460 Questions about School Years to Ask People (Storytelling)

Ask people these 460 questions about school years for storytelling.

I have interviewed hundreds of people about their years in school and education. Based on the answers I received in those interviews, I have put together a list of writing prompts and questions to ask people when writing narratives. The school years series includes ten categories that range from Preschool to post-high school education. Use these prompts and questions to help you

- Identify events and memories you can write about
- Organize and write your personal narrative and story
- Develop questions to ask other people about their life’s
- Organize, research and write stories about others
- Know what type of information to include in narratives and stories
- Identify memorabilia, artifacts, photos, documents to include in stories
- Develop ideas for journaling, story starters, poetry, memoirs, and more

Questions About School Years

The “School Years” writing prompts and questions to ask people are part of a 28 article, 108 category series entitled “7,500-plus Questions About Life to Ask People When Writing Narratives.” The prompts and questions are provided to help you look at school years and education from as many angles as possible when writing narratives about yourself, your family, and others. The category and types of topics covered in “School Years” include:

Preschool. Find 15 prompts and questions. Use these Preschool prompts and questions to gather and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. These questions cover school description, activities, education, teachers, memorabilia, memories, events, family.

Kindergarten. Find 37 prompts and questions. Use these Kindergarten prompts and questions to gather and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. These questions cover school description, classroom, indoor activities, recess, education, teachers, daily routines, lunch, holidays, friends, memorabilia, memories, events, family, games.

Elementary School. Find 41 prompts and questions. Use these Elementary School prompts and questions to gather and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. These questions cover school description, family, recess, lunch, friends, subjects, activities, routine, accomplishments, grades, discipline, family, teachers, games, memorabilia, memories.

Jr. High School. Find 39 prompts and questions. Use these Jr. High School prompts and questions to gather and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. These questions cover school description, grades, teachers, subjects, activities, nicknames, friends, pranks, discipline, memorabilia, memories, fashion, accomplishments.

High School. Find 125 prompts and questions. Use these High School prompts and questions to gather and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. These questions cover school description, grades, teachers, activities, sports, band, dances, dates, nicknames, family, friends, pranks, discipline, groups, subjects, memorabilia, memories, fashion, accomplishments, graduation, future plans.

Trade School. Find 21 prompts and questions. Use these Trade School prompts and questions to gather and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. These questions cover school description, education, training, friends, family, jobs, expectations, teachers, memorabilia, memories, accomplishments

College / University. Find 87 prompts and questions. Use these College / University prompts and questions to gather and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. These questions cover school description, choices, living arrangements, courses, major, library, study, dating, family, mentors, professors, classes, friends, subjects, routine, activities, campus, events, social life, travel, memorabilia, memories, accomplishments, graduation, job offers.

Advance Degree / Graduate School. Find 51 prompts and questions. Use this Advance Degree/Graduate School prompts and questions to gather and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. These questions cover school description, choices, living arrangements, courses, major, library, study, dating, family, mentors, professors, classes, friends, subjects, routine, activities, campus, events, social life, travel, memorabilia, memories, accomplishments, graduation, job offers.

Education Later in Life. Find 21 prompts and questions. Use these Education Later in Life prompts and questions to gather and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. These questions cover school description, choices, courses, major, memorabilia, memories, accomplishments, graduation, job offers

High School Reunion. Find 23 prompts and questions. Use these High School Reunion prompts and questions to gather and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. These questions cover attendance, activities, friends, expectations, accomplishments, regrets.

Approach each topic from the point of view of the person/lives you are writing about. You don’t have to ask every question. Review the questions and determine which ones are most appropriate to ask. I would encourage you to modify and add questions as you desire.

I have prepared a couple of other resources that will provide value in interviewing for and writing individual, personal, and family narratives: “Complete Guide for Conducting Oral History Interviews” and “Complete Guide to Writing A Personal Narrative.”

Preschool

Writing Prompts and Questions about School Years

“Preschool” is part of the series for writing prompts and questions about Education Years. Use these questions to ask, gather, and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. If you are writing about a deceased person, think of the questions as if you were the person answering the questions.

How old were you when you first went to Preschool?
Describe the school.
• What was its name of the school?
• How many students attended the school?
• Described what the school looked like?
What were a typical day’s activities?
• Painting?
• Singing?
• Recess?
• Reading?
• What else?
Were there nap times or snack times?
What did children learn in Preschool when you attended?
Who were your favorite playmates?
• What did they do together?
Did you have a favorite teacher?
Were you able to keep in touch in the later years?
Did you have memorabilia from Preschool?
• Art projects or class pictures?
What memories do these items bring back to you?
Was attending Preschool a good experience for you?
Did you send your children or grandchildren to Preschool?
Was there one specific event from your preschool years that you remembered vividly in later years?
• What happened that was so memorable?
Do you have photographs?
• Who are the people in the photographs?
What sort of memorabilia did you save from this time?

