A Step-by-Step Plan for Teaching Narrative Writing

July 29, 2018

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“Those who tell the stories rule the world.”  This proverb, attributed to the Hopi Indians, is one I wish I’d known a long time ago, because I would have used it when teaching my students the craft of storytelling. With a well-told story we can help a person see things in an entirely new way. We can forge new relationships and strengthen the ones we already have. We can change a law, inspire a movement, make people care fiercely about things they’d never given a passing thought.

But when we study storytelling with our students, we forget all that. Or at least I did. When my students asked why we read novels and stories, and why we wrote personal narratives and fiction, my defense was pretty lame: I probably said something about the importance of having a shared body of knowledge, or about the enjoyment of losing yourself in a book, or about the benefits of having writing skills in general.

I forgot to talk about the  power of story. I didn’t bother to tell them that the ability to tell a captivating story is one of the things that makes human beings extraordinary. It’s how we connect to each other. It’s something to celebrate, to study, to perfect. If we’re going to talk about how to teach students to write stories, we should start by thinking about why we tell stories at all . If we can pass that on to our students, then we will be going beyond a school assignment; we will be doing something transcendent.

Now. How do we get them to write those stories? I’m going to share the process I used for teaching narrative writing. I used this process with middle school students, but it would work with most age groups.

A Note About Form: Personal Narrative or Short Story?

When teaching narrative writing, many teachers separate personal narratives from short stories. In my own classroom, I tended to avoid having my students write short stories because personal narratives were more accessible. I could usually get students to write about something that really happened, while it was more challenging to get them to make something up from scratch.

In the “real” world of writers, though, the main thing that separates memoir from fiction is labeling: A writer might base a novel heavily on personal experiences, but write it all in third person and change the names of characters to protect the identities of people in real life. Another writer might create a short story in first person that reads like a personal narrative, but is entirely fictional. Just last weekend my husband and I watched the movie Lion and were glued to the screen the whole time, knowing it was based on a true story. James Frey’s book  A Million Little Pieces  sold millions of copies as a memoir but was later found to contain more than a little bit of fiction. Then there are unique books like Curtis Sittenfeld’s brilliant novel American Wife , based heavily on the early life of Laura Bush but written in first person, with fictional names and settings, and labeled as a work of fiction. The line between fact and fiction has always been really, really blurry, but the common thread running through all of it is good storytelling.

With that in mind, the process for teaching narrative writing can be exactly the same for writing personal narratives or short stories; it’s the same skill set. So if you think your students can handle the freedom, you might decide to let them choose personal narrative or fiction for a narrative writing assignment, or simply tell them that whether the story is true doesn’t matter, as long as they are telling a good story and they are not trying to pass off a fictional story as fact.

Here are some examples of what that kind of flexibility could allow:

  • A student might tell a true story from their own experience, but write it as if it were a fiction piece, with fictional characters, in third person.
  • A student might create a completely fictional story, but tell it in first person, which would give it the same feel as a personal narrative.
  • A student might tell a true story that happened to someone else, but write it in first person, as if they were that person. For example, I could write about my grandmother’s experience of getting lost as a child, but I might write it in her voice.

If we aren’t too restrictive about what we call these pieces, and we talk about different possibilities with our students, we can end up with lots of interesting outcomes. Meanwhile, we’re still teaching students the craft of narrative writing.

A Note About Process: Write With Your Students

One of the most powerful techniques I used as a writing teacher was to do my students’ writing assignments with them. I would start my own draft at the same time as they did, composing “live” on the classroom projector, and doing a lot of thinking out loud so they could see all the decisions a writer has to make.

The most helpful parts for them to observe were the early drafting stage, where I just scratched out whatever came to me in messy, run-on sentences, and the revision stage, where I crossed things out, rearranged, and made tons of notes on my writing. I have seen over and over again how witnessing that process can really help to unlock a student’s understanding of how writing actually gets made.

A Narrative Writing Unit Plan

Before I get into these steps, I should note that there is no one right way to teach narrative writing, and plenty of accomplished teachers are doing it differently and getting great results. This just happens to be a process that has worked for me.

Step 1: Show Students That Stories Are Everywhere

Getting our students to tell stories should be easy. They hear and tell stories all the time. But when they actually have to put words on paper, they forget their storytelling abilities: They can’t think of a topic. They omit relevant details, but go on and on about irrelevant ones. Their dialogue is bland. They can’t figure out how to start. They can’t figure out how to end.

So the first step in getting good narrative writing from students is to help them see that they are already telling stories every day . They gather at lockers to talk about that thing that happened over the weekend. They sit at lunch and describe an argument they had with a sibling. Without even thinking about it, they begin sentences with “This one time…” and launch into stories about their earlier childhood experiences. Students are natural storytellers; learning how to do it well on paper is simply a matter of studying good models, then imitating what those writers do.

So start off the unit by getting students to tell their stories. In journal quick-writes, think-pair-shares, or by playing a game like Concentric Circles , prompt them to tell some of their own brief stories: A time they were embarrassed. A time they lost something. A time they didn’t get to do something they really wanted to do. By telling their own short anecdotes, they will grow more comfortable and confident in their storytelling abilities. They will also be generating a list of topic ideas. And by listening to the stories of their classmates, they will be adding onto that list and remembering more of their own stories.

And remember to tell some of your own. Besides being a good way to bond with students, sharing  your stories will help them see more possibilities for the ones they can tell.

Step 2: Study the Structure of a Story

Now that students have a good library of their own personal stories pulled into short-term memory, shift your focus to a more formal study of what a story looks like.

Use a diagram to show students a typical story arc like the one below. Then, using a simple story—like this Coca Cola commercial —fill out the story arc with the components from that story. Once students have seen this story mapped out, have them try it with another one, like a story you’ve read in class, a whole novel, or another short video.

narrative writing powerpoint 7th grade

Step 3: Introduce the Assignment

Up to this point, students have been immersed in storytelling. Now give them specific instructions for what they are going to do. Share your assignment rubric so they understand the criteria that will be used to evaluate them; it should be ready and transparent right from the beginning of the unit. As always, I recommend using a single point rubric for this.

Step 4: Read Models

Once the parameters of the assignment have been explained, have students read at least one model story, a mentor text that exemplifies the qualities you’re looking for. This should be a story on a topic your students can kind of relate to, something they could see themselves writing. For my narrative writing unit (see the end of this post), I wrote a story called “Frog” about a 13-year-old girl who finally gets to stay home alone, then finds a frog in her house and gets completely freaked out, which basically ruins the fun she was planning for the night.

They will be reading this model as writers, looking at how the author shaped the text for a purpose, so that they can use those same strategies in their own writing. Have them look at your rubric and find places in the model that illustrate the qualities listed in the rubric. Then have them complete a story arc for the model so they can see the underlying structure.

Ideally, your students will have already read lots of different stories to look to as models. If that isn’t the case, this list of narrative texts recommended by Cult of Pedagogy followers on Twitter would be a good place to browse for titles that might be right for your students. Keep in mind that we have not read most of these stories, so be sure to read them first before adopting them for classroom use.

narrative writing powerpoint 7th grade

Click the image above to view the full list of narrative texts recommended by Cult of Pedagogy followers on Twitter. If you have a suggestion for the list, please email us through our contact page.

Step 5: Story Mapping

At this point, students will need to decide what they are going to write about. If they are stuck for a topic, have them just pick something they can write about, even if it’s not the most captivating story in the world. A skilled writer could tell a great story about deciding what to have for lunch. If they are using the skills of narrative writing, the topic isn’t as important as the execution.

Have students complete a basic story arc for their chosen topic using a diagram like the one below. This will help them make sure that they actually have a story to tell, with an identifiable problem, a sequence of events that build to a climax, and some kind of resolution, where something is different by the end. Again, if you are writing with your students, this would be an important step to model for them with your own story-in-progress.

narrative writing powerpoint 7th grade

Step 6: Quick Drafts

Now, have students get their chosen story down on paper as quickly as possible: This could be basically a long paragraph that would read almost like a summary, but it would contain all the major parts of the story. Model this step with your own story, so they can see that you are not shooting for perfection in any way. What you want is a working draft, a starting point, something to build on for later, rather than a blank page (or screen) to stare at.

Step 7: Plan the Pacing

Now that the story has been born in raw form, students can begin to shape it. This would be a good time for a lesson on pacing, where students look at how writers expand some moments to create drama and shrink other moments so that the story doesn’t drag. Creating a diagram like the one below forces a writer to decide how much space to devote to all of the events in the story.

narrative writing powerpoint 7th grade

Before students write a full draft, have them plan out the events in their story with a pacing diagram, a visual representation of how much “space” each part of the story is going to take up.

Step 8: Long Drafts

With a good plan in hand, students can now slow down and write a proper draft, expanding the sections of their story that they plan to really draw out and adding in more of the details that they left out in the quick draft.

Step 9: Workshop

Once students have a decent rough draft—something that has a basic beginning, middle, and end, with some discernible rising action, a climax of some kind, and a resolution, you’re ready to shift into full-on workshop mode. I would do this for at least a week: Start class with a short mini-lesson on some aspect of narrative writing craft, then give students the rest of the period to write, conference with you, and collaborate with their peers. During that time, they should focus some of their attention on applying the skill they learned in the mini-lesson to their drafts, so they will improve a little bit every day.

