For Your Journal: Writing Prompt

Do you keep a journal – or wish you could get one started? Literary Mama wants to help.

Three times a month, I’ll post a writing prompt. Open a notebook and write for 10 minutes. Don’t worry about grammar or punctuation – just write. Then let the writing simmer and your mind wander for awhile.

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Popular Culture

Who are this fall’s incoming college freshmen? Check out The Mindset List, a compilation of interesting tidbits about this group of students, most who were born in 1994.

Beloit College’s English Professor Tom McBride and former Director of Public Affairs Ron Nief first created the List in 1998 (highlighting members of the class of 2002 and were born in 1980) as a witty way to remind faculty colleagues to “watch your references.” Since then, it has turned into a globally reported and utilized guide that reflects the world view of entering first-year students.

From the website:

• For this generation of entering college students, born in 1995, Dean Martin, Mickey Mantle, and Jerry Garcia have always been dead.
• As kids they may well have seen Chicken Run but probably never got chicken pox.
• In their first 18 years, they have watched the rise and fall of Tiger Woods and Alex Rodriguez.
• Having a chat has seldom involved talking.
• Gaga has never been baby talk.

Journal Entry: Create a list of popular culture people, icons, and attitudes for the year you were born, the year you were 10 years old, and the year you were 18. Write one paragraph about each item to note a thought or memory you associate with it. Start a similar list about your child. You might refer to The People History for information.