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Kindergarten

Writing Prompts and Questions about School Years

“Kindergarten” is part of the series for writing prompts and questions about School Years. Use these questions to ask, gather, and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. If you are writing about a deceased person, think of the questions as if you were the person answering the questions.

Describe your Kindergarten class.
• In what city was the class located?
• Was it part of an elementary or grammar school?
What was in your kindergarten classroom that might not be found in today’s classrooms?
Describe a typical kindergarten day.
What did children of your age learn?
Did you have a favorite activity?
What kind of a pupil were you?
Did you like Kindergarten and the idea of being in a classroom?
Would you have preferred to be outdoors playing?
Who were your friends in Kindergarten?
• What did they do together?
• Did they play together after school?
Who was your teacher?
Were you able to keep in touch with these people in later years?
Did you or your parents save any memorabilia from your kindergarten years?
• Artwork or class pictures?
• What feelings did these items bring back?
How did you get to school each morning?
• Did you walk with a sibling or adult or take some other means of transportation?
What did you wear to Kindergarten?
• Was there a favorite outfit that you had?
• What did children of your age wear at the time?
Did you bring your lunch to school?
• What did you take?
• Did you carry a lunch box or lunch pail?
• Were surprises ever packed in your lunch?
Did you remember school on holidays? (e.g., Halloween, Valentine’s Day).
• What did you do on those holidays?
What kinds of games did you play at recess?
• Are these games that children still play?
Do you have photographs?
• Who are the people in the photographs?
What sort of memorabilia did you save from this time?
• What did it symbolize to you?
• What memories and feelings did it bring back after the war

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Elementary School

Writing Prompts and Questions about School Years

“Elementary School” is part of the series for writing prompts and questions about School Years. Use these questions to ask, gather, and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. If you are writing about a deceased person, think of the questions as if you were the person answering the questions.

Describe your elementary school.
• Where was it located?
• What did it look like?
• About how many students attended?
• Was it a public school or a private?
Did you have siblings at the same school?
• How many grades ahead of you or behind you were they?
• Did you play with them at recess or eat lunch with them?
Who were your best friends in elementary school?
• What did they do together?
Was there a bully in your school?
What kind of a student were(you/he/she)?
Was school easy for you, or did you struggle?
Did you like school?
What subjects did children of your age study when you went to elementary school?
• For example, reading, math, geography, or history?
Did you have a favorite subject?
Did your school have activities such as plays, choir concerts, assemblies or spelling bees?
What part did you play in these kinds of activities?
How did you get to school each day?
Were there days when you couldn’t go to school because of the weather?
Did you accomplish anything in elementary school that you were particularly proud of?
Did you get first prize in a competition?
Did you have especially good grades on one report card?
Did you ever get in trouble and have to stay after school?
What did you do to get into trouble?
Did you have to clap erasers or clean the classroom as punishment?
Who was your favorite teacher in Elementary School?
• What do you remember about these teachers?
Was there a teacher that you disliked?
• Why?
Did you have any favorite songs or games?
• Did you pass them on to your children or grandchildren?
Do you have photographs?
• Who are the people in the photographs?
What sort of memorabilia did you save from this time?
• What did it symbolize to you?
• What memories and feelings did it bring back after the war?

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Jr. High School

Writing Prompts and Questions about School Years

“Jr. High School” is part of the series for writing prompts and questions about School Years. Use these questions to ask, gather, and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. If you are writing about a deceased person, think of the questions as if you were the person answering the questions.