Topics for mini-lessons can include:

  • How to weave exposition into your story so you don’t give readers an “information dump”
  • How to carefully select dialogue to create good scenes, rather than quoting everything in a conversation
  • How to punctuate and format dialogue so that it imitates the natural flow of a conversation
  • How to describe things using sensory details and figurative language; also,  what  to describe…students too often give lots of irrelevant detail
  • How to choose precise nouns and vivid verbs, use a variety of sentence lengths and structures, and add transitional words, phrases, and features to help the reader follow along
  • How to start, end, and title a story

Step 10: Final Revisions and Edits

As the unit nears its end, students should be shifting away from revision , in which they alter the content of a piece, toward editing , where they make smaller changes to the mechanics of the writing. Make sure students understand the difference between the two: They should not be correcting each other’s spelling and punctuation in the early stages of this process, when the focus should be on shaping a better story.

One of the most effective strategies for revision and editing is to have students read their stories out loud. In the early stages, this will reveal places where information is missing or things get confusing. Later, more read-alouds will help them immediately find missing words, unintentional repetitions, and sentences that just “sound weird.” So get your students to read their work out loud frequently. It also helps to print stories on paper: For some reason, seeing the words in print helps us notice things we didn’t see on the screen.

To get the most from peer review, where students read and comment on each other’s work, more modeling from you is essential: Pull up a sample piece of writing and show students how to give specific feedback that helps, rather than simply writing “good detail” or “needs more detail,” the two comments I saw exchanged most often on students’ peer-reviewed papers.

Step 11: Final Copies and Publication

Once revision and peer review are done, students will hand in their final copies. If you don’t want to get stuck with 100-plus papers to grade, consider using Catlin Tucker’s station rotation model , which keeps all the grading in class. And when you do return stories with your own feedback, try using Kristy Louden’s delayed grade strategy , where students don’t see their final grade until they have read your written feedback.

Beyond the standard hand-in-for-a-grade, consider other ways to have students publish their stories. Here are some options:

  • Stories could be published as individual pages on a collaborative website or blog.
  • Students could create illustrated e-books out of their stories.
  • Students could create a slideshow to accompany their stories and record them as digital storytelling videos. This could be done with a tool like Screencastify or Screencast-O-Matic .

So this is what worked for me. If you’ve struggled to get good stories from your students, try some or all of these techniques next time. I think you’ll find that all of your students have some pretty interesting stories to tell. Helping them tell their stories well is a gift that will serve them for many years after they leave your classroom. ♦

Want this unit ready-made?

If you’re a writing teacher in grades 7-12 and you’d like a classroom-ready unit like the one described above, including slideshow mini-lessons on 14 areas of narrative craft, a sample narrative piece, editable rubrics, and other supplemental materials to guide students through every stage of the process, take a look at my Narrative Writing unit . Just click on the image below and you’ll be taken to a page where you can read more and see a detailed preview of what’s included.

narrative writing powerpoint 7th grade

What to Read Next

narrative writing powerpoint 7th grade

Categories: Instruction , Podcast

Tags: English language arts , Grades 6-8 , Grades 9-12 , teaching strategies

50 Comments

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Wow, this is a wonderful guide! If my English teachers had taught this way, I’m sure I would have enjoyed narrative writing instead of dreading it. I’ll be able to use many of these suggestions when writing my blog! BrP

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Lst year I was so discouraged because the short stories looked like the quick drafts described in this article. I thought I had totally failed until I read this and realized I did not fai,l I just needed to complete the process. Thank you!

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I feel like you jumped in my head and connected my thoughts. I appreciate the time you took to stop and look closely at form. I really believe that student-writers should see all dimensions of narrative writing and be able to live in whichever style and voice they want for their work.

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Can’t thank you enough for this. So well curated that one can just follow it blindly and ace at teaching it. Thanks again!

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Great post! I especially liked your comments about reminding kids about the power of storytelling. My favourite podcasts and posts from you are always about how to do things in the classroom and I appreciate the research you do.

On a side note, the ice breakers are really handy. My kids know each other really well (rural community), and can tune out pretty quickly if there is nothing new to learn about their peers, but they like the games (and can remember where we stopped last time weeks later). I’ve started changing them up with ‘life questions’, so the editable version is great!

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I love writing with my students and loved this podcast! A fun extension to this narrative is to challenge students to write another story about the same event, but use the perspective of another “character” from the story. Books like Wonder (R.J. Palacio) and Wanderer (Sharon Creech) can model the concept for students.

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Thank you for your great efforts to reveal the practical writing strategies in layered details. As English is not my first language, I need listen to your podcast and read the text repeatedly so to fully understand. It’s worthy of the time for some great post like yours. I love sharing so I send the link to my English practice group that it can benefit more. I hope I could be able to give you some feedback later on.

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Thank you for helping me get to know better especially the techniques in writing narrative text. Im an English teacher for 5years but have little knowledge on writing. I hope you could feature techniques in writing news and fearute story. God bless and more power!

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Thank you for this! I am very interested in teaching a unit on personal narrative and this was an extremely helpful breakdown. As a current student teacher I am still unsure how to approach breaking down the structures of different genres of writing in a way that is helpful for me students but not too restrictive. The story mapping tools you provided really allowed me to think about this in a new way. Writing is such a powerful way to experience the world and more than anything I want my students to realize its power. Stories are how we make sense of the world and as an English teacher I feel obligated to give my students access to this particular skill.

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The power of story is unfathomable. There’s this NGO in India doing some great work in harnessing the power of storytelling and plots to brighten children’s lives and enlighten them with true knowledge. Check out Katha India here: http://bit.ly/KathaIndia

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Thank you so much for this. I did not go to college to become a writing professor, but due to restructuring in my department, I indeed am! This is a wonderful guide that I will use when teaching the narrative essay. I wonder if you have a similar guide for other modes such as descriptive, process, argument, etc.?

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Hey Melanie, Jenn does have another guide on writing! Check out A Step-by-Step Plan for Teaching Argumentative Writing .

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Hi, I am also wondering if there is a similar guide for descriptive writing in particular?

Hey Melanie, unfortunately Jenn doesn’t currently have a guide for descriptive writing. She’s always working on projects though, so she may get around to writing a unit like this in the future. You can always check her Teachers Pay Teachers page for an up-to-date list of materials she has available. Thanks!

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I want to write about the new character in my area

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That’s great! Let us know if you need any supports during your writing process!

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I absolutely adore this unit plan. I teach freshmen English at a low-income high school and wanted to find something to help my students find their voice. It is not often that I borrow material, but I borrowed and adapted all of it in the order that it is presented! It is cohesive, understandable, and fun. Thank you!!

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So glad to hear this, Nicole!

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Thanks sharing this post. My students often get confused between personal narratives and short stories. Whenever I ask them to write a short story, she share their own experiences and add a bit of fiction in it to make it interesting.

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Thank you! My students have loved this so far. I do have a question as to where the “Frog” story mentioned in Step 4 is. I could really use it! Thanks again.

This is great to hear, Emily! In Step 4, Jenn mentions that she wrote the “Frog” story for her narrative writing unit . Just scroll down the bottom of the post and you’ll see a link to the unit.

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I also cannot find the link to the short story “Frog”– any chance someone can send it or we can repost it?

This story was written for Jenn’s narrative writing unit. You can find a link to this unit in Step 4 or at the bottom of the article. Hope this helps.

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I cannot find the frog story mentioned. Could you please send the link.? Thank you

Hi Michelle,

The Frog story was written for Jenn’s narrative writing unit. There’s a link to this unit in Step 4 and at the bottom of the article.

Debbie- thanks for you reply… but there is no link to the story in step 4 or at the bottom of the page….

Hey Shawn, the frog story is part of Jenn’s narrative writing unit, which is available on her Teachers Pay Teachers site. The link Debbie is referring to at the bottom of this post will take you to her narrative writing unit and you would have to purchase that to gain access to the frog story. I hope this clears things up.

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Thank you so much for this resource! I’m a high school English teacher, and am currently teaching creative writing for the first time. I really do value your blog, podcast, and other resources, so I’m excited to use this unit. I’m a cyber school teacher, so clear, organized layout is important; and I spend a lot of time making sure my content is visually accessible for my students to process. Thanks for creating resources that are easy for us teachers to process and use.

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Do you have a lesson for Informative writing?

Hey Cari, Jenn has another unit on argumentative writing , but doesn’t have one yet on informative writing. She may develop one in the future so check back in sometime.

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I had the same question. Informational writing is so difficult to have a good strong unit in when you have so many different text structures to meet and need text-dependent writing tasks.

Creating an informational writing unit is still on Jenn’s long list of projects to get to, but in the meantime, if you haven’t already, check out When We All Teach Text Structures, Everyone Wins . It might help you out!

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This is a great lesson! It would be helpful to see a finished draft of the frog narrative arc. Students’ greatest challenge is transferring their ideas from the planner to a full draft. To see a full sample of how this arc was transformed into a complete narrative draft would be a powerful learning tool.

