Many writing teachers begin the year by having students generate lists of things they know about as potential topics for future writing. Love it/Loath it, Inside/Outside, and similar prompts are all over Instagram and Pinterest. These are great, but they’re not enough.
Writers need topics that get them curious.
My first (adult) dive into writing fiction was a short story based on a letter my Grandma wrote to my Granddad when they were in high school. I started by brainstorming questions that it raised and imagining the missing parts of their real love story.
Consider ways to guide your students from lists of topics to lists of things they wonder.