3rd grade
A Better Playground
Choose one change that would make a playground welcoming for more children. Describe the change and give two reasons it would help.
Suggested response length: 100–175 words
More 3rd grade prompts →10 grade-level prompts
Community & Citizenship writing prompts
How people contribute to communities, share responsibility, and make decisions together.
4th grade
Design a Library Corner
Plan a library space where different ages and interests feel welcome. Defend three design choices.
Suggested response length: 175–275 words
More 4th grade prompts →5th grade
Spend $1,000 for Good
Your neighborhood receives $1,000 for one improvement. Recommend how to spend it and address one reasonable objection.
Suggested response length: 250–400 words
More 5th grade prompts →6th grade
Charter for a Shared Space
Draft five principles for a shared school space, then justify how the two most important principles balance competing needs.
Suggested response length: 350–550 words
More 6th grade prompts →7th grade
Public Art, Public Voice
Propose a work of public art for your community. Explain whose experiences it should represent and how residents should help decide.
Suggested response length: 450–700 words
More 7th grade prompts →8th grade
Should Youth Councils Have a Vote?
Argue whether a local youth advisory council should receive a formal vote on issues affecting minors. Define sensible limits.
Suggested response length: 550–850 words
More 8th grade prompts →9th grade
What Do We Owe Strangers?
Develop an ethical argument about one obligation community members have toward people they do not know personally.
Suggested response length: 700–1000 words
More 9th grade prompts →10th grade
Productive Public Disagreement
Develop principles for public disagreement that preserve both candor and participation. Address a case where those principles conflict.
Suggested response length: 850–1200 words
More 10th grade prompts →11th grade
Who Shapes Civic Memory?
Analyze how a community should decide which difficult events to commemorate publicly and who should participate in that decision.
Suggested response length: 1000–1500 words
More 11th grade prompts →12th grade
Expertise in a Democracy
How should democratic institutions balance specialized expertise with public consent when technical decisions affect everyone?
Suggested response length: 1200–1800 words
More 12th grade prompts →