Today is Labor Day in the United States and Canada, so hopefully if you live there, you have the day off today. However, in many places, this is also about the time when students are going back to school to start the new school year.

The first day of school is a common feature in stories for children or teenagers. This is because it is a big part of their lives and also a big source of conflict. The first day of school can have a lot of stress and anxiety attached to it.

However, since it is a very common story idea, if you are going to write about this, it is good to make it uniquely yours somehow. You could, like in Harry Potter, make it a magical school (although this idea has been overdone now). Or maybe a school for prisoners. It could be in a different time period of history or on another planet. These are most changes in setting. Maybe something happens on the first day. I wrote a story a while ago about a boy who became a celebrity over the summer and hated everyone knowing at school because he had a secret he could not share with anyone. There are many other changes you could make to this premise to make it your own.

Story Prompt: September 4, 2023

Write a story about the first day of school. Make it unique.

I’d love to read what you come up with. You can send me a link by email at info@greenwalledtreehouse.com or in the comments, or you can submit your story at the link here for a chance to have it posted on the site.