Hi Stacey! Jenn goes into more depth with the “Frog” lesson in her narrative writing unit – this is where you can find a sample of what a completed story arc might look. Also included is a draft of the narrative. If interested in checking out the unit and seeing a preview, just scroll down to the bottom of the post and click on the image. Hope this helps!

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Helped me learn for an entrance exam thanks very much

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Is the narrative writing lesson you talk about in https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/narrative-writing/

Also doable for elementary students you think, and if to what levels?

Love your work, Sincerely, Zanyar

Hey Zanyar,

It’s possible the unit would work with 4th and 5th graders, but Jenn definitely wouldn’t recommend going any younger. The main reason for this is that some of the mini-lessons in the unit could be challenging for students who are still concrete thinkers. You’d likely need to do some adjusting and scaffolding which could extend the unit beyond the 3 weeks. Having said that, I taught 1st grade and found the steps of the writing process, as described in the post, to be very similar. Of course learning targets/standards were different, but the process itself can be applied to any grade level (modeling writing, using mentor texts to study how stories work, planning the structure of the story, drafting, elaborating, etc.) Hope this helps!

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This has made my life so much easier. After teaching in different schools systems, from the American, to British to IB, one needs to identify the anchor standards and concepts, that are common between all these systems, to build well balanced thematic units. Just reading these steps gave me the guidance I needed to satisfy both the conceptual framework the schools ask for and the standards-based practice. Thank you Thank you.

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Would this work for teaching a first grader about narrative writing? I am also looking for a great book to use as a model for narrative writing. Veggie Monster is being used by his teacher and he isn’t connecting with this book in the least bit, so it isn’t having a positive impact. My fear is he will associate this with writing and I don’t want a negative association connected to such a beautiful process and experience. Any suggestions would be helpful.

Thank you for any information you can provide!

Although I think the materials in the actual narrative writing unit are really too advanced for a first grader, the general process that’s described in the blog post can still work really well.

I’m sorry your child isn’t connecting with The Night of the Veggie Monster. Try to keep in mind that the main reason this is used as a mentor text is because it models how a small moment story can be told in a big way. It’s filled with all kinds of wonderful text features that impact the meaning of the story – dialogue, description, bold text, speech bubbles, changes in text size, ellipses, zoomed in images, text placement, text shape, etc. All of these things will become mini-lessons throughout the unit. But there are lots of other wonderful mentor texts that your child might enjoy. My suggestion for an early writer, is to look for a small moment text, similar in structure, that zooms in on a problem that a first grader can relate to. In addition to the mentor texts that I found in this article , you might also want to check out Knuffle Bunny, Kitten’s First Full Moon, When Sophie Gets Angry Really Really Angry, and Whistle for Willie. Hope this helps!

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I saw this on Pinterest the other day while searching for examples of narritives units/lessons. I clicked on it because I always click on C.o.P stuff 🙂 And I wasn’t disapointed. I was intrigued by the connection of narratives to humanity–even if a student doesn’t identify as a writer, he/she certainly is human, right? I really liked this. THIS clicked with me.

A few days after I read the P.o.C post, I ventured on to YouTube for more ideas to help guide me with my 8th graders’ narrative writing this coming spring. And there was a TEDx video titled, “The Power of Personal Narrative” by J. Christan Jensen. I immediately remembered the line from the article above that associated storytelling with “power” and how it sets humans apart and if introduced and taught as such, it can be “extraordinary.”

I watched the video and to the suprise of my expectations, it was FANTASTIC. Between Jennifer’s post and the TEDx video ignited within me some major motivation and excitement to begin this unit.

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Thanks for sharing this with us! So glad that Jenn’s post paired with another text gave you some motivation and excitement. I’ll be sure to pass this on to Jenn!

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Thank you very much for this really helpful post! I really love the idea of helping our students understand that storytelling is powerful and then go on to teach them how to harness that power. That is the essence of teaching literature or writing at any level. However, I’m a little worried about telling students that whether a piece of writing is fact or fiction does not matter. It in fact matters a lot precisely because storytelling is powerful. Narratives can shape people’s views and get their emotions involved which would, in turn, motivate them to act on a certain matter, whether for good or for bad. A fictional narrative that is passed as factual could cause a lot of damage in the real world. I believe we should. I can see how helping students focus on writing the story rather than the truth of it all could help refine the needed skills without distractions. Nevertheless, would it not be prudent to teach our students to not just harness the power of storytelling but refrain from misusing it by pushing false narratives as factual? It is true that in reality, memoirs pass as factual while novels do as fictional while the opposite may be true for both cases. I am not too worried about novels passing as fictional. On the other hand, fictional narratives masquerading as factual are disconcerting and part of a phenomenon that needs to be fought against, not enhanced or condoned in education. This is especially true because memoirs are often used by powerful people to write/re-write history. I would really like to hear your opinion on this. Thanks a lot for a great post and a lot of helpful resources!

Thank you so much for this. Jenn and I had a chance to chat and we can see where you’re coming from. Jenn never meant to suggest that a person should pass off a piece of fictional writing as a true story. Good stories can be true, completely fictional, or based on a true story that’s mixed with some fiction – that part doesn’t really matter. However, what does matter is how a student labels their story. We think that could have been stated more clearly in the post , so Jenn decided to add a bit about this at the end of the 3rd paragraph in the section “A Note About Form: Personal Narrative or Short Story?” Thanks again for bringing this to our attention!

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You have no idea how much your page has helped me in so many ways. I am currently in my teaching credential program and there are times that I feel lost due to a lack of experience in the classroom. I’m so glad I came across your page! Thank you for sharing!

Thanks so much for letting us know-this means a whole lot!

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No, we’re sorry. Jenn actually gets this question fairly often. It’s something she considered doing at one point, but because she has so many other projects she’s working on, she’s just not gotten to it.

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I couldn’t find the story

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Hi, Duraiya. The “Frog” story is part of Jenn’s narrative writing unit, which is available on her Teachers Pay Teachers site. The link at the bottom of this post will take you to her narrative writing unit, which you can purchase to gain access to the story. I hope this helps!

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Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students

Complete guide to Narrative Writing

MASTERING THE CRAFT OF NARRATIVE WRITING

Narratives build on and encourage the development of the fundamentals of writing. They also require developing an additional skill set: the ability to tell a good yarn, and storytelling is as old as humanity.

We see and hear stories everywhere and daily, from having good gossip on the doorstep with a neighbor in the morning to the dramas that fill our screens in the evening.

Good narrative writing skills are hard-won by students even though it is an area of writing that most enjoy due to the creativity and freedom it offers.

Here we will explore some of the main elements of a good story: plot, setting, characters, conflict, climax, and resolution . And we will look too at how best we can help our students understand these elements, both in isolation and how they mesh together as a whole.

Visual Writing Prompts

WHAT IS A NARRATIVE?

What is a narrative?

A narrative is a story that shares a sequence of events , characters, and themes. It expresses experiences, ideas, and perspectives that should aspire to engage and inspire an audience.

A narrative can spark emotion, encourage reflection, and convey meaning when done well.

Narratives are a popular genre for students and teachers as they allow the writer to share their imagination, creativity, skill, and understanding of nearly all elements of writing.  We occasionally refer to a narrative as ‘creative writing’ or story writing.

The purpose of a narrative is simple, to tell the audience a story.  It can be written to motivate, educate, or entertain and can be fact or fiction.

A COMPLETE UNIT ON TEACHING NARRATIVE WRITING

narrative writing | narrative writing unit 1 2 | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

Teach your students to become skilled story writers with this HUGE   NARRATIVE & CREATIVE STORY WRITING UNIT . Offering a  COMPLETE SOLUTION  to teaching students how to craft  CREATIVE CHARACTERS, SUPERB SETTINGS, and PERFECT PLOTS .

Over 192 PAGES of materials, including:

TYPES OF NARRATIVE WRITING

There are many narrative writing genres and sub-genres such as these.

We have a complete guide to writing a personal narrative that differs from the traditional story-based narrative covered in this guide. It includes personal narrative writing prompts, resources, and examples and can be found here.

narrative writing | how to write quest narratives | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

As we can see, narratives are an open-ended form of writing that allows you to showcase creativity in many directions. However, all narratives share a common set of features and structure known as “Story Elements”, which are briefly covered in this guide.

Don’t overlook the importance of understanding story elements and the value this adds to you as a writer who can dissect and create grand narratives. We also have an in-depth guide to understanding story elements here .

CHARACTERISTICS OF NARRATIVE WRITING

Narrative structure.

ORIENTATION (BEGINNING) Set the scene by introducing your characters, setting and time of the story. Establish your who, when and where in this part of your narrative

COMPLICATION AND EVENTS (MIDDLE) In this section activities and events involving your main characters are expanded upon. These events are written in a cohesive and fluent sequence.

RESOLUTION (ENDING) Your complication is resolved in this section. It does not have to be a happy outcome, however.

EXTRAS: Whilst orientation, complication and resolution are the agreed norms for a narrative, there are numerous examples of popular texts that did not explicitly follow this path exactly.

