153 Short Story Ideas for Students to Explore + 13 Bonus Story Prompts

Writing short stories is a perfect way to practice writing skills for kids and teens of any age. Creative writing lets kids enjoy being transported away while showing off their creative side.

The key to helping students write good stories is to help them think outside of the box. That’s where a few good short story ideas for students can help.

Table of Contents

40 Short Story Ideas for Elementary School Kids
63 Short Story Ideas for Middle School Students
50 Short Story Ideas for High Schoolers
13 More Bonus Story Writing Prompts for Students
Even MORE Writing Resources & Prompts

Every writer, no matter how skilled, can have moments when their mind goes blank. It makes it frustrating to get started on a writing project when you don’t know when to begin. However, we’ve put together a few great short story prompts for multiple grade levels to make it easier for kids of all ages to get started writing.

Enjoy these short story writing prompts listed by grade level.

40 Short Story Ideas for Elementary School Kids

You invented your own time machine. Write a story about where you went in the time machine.
One day a spaceship landed on the playground at school…
You decided to trade places with a movie star. What happened?
Write a story about a day when you got to be the teacher.
What if all the snakes in a zoo escaped and you had to round them all up?
Video games no longer work anymore. Write a story about what happened.
You wake up one morning and you can fly. Tell a story about what you do now.
Suddenly, your pet can talk…
You suddenly found yourself at the very end of the rainbow. Write a story about what you found.
One morning you woke up and looked outside. It was raining chocolate. What happened?
An evil witch cursed you so you can never speak again. What do you do?
Write a story about you as a superhero. Tell your superhero story.
Tell a story about kids living in a world without video games, computers, and television.
Write a story about living in your favorite place in the world. What is it like living there?
An old uncle leaves you a special ring. When you put it on, you find out it has magic powers.
Your teacher comes into the classroom, drops a bag on the desk, and then leaves. The bag is moving. What’s in the bag?
Write a story about a day when it seemed like everything went wrong.
Tell a story about living in colonial times and what your life is like.
Pretend you lived at the same time as George Washington. Write a story about meeting him.
You woke up and realized you switched places with your dog. Write a story about your day of being a dog.
One day the sky turned green and the grass turned blue.
Write a story about snow falling in the summer.
People were being born old and every day they started getting younger.
Tell a story in which people agree about everything.
You find a genie who can grant all of your wishes. Write about your life with a personal genie.
Write a story including your favorite season.
One day there’s a knock at the door and an alien is standing there. What happens next?
One morning you’re in school and a skunk walks into the classroom. What happens when the skunk visits your school?
You’re sitting under a tree and an acorn drops on your head. When you look up, there’s a squirrel above you. He’s laughing and says hello. What do you do?
Write a story about a world in which there is no money used. What is life like with no money?
An old lady gives you a jar of magic glitter. She says to sprinkle it on your head and something exciting will happen. What happens when you give it a try?
You get lost in a foreign country and you don’t know the language. How do you communicate? What happens?
Write a story where a frog and a pig meet – and become best friends.
You wake up on a pirate ship. Write a story about your adventure as a pirate.
Tell a story about a boy who earns a million dollars with a lemonade stand.
I never realized before that ants could talk…
My mom made something new for dinner, but I took one bite and turned into a…
My best friend Lucy got turned into a frog and it was all my fault.
Jenny knew she shouldn’t have opened the bottle of magic potion…
John turned around, looked up, and saw a giant smiling at him…