Can you describe your junior high school?
• What was the name of the school?
• Where was it located?
How many grades did you have in junior high?
How many students were in the school?
Was it a religious or single-sex school?
Did you have a favorite teacher in junior high?
• How did this teacher influence you, and what did you learn from him or her?
Were you involved in other activities (e.g., clubs, sports, newspaper) at school?
• What part did you play in these activities?
Did you have any nicknames?
• How did you get them?
• What about nicknames for your friends or teachers?
Did you and your friends ever pull any pranks?
• On whom?
Did you get in trouble for any of the jokes?
• What kind of punishment were you given?
• Were you glad that you did it even though you were punished?
Did you have any memorabilia from your junior high years?
• What memories do they bring back to you?
If you didn’t have to wear a school uniform, what kind of clothes did you wear to school?
• Were you worried about being fashionable?
What hairstyles were popular at the time?
Who were your junior high buddies?
• Were they the same friends that you had in elementary school, or did you meet new people?
• Were you a part of the “in” crowd?
Did you graduate from junior high school?
• Why or why not?
• Were you sad to leave your friends and teachers?
What happened on the day that you left?
What do you remember most from junior high?
Did something embarrassing happen to you?
Did you accomplish something that you were particularly proud of?
Do you have photographs?
• Who are the people in the photographs?
What sort of memorabilia did you save from this time?
• What did it symbolize to you?

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High School

Writing Prompts and Questions about School Years

“High School” is part of the series for writing prompts and questions about School Years. Use these questions to ask, gather, and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. If you are writing about a deceased person, think of the questions as if you were the person answering the questions.

What was the name of the school you attended?
• Where was it located?
How many people attended your high school?
What did the building look like inside and out?
Did you have a school mascot or school colors?
How about a rival school?
Was your high school a religious or private school?
• Why did you go to this school?
• How was it different than going to public school?
Was your transition from junior high to high school smooth or rocky?
• What made it easy or difficult?
Did your friends or family members make a difference?
What did you wear to school?
• Did you have to wear a uniform to school?
• What was the type of style (e.g., clothes, hair) for students at the time?
• Looking back after you had grown, did you laugh at what you wore?
Who were your best friends in high school?
• What did you like to do together?
• Did any of your friends have nicknames? If yes, what did the nicknames mean?
• Did they keep in touch with your friends after leaving school?
Did you have any “crazy” friends?
• People who did things that you wouldn’t risk yourself?
• Describe them and what they did.
What’s the craziest thing you ever did during high school?
• Why did you do it?
Did you and your friends play practical jokes on others?
• What kinds of jokes did you play?
• On whom did you play the jokes?
• Friends?
• Teachers?
• The principal?
Did you ever get into trouble?
• Often or rarely?
• What did you do, and why did you do it?
• How did you get caught?
• What kinds of punishment did you receive?
Were there any “groups” in the school other than your own?
• Did they have nicknames?
• What were they like?
• Tough?
• Brainy?
Was there tension between your group and other groups?
• What caused it?
Did you feel like a member of the “in” crowd?
• Why or why not?
How did that make you feel?
• Did they have a particular way of dressing or a special place to “hang out”?
Who were your favorite teachers?
• Why?
• How did they influence you, or what did you learn from them?
With which teacher did you have the most trouble?
• What caused the problem?
Did you spend much time doing school work?
• Why or why not?
Was school easy for you, or did you have to work hard?
What were your least and most favorite subjects? Why?
How were your grades?
Did you ever try to cheat to get a better grade?
Did you ever flunk anything?
• Did you not try hard enough, or was that subject just not your cup of tea?
• How did you feel about flunking?
• How did your parents feel about it?
Did you participate in any extra-curricular activities?
• Drama or debate club?
• School band or cheerleading?
• Other activities
• Why did or didn’t you join?
• What did you get from these activities that you didn’t get in regular classes?
Did you participate in school athletics?
• Which sports?
• Did you earn a letter for any sports?
• What did this letter mean to you?
• Did you continue playing this sport after leaving school?
Did your school have a prom?
• If not, why?
• If yes, did you go?
• Why or why not?
• Where was it?
• What kind of music was played?
• To whom did you go?
• What did you wear?
• Did you have a good time?
Did you earn any special honors in high school?
• For what?
• Academics?
• Industrial arts?
• Sports?
• Describe them and what they meant to you
In later years, how did you feel about high school?
What were your happiest and saddest memories from high school?
What were the funniest experiences that happened to you?
What sort of memorabilia did you from high school? For example,
• What kinds of memories do these items bring back?
What did you learn during this time that wasn’t explicitly taught in books or the classroom?
• Where did you learn these things?
• How did these lessons help you later?
• In what ways did you grow during this time?
Did you become more open to new ideas and different people?
• More independent and mature?
Looking back in later years, did you agree with the views that you held at the time?
• For example, did you have the same ideas about money, race, or work ethics?
• Why or why not?
Did things you learned to change your ideas?
What did you do during the summers of your high school years?
• Work?
• Stay at home and relax?
• Why?
• High School Graduation
Did your school have a graduation ceremony, or was it not a tradition?
• If yes, describe the ceremony.
• Was anything about it especially memorable?
• If there wasn’t a ceremony, did you do anything special on that day, or was it much like any other day?
• Was there a big graduation party?
• Where was it, and who was there?
Did you get a special graduation gift?
• What?
• From whom?
What were your plans before graduation?
• What happened?
• What kept your plans the same, or why did they change?
Do you have photographs?
• Who are the people in the photographs?
What sort of memorabilia did you save from this time?
• What did it symbolize to you?