NARRATIVE FEATURES

LANGUAGE: Use descriptive and figurative language to paint images inside your audience’s minds as they read.

PERSPECTIVE Narratives can be written from any perspective but are most commonly written in first or third person.

DIALOGUE Narratives frequently switch from narrator to first-person dialogue. Always use speech marks when writing dialogue.

TENSE If you change tense, make it perfectly clear to your audience what is happening. Flashbacks might work well in your mind but make sure they translate to your audience.

THE PLOT MAP

narrative writing | structuring a narrative | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

This graphic is known as a plot map, and nearly all narratives fit this structure in one way or another, whether romance novels, science fiction or otherwise.

It is a simple tool that helps you understand and organise a story’s events. Think of it as a roadmap that outlines the journey of your characters and the events that unfold. It outlines the different stops along the way, such as the introduction, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution, that help you to see how the story builds and develops.

Using a plot map, you can see how each event fits into the larger picture and how the different parts of the story work together to create meaning. It’s a great way to visualize and analyze a story.

Be sure to refer to a plot map when planning a story, as it has all the essential elements of a great story.

THE 5 KEY STORY ELEMENTS OF A GREAT NARRATIVE (6-MINUTE TUTORIAL VIDEO)

This video we created provides an excellent overview of these elements and demonstrates them in action in stories we all know and love.

Story Elements for kids

HOW TO WRITE A NARRATIVE

How to write a Narrative

Now that we understand the story elements and how they come together to form stories, it’s time to start planning and writing your narrative.

In many cases, the template and guide below will provide enough details on how to craft a great story. However, if you still need assistance with the fundamentals of writing, such as sentence structure, paragraphs and using correct grammar, we have some excellent guides on those here.

USE YOUR WRITING TIME EFFECTIVELY: Maximize your narrative writing sessions by spending approximately 20 per cent of your time planning and preparing.  This ensures greater productivity during your writing time and keeps you focused and on task.

Use tools such as graphic organizers to logically sequence your narrative if you are not a confident story writer.  If you are working with reluctant writers, try using narrative writing prompts to get their creative juices flowing.

Spend most of your writing hour on the task at hand, don’t get too side-tracked editing during this time and leave some time for editing. When editing a  narrative, examine it for these three elements.

  • Spelling and grammar ( Is it readable?)
  • Story structure and continuity ( Does it make sense, and does it flow? )
  • Character and plot analysis. (Are your characters engaging? Does your problem/resolution work? )

1. SETTING THE SCENE: THE WHERE AND THE WHEN

narrative writing | aa156ee009d91a57894348652da98b58 | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

The story’s setting often answers two of the central questions in the story, namely, the where and the when. The answers to these two crucial questions will often be informed by the type of story the student is writing.

The story’s setting can be chosen to quickly orient the reader to the type of story they are reading. For example, a fictional narrative writing piece such as a horror story will often begin with a description of a haunted house on a hill or an abandoned asylum in the middle of the woods. If we start our story on a rocket ship hurtling through the cosmos on its space voyage to the Alpha Centauri star system, we can be reasonably sure that the story we are embarking on is a work of science fiction.

Such conventions are well-worn clichés true, but they can be helpful starting points for our novice novelists to make a start.

Having students choose an appropriate setting for the type of story they wish to write is an excellent exercise for our younger students. It leads naturally onto the next stage of story writing, which is creating suitable characters to populate this fictional world they have created. However, older or more advanced students may wish to play with the expectations of appropriate settings for their story. They may wish to do this for comic effect or in the interest of creating a more original story. For example, opening a story with a children’s birthday party does not usually set up the expectation of a horror story. Indeed, it may even lure the reader into a happy reverie as they remember their own happy birthday parties. This leaves them more vulnerable to the surprise element of the shocking action that lies ahead.

Once the students have chosen a setting for their story, they need to start writing. Little can be more terrifying to English students than the blank page and its bare whiteness stretching before them on the table like a merciless desert they must cross. Give them the kick-start they need by offering support through word banks or writing prompts. If the class is all writing a story based on the same theme, you may wish to compile a common word bank on the whiteboard as a prewriting activity. Write the central theme or genre in the middle of the board. Have students suggest words or phrases related to the theme and list them on the board.

You may wish to provide students with a copy of various writing prompts to get them started. While this may mean that many students’ stories will have the same beginning, they will most likely arrive at dramatically different endings via dramatically different routes.

narrative writing | story elements | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

A bargain is at the centre of the relationship between the writer and the reader. That bargain is that the reader promises to suspend their disbelief as long as the writer creates a consistent and convincing fictional reality. Creating a believable world for the fictional characters to inhabit requires the student to draw on convincing details. The best way of doing this is through writing that appeals to the senses. Have your student reflect deeply on the world that they are creating. What does it look like? Sound like? What does the food taste like there? How does it feel like to walk those imaginary streets, and what aromas beguile the nose as the main character winds their way through that conjured market?

Also, Consider the when; or the time period. Is it a future world where things are cleaner and more antiseptic? Or is it an overcrowded 16th-century London with human waste stinking up the streets? If students can create a multi-sensory installation in the reader’s mind, then they have done this part of their job well.

Popular Settings from Children’s Literature and Storytelling

  • Fairytale Kingdom
  • Magical Forest
  • Village/town
  • Underwater world
  • Space/Alien planet

2. CASTING THE CHARACTERS: THE WHO

Now that your student has created a believable world, it is time to populate it with believable characters.

In short stories, these worlds mustn’t be overpopulated beyond what the student’s skill level can manage. Short stories usually only require one main character and a few secondary ones. Think of the short story more as a small-scale dramatic production in an intimate local theater than a Hollywood blockbuster on a grand scale. Too many characters will only confuse and become unwieldy with a canvas this size. Keep it simple!

Creating believable characters is often one of the most challenging aspects of narrative writing for students. Fortunately, we can do a few things to help students here. Sometimes it is helpful for students to model their characters on actual people they know. This can make things a little less daunting and taxing on the imagination. However, whether or not this is the case, writing brief background bios or descriptions of characters’ physical personality characteristics can be a beneficial prewriting activity. Students should give some in-depth consideration to the details of who their character is: How do they walk? What do they look like? Do they have any distinguishing features? A crooked nose? A limp? Bad breath? Small details such as these bring life and, therefore, believability to characters. Students can even cut pictures from magazines to put a face to their character and allow their imaginations to fill in the rest of the details.

Younger students will often dictate to the reader the nature of their characters. To improve their writing craft, students must know when to switch from story-telling mode to story-showing mode. This is particularly true when it comes to character. Encourage students to reveal their character’s personality through what they do rather than merely by lecturing the reader on the faults and virtues of the character’s personality. It might be a small relayed detail in the way they walk that reveals a core characteristic. For example, a character who walks with their head hanging low and shoulders hunched while avoiding eye contact has been revealed to be timid without the word once being mentioned. This is a much more artistic and well-crafted way of doing things and is less irritating for the reader. A character who sits down at the family dinner table immediately snatches up his fork and starts stuffing roast potatoes into his mouth before anyone else has even managed to sit down has revealed a tendency towards greed or gluttony.

Understanding Character Traits

Again, there is room here for some fun and profitable prewriting activities. Give students a list of character traits and have them describe a character doing something that reveals that trait without ever employing the word itself.

It is also essential to avoid adjective stuffing here. When looking at students’ early drafts, adjective stuffing is often apparent. To train the student out of this habit, choose an adjective and have the student rewrite the sentence to express this adjective through action rather than telling.

When writing a story, it is vital to consider the character’s traits and how they will impact the story’s events. For example, a character with a strong trait of determination may be more likely to overcome obstacles and persevere. In contrast, a character with a tendency towards laziness may struggle to achieve their goals. In short, character traits add realism, depth, and meaning to a story, making it more engaging and memorable for the reader.

Popular Character Traits in Children’s Stories

  • Determination
  • Imagination
  • Perseverance
  • Responsibility

We have an in-depth guide to creating great characters here , but most students should be fine to move on to planning their conflict and resolution.

3. NO PROBLEM? NO STORY! HOW CONFLICT DRIVES A NARRATIVE

narrative writing | 2 RoadBlock | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

This is often the area apprentice writers have the most difficulty with. Students must understand that without a problem or conflict, there is no story. The problem is the driving force of the action. Usually, in a short story, the problem will center around what the primary character wants to happen or, indeed, wants not to happen. It is the hurdle that must be overcome. It is in the struggle to overcome this hurdle that events happen.

Often when a student understands the need for a problem in a story, their completed work will still not be successful. This is because, often in life, problems remain unsolved. Hurdles are not always successfully overcome. Students pick up on this.

We often discuss problems with friends that will never be satisfactorily resolved one way or the other, and we accept this as a part of life. This is not usually the case with writing a story. Whether a character successfully overcomes his or her problem or is decidedly crushed in the process of trying is not as important as the fact that it will finally be resolved one way or the other.

A good practical exercise for students to get to grips with this is to provide copies of stories and have them identify the central problem or conflict in each through discussion. Familiar fables or fairy tales such as Three Little Pigs, The Boy Who Cried Wolf, Cinderella, etc., are great for this.