63 Short Story Ideas for Middle School Students

As soon as you board the train, you start writing a letter to your brother. “I did it. I’m on my way to…”
A cruise ship of all movie stars gets stuck out at sea for a month. What happens?
You wake up in a tree, and the strange thing is…
Looking out your window you see a limo parked right by your house and two bodyguards standing by. Then there was a knock at your door…
The lights suddenly went dark and the curtain was opening. I was supposed to go out on stage, but it didn’t seem like a good idea anymore…
I went to see the baby in the carriage, but when I got there, I realized that…
My dad promised me I’d never have to come here again, but here we were again, and I was scared…
The doorbell rang at midnight. I opened it and standing on my porch was…
I was watching a Civil War movie and suddenly I was in the movie. What happened?
You’re called to the principal’s office at school. Tell a story about what happens.
You’re walking on the beach with a full moon shining across the water when suddenly something starts moving in the ocean…
You’d always heard there was a dragon in these parts, but you didn’t believe it until…
When you got up for a drink of water one night, the pictures on the wall were talking.
My dog’s Instagram account went viral and people all over the world are calling with job offers…
The bottle said, “Drink it quickly”. It looked strange, but I followed the instructions, and…
The giant yanked me off the ground and I screamed…
I’d never been on a dirt bike before, but I guess there’s a first time for everything. I hopped on and…
“Are you coming along or not?”, my friend demanded right before he turned and walked into the dark cave.
Finally, my science lab partner and I had created something that we thought would make us rich.
I looked at the castle. There didn’t seem to be anyone home. But they’d promised to meet us here in the letter.
While fishing with a friend, you feel a massive tug on the line. But when you reel it in, you’re shocked at what you caught.
The basement was completely flooded and your mom turned to you, asking, “How did this happen?”
You’ve always been told the attic was off-limits, but you were home alone, so you snuck up to the attic to discover…
“Don’t touch that”, my little brother yelled as I reached for the…
I’ve never been afraid of clowns, that is until that one night I went to a party…
“I thought I could trust you!” I yelled as the man started to walk away…
Laying on the grass, covered in mud, I admitted, “I should have listened to what you said”.
The light was flickering. I looked for a way I could get out, but I was trapped.
I crept through the prison hallways. It was up to me to get her out before…
I received a note that said to meet the mystery person at the deserted fairgrounds at 8 pm, but no one was there.
Those were fresh footprints in the snow. Should I go back for help or keep following them?
Jenny relaxed in her seat on the plane as they took off, and then the pilot said, “Thank you for flying with us and enjoy your trip to Iceland.”
The phone rang, and when you picked it up, the voice said, “Will you accept collect charges from South Africa?” This was the call you’d been warned about.
My dream birthday party was going off without a hitch. The only problem was … I wasn’t there.
They’d always said this house was haunted, but I crept through the door, determined to find out for myself.
My time was running out. They said I only had until sundown and that was just a couple hours away.
My phone dinged again. I was getting messages several times a minute. The person sending messages wasn’t very patient and I didn’t know if I wanted to know why.
When my parents came home from work, they suddenly announced they were sending me to boarding school.
You were left a piece of land in the state of Washington, but when you visited, it turned out to be an enchanted forest.
The news was on and they were reporting on a missing person’s case. When you looked up, you were shocked to see that the missing person was you.
Walking through the local museum, you saw a stack of letters. When you looked at them, it appeared they were talking about buried treasure in your town.
You were the best painter in the world, but there was a catch. You couldn’t ever stop painting.
It was great that you landed the lead role in the opera. The only problem was, you couldn’t sing.
I woke up, went to the kitchen, and when I opened my mouth to talk to my mom, I was suddenly speaking a different language.
My parents were kidnapped in Australia, so it was up to me to go save them.
The new automatic vacuum was great, but what people didn’t know about it was…
I was a senior in high school, but as I walked into the school that morning, I realized that I’d been here countless times before.
It’s only a matter of time until people realize that all these random events are happening because I’m dreaming of them.
A baby was sitting alone in first class on a plane. He stared at me and then suddenly started talking.
You came across a book in the library and when you opened it, you read every word that you’d ever said.
Something strange was going on. Every time you thought about something, it happened.
My best friend walked across the hall to say hello, but she didn’t look exactly like my best friend anymore. What happened to her in that class?
You receive a birthday card wishing you a happy 100^th birthday, but you are only 13.
The mural at school had never talked to you before…until today.
I had the chance to go back and fix a mistake in my life, but I didn’t know how it would change everything.
The house was shaking, but it wasn’t an earthquake. Nothing else on my street was shaking.
I’ve always been able to talk to animals, but I didn’t realize that was something unusual.
You’d always loved splashing through mud puddles, but one day you stepped into one and you were transported to a whole new world.
The old man asked me if I could watch his dog for five minutes, but it had already been a half hour and the man had disappeared.
I accidentally turned my parents into rocks and I have no idea how I’m going to fix this.
They’d warned me about what robots could do, but I never took them seriously.
I didn’t think that the space communicator would ever work, but I was really talking to an alien.
All I’d thought about was how I could get to the moon. I never considered how I’d get back.

Next up, prompt inspiration and topic ideas for older kids/high school student writers…

