National Writing Day
From First Story
Resource type: Event
Price band: Free
Key stage: KS2, KS3, KS4
Region(s): All of UK
National Writing Day is an annual celebration of creative writing for young people. It is provided by a coalition of literacy organisations and publishers, led by First Story. National Writing Day 2025 takes place on 25th June.
The First Story website hosts a number of free resources that schools can use to engage and encourage writers of all ages and abilities. Resources include:
- A National Writing Day activity for everyone to try. The 2023 activity was ‘Roll the Dice’ and used random words and number generation to spark young writers’ creativity.
- A library of creative writing exercises for KS3 and KS4 (National 4 and 5) students.
- A series of ‘Inside the Writer’s Mind’ videos with accompanying teaching resources, created in partnership with BBC Teach.
- Creative writing exercises and activities for primary and secondary schools from partner organisations: Arvon, CLPE, the English & Media Centre, the Forward Arts Foundation and the National Literacy Trust .
Cost: Free.
About First Story: First Story is charity that aims to provide high quality creative writing opportunities for students in non-selective state secondary schools in low-income communities. The charity runs writers-in-residence programmes, CPD courses for teachers, regional and national events and writing competitions.
Further resources:
- Explore the creative writing for schools resources on the Scottish Book Trust website, including tips and activities for secondary pupils from award-winning author Brian Conaghan.
- Get involved with author Andy Shepherd’s mini writing challenge based on her best-selling series The Boy Who Grew Dragons.
- Join best-selling author Jenny McLachlan as she offers practical tips and advice for writing creatively on her Roarsome Writing Club videos on YouTube.
- Sign up to Authorfy for access to teaching notes, writing challenges and Author Masterclass videos, where top children’s authors talk about their inspiration and writing process.
- Young Writers run themed writing competitions all through the year with supporting resources for teachers.
- Encourage pupils aged 11-17 to enter the Foyle Young Poets of the Year Award. The deadline for entries is 31st July.
- The English and Media Centre produce illustrated creative writing workbooks for secondary pupils. Just Write and Write On each contain over 40 writing activities for pupils to choose from to explore their own creativity.
- Celebrate young people’s writing by publishing their work using the Make Our Book platform.
- Read about Elmhurst Primary’s journey to implement a writing for pleasure curriculum and the impact it has had on writing achievement and engagement in our guest blogs by Literacy Lead Sam Creighton.
- Explore evidence-based approaches that support reading and writing for pleasure in the Reading and Writing for Pleasure: A Framework for Practice report from the Open University.
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