While it is true that stories often have more than one problem or that the hero or heroine is unsuccessful in their first attempt to solve a central problem, for beginning students and intermediate students, it is best to focus on a single problem, especially given the scope of story writing at this level. Over time students will develop their abilities to handle more complex plots and write accordingly.

Popular Conflicts found in Children’s Storytelling.

  • Good vs evil
  • Individual vs society
  • Nature vs nurture
  • Self vs others
  • Man vs self
  • Man vs nature
  • Man vs technology
  • Individual vs fate
  • Self vs destiny

Conflict is the heart and soul of any good story. It’s what makes a story compelling and drives the plot forward. Without conflict, there is no story. Every great story has a struggle or a problem that needs to be solved, and that’s where conflict comes in. Conflict is what makes a story exciting and keeps the reader engaged. It creates tension and suspense and makes the reader care about the outcome.

Like in real life, conflict in a story is an opportunity for a character’s growth and transformation. It’s a chance for them to learn and evolve, making a story great. So next time stories are written in the classroom, remember that conflict is an essential ingredient, and without it, your story will lack the energy, excitement, and meaning that makes it truly memorable.

4. THE NARRATIVE CLIMAX: HOW THINGS COME TO A HEAD!

narrative writing | tension 1068x660 1 | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

The climax of the story is the dramatic high point of the action. It is also when the struggles kicked off by the problem come to a head. The climax will ultimately decide whether the story will have a happy or tragic ending. In the climax, two opposing forces duke things out until the bitter (or sweet!) end. One force ultimately emerges triumphant. As the action builds throughout the story, suspense increases as the reader wonders which of these forces will win out. The climax is the release of this suspense.

Much of the success of the climax depends on how well the other elements of the story have been achieved. If the student has created a well-drawn and believable character that the reader can identify with and feel for, then the climax will be more powerful.

The nature of the problem is also essential as it determines what’s at stake in the climax. The problem must matter dearly to the main character if it matters at all to the reader.

Have students engage in discussions about their favorite movies and books. Have them think about the storyline and decide the most exciting parts. What was at stake at these moments? What happened in your body as you read or watched? Did you breathe faster? Or grip the cushion hard? Did your heart rate increase, or did you start to sweat? This is what a good climax does and what our students should strive to do in their stories.

The climax puts it all on the line and rolls the dice. Let the chips fall where the writer may…

Popular Climax themes in Children’s Stories

  • A battle between good and evil
  • The character’s bravery saves the day
  • Character faces their fears and overcomes them
  • The character solves a mystery or puzzle.
  • The character stands up for what is right.
  • Character reaches their goal or dream.
  • The character learns a valuable lesson.
  • The character makes a selfless sacrifice.
  • The character makes a difficult decision.
  • The character reunites with loved ones or finds true friendship.

5. RESOLUTION: TYING UP LOOSE ENDS

After the climactic action, a few questions will often remain unresolved for the reader, even if all the conflict has been resolved. The resolution is where those lingering questions will be answered. The resolution in a short story may only be a brief paragraph or two. But, in most cases, it will still be necessary to include an ending immediately after the climax can feel too abrupt and leave the reader feeling unfulfilled.

An easy way to explain resolution to students struggling to grasp the concept is to point to the traditional resolution of fairy tales, the “And they all lived happily ever after” ending. This weather forecast for the future allows the reader to take their leave. Have the student consider the emotions they want to leave the reader with when crafting their resolution.

While the action is usually complete by the end of the climax, it is in the resolution that if there is a twist to be found, it will appear – think of movies such as The Usual Suspects. Pulling this off convincingly usually requires considerable skill from a student writer. Still, it may well form a challenging extension exercise for those more gifted storytellers among your students.

Popular Resolutions in Children’s Stories

  • Our hero achieves their goal
  • The character learns a valuable lesson
  • A character finds happiness or inner peace.
  • The character reunites with loved ones.
  • Character restores balance to the world.
  • The character discovers their true identity.
  • Character changes for the better.
  • The character gains wisdom or understanding.
  • Character makes amends with others.
  • The character learns to appreciate what they have.

Once students have completed their story, they can edit for grammar, vocabulary choice, spelling, etc., but not before!

As mentioned, there is a craft to storytelling, as well as an art. When accurate grammar, perfect spelling, and immaculate sentence structures are pushed at the outset, they can cause storytelling paralysis. For this reason, it is essential that when we encourage the students to write a story, we give them license to make mechanical mistakes in their use of language that they can work on and fix later.

Good narrative writing is a very complex skill to develop and will take the student years to become competent. It challenges not only the student’s technical abilities with language but also her creative faculties. Writing frames, word banks, mind maps, and visual prompts can all give valuable support as students develop the wide-ranging and challenging skills required to produce a successful narrative writing piece. But, at the end of it all, as with any craft, practice and more practice is at the heart of the matter.

TIPS FOR WRITING A GREAT NARRATIVE

  • Start your story with a clear purpose: If you can determine the theme or message you want to convey in your narrative before starting it will make the writing process so much simpler.
  • Choose a compelling storyline and sell it through great characters, setting and plot: Consider a unique or interesting story that captures the reader’s attention, then build the world and characters around it.
  • Develop vivid characters that are not all the same: Make your characters relatable and memorable by giving them distinct personalities and traits you can draw upon in the plot.
  • Use descriptive language to hook your audience into your story: Use sensory language to paint vivid images and sequences in the reader’s mind.
  • Show, don’t tell your audience: Use actions, thoughts, and dialogue to reveal character motivations and emotions through storytelling.
  • Create a vivid setting that is clear to your audience before getting too far into the plot: Describe the time and place of your story to immerse the reader fully.
  • Build tension: Refer to the story map earlier in this article and use conflict, obstacles, and suspense to keep the audience engaged and invested in your narrative.
  • Use figurative language such as metaphors, similes, and other literary devices to add depth and meaning to your narrative.
  • Edit, revise, and refine: Take the time to refine and polish your writing for clarity and impact.
  • Stay true to your voice: Maintain your unique perspective and style in your writing to make it your own.

NARRATIVE WRITING EXAMPLES (Student Writing Samples)

Below are a collection of student writing samples of narratives.  Click on the image to enlarge and explore them in greater detail.  Please take a moment to read these creative stories in detail and the teacher and student guides which highlight some of the critical elements of narratives to consider before writing.

Please understand these student writing samples are not intended to be perfect examples for each age or grade level but a piece of writing for students and teachers to explore together to critically analyze to improve student writing skills and deepen their understanding of story writing.

We recommend reading the example either a year above or below, as well as the grade you are currently working with, to gain a broader appreciation of this text type.

narrative writing | Narrative writing example year 3 1 | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

NARRATIVE WRITING PROMPTS (Journal Prompts)

When students have a great journal prompt, it can help them focus on the task at hand, so be sure to view our vast collection of visual writing prompts for various text types here or use some of these.

  • On a recent European trip, you find your travel group booked into the stunning and mysterious Castle Frankenfurter for a single night…  As night falls, the massive castle of over one hundred rooms seems to creak and groan as a series of unexplained events begin to make you wonder who or what else is spending the evening with you. Write a narrative that tells the story of your evening.
  • You are a famous adventurer who has discovered new lands; keep a travel log over a period of time in which you encounter new and exciting adventures and challenges to overcome.  Ensure your travel journal tells a story and has a definite introduction, conflict and resolution.
  • You create an incredible piece of technology that has the capacity to change the world.  As you sit back and marvel at your innovation and the endless possibilities ahead of you, it becomes apparent there are a few problems you didn’t really consider. You might not even be able to control them.  Write a narrative in which you ride the highs and lows of your world-changing creation with a clear introduction, conflict and resolution.
  • As the final door shuts on the Megamall, you realise you have done it…  You and your best friend have managed to sneak into the largest shopping centre in town and have the entire place to yourselves until 7 am tomorrow.  There is literally everything and anything a child would dream of entertaining themselves for the next 12 hours.  What amazing adventures await you?  What might go wrong?  And how will you get out of there scot-free?
  • A stranger walks into town…  Whilst appearing similar to almost all those around you, you get a sense that this person is from another time, space or dimension… Are they friends or foes?  What makes you sense something very strange is going on?   Suddenly they stand up and walk toward you with purpose extending their hand… It’s almost as if they were reading your mind.

NARRATIVE WRITING VIDEO TUTORIAL

narrative writing | Copy of Copy of Copy of HOW TO WRITE POEMS | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

Teaching Resources

Use our resources and tools to improve your student’s writing skills through proven teaching strategies.

When teaching narrative writing, it is essential that you have a range of tools, strategies and resources at your disposal to ensure you get the most out of your writing time.  You can find some examples below, which are free and paid premium resources you can use instantly without any preparation.