50 Short Story Ideas for High Schoolers

No one would ever believe what happened that evening.
I turned on the television that morning and I couldn’t believe who I saw talking.
Write a story based on the lyrics of your favorite song.
You stumbled out of bed, headed to the bathroom, and looked in the mirror. Your hair was gray!
I found a strange-looking egg on the ground, but I could have never predicted what was in that egg.
Everyone else here is great at magic, except for me.
I used to be able to change the way I looked, but my powers are wearing off and everyone is going to know what I really look like.
The world is dying but I’m the only one who knows why.
I’ve always wanted to use magic but I didn’t anticipate how using magic would change me.
My brother and I have always been best friends, that was until I caught him doing…
It was the loneliest day of my life. The world ended and everyone was gone but me.
I knew there was only one way I could convince her to keep quiet about what really happened.
Shaking, I took his hand, said goodbye, and walked away.
Every time she opened her mouth, she was lying. So why did everyone believe her?
The three of us were the only ones who made it off that boat and onto the island.
I helped the old lady with her groceries one day, never knowing she’d give me magical powers.
I’d boarded the ship ten years ago and we still hadn’t reached our destination.
I needed a miracle and then I met one. Who knew that miracles were people, not events?
After drinking the tea, I suddenly had a vision – and I’d never had a vision before.
The one hobby that meant the most to me had been outlawed…
My best friend suddenly died and I was finding out about secrets I didn’t understand.
I had to teach the kids about magic before everyone forgot about it.
It wasn’t until someone messed with my head that I realized thoughts could be stolen.
I had the power to control the emotions of others and I loved to use it.
When I walked into school one morning, it seemed strange that no one seemed to know who I was.
Jackson has the ability to teleport, but he’s only able to get to places he’s been before.
I just can’t seem to keep myself from lying. And then I woke up one morning to find out that all those lies had come true.
When I opened my eyes, I was alone and in a space pod. I looked around and there was a spaceship so massive that it was carrying a planet underneath it.
They’ve been keeping me alive for 300 years because they think I know a secret.
They said she died due to a drug overdose, but I knew my sister had never touched drugs in her life.
My mom is in her 50s, so I never expected her to tell me she was pregnant with twins.
I had to go back and I’d hoped I never had to see this place again.
They’d found my hiding place. What was I going to do now?
I didn’t know my feet could move that fast, but when three lions are chasing you…
The old lady looked at me and said, “The future of the world is up to you now.”
You can alter time in my world, but it’s illegal. Still, that doesn’t stop you from…
I meant to invent a cure for diseases, but it turned out all wrong and people were dying.
With the new man-made atmosphere around Mars, it’s livable, so I decided that’s where I want to live.
In Tom’s world, identity is implanted into your arm when you’re born. But Tom somehow ended up with two identities.
It’s my job to help colonize the new planets, even though we’ve found life on them.
I can read minds, which means I know everyone’s secrets. But it’s not really a gift; it’s disturbing what I learn.
Oxygen levels on Earth are plummeting and it’s up to me to figure out how to save the dying planet.
I shouldn’t have been there, but I’ve seen the government’s secret weapon and now I’m running for my life.
World War III is over now and the few of us left are trying to live in a world with no government.
Books are illegal but I just can’t part with my underground library.
Scientists created a single drug that could eradicate cancer and nearly every other disease. But they never dreamed what it would do to people.
An experimental chemical has been used to help sustain plant life, but now the plants are out of control and taking over the world.
You live in a world that is governed by a single king and they focus on keeping the peace. But you never knew how the world is kept at peace until you become the king’s assistant.
Tammy always did everything she was told, but now that she’s 18, she’s tired of doing what she’s told.
A strange man walked up to me and told me he was my father. But… I’m not adopted.

I hope your students enjoyed these fun writing prompts but in case they need even more inspiration, check out this list of ideas!

13 More Bonus Story Writing Prompts for Students

Write a story from the perspective of an ancient dragon watching the first Vikings arrive on its island, emphasizing how it feels about the intrusion.
Imagine mythical creatures like unicorns, griffins, and centaurs organizing to form a council to decide the fate of a magical forest threatened by human expansion.
Write a letter to your future self on your twenty-fifth birthday, recounting the most important lesson you’ve learned in high school and how you hope it will shape your future.
You embark on a quest to retrieve a lost city hidden within a treacherous mountain range, facing both physical and personal challenges along the way.
Create your own story about a child discovering they have the power to talk to animals, exploring the ethical dilemmas this ability brings.
Write a story involving a stranger and a teenager bonding over a mutual passion for skateboarding, leading to an unexpected journey into understanding themselves and each other.
Eeek! You’re stranded on a deserted island. Write a survival guide that could also serve as a manual for life’s trials and growth.
A fortune cookie with an ambiguous message sets the protagonist on a path to uncover a deep family secret. Explore how this quest affects personal relationships.
Envision a fantasy world where magic is a hired ability, like any other profession. Write about a young mage’s apprenticeships and the moral issues they encounter.
Mysterious and strange noises haunt a quiet neighborhood. Write a story where the local teens band together to uncover the source, revealing something utterly unexpected.
Write a journal entry about your greatest fear. Explain or explore where it comes from and how you envision overcoming it in the future.
You’re about to go on a cross-country road trip with friends who are each dealing with personal crises. How does the trip mirror and affect their internal journeys?
In a sci-fi setting, write about the discovery of a new planet where the inhabitants have a unique social structure and explore the cultural clash as you integrate into their society.

Even MORE Writing Resources & Prompts

Romance Prompts
Love Story Ideas
Science Fiction
Horror/ Dark Writing Prompts
Creativity Prompts
Creative Writing Prompts
Flash Fiction
Story-Writing Prompts
Time Travel Prompts
Character Prompts (main character, protagonist, character development…)
Plot prompts

Until next time, write on…

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