Step 1. “First, I have students generate ideas related to the assigned topic or unit. I often help students tap into their prior knowledge with prompts like, ‘What do you know about _______?’ ‘What adjectives or descriptive words come to your mind when you think about _______?’ ‘What feelings do you have about _______?’ Depending on what kind of writing students will be producing, I will modify my prompts. For example, if I want personal responses, I’ll favor prompts designed to pro- voke feelings and reactions, whereas explanatory writing requires more ‘How?’ and ‘Why?’ prompts.