Notes from the Inkpot

Writing, teaching, creating - one ink-stained idea at a time.

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70 February Writing Prompts for Teens: Story Starters, Characters, Settings & Visual Ideas
For Writers, Creative Writing, Writing Prompts, For Teachers, Seasonal Prompts Ink & Insights . For Writers, Creative Writing, Writing Prompts, For Teachers, Seasonal Prompts Ink & Insights .

70 February Writing Prompts for Teens: Story Starters, Characters, Settings & Visual Ideas

These February writing prompts for teens explore the quieter, colder side of late winter, focusing on atmosphere-driven storytelling, seasonal folklore, and emotionally grounded conflict. Designed for secondary classrooms and independent writers, this 70-prompt collection moves beyond Valentine’s Day clichés to capture the tension, endurance, and subtle transformation that define February. Inside, you’ll find plot hooks, opening and closing lines, character and setting ideas, and picture prompts inspired by icy landscapes, winter rituals, and communities pushed to their limits. Ideal for creative warm-ups, short fiction, or extended writing projects, these prompts support confident creative writing while encouraging depth, restraint, and reflection during the final stretch of winter.

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70 Winter Writing Prompts for Teens: Story Starters, Characters, Settings & Visual Ideas
For Teachers, For Writers, Creative Writing, Writing Prompts, Seasonal Prompts Ink & Insights . For Teachers, For Writers, Creative Writing, Writing Prompts, Seasonal Prompts Ink & Insights .

70 Winter Writing Prompts for Teens: Story Starters, Characters, Settings & Visual Ideas

Winter is a season of contrasts — beauty and danger, warmth and isolation, silence and storm. These 70 winter writing prompts invite teen writers to explore atmosphere-driven storytelling through snowbound settings, high-stakes survival, quiet unease, and emotional restraint. Designed for creative writing in secondary classrooms or independent projects, the prompts focus on winter itself rather than festive themes. Including plot hooks, opening and closing lines, character and setting ideas, and picture prompts, this collection supports confident creative writing across genres such as gothic, speculative fiction, realism, and romance. Whether used for short fiction, exam preparation, or extended writing tasks, these winter writing prompts help writers develop mood, tension, and narrative control.

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Why Of Mice and Men Still Matters: Context, Controversy, and the Classroom
For Teachers, Teaching Resources, Teaching Literature, Novels Ink & Insights . For Teachers, Teaching Resources, Teaching Literature, Novels Ink & Insights .

Why Of Mice and Men Still Matters: Context, Controversy, and the Classroom

Of Mice and Men remains one of the most powerful and challenging texts taught in the secondary English classroom. Despite ongoing debate around challenged books, controversial language, and classroom suitability, Steinbeck’s novella continues to resonate with students because it tackles enduring questions of power, loneliness, prejudice, and moral responsibility. Short, accessible, and deceptively complex, it invites discussion rather than delivering easy answers. This post explores why teachers still teach Of Mice and Men in 2026, examining its historical context, its place within modern classrooms, and the strategies that keep students engaged through creative writing, discussion-led learning, and reflective tasks. It also offers ideas for taking learning deeper once the final chapter is reached — supporting thoughtful, nuanced teaching of a text that refuses to be forgotten.

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