FREE Narrative Graphic Organizer

narrative writing | NarrativeGraphicOrganizer | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

THE STORY TELLERS BUNDLE OF TEACHING RESOURCES

narrative writing | story tellers bundle 1 | Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students | literacyideas.com

A MASSIVE COLLECTION of resources for narratives and story writing in the classroom covering all elements of crafting amazing stories. MONTHS WORTH OF WRITING LESSONS AND RESOURCES, including:

NARRATIVE WRITING CHECKLIST BUNDLE

writing checklists

OTHER GREAT ARTICLES ABOUT NARRATIVE WRITING

narrative writing | Narrative2BWriting2BStrategies2Bfor2Bjuniors2B28129 | Narrative Writing for Kids: Essential Skills and Strategies | literacyideas.com

Narrative Writing for Kids: Essential Skills and Strategies

narrative writing | narrative writing lessons | 7 Great Narrative Lesson Plans Students and Teachers Love | literacyideas.com

7 Great Narrative Lesson Plans Students and Teachers Love

narrative writing | Top narrative writing skills for students | Top 7 Narrative Writing Exercises for Students | literacyideas.com

Top 7 Narrative Writing Exercises for Students

narrative writing | how to write a scary horror story | How to Write a Scary Story | literacyideas.com

How to Write a Scary Story

The content for this page has been written by Shane Mac Donnchaidh.  A former principal of an international school and English university lecturer with 15 years of teaching and administration experience. Shane’s latest Book, The Complete Guide to Nonfiction Writing , can be found here.  Editing and support for this article have been provided by the literacyideas team.

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Narrative Writing PPT

Narrative Writing

A comprehensive presentation on narrative writing, this should be shown to a class before the writing process begins. There are not activities listed, so pupils can take notes on the elements of narrative writing and figurative language. Examples are included. Since there are 29 slides, this might take more than one class period to view. 

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Teacher's Notepad

45 Narrative Writing Prompts for 7th Grade

Preteens and teenagers have a lot to say, but they don’t always know just how to express their emotions or say what’s on their mind.

By implementing narrative writing into your curriculum, you give your students an outlet to experiment with in a safe and structured environment.

Below, you will find a list of narrative writing prompts to help your 7th graders let out some of their thoughts and get them writing about something that matters to them.

Using This Guide

You can use this guide to help students come out of their shell, or keep it handy for when they have some down time in between activities.

Consider challenging your students to write using one prompt a day for an entire school week, and express to them the importance of thinking deeply about the things they think, feel, and remember.

The Writing Prompts

  • Write about a time when you felt proud of yourself.
  • Tell the story of how you met your best friend.
  • Write about a time when you felt left out of a group.
  • Do you consider yourself to be a good ally? Explain.
  • When was the last time you felt afraid? Write about what happened.
  • If you could have any superpower, what would it be? Why?
  • What is the thing you like most about yourself? What are some things you could do to improve this quality?
  • Talk about a time when you felt misunderstood by an adult or authority figure.
  • Explain what it means to be a good friend.
  • What do you think is your worst habit? What steps could you take to break this habit?
  • Write about a time when you realized you let someone down. How did you feel? How do you think they felt?
  • If you could be a part of any fictional family, which would you choose? Why?
  • What is your favorite way to spend time with your friends? Why?
  • Write the step-by-step process of preparing your favorite food.
  • Write about the last time you felt an adrenaline rush.
  • Do you think social media is good or bad for teenagers? Explain your answer.
  • What does school spirit mean to you? What are some ways you could show more school spirit?
  • Write about a time when you felt publicly embarrassed. How was the situation resolved?
  • What do you think it means to be successful in life? Use examples.
  • Write about a time when you got in trouble for something that you didn’t do.
  • Describe the funniest thing you’ve ever seen.
  • Why is it important to keep trying even when something seems too hard?
  • How do you normally spend New Year’s Eve?
  • How is middle school different from elementary school? How are they the same?
  • Write about the last time you apologized to someone. How did you both feel after?
  • Have you ever been a victim of racial profiling? How did it make you feel?
  • Talk about the last gift you received. Who was it from? Did you like it?
  • Have you ever felt like someone invaded your privacy? Write about what happened.
  • Is there a teacher who has made an impact on your education? What makes them special?
  • Have you ever visited another country? What was it like? If you haven’t, where would you like to visit? Why?
  • What would you do if you woke up tomorrow and discovered you were invisible?
  • What is your favorite holiday? What makes it special?
  • If you found $200 on the ground, what would you do with it? Explain your answer.
  • Think of an important family photo. Write the story behind it.
  • If your best friend were a season, which would they be? Why?
  • How do you define failure? What are some steps you could take to ensure you succeed instead of failing?
  • Describe your idea of the perfect snow day.
  • Write about the last time you had a misunderstanding with someone. How was it resolved?
  • If you could make one new rule for your school, what would it be? Why?
  • Is there anything specific that makes you feel anxious? How do you face this thing?
  • If you could get rid of one school rule, what would it be? Why?
  • Do you think it’s more important to explore space or to explore the oceans? Explain your answer.
  • Has anyone ever spoken over you or cut you off while you were saying something important? How did it make you feel?
  • Have you ever performed on stage? Write about your experience.
  • What is the scariest thing you’ve ever done?

Looking For More?

If you’re looking for something specific and can’t find it here, reach out and let us know. We’d love to help shape the minds of the future. 

narrative writing powerpoint 7th grade

Free Printable Narrative Writing Worksheets for 7th Grade

Narrative Writing: Discover a collection of free printable worksheets for Grade 7 Reading & Writing teachers, focusing on enhancing students' narrative writing skills and creativity.

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Narrative Writing worksheets for Grade 7 are an essential tool for teachers to help their students develop strong reading and writing skills. These worksheets focus on various aspects of narrative writing, such as creating engaging characters, building a compelling plot, and using descriptive language. By incorporating these worksheets into their lesson plans, teachers can provide their students with the necessary practice to improve their writing abilities. Additionally, these worksheets can be used to teach students about different types of narratives, such as fiction and nonfiction writing. As students progress through their Grade 7 curriculum, they will become more confident in their reading and writing abilities, thanks to the support provided by these valuable resources.

Quizizz is an excellent platform that offers a variety of educational resources, including Narrative Writing worksheets for Grade 7. Teachers can use Quizizz to create engaging and interactive quizzes, which can be used alongside the worksheets to assess students' understanding of the material. Furthermore, Quizizz offers a wide range of other resources, such as Reading & Writing activities and Nonfiction Writing exercises, which can be used to supplement the Narrative Writing worksheets. By incorporating Quizizz into their teaching strategies, teachers can provide a well-rounded and comprehensive approach to developing their students' reading and writing skills. This platform not only helps students improve their abilities but also makes learning fun and enjoyable, ensuring that students remain engaged and motivated throughout their Grade 7 journey.

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Page 1: 7th grade Narrative Writing

7th Grade Writer’s Workshop

Writing Realistic Fiction

Page 2: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Session 1-Imagining Stories from Everyday Moments

Fiction Writers get their ideas from real life not from the clouds!

John Green-The Fault in Our Stars› A personal friend inspired his story!

S.E. Hinton-Outsiders › Thought of it when she was 15!› Her friend was called a “Greaser” and was

beaten up while walking home from school.***Just remember they don’t write down all the

details. That is where their imagination comes from!

Page 3: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Imagination

Fiction writers can find significant stories in the most ordinary, maybe even boring moments from their notebooks.

Any event that you experience (emotions) could be the starting point of a great fiction story!

Page 4: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Small Moment Story Demo

One time I remember that I had some really strong emotions was when I was in 7th grade, and I was walking into school and I slipped on the wet floor in front of everyone. I was so embarrassed. I wrote a sample of this story for you to see.

Page 5: 7th grade Narrative Writing

As I was working on that story, many ideas popped into my head for fiction stories that I could write. › Maybe I could write a whole fiction story

about a girl who is clumsy and everything always seems to go wrong for until one day it all goes right.

› Maybe I can write a story about a boy who seems to have bad luck and until he realizes his self-confidence can’t escape the misfortunes he endures.

Page 6: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Strategies for Generating Personal Narrative Topics-Glue these handouts in your writers notebook

Think of a person who matters to you, list small moment stories, then choose one and write.

Think about a place that matters to you. Think of a first or last time you did

something you feel is important. Think of moments that really matter to

you because you feel you have realized and or learned something from that experience.

How to Write Compelling Fiction.pdf

Page 7: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Think-Pair-Share

Think of a small moment that has happened in this classroom so far this year.

Now turn to a partner at your table and share your ideas. › Make sure to tell it with dialogue, action and

thinking.› If, as you’re telling your partner a story, you

get an idea for a possible fiction story that could be built off of it, go ahead and share that new idea too.

Page 8: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Great fiction ideas reside in small moments from our REAL life experiences and emotions.

Spend the next few minutes, jotting down small moments from your lives, using the handout, in your writers notebook section.

Page 9: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Are you stuck?

Think about the ‘setting’ of events. Almost any location will work to help you produce a fiction story.› Principal’s office, a backyard, a grandmother’s

kitchen, a fast-food restaurant, etc…

› On your handout add the following: Think about a place that matters and jot about the

small moments that occur there, choose one, and write a story.

Then, spend a few more minutes jotting small moment stories in your writers notebooks.

Page 10: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Looking back…

Let’s look at the Grade 6 Narrative Writing checklist

Assess my small moment story with me. › This often takes me more than one look at

a product! Look at your small moment stories and

star two or three small moments that you think represent the kind of work you typically do as a writer.

