Creative writing for elementary school students is actually quite similar in principle to creative writing for adults. When we are young, our imaginations run free, unchained by the sense of responsibility and logic that will come as we grow. Therefore, it is important to encourage child development in creative ways while the opportunity is still there.
There are several exercises that you can incorporate into creative writings assignments that will encourage creative growth, but first it helps to set the mood. One of the most effective methods of keeping track of creative endeavors is to have a notebook for each child that is designated for the creative assignments only. You can keep these in one location until it is time for the lessons, or you can have the children store the notebooks in their desks until you call for them. Having a dedicated notebook not only tells the children, "It's creative writing time, let's have fun." - and it should be fun, but it also gives them something that they can keep at the end of the year that showcases their work. It is something that the parents will enjoy, and it will also serve as a reminder to the children of all the great lessons they learned.
Now that we've got that sorted, let's talk about some example assignments that you could assign the students:
* Free Word Association: The concept of this assignment is to have the children write down any word that comes to mind within a set time period. If you would like, you could draw a picture of an object or animal on the chalkboard to give them a place to start. They should then write down the next word that pops into their mind and so on and so forth. To encourage this activity, you could throw in a comment such as, "Let's see how many words you can get down before time expires."
* Narrow Word Association: Much like the previous exercise, this involves the children writing down all the words that come to mind, but only concerning a specific object or theme. This creative writing exercise will help the children focus their creative energies to the topic at hand, which can build a very strong foundation for future creative endeavors.
* Object Description: Unlike the previous two exercises, this one requires more than just single-word entries. Have your students write sentences about an object you provide. You can have all the students writing about the same object, divide them into groups with different objects, or you can assign each student their own individually. Encourage your students to put a twist on their descriptions. You may tell them that they should pretend they are from another world and they are describing the item to their friends back home, or that they are a mad scientist determined to find supernatural qualities in normal items. There are many other "situations" you can place your students in, so be creative!
* Memory Writing: Much like the old "what I did last summer" essays that many of use were required to write as children, this exercise encourages the children to write about a specific memory, such as when they lost their first tooth, or any memory that they would like to write about. Feel free to mix it up.
* What if: A fun game to play for creative writing assignments is the "What if?" game. Have the students retrieve their creative writing notebooks while you write the "What if?" of the day on the chalkboard and then have them write a short story using the theme you have presented. "What if you woke up one morning and discovered you had a super power?" "What if you were asked to join the next space flight to the moon?" These are just a few examples of the things you can have your students write about, the limit is your own creativity.
Another important part of the creative writing process is to encourage your students to share and discuss their writing. After a Free Word Association exercise starting from a picture of a rock, you might ask the class how many wrote words that are food, or you might simply ask them what they felt their most interesting word was. Encourage your students to read their stories aloud, this will give them a chance to share what they've written, but it will also help them get used to reading aloud in front of groups. Not every child has story-time before bed with their parents.