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Trade School

Writing Prompts and Questions about School Years

“Trade School” is part of the series for writing prompts and questions about School Years. Use these questions to ask, gather, and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. If you are writing about a deceased person, think of the questions as if you were the person answering the questions.

What did you learn in trade school?
Were the classes easier or more complicated than you had expected?
Did you have to spend long hours studying?
Where did you go to school?
• Was it a local school, or did you have to commute or live away from home?
What did you like about trade school?
The classes and skills you learned?
Did you have friends in trade school?
• Who?
• What were they like?
• What was the best part about their friendship?
How long did it take for you to finish the program?
Did you find a job right after finishing?
Did trade school increase your earning potential?
Why did you decide to attend a trade school?
What subject were you interested in studying?
Do you have photographs?
• Who are the people in the photographs?
What sort of memorabilia did you save from this time?
• What did it symbolize to you?
• What memories and feelings did it bring back after the war?

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College/University

Writing Prompts and Questions about School Years

“College/University” is part of the series for writing prompts and questions about School Years. Use these questions to ask, gather, and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. If you are writing about a deceased person, think of the questions as if you were the person answering the questions.

Why did you decide to attend college?
Was it expected in your family, or were you the first to go?
How many different colleges did you apply to?
• Did you pick just one or two favorites, or did you apply to several?
• Were the applications difficult to fill out?
• Did you work on them for hours or complete them all at the last minute?
• Did your efforts pay off?
Which school did you attend?
• Describe it.
• Was it big or small?
• Liberal arts or a technical school?
• Where was it located?
Did you go away to college or stay close to home?
• If you went away, how did you feel when you left for college?
Did you feel mature and independent?
Were you scared of what was ahead of you (you/him/her)?
Did you have any expectations about how you would perform academically?
Did you “go wild” when you first arrived at college, knowing that your parents weren’t looking over your shoulder?
Did you enjoy being your own keeper, or was it scary for (your/his/her)?
What kind of a schedule did you have at school?
Did you take a heavy load of courses and have a job too, or did you find yourself with a lot of free time?
Were you most likely to be found in the library?
• In the pub? In the gym?
Did you have a favorite class or professor?
• What did you learn from this class or person?
Was anyone you mentor at school?
How did you decide on your course of study?
Was there a course of study that was particularly popular among students of your age?
Who were your friends in college?
• How did you meet them?
• Through classes or the place that you lived?
• Were they friends that you had in high school, or did you meet new people?
19. Where did you near the school?
• In a dormitory, rooming house, or at home?
• If you didn’t live at home, what did your room look like?
Where did you get your meals?
• How was the food?
What was most surprising about college?
• The difficulty of classes?
• The variety of people who attended?
• The ideas that they had?
Were you a participant in any other activities? For example, clubs, sports.
• Why did you choose these activities?
What types of events did you attend on campus?
• Were there plays or concerts?
• Did the school have a football team?
• Were there school dances?
• To whom did you go to these events?
Did you play any college pranks?
• What did you do?
• Were you ever disciplined for any of these pranks?
Did you ever have the chance to travel abroad during your studies?
• Where and why did you go?
• What did this experience add to your education?
Did you ever transfer between colleges?
• Why?
• Where did you go to school?
• Describe the transition period?
• Which school did you like better and why?
• Did you think that transferring was a positive part of your education?
Did you save any memorabilia from your college years?
• What feelings or memories do they bring to you?
Overall, how was your college experience?
• Later in life, were you glad that you went?
• Was it an experience that you would want your children or grandchildren to have?
• Or, did you find that college wasn’t your cup of tea?
If you graduated, did you attend your graduation ceremony?
• Why or why not?
• Did you wear a cap and gown?
• Who spoke and who attended?
If you graduated, how did you feel about leaving school?
• What kinds of life expectations did you have as a graduate?
• Did you think that as a college graduate, you had a head start on life?
• Were you overly optimistic?
If you didn’t graduate, what happened that you weren’t able to?
• Were there monetary problems or family needs?
• Did you find a career that didn’t require a college education?
• Did you not like the college atmosphere?
• If you didn’t graduate, how did you feel about leaving?
• Were you glad to be moving on?
• Were you sad to leave friends and school?
• A little bit of both?
Do you have photographs?
• Who are the people in the photographs?
What sort of memorabilia did you save from this time?
• What did it symbolize to you?
• What memories and feelings did it bring back after the war?

