VerbTribe for Teachers 2012 – Writing Prompts Offered by Members

1. Describe the best dream you had and what made it so wonderful. 2. Write about a time when a seemingly innocuous experience affected you profoundly. 3. What does respect look like when it is received, when it is given, and in a classroom? 4. What do you aspire to achieve for yourself in your life, in and outside of the classroom? 5. What does your pet’s behavior say about you? 6. Write about a day without gravity. 7. Write about your favorite ice cream in detail. If you don’t like ice cream, write about your favorite fruit. 8. My day will be better if I express my gratitudes and today here are at least 25 things I am grateful for. 9. Write about your mother’s hands. 10. What does hope mean to you? 11. Who is your hero/ heroine; and how do their attributes appear in your life/classroom? 12. How do you deal with boredom; what causes it for you; and how do you respond to it? 13. When was the worst time you got in trouble? What did you learn from it? How did you change? 14. Describe a secret fear you have. Any plans to overcome it? Or just let it sit on the edge outside? 15. I've had some cute stories about students in my classroom and here are a few. 16. Notice wood today and how it is used in the classroom. 17. Describe a secret wish you have. Have you told anyone? 18. Life brings about many crossroads as we travel the road of life. Describe a time when you were stuck at the fork. How did you decide which direction to go? Now looking back did you make the right decision? If you were there again, would you pick the same path? 19. If you weren't in education what would be your career of choice? Why? 20. What are you willing to give up of yourself to get what you want from others? 21. Look under your bed. Write about what is under there. 22. returns

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VerbTribe for Teachers 2012 – Writing Prompts Offered by Members

23. 10 years ago, I..... 24. In the morning, I.... 25. What is your favorite time of day? Why? 26. Describe your favorite childhood toy. 27. Write about your rituals. 28. What does a suitcase mean to you? 29. Write a letter to someone who has hurt you and express how they made you feel. Are you asking for forgiveness? Or maybe just letting them know how they made you feel. 30. A time you acted like a leader and how did that make you feel. Did you reach the edge? 31. Friendships are important. Describe how you keep friendships alive in the craziness of life. Have you lost long-time friendships? Why? 32. What is your favorite color, and how does it make you feel? 33. Write about your favorite childhood playmate. 34. Write about an achievement that made you feel wonderful. 35. Write about the view out your window, right now. 36. Write a letter to your 10 year old self. 37. What award do you deserve today? Why? 38. Write about something that most people don't know about you. 39. Hi, My name is not _______, but I'd like to try it for a day because.... 40. What role does gratitude play in your life? List 10 things you are grateful for right at this moment. 41. Write about a special trip you took where you didn't feel like a tourist. 42. Take a walk/hike/run in nature and pick one thing to focus on: wind, birds, trees, ground, sky, leaves, wildflowers or? Write about how this one element of nature spoke to you. 43. Write about a childhood holiday memory (negative or positive) and write about how it influenced your feelings about that holiday or holiday ritual. 44. Draw a flavor map - mapping all your favorite flavors. 45. Write about the last time you cried.

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VerbTribe for Teachers 2012 – Writing Prompts Offered by Members

46. Describe the best (or one of the best) meal you have ever had - the company, the location, the preparations, the context, the food itself. 47. Write about a place or an experience that felt sacred to you. What does "sacred" mean to you? 48. What award do you deserve today? 49. Write about the last time you laughed really hard. 50. If you lost something important to you, explain the impact on you and others. 51. Write about your favorite age. 52. Tell what you have learned or gained from being on a team. 53. Tell about the truths you believe in or the lies you have told. 54. Ernest Hemingway said, “I have learned a great deal from listening carefully. Most people never listen.” Listen carefully to someone today and write about that experience (what you learned, how you felt). 55. What would you do if you knew you couldn’t fail? 56. Name 4 people who appear on your path to help you fulfill your purpose. Now write about one of them. 57. Many famous people are remembered by one great quote they made at some point in their life. They bring inspiration, courage, or perhaps comfort to others. Develop a quote that you would want to be remembered for, and write about your thoughts as you go through the process of its development. 58. Some people have a condition called "synesthesia" whereby they can smell sound or hear colours. Imagining you have this rare condition, use five colours of your choice and describe in detail how you think they would smell. 59. This past Winter Break your family took a trip, during which you swam with dolphins, and one particular dolphin seemed to be trying to communicate something to you. What was its message? 60. Write about a teacher who made a special impression on you or inspired you in some way (positive or negative). 61. Write about a gift you received or lesson you learned from a break-up. Patti Digh, LLC

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VerbTribe for Teachers 2012 – Writing Prompts Offered by Members

