Claimed to have been Ernest Hemingway's best work ever created, his 6-word story, "For sale: baby shoes, never worn," has influenced generations of writers. This month students took a page from Hemingway! A dramatic form of poetry, 6-word stories serve as a wonderful prompt to inspire writers. Though difficult to achieve, our Writer's Club kids rose to the challenge and churned out some amazing 6-word stories ranging from poignant to funny to insightful.
Student Favorites
"I'm so tired. Plop. I'm out." - Morgan (age 12)
"I'm more than just uphill battles." - Emily (age 11)
"I am trash, you are worse." - Ascen (age 10) We deemed this a new category of 6-word story - the 6-word burn.
"Water takes lives, but gives too." - Ben (age 13)
"The doctor came, goodbye poor JoJo." - Haden (age 12)
"I was a robot and died." - Addison (age 8)
"If you love, you will fly." - Amelia (age 9)
Bringing the Concept Home
Smith Magazine launched a 6-word memoirs project years ago and it's pretty amazing. Anyone is allowed to submit 6-word memoirs to share at any time, read through the submitted works of others, plus, each month they have contests where they challenge people with 6-word prompts! January's is "Good News to Report in Six." This could make for a fantastic regular writing project in your homeschool!
