do you help find the rabbit?
Grade 6
No one had ever sneaked into the school at night before.. but Ashley and Vanessa intended to be the first.
One day at school, you notice a door to a secret passage next to the janitor’s closet. You and your friend decide to explore..
Many ships and planes have gone missing in the Bermuda triangle. You get an opportunity to go there, write about your experience.
They’d said I have time only until sundown, and I have just a few hours in hand. I am running out of time. I had to..
My first trip on a hot air balloon, and it was not going as planned. First…
Fantasy Story Starters For Kids
Grade 1
Imagine yourself being a magical animal such as a dragon or a unicorn.
Imagine you have a superpower. What is it? What can you do?
There is a magic swing at the park that will take you to..
You find a magic rock. What does it do?
You find a little monster stuck under your bed..
Grade 2
You walked outside to find a dragon sleeping in the grass! Is it a friendly dragon? What do you do?
While walking at the beach, you find a unique seashell..
You found a wand along with an instruction manual in the stationery drawer. Write about your new magic wand.
At the bottom of your garden, you find a rather large egg. You take it to your room and keep it warm till it hatches and out comes a..
You’re catching fireflies in a jar when you realize you caught a fairy (who is not pleased with all)!
Grade 3
Create a story on what if you wake up with a mermaid tail.
Imagine you discovered a magic tree house full of magical books..
Tom finds an ancient sword in an abandoned house. It is no ordinary sword..
You go to welcome your new neighbors to find they are all fairies!
Cursed by an evil witch, you will not be able to speak ever again unless you can undo the spell..
Grade 4
You can breathe underwater and swim like a fish. How will you explore your new power?
You discover a magic button that will..
You are walking through the forest when one of the trees starts talking to you. What does it say? What do you do?
You receive a letter from Hogwarts inviting you to join the school. Would you go and which class would you look forward to the most?
Fed up being stuck in a bottle, a genie starts throwing tantrums and sends out all the wrong spells! How can you save the day?
Grade 5
You’re at the museum with your friends when suddenly the exhibits start coming alive..
Combine any two fictional creatures into one new creature with characteristics of both. Write a story about the new creature.
If your teacher had a Magic School bus. Where would you ask her to take you?
Create a fantasy world using the given elements – goblins, an enchanted forest, a captured princess, and a castle.
A school of dragons shows up for a holiday parade. No one realizes they are real! What happens next?
Grade 6
When we went down a tiny lane on our vacation and found the genie’s lamp in an antique shop, we had to..
You are a famous storyteller. Suddenly you notice all the stories you tell are coming true..
You go scuba diving, and you discover a village of mermaids who don’t want to let you go back above the water..
You have the power to read people’s minds. You know the evil plans of the school principal. Then..
Two friends climb an old tower to discover an invisible castle at the top.
Sci-Fi Story Starters For Kids
Grade 1
Imagine you could travel in time. Where would you go?
Write a story about flying to outer space and discovering a new planet
Your toy dancing robot suddenly starts growing..
While playing in the park, you find a baby alien. What do you do?
You sit in the model spaceship in the playground to find that it actually can take you wherever you want!
Grade 2
For your birthday, your grandfather gives you a jetpack! What do you do with it?
You’re an astronaut on a mission to Jupiter. What do you see on your long journey?
A huge 50ft ostrich has appeared out of nowhere at the local park. Is it real or from outer space?
A strange creature followed you home from the park. Its bright green, has four heads, sixteen eyes, and scales. It seems to be friendly. What do you do?
You have gifted a stone that transports you to another planet every time you hold it. Describe your adventures.
Grade 3
Imagine you are on an unknown planet. Describe what you find and how you will get back to Earth.
One day, you build several alien creatures with Lego blocks. They come alive. What do they do when you are not around?
Strange noises are coming from your closet. You pluck up the courage and check inside. What do you find?
You’re dressed as an alien for Halloween. Suddenly, you find yourself kidnapped by a couple of aliens who think you are their long lost child. How are you going to get yourself free?
Your pet dog starts speaking to you one day and tells you he has come from another planet and now he wants to go back. How do you get him back?
Grade 4
An alien arrives at your house. What happens next?
Imagine you wake up on a strange planet. What might you find there? How would you get home?
Just assume that if you drive your mom’s car in reverse, it will take you to the past. What is the time period you would want to travel?
You’re walking home from your friend’s house one evening when you see a UFO. It lands in front of you, and you feel magnetized towards it..
Your uncle works with NASA, and he invites you to a space simulation exercise. But while you are in the spacecraft, something goes terribly wrong..
Grade 5
There is a portal to another dimension in your garage. What adventures do you have in this new land?
You find an alien spacecraft in the woods behind your house. You get in, and it flies off. Where does it take you?
Your uncle gives you a robot butler. Initially, it does all the housework and even helps with your school work. Then, suddenly something goes very wrong..
You meet a famous space explorer who invites you aboard his spaceship on a tour of the galaxy. On his ship, you meet his android co-pilot and some rather strange creatures.
You discover a time machine in an abandoned laboratory in school that takes you back to the age of the dinosaurs. You hide one of the baby dinosaurs in your backpack and bring it back with you.
Grade 6
You suspect that your taekwondo instructor is a cyborg. What do you do?
Invent a robot that can do anything you imagine. What would you want the robot to do?
You are a twelve-year-old in the future where everyone has personal robots, but yours doesn’t work too well. In fact, it can get embarrassing in school and troublesome at home.
On your visit to the National Air and Space Museum, you and your friend manage to sneak into the spaceship. When you hit a couple of buttons, suddenly the boosters fire up..
The stars are slowly disappearing from the sky, and then one day, the sun also disappears, plunging the Earth into darkness.
Storytelling is a skill that can be developed with time and effort. You can help your child develop this skill with story starters, a word or phrase that acts as a prompt for your child to build a story around it. You can pick one that suits your child’s age and interest from this exhaustive list of story starters for kids. These starters will help build your child’s vocabulary, improve their writing skills, and enhance their imagination. It can be a fun activity for play dates too. So ask your child to write a story based on the prompt and watch their creativity flow.
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Harshita is a graduate in commerce and holds a PG Diploma in Patent and Copyrights Law from NALSAR University. She has also pursued CA and has more than three years of internship experience in auditing. Her love for travelling has taken her to various parts of the world, and writing the travelogues was what brought out her love for content writing.