6th Narrative Checklist.pdf

Page 11: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Carl Hiassen admits that he reads newspapers to get inspiration for his fiction stories. He looks for interesting and quirky stories that really happened and imagines how he might change them.

On a separate sheet of paper, jot down as many ideas as you can for fiction stories. Look at a blog or newspaper for inspiration if you have time. You will be showing me this in class tomorrow, so make sure you do it!

Page 12: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Session 2-Imagining Stories You Wish Existed in the World

Teaching Point: Today I want to teach you that writers collect ideas for stories by both discovering tiny details that could blossom into whole stories and by thinking about stories that they believe should exist.

Think “How can I write a story for people like me so I can see myself in books?› We like finding ourselves in the books we are

reading. It makes it more exciting to us. Examples: books on divorce when our parents are

splitting up, books on being selected last for a sports team, etc…

Page 13: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Demonstration-Past Student

First, they thought about the books they wanted to read. Wished there was more books about people like her who were half Mexican. Want to be more popular than she is.

Her story plan: A girl who is half Mexican lives with both her parents but she thinks her father works too much. She wishes her father were around more because when he’s around she feels less lonely. But his job keeps him far away and the little girl tries to put on a brave face so her parents don’t worry about her.› Can you see how when she wrote she jotted a few sentences like

how she might actually write the story? She didn’t just tell what her story idea was.

› Here’s an idea you should hold onto: when you are collecting ideas for stories in your writer’s notebook, you get ideas not only from rereading old entries, but from thinking about books you wish existed in the world!

Page 14: 7th grade Narrative Writing

So let’s try it. Maybe think to yourself, “I wish there were books about kids who aren’t that good at sports.”

Remember that to make that wish into a story idea, you need to invent some details.

You can do so by asking questions of your story idea. Why isn’t the kid in the story good at sports? Which sports? What has happened lately that shows these struggles?

Page 15: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Turn and Talk-

Tell your partner how you could turn this into a story idea. Remember to think about the character, his or her traits, and their struggle. Think about the characters wants and what he or she does.

Who would like to share their detailed story idea with the class?

Page 16: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Another method to creating stories…

Think about an issue that is important to you, and create a character who struggles with that issue.

Examples: Maybe honesty is important to you, so you write

the topic at the top of the page and then you brainstorm all the stories that could stem from honesty.

You could write about a character who lies and gets caught or about a parent who insists on honesty, except one time the kid caught their parents lying.

Page 17: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Continue collecting story ideas!

You can use any of the strategies we’ve learned or others that you invent. Add the following to your notebook!

How to Find Ideas for Fiction1. Pay attention to the small moments in your life that could be

fictionalized.2. Think of a person who matters to you.3. Consider places where stories could take place, and then imagine those

stories.4. Think of a time you did something you felt was important5. Think of moments that matter to you because you learned something

from them.6. Read about current events in newspapers, blogs, magazines, etc. Allow

yourself to be inspired by true events that could be fictionalized.7. Ask, “What stories do I wish existed in the world?” Let this question lead

you to invent a character with traits, struggles and actions.8. Think about an issue that is important to you, and create a character

who struggles with that issue.

Page 18: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Time to Share!

I want to give you a chance to share your ideas, quickly, before writing time is over. When I point to you, give a short synopsis of just one of your story ideas. Tell us:› The name of your character› What his or her struggle or longing is› The circumstances he or she is in that swings

the story into action.Rules for Symphony Sharing:1. No commenting. Just listen to the story

Page 19: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Choosing a meaningful story idea!

Think about which story idea you like best.

Which of these stories feels the most meaningful to you?

Or you might consider, which one does the world need you to write?

Don’t write the story itself for homework! Just complete the handout provided!

7th Grade Bend 1 Session 2 Homework: Choosing a Meaningful Story Idea

Name: ______________________________________________ Period: _________________

Directions:

1. Select one of the story ideas you put down in your writers notebook as the one you’d like to write about over the next few days/weeks. Name one character: _____________

2. Answer the following: “I think this is an important story for me to write because ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. Explain what the story idea does for you and what you imagine it would do for your readers. What should your audience learn from your story?

Page 20: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Session 3- Developing Believable Characters through Scene Boot Camp

Get our your homework from yesterday!

Teaching Point: Today I want to teach you that, just as people take a car for a test-drive before buying it, writers take their characters from a possible story out for a test scene. They place their characters in everyday scenes, outside of the storylines, and then see how their characters think, move and act.

Page 21: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Writing Advice

A few years ago, I was working on a book, a fiction story, and I was just at the beginning. I wasn’t exactly sure how my story would go or what my character was really like. But then my writing teacher made a suggestion. She said I should take out my notebook, set aside the story I was thinking about, and just place my main character in an everyday scene. You know, like washing dishes, or getting up in the morning, or having dinner. Something the character does almost every day, as a way to get to know who the character really is, what the character thought about, wanted. So I tried it. I actually tried just getting my character ready for bed. But, as I wrote the scene, something really interesting started to happen-not only did I get to know the character better, but it almost felt like the character was coming to life, almost as if she was writing the story.

Page 22: 7th grade Narrative Writing

What is a scene composed of???

Are small moments or mini-stories Include a clear setting that is woven

throughout the moment Have characters who are thinking,

talking, acting, or perhaps doing all those things

Contain a character motivation and obstacle of some sort

Page 23: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Boot Camp Procedure

We will be writing a scene boot camp. I’m going to lead you through a writing exercise where you write as fast and furiously, getting as much writing down as possible, while you also practice your scene writing skills. I’ll give you a little tip, then I will model it with my own writing. Then you’ll give it a go. We will repeat the procedure a few times.

Just remember tat not everything I teach you will be something you will be able to do or will work for your scene right now. That’s ok! Just keep working on the last thing you were working on and then catch up with me on the next part.

Page 24: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Demonstration

First, I need to think about the character and story idea I chose: the girl who knows it’s silly to feel this way, but she wants to be popular-mainly because she has a birthday party coming up and wants people to come to it.

Now, I have to think a bit about who she is as a person and jot a few notes.› Parents are old fashioned› Esmerelda-beautiful name but not usually associated with

popular people› Strange› Wants friends and is friendly› Tries too hard and comes off weird

Now you try it!

Page 25: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Now that you’ve created a quick background for your character, let’s try them on for size in an everyday scene.

I’m going to start with Esmeralda having lunch at school.

Esmeralda walked into the lunch room, holding her lunch bag in her hands. Even though everyone else in the school, it felt like, bought school lunch, Esmeralda was a picky eater.

Page 26: 7th grade Narrative Writing

As I was writing, I learned something about Esmeralda-that she is a picky eater. She is different even when it comes to lunch.

I also learned something about my writing! I wrote in third person, but I’m wondering if it might flow better if I wrote in first person?

Realistic fiction allows for either.

Page 27: 7th grade Narrative Writing

First Person

I stood in the doorway of the lunchroom, half hiding behind the vending machines, clutching my lunch bag. There were a few kids who also brought their lunch from home, but almost everybody else bought from the cafeteria. I waited for Tilly to come through the kitchen doors. Then waved to her as she headed to our table, the one closest to the janitor’s closet.

Thoughts? Which version was better?

Page 28: 7th grade Narrative Writing

First Person is Better…for now!

Did you see how I developed the setting a bit more and started to work in a little bit of information about Esmeralda as I wrote? I tried to show what she was feeling-that she was nervous-by having her hide behind the vending machines until she saw her friend head for the table.

Try your own scene writing! Be aware of the setting and the character’s feelings!

Page 29: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Show not Tell!

Make sure your characters are doing things! Small (like folding a piece of paper) or big (like getting into an argument).

Your characters might be talking or thinking. Make sure you show and not tell. Try again!

› Remember to include what the character is feeling. But don’t tell us. Think of small actions that can show us!

› Add dialogue› Describe what the character wants in this scene and

what obstacles are getting in their way.

Page 30: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Other things to think about…as you continue to write

Show the setting. Where is the character right now? What little detail of the setting can you mention?

Describe what the character is thinking. Make sure someone says something in

the scene you are developing. Show your character’s actions. Have your character make a decision.

***After they’ve written for awhile…

Page 31: 7th grade Narrative Writing

How to Write Compelling Fiction

Brainstorm a great story idea (small moments, places, events, issues, struggles, stories you wish existed in the world).

Make your characters come alive.› Generate traits› Reveal wants and challenges› Consider character’s attitude toward self› Explore character’s relationships with others.› Describe character’s movements, facial expressions, tics, style,

quirks, etc… Test-drive your character in scenes.

› Make sure your character does things, big and small.› Show feelings› Include dialogue› Develop the setting› Try different points of view (first and third person)

Page 32: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Options for working today…

Work on your character development today OR

Finish finding the perfect story to write about and then move onto character development

If you need help developing your characters—See your teacher at the writing table.

Character Development

Internal Characteristics of your Character External Characteristics of your Character

Page 33: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Turn to partner and share your character development

Class volunteers?!

Page 34: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Finish developing your character if you haven’t already.