62. Write about a lesson that a student taught you. 63. Write about a ritual that is special to you - whether it is a daily/weekly/monthly/semiannual/annual ritual. 64. Describe in detail the most important thing that you need to change in your life, and describe five steps you can take in order to make the change. 65. Write ten questions you have wanted to ask certain people, but haven't had the chance or the nerve. 66. Think of someone very difficult in your life that gives you sadness. Describe what you know about this person's life, as much as possible, and explain how you think this person may have ended up the way he or she is, as well as your feelings after having completed this exercise. 67. You are a bumble bee. Try to see your environment from a bee's eye view and describe everything you saw today as you searched for prime nectar in your neighbourhood. 68. What might you tell your school staff that you have learned about writing? 69. What's the best gift you ever received that you couldn't plug in? 70. If your stuffed animals could talk, what would they say about you? 71. How would your best friend describe you to his/her parents? 72. What films or parts of films do you use for inspiration, humor or nostalgia? 73. Write about getting a chance to live in an entirely different environment for six months or year. 74. What would you buy or fix if you found it was a lot less expensive or easier to mend than you thought? 75. Where is your sanctuary and what does it hold for you? 76. Describe a time when you knew you were making a decision that didn’t serve you and how you dealt with that realization. 77. What would be the chapter titles in your autobiography? 78. Describe a leap of faith that you took in your teaching/ classroom and its impact on you and the students. 79. Tell about a time an adult said something that changed your life?

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VerbTribe for Teachers 2012 – Writing Prompts Offered by Members

80. If you could have any talent in the world, what would you be able to do? 81. Tell about a time when you were disappointed by someone. 82. Everyone judges someone at some point. Explain a judgment you recently made, any reasoning behind it, and how it affected your overall sense of well-being. 83. Find a picture of you from high school, and write yourself a letter about the three most important lessons you will learn between then and now. 84. Why is writing hard sometimes? 85. Tell about the bravest thing you ever did? 86. What item do you own would be the hardest to give away? 87. What are some things you need to do well in school? 88. What scares you the most? Why? 89. What have you learned from your mother or father that you carry with you daily? 90. How does it feel to dance? 91. Where is your place that you go for solitude? Why? 92. When facing an obstacle in the classroom (pick a place) what is your first action? How about your second? 93. An Olympic athlete recently stated that he would flip a 650 lb. tire as a strengthening exercise before practicing his skill. Write about what 650 lb. tire (or what that might symbolize) is in the way of you practicing your skill? 94. “Ollin” is a word from the Aztec language meaning, “move and act now with all your heart.” What would it look like for you to be “ollin” in the classroom? 95. Write about a "dream" you had recently. 96. Describe summer camp. What were the sights, smells, sounds and tastes you experienced? 97. From the last book that you read, what was the most striking part for you? Why? 98. Miracles are everywhere. Today, record all the miracles you notice in your world, then choose one and write about it.

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VerbTribe for Teachers 2012 – Writing Prompts Offered by Members

99. Make a list of 7-10 weaknesses you think you have. Choose one to focus on, and for the rest of the day, find evidence of the OPPOSITE in yourself. For example, if you think you’re unkind, find evidence of how you’re kind. 100. What shapes surround you in your daily life? 101. Who or what is your muse? Describe in full detail. 102. “No one can stop the human voice. When denied a mouth, it still speaks.” (Eduardo Galeano). If denied a mouth, what form would your voice take? How would you make your voice heard? 103. “Greatness is wherever someone is trying to find it.” Write about finding your greatness. 104. The saying goes, “Every cloud has a silver lining.” Think of a problem you are currently experiencing or one from your past, and write for 10-minutes about the gifts it brought to you. 105. One day, your walls start talking. What do they say about you and your family? 106. In The Death of the Hired Man by Robert Frost it says, “’Home is the place where, when you have to go there/They have to take you in.’” By that definition, where is home for you? Alternately: What’s YOUR definition of home? 107. If you had to pick one word to describe you, what would it be? 108. Strong beginnings matter. Write about a strong beginning you recently had and how it affected your day, work, mood, etc. 109. What inanimate object do you connect with emotionally? Write about how and why that happened. 110. Write a colleague or a stranger a note "just because", do not sign your name write about how u felt giving this. 111. Think about your day today, we're you "0llin"? 112. Were you a victim or a victim today in your fight to be true to yourself? 113. If you could have lunch with Patti, what would you talk about? 114. What’s one thing you regret? Write about how it actually made your life better. 115. Describe the place you go to get away from the daily grind of life – the

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VerbTribe for Teachers 2012 – Writing Prompts Offered by Members

stresses, the irritations, etc. 116. Describe your favorite shape, giving it all the characteristics of a person. 117. List 5 of your most important experiences you have provided for your students. 118. Describe the ideal student. 119. Describe the ideal teacher. 120. John Lennon said “I get by with a little help from my friends. John Lennon 121. Reflect on help given by a friend in the last week. 122. Reflect on happiness as described in the following quotation, "Being happy does not mean that everything is perfect. It means that you have decided to look beyond the imperfections." Unknown 123. "Life is what happens to you while you are busy making other plans." John Lennon Describe a time that life happened to you when you were busy making other plans and how this altered your plans that you were so busy making. 124. Now that you’ve proven to yourself that you are a writer, what do you need to continue this daily practice? What conditions have to be in place for you to experience success? What gets in your way? What can you do to secure this place of purpose in your life? 125. If you had to choose one item from your home (one material item that you could pick up and touch with your fingers) what would you choose? Why did you choose it and what significance does it hold in your life? 126. Think back to all the wonderful meals that you have eaten in your life. Pick one and write about each element of the experience. Who were you with, what were you eating, what were you talking about, where were you eating – journey back in time to share the impact of this most wonderful of meals. 127. Journey back in time to your childhood. Picture the face of your best friend. What did you share with that person? What drew you together? Write about a day in your life with this bosom-buddy. Bring this person to life and help the reader feel as though they knew your best friend as only a best friend can.

