ChampionsPrompts - Timed Essays - Tutorials - Models
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Prompt 1 - Some young children spend a great amount of their time practicing sports. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of this. Use specific reasons and examples to support your answer. Tutorial Screencast - Model Essay Prompt 2 - Some famous athletes and entertainers earn millions of dollars every year. Do you think these people deserve such high salaries? Use specific reasons and examples to support your opinion. Tutorial Screencast - Model Essay |
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...more writing prompts for Champion!
About Me - Tell about your regular physical activity. Do you regularly work out or play sports? If so, what do you do and why. If not, why don't you regularly exercise.
Descriptive - Describe the most popular sport in your country. What is it and how is its popularity seen? Why is it so popular? Narrative - Tell about an experience when you participated in, or watched, an important sporting event with an unexpected outcome. Tell what before, during, and after the event. Problem / Solution - You bought tickets for you and a friend to watch your friend's favorite sport's team play. Unfortunately on the day of the event, you can't find the tickets. Explain to your friend what happened and present a resolution to the problem. |
Abstract - Former U.S. basketball star Kareem Abdul Jabbar said, "You can't win until you learn how to lose. What did he mean? To what extend do you agree with him.
Hypothesis - If you could be the best athlete in the world in any sport, which sport would it be? Why would you choose this sport? How would your life be different as a mode athlete? Support an Opinion - Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Its more important for boys to have experience playing sports than girls. Use specific details and examples to support your answer. |
Note for Teachers - The purpose of our 30 minute timed writing prompts is to engage learners in a carefully crafted exercise that will improve fluency of both thought and pen. Quality writing effectively expresses how a person feels, or thinks, in response to any given topic. This doesn't just happen, but requires consistent and meaningful practice (time on task)... the aim and focus of our Daily Writing Prompt website. A guide to constructing a 5 paragraph essay, along with a model passage for students to study and dissect can also be found on this page.
Model Essay - Children are our future. As a result society understands the impact of the formative years of childhood on the qualities and accomplishments of someone during their adulthood. Naturally this creates some debate as people discuss the activities and experiences that are most necessary for children to engage in. Some would say that time invested in traditional education is paramount. These people may feel that time taken from education for other purposes including exercise and sport is misdirected. Others feel that sports enhances the practical education of a child. While an increased amount of time practicing sports may increase some of the personal risk of youth, youth can also greatly benefit from the development of physical strength and social abilities that sports can facilitate.
One primary disadvantage of sports is that they introduce some amount of personal risk. This includes naturally physical risk: emergency rooms are full of sports related injuries. There are also emotional risks through losses and disappointments and economic risks in the form of the time spent on sports not being spent on other activities such as reading or studying. If the ultimate goal is to reduce the risk in one's life reducing or eliminating the amount of sports practice a young person participates may be justified. Consider the case of Natalia a gymnast from Russia. She spent hours each day training as a gymnast when she was younger. She was injured several times, once quite seriously; she was disappointed when she fell just short of the Olympics and she is only now getting caught up in her educational studies. Some would say that the ultimate advantages for Natalia are outweighed by the disadvantages. However for most the advantages of playing sports are significant.
An obvious advantage of time spent practicing sports is that this develops physical strength. The bones, muscles, lungs and nervous system including the brain need regular vigorous exercise to maintain and develop their capacity to function. While more mundane exercises may serve the purpose of strengthening the body and mind, sports are inherently both motivating and entertaining and as a result young people participate in them more regularly and with greater intensity. Soccer is a great example of this. In a regular soccer game, players will often run as much as 6 miles as they play; add to this the other stretching and strengthening movements of the game and a youth participating in soccer will have done a lot to improve their physical condition. However, was this their reason for playing? For most, not at all. While certainly a beneficial consequence, the physical exercise is secondary for most to the fact that they enjoy the competition and the process of sports.
A second advantage of playing sports is that they develop interpersonal abilities. One's ability to work with a group of peers to accomplish a common goal and traits such as focus, confidence, communication and drive are all enhanced through the experiences youth have as they play sports. Fostering the development of these traits is a wise investment as many of the interpersonal traits that lead to success in sports can readily be transferred to other endeavors including education and future professions. Returning to Natalia the Russian gymnast, it is true that gymnastics itself will never bring her great economic success. However through the process of training and competing Natalia developed traits that can be readily applied professionally. For example she is never intimidated when asked to give a presentation. She knows that when she's prepared she can perform. Her peers in school report that she is focused and detail oriented. When asked how she developed these traits, Natalia readily acknowledges that she gained them through her earlier life of sports practice.
