This is the first assignment in WriteAtHome’s Middle School Composition 3 course. It’s one of my favorites. It’s a great way to kick start a new school year.

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This  assignment is a twist (and an improvement) on an old, first-day-of-school favorite.

Maybe you’ve have had an action-packed summer. Perhaps you went hiking in the Himalayas or big-game hunting on the Serengeti.  Maybe you solved a murder or impersonated a brain surgeon. It’s even possible that you discovered a map to buried treasure and beat a hapless pair of dim-witted, petty thieves to the loot (only to find the treasure chest full of lima beans).

Then again, maybe your summer was ordinary and dull like mine. In that case, this assignment is just for you.

Please don’t bore your reader with actual events. Don’t talk about cutting grass or getting sunburned at an amusement park. Don’t tell us about your trip to grandma’s house or the knee you skinned falling off your skateboard.

Tell a story about what didn’t really happen. My guess is what didn’t happen will be much more interesting than what did.

Make it up. Be creative. Be funny if you want to. It’s your first paper of the school year.  Relax and have fun with it.

WriteAtHome students write better. Check out our website!

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Please feel free to please leave your comments below, please.