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Advance Degree

Writing Prompts and Questions about School Years

“Graduate School” is part of the series for writing prompts and questions about School Years. Use these questions to ask, gather, and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. If you are writing about a deceased person, think of the questions as if you were the person answering the questions.

What made you decide to go on to more schooling after completing your undergraduate degree?
• Was it a difficult decision?
• Why or why not?
Did you go back to school right after graduating from college, or did you wait a few years?
• It usually takes several years to get an advanced degree.
• Did it seem like an overwhelming project when you first began?
Did you have any special professors or mentors?
• What did you learn from them?
Did you have children or a spouse when you went back to school?
Did continuing your education create any problems for your family?
What area of study did you undertake when you went back to school?
What level of a degree were you aiming for?
Why did you choose this level and area of study?
Did you have a specific job in mind?
What differences did you find between your graduate and undergraduate education?
Which of your schooling experiences did you enjoy more, graduate or undergraduate?
After beginning your studies, did you ever regret your decision to undertake them?
• Why?
• Were you able to overcome your doubts?
How did you finance your graduate studies?
• Was earning money or getting a loan difficult?
• Did you get a scholarship?
Did you teach at the undergraduate level to defray the costs?
Did you write a thesis? If yes, on what topic?
• How long did it take to write the thesis?
• Did you enjoy writing it?
Did you work while earning your advanced degree, or were you a full-time student?
• If you worked, were you able to manage your time well?
How did it feel about leaving your advanced schooling?
Were you sad to go, or did you look forward to facing the “real world”?
• Did you have a job lined up?
Did you think that you would ever return to school?
If you didn’t graduate, what happened that you were unable to finish your degree?
• Were there monetary problems?
• Did you find a job that you preferred to school?
• Were you just not cut out for grad school?
If you finished your degree, how long did it take (your/his/her)?
• Did it take you longer than the norm?
Did you celebrate on the day of your graduation?
• Who attended?
• Did you receive any special gifts?
What kind of social life did you have while earning your advanced degree?
Was it the same as when you were an undergrad?
Did you find that you had to spend too much time with your books to be social?
What kinds of grades did you get as a graduate student? Did you find the classes easy or difficult?
Do you have photographs?
• Who are the people in the photographs?
What sort of memorabilia did you save from this time?
• What did it symbolize to you?
• What memories and feelings did it bring back after the war?

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Education Later in Life

Writing Prompts and Questions about School Years

“Education Later in Life” is part of the series for writing prompts and questions about School Years. Use these questions to ask, gather, and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. If you are writing about a deceased person, think of the questions as if you were the person answering the questions.

What did you study?
• Why were you interested in this subject?
• What stirred you into taking classes?
Did you ever take any classes because of your occupation?
• What kinds of classes were they?
How did they help your career?
Did you belong to any trade associations or clubs that had educational programs?
• What did you learn from them?
• How were they helpful to you?
Did you take classes for recreational purposes?
• For example, did you take dance, music, or art lessons?
How did you use what you learned?
Did you travel to learn a language or learn about other cultures?
• Where did you go?
• What did you learn?
Do you have photographs?
• Who are the people in the photographs?
What sort of memorabilia did you save from this time?
• What did it symbolize to you?

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High School Reunion

Writing Prompts and Questions about School Years

“High School Reunion” is part of the series for writing prompts and questions about School Years. Use these questions to ask, gather, and organize information to help you write narratives about yourself, your family, and others. If you are writing about a deceased person, think of the questions as if you were the person answering the questions.

Did you go to any of your high school reunions?
• Why or why not?
• Did you not have the time to go?
• Did you look forward to them?
Was it fun to see your old friends after so many years?
• How had they changed?
• Who changed the most?
• Did seeing them make you realize that you had changed in ways you hadn’t thought of?
Who lived up to your expectations?
• Who didn’t?
• Who was the biggest success?
Did anyone in your class become famous?
After your reunion, how did you feel about (your/his/her)-self?
Were you proud of your accomplishments?
Was there anything that you regretted?
Do you have photographs?
• Who are the people in the photographs?
What sort of memorabilia did you save from this time?
• What did it symbolize to you?
• What memories and feelings did it bring back after the war?

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