Developing interpersonal strengths and maintaining one's physical strength outweigh all but the most rare and unlikely risks of regular sports participation. Certainly the risks of sports can be minimized through appropriate training and supervision and the use of all safety equipment. Also sports participation should complement and not compete with participation in other necessary activities including education. However, a society should support the athletic ambitions of our youth through investing in facilities and programs that provide these opportunities. In doing so, individual youth will become physically and emotionally stronger. The dynamics of children and teen social groups will be healthier as they are collectively engaged in sports. Also youth will develop the traits and skills society needs them to gain as they move towards adulthood.
One primary disadvantage of sports is that they introduce some amount of personal risk. This includes naturally physical risk: emergency rooms are full of sports related injuries. There are also emotional risks through losses and disappointments and economic risks in the form of the time spent on sports not being spent on other activities such as reading or studying. If the ultimate goal is to reduce the risk in one's life reducing or eliminating the amount of sports practice a young person participates may be justified. Consider the case of Natalia a gymnast from Russia. She spent hours each day training as a gymnast when she was younger. She was injured several times, once quite seriously; she was disappointed when she fell just short of the Olympics and she is only now getting caught up in her educational studies. Some would say that the ultimate advantages for Natalia are outweighed by the disadvantages. However for most the advantages of playing sports are significant.
An obvious advantage of time spent practicing sports is that this develops physical strength. The bones, muscles, lungs and nervous system including the brain need regular vigorous exercise to maintain and develop their capacity to function. While more mundane exercises may serve the purpose of strengthening the body and mind, sports are inherently both motivating and entertaining and as a result young people participate in them more regularly and with greater intensity. Soccer is a great example of this. In a regular soccer game, players will often run as much as 6 miles as they play; add to this the other stretching and strengthening movements of the game and a youth participating in soccer will have done a lot to improve their physical condition. However, was this their reason for playing? For most, not at all. While certainly a beneficial consequence, the physical exercise is secondary for most to the fact that they enjoy the competition and the process of sports.
A second advantage of playing sports is that they develop interpersonal abilities. One's ability to work with a group of peers to accomplish a common goal and traits such as focus, confidence, communication and drive are all enhanced through the experiences youth have as they play sports. Fostering the development of these traits is a wise investment as many of the interpersonal traits that lead to success in sports can readily be transferred to other endeavors including education and future professions. Returning to Natalia the Russian gymnast, it is true that gymnastics itself will never bring her great economic success. However through the process of training and competing Natalia developed traits that can be readily applied professionally. For example she is never intimidated when asked to give a presentation. She knows that when she's prepared she can perform. Her peers in school report that she is focused and detail oriented. When asked how she developed these traits, Natalia readily acknowledges that she gained them through her earlier life of sports practice.
Developing interpersonal strengths and maintaining one's physical strength outweigh all but the most rare and unlikely risks of regular sports participation. Certainly the risks of sports can be minimized through appropriate training and supervision and the use of all safety equipment. Also sports participation should complement and not compete with participation in other necessary activities including education. However, a society should support the athletic ambitions of our youth through investing in facilities and programs that provide these opportunities. In doing so, individual youth will become physically and emotionally stronger. The dynamics of children and teen social groups will be healthier as they are collectively engaged in sports. Also youth will develop the traits and skills society needs them to gain as they move towards adulthood.
Model Essay - The question of income inequality has long been one of great debate and interest. Sociologists claim that the economic disparity between the super-rich and the poor has never been greater. Perhaps some of the most visible mega-rich are the athletes and entertainers that we see on TV and in magazines. Some say that these individuals while talented are grossly overcompensated for their contribution to society. While there may be many other professionals who are underpaid relative to their social contribution, famous athletes deserve the salaries that they earn because it comes through a substantial level of risk, after significant investment of time in training and to the great utility of their millions of fans worldwide.
There are physical and social risks that follow athletic performance. Performing at the level required for professional athletes poses significant risks of both acute and chronic injury. Also their reputation is often open for public intrusion. These risks exceed those of most employment and thus justify earning a larger than average salary. Examples of the physical risks have been typified by the NFL player's concussion lawsuit where hundreds of former professional football players are now eligible for compensation from the longterm effects of brain related injuries. The social risks would include the scandal several years ago of Tiger Woods. Now his actions albeit morally reprehensible, were magnified greatly by his celebrity status. Having your poor personal decisions part of the public domain is an aspect of sports celebrity that should be compensated for and the large salaries of athletes in part accomplishes that .
