November 3, 2025
For Middle School Writers — Overcoming Challenges One Story at a Time
Middle school is the perfect time to explore stories with deeper meaning and heart. After beginning with Tiny Tales, Big Ideas, young writers can now take the next step in their creative journey. This challenge invites them to write something short and powerful — a 100 word micro fiction story about overcoming a challenge.
💪 Writing Prompt: A Challenge Overcome
In exactly 100 words, students will write a story about a challenge that was faced and overcome. The challenge can be real or imagined. It might involve courage, kindness, patience, or even a little humor.
Encourage students to think about:
- A time they learned something important about themselves
- A moment when they helped someone else
- A mistake that turned into a lesson
- A goal they worked hard to reach
✨ Example:
“I almost gave up on the piano. My fingers stumbled and my confidence cracked with every missed note. But Grandma never missed a single practice. She sat beside me, humming softly, until one day the music flowed like it had always lived inside me. I played the final note and smiled, not because I was perfect, but because I finally believed I could be.”
🔄 Peer Swap: Glow and Grow
After writing their stories, students can trade with a partner and leave each other a Glow and Grow note.
Glow: Something the writer did really well — maybe a strong emotion, a clear description, or a powerful message.
Grow: Something that could make the story even better — maybe a word choice, a missing detail, or a moment that could be expanded.
This activity helps young writers learn how to give thoughtful feedback and encourages them to see writing as a way to grow together.
🌟 Extension Ideas
- Collect all of the 100 word stories and create a digital or printed book called “100 Words of Courage.”
- Have students record themselves reading their stories aloud to practice expression and pacing.
- Let them add an illustration or short poem to go with their story’s theme.
💬 Parent or Educator Tip
If you are working with your child at home, this challenge is a wonderful way to share creativity as a family. Parents can write their own 100 word story about a time they faced something hard and overcame it. Reading these together builds connection and shows that writing is not only about imagination — it is also about life and growth.
✨ Closing Thought
Writing helps us understand where we have been and how far we have come.
Every word matters. Every story has meaning.
And every writer — no matter their age — has the power to turn challenges into hope through the art of storytelling.
Unleashed Learning Gateway 