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VerbTribe for Teachers 2012 – Writing Prompts Offered by Members

128. Smells evoke emotions; smells evoke place and time. Describe one smell that stands out in your memory. Take us back to that place and time. Bring that scent to life. 129. just average 130. Your mother has just walked into the room and she is busy describing you. What would she say? If your father joined in the discussion, would his words be different than hers? Tell us about ‘you’ through their eyes and words. 131. Think back to your first days as a teacher. What stands out in your memory? Where were you teaching, who were the students, how did you navigate through your first year? Who was your mentor? What lasting lessons have you taken from those days and brought forward to this time in your career? What lessons have you chosen to forget? 132. Chris Guillebeau, author of The Art of Nonconformity, charges us to live a remarkable life in a conventional world. What does he mean, and how are you living your own remarkable life? 133. Write about what your super power is. 134. Here are some regrets I've had in my life and how I have let go of them or how I might let go of them. 135. Write about what happiness means to you. 136. strong coffee 137. Write about a fear you’ve conquered. What happened to shift from fear to confidence? 138. What do you want more of in your life? 139. List all the attributes of a great writer. List all the attributes of a great teacher. Compare your lists. What stands out to you as you consider these two paths on which you find yourself? Which of these attributes do you possess? Which attributes would you like to foster? 140. My favorite Verb Tribe module was.... 141. Write about the atmosphere in your faculty lounge. If you homeschool, write about when you are together with other homeschool teachers.

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VerbTribe for Teachers 2012 – Writing Prompts Offered by Members

142. Think of one word (you can ask a friend or family member for ideas) that describes you. Write about why it describes you. 143. Write about something new that you have chosen to learn to do in the past five years? How did it feel to be a novice? What did you have to do to gain confidence? What helped you to feel successful? What challenges did you have to overcome to even attempt this new learning in the first place? 144. Earlier in our class we threw away thoughts and attitudes and perceptions that were not useful to us; stories that we told ourselves that were not true or helpful. Which of those have you picked back up? What allowed or encouraged you to pick them back up? What will it take for you to lay them down once again and leave them in the trash once and for all? 145. bowling balls 146. Think of a person/colleague who "gets under your skin" and write a letter thanking them for their gift. 147. Reflect on something you have struggled with for a while. Describe how you will feel, and how your life will be different, after the issue is resolved. 148. How does it feel when you are not listened to? 149. Write about washing the dishes –by hand. 150. "Poetry is a packsack of invisible keepsakes." Carl Sandburg Make your invisible keepsakes visible in any way you choose. 151. I have a few pet stories to tell. 152. Many people believe that everyone has a soul mate, and that this person is not necessarily a spouse. Write a poem to this soul mate describing what makes them your soul mate. 153. If you could have dinner with any five famous people, who would they be? 154. Write about 10 things you will "be" this school year. 155. "To be yourself in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody else-means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight. e,e, Cummings "As a tribe member, how will you fight this fight?

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VerbTribe for Teachers 2012 – Writing Prompts Offered by Members

156. The summer of 2012 was extremely hot and dry, but there were many cool moments like............ 157. Place yourself in your bed the night before your first day of school as a kindergartner. what are your worries? what are your excitements? what are your dreams? 158. What did/would it feel like to see your parents cry? Write about this from the view point of a 7 year old, and also as an adult. 159. Write about what it would feel like if you were in first grade and you had to wait in the principal's office because your family was late and you were the last child picked up from school. 160. displacement 161. List or draw what you could do when you feel bored. 162. Write about five things you will never do or never do again. 163. wandering. or wondering. or both. 164. What is one small way that you can be kind to yourself today? 165. Proverb: every path has its puddle. Write a thank-you note to yourself for getting through the puddles on your learning path. 166. Write about things that catch you off-guard: a breeze through an open window or the first bite of something unexpectedly sour. 167. Write about what keeps you on the path of learning. 168. Write about a child’s birthday party from the point of balloon or piñata. 169. Who did you want to be when you grew up? 170. Tell me about your sacred space in detail. 171. Write about the sound of children laughing. What does it sound like? How does it feel? What does it make you think of? 172. What does community mean to you? What does it look like? Sound like? feel like? What is a day in the life of a real community? 173. If you are living your dream and have been for a long time and you are forced out of it before you are ready, what do you do next?

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VerbTribe for Teachers 2012 – Writing Prompts Offered by Members

174. What is a conversation you have had with your children or grandchildren that resulted in a new learning or discovery for yourself? 175. If you are really hurt or angry at someone and could say what you really wanted to them, what would it be? 176. I smile and say positive things, but underneath I'm still hurting. 177. Keys, literally and figuratively, have been a part of my life. 178. professional

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