Athletes have invested thousands of hours into training and playing their sport before reaching a salaried level. Some have estimated that even the most talented individual must invest at least 10,000 hours to become an expert in a skill. Thus even though we quantify what an athlete is paid based on one year of current performance, in effect we should be compensating them for all of the effort invested to bring them to that point which in part their large salary does. Consider Olympic gold medalist Kim Yuna a Korean figure skater. She is one of the highest paid female athletes. Long before she was spokesperson for many different companies and winning international competitions she was a young girl who was sacrificing thousands of hours in solitary practice that could have been alternatively applied. The hope and promise of potential financial success helps to motivate talented youth to apply themselves and make great sacrifices to succeed.
Athletes contribute to the leisure and entertainment of millions of fans. Watching sports provides a great escape for many many people who use a sporting event to socialize, forget their problems and invigorate their lives. The fact that famous athletes affect so many people simultaneously suggests that they should be greatly compensated for their impact. For example, imagine a worker at a fast food restaurant; in one hour they feed 25 people. The worker has provided utility or value to those 25 people. Now imagine a famous soccer player playing in a world cup match. In one hour of competition, literally millions and millions of fans worldwide have received great utility as they've watched and enjoyed the performance. Now the fact that the athlete is compensated at the scale that they are relative to the fast food worker is at least statistically reasonable. While some may question the substantiveness of the contribution of a professional athlete, no one can question the raw scale of their contribution to society.
Because of the expansiveness of their reach and impact, the significant investment of time in training and the substantial physical and social risks, famous athletes do earn their impressively large salaries. However coming to this conclusion does not mean that others such as teachers or police officers deserve the low wages that they receive. Some of the same rationale applied above could translate to reinterpreting impact. Obviously law enforcement and other public safety officers are often placed in situations of serious risk. A teacher's preparation initiated long before their first day in the classroom. Also an educator's impact is not just those students in the classroom but also the individuals that those students will later affect as they utilize their education.
There are physical and social risks that follow athletic performance. Performing at the level required for professional athletes poses significant risks of both acute and chronic injury. Also their reputation is often open for public intrusion. These risks exceed those of most employment and thus justify earning a larger than average salary. Examples of the physical risks have been typified by the NFL player's concussion lawsuit where hundreds of former professional football players are now eligible for compensation from the longterm effects of brain related injuries. The social risks would include the scandal several years ago of Tiger Woods. Now his actions albeit morally reprehensible, were magnified greatly by his celebrity status. Having your poor personal decisions part of the public domain is an aspect of sports celebrity that should be compensated for and the large salaries of athletes in part accomplishes that .
Athletes have invested thousands of hours into training and playing their sport before reaching a salaried level. Some have estimated that even the most talented individual must invest at least 10,000 hours to become an expert in a skill. Thus even though we quantify what an athlete is paid based on one year of current performance, in effect we should be compensating them for all of the effort invested to bring them to that point which in part their large salary does. Consider Olympic gold medalist Kim Yuna a Korean figure skater. She is one of the highest paid female athletes. Long before she was spokesperson for many different companies and winning international competitions she was a young girl who was sacrificing thousands of hours in solitary practice that could have been alternatively applied. The hope and promise of potential financial success helps to motivate talented youth to apply themselves and make great sacrifices to succeed.
Athletes contribute to the leisure and entertainment of millions of fans. Watching sports provides a great escape for many many people who use a sporting event to socialize, forget their problems and invigorate their lives. The fact that famous athletes affect so many people simultaneously suggests that they should be greatly compensated for their impact. For example, imagine a worker at a fast food restaurant; in one hour they feed 25 people. The worker has provided utility or value to those 25 people. Now imagine a famous soccer player playing in a world cup match. In one hour of competition, literally millions and millions of fans worldwide have received great utility as they've watched and enjoyed the performance. Now the fact that the athlete is compensated at the scale that they are relative to the fast food worker is at least statistically reasonable. While some may question the substantiveness of the contribution of a professional athlete, no one can question the raw scale of their contribution to society.
Because of the expansiveness of their reach and impact, the significant investment of time in training and the substantial physical and social risks, famous athletes do earn their impressively large salaries. However coming to this conclusion does not mean that others such as teachers or police officers deserve the low wages that they receive. Some of the same rationale applied above could translate to reinterpreting impact. Obviously law enforcement and other public safety officers are often placed in situations of serious risk. A teacher's preparation initiated long before their first day in the classroom. Also an educator's impact is not just those students in the classroom but also the individuals that those students will later affect as they utilize their education.