Page 35: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Session 4-Giving Characters Struggles and Motivations that Mirror Real Life

Before we begin our lesson for today, pull out your T-Chart from yesterday. › Draw a line underneath

your main characters characteristics (Internal and External).

› Begin the process again with any minor characters you will have in your story. Give them a name and their own traits!

Page 36: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Today’s Teaching Point:

Good characters in fiction have real life struggles that they need to deal with. They also have things that motivate them to overcome their struggles. This is something we must put in our writing!

Page 37: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Identifying Characters Motivations and Obstacles

Soul Surfer Pursuit of Happyness Forest Gump

In your writers notebook, jot down their struggles and motivations for each video. Label with the movie title.

Page 38: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Explore Your Character’s Motivations and Obstacles

What Esmeralda Wants (Motivations):› Lots of friends› No enemies› To be invited to lunch tables› To make sure no one feels left out and to be friendly

to everyone› To have a boyfriend

What gets in the way of Esmeralda (Obstacles):› Her shyness› Her lack of self-esteem› Her nerdy appearance› Her friends who are just like her› Former best friend befriends the school bully and

picks on her Your Turn! In your writers notebook (date your

entry)…explain what your character wants and what gets in their way.

Page 39: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Characters Struggles and Motivations

Motivations/Wants Obstacles/What Gets in the Way of those Wants

Page 40: 7th grade Narrative Writing

With a partner…

Discuss your main character and any important minor character(s)!› Begin with a specific compliment.› Then move onto one specific suggestion or

tip.› Question one another!› Make necessary changes to your

Page 41: 7th grade Narrative Writing

For the rest of class today…

Finish developing your main character Use the T-Chart to the right to help you.

Develop any minor characters that will be a part of your story! Use T-Chart to the right to help you.

Use the T-Chart from today to finish giving your main character motivations and obstacles.

Do your minor characters need motivations and obstacles? If so, fill out the T-Chart for them!

Today is the last in-class day to develop your characters!

When you are finished, study your spelling words or SSR!

Page 42: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Session 5-Plotting with Tools

Once fiction writers have brought their characters to life, they use an understanding of characters’ wants and struggles to develop a possible plotline.

Teaching Point: Today I want to teach you that after writers develop their characters, they begin drafting possible plots for their stories. Fiction writers plan by plotting the arc of the story-and specifically, by aiming to intensify the problem. They do this by using what they know about plotting and then choosing a variety of tools to help them plan.

Page 43: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Kurt Vonnegut-Anecdote

Story arcs are commonly used when planning a story.

There are many options! We are going to take a look at one

author who laid out many different story arcs:

1. Man in Hole He described it this way: “You will see this story over and over again. People love it and it is not copyrighted. The story needn’t be about a man and a hole. It’s this: somebody gets into trouble, gets out of it again. It isn’t accidental that the line ends up higher than where it began. This is encouraging to readers.”

Page 44: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Another one…

What does this story describe?› It’s a famous one!› The arc begins low and a

truly despondent girl whose mother died and whose dad remarried a horrible woman with two horrible daughters who treat the girl like a servant. Things are as bad as they could be for this girl.

Page 45: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Importance of Using Story Arcs

They help you to figure out the rises and the falls of your own plot because they remind you that it isn’t one event after another, with no real change or climb.

They also show you that something is going to happen, and things are getting tough. Then something changes that solves your character’s problem. After that, things change and your character is different, and there isn’t a felling of anticipation anymore.

Page 46: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Typical Stories

Earlier this year, we discussed how stories usually go-that the main character has wants, and something gets in the way of him or her getting them. So the character encounters a problem (or multiple), which give movement to the story. Often, the problem intensifies before getting resolved, with the character experiencing several challenges along the way. Or it gets resolved a different way than the character imagined or hoped for.

Each scene builds on the one before it!

Page 47: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Thirteen and a Half

Read the story together Discuss: how the story went, how the

events fit together, and what its shape is.

Thirteen and a Half.pdf

Page 48: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Thirteen and a Half Story Arc

When the author began writing this story, she probably didn’t know exactly which choices she would make, so she tried out different scenarios!

Story_Arc_ThirteenAndAHalf.pdf

Page 49: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Esmeralda Story Arc

When we plot our Esmeralda story…› Character will struggle to achieve what she yearns for› She will make choices

Some choices may not work out (don’t know which ones yet)

› Something will happen though that makes a difference!

› She will find a way to resolve the struggle or she will change her sense of what she wants

As our story arc climbs and changes, Esmeralda will take actions and things will happen as a result.

Page 50: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Partner work

With a partner, create a possible beginning plotline for the shared class story on Esmeralda.

If you finish early, try to plot how the story might end!

Use the story arc!

Page 51: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Esmeralda Story Esmeralda walked into the lunch room, holding her lunch bag in her hands. Even though everyone else in the school, it felt like, bough school lunch, Esmeralda was a picky eater.

I stood in the doorway of the lunchroom, half hiding behind the vending machines, clutching my lunch bag. There were a few kids who also brought their lunch from home, but almost everybody else bought from the cafeteria. I waited for Tilly to come through the kitchen doors. Then waved to her as she headed to our table, the one closest to the janitor’s closet. As I walked past Liz and Maeve’s gossip table, I overheard them. As the two girls talked, I felt uncomfortable.

I slowed so I could get a good listen. “I know, right?!” said Liz. Maeve giggled and responded, “Yes, Tilly’s hair today is atrocious! Who taught her to style hair?” The room felt really hot all of a sudden. I was beginning to wish I had worn a lighter shirt. This one was making me sweat. Just then I noticed that they knew I was listening in. I didn’t know what to do.

I looked down at my phone, checking for text messages that weren’t there. Then I noticed how dirty it was and made myself concentrate on slowly cleaning the screen with the bottom of my shirt before continuing my journey to the lunch table and to Tilly. After lunch the rest of the day went fairly quickly and before I knew it I was sitting on the steps of the school waiting for my bus to arrive when suddenly, Maeve came up and invited me to the party!

Page 52: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Partner work continued

Talk with your partner and think about what the first scene in the arc should be.

The starting scene should bring Esmeralda to life, show what she yearns for, and show the trouble (which we already know will be her conflicting feelings of wanting to be popular but not wanting to change who she is go become well liked).

Remember, things need to escalate and become more difficult before they change, so think about how we’ll make Esmeralda's problem get worse.

Turn and begin planning the start of the arc.

Page 53: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Share with the class!

Volunteers to share their beginning of their story arc???!

Now, close your eyes and imagine what might happen next.

Now talk about it! Keep in mind, you need to SHOW (not summarize) her struggle, and the problems need to get worse.

Turn and plan As you go, draw your story arc together on a

separate sheet of paper, labeling it like you saw in the sample Thirteen and a Half

Page 54: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Summarize what Esmeralda has done/felt so far in your story arc.

Remember many times we need to experiment before we make a selection!

Another summary???

Page 55: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Go back to your own story and begin creating multiple story arcs for your story (draw them out like the example if that helps you!)

Aim for 2-3 different story arcs, each one should naturally be better than the last one.

Too easy/hard? Instead of an arc, try using a timeline, storyboards, flowcharts or a list. Find a method that works best for you!

Page 56: 7th grade Narrative Writing

How to Write Compelling Fiction:

Make your characters come alive. Test-drive your character in scenes. Plot several versions of your story,

aiming to intensify the problem (use arcs, timelines, storyboards, etc…)

Page 57: 7th grade Narrative Writing

Mid-Work Teaching

Don’t forget: the shape of a story, where it starts and ends, says a lot about what matters to the author!

If the story is about the importance of fitting in-or how much it doesn’t really matter if you are true to yourself-then it makes sense to have the beginning of the story with a character struggling to fit in and the last scene be a scene that clearly shows how the character feels now about fitting in.

Stop and ask yourself, what is my story really about?

Page 58: 7th grade Narrative Writing

You are now ready for the grade 7 checklist!

Great job writers! You’ve grown leaps and bounds so far!

As I pass out these checklists, pick out a few scenes that you want to assess.

Assess yourself on those scenes! Now, set two or three goals for yourself

and write them in your writers notebooks. Add today's date and use the grade 7 checklist to create them!

NAR_G6-G7 Checklist.pdf

Page 59: 7th grade Narrative Writing

A good writer can know if they are on the right track if they can say what their story is about in one sentence.

Esmeralda Story: Esmeralda is a girl who likes being different but part of her wants to be popular, so one day she goes to a party and finds herself having to decide whether it is more important to be popular or true to herself.

Tonight: 1. Finish your story arcs.2. Pick one that you think describes how your story goes

and then try your hand at writing a one sentence summary. This might take some time!

***Tomorrow we begin drafting our stories!

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  1. 7th Grade Narrative Writing Unit with Slides

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  4. Narrative Writing Powerpoint by Karen Almond

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VIDEO

  1. Week 5, Direct Instruction Narrative Writing (PowerPoint with Guided Notes)

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  1. Narritive Writing PPT.pptx

    "So, what happened?" When someone asks you that, what do you say? You respond by telling a story- when it happened, where it happened, how and why it happened. This is what we call narration....

  2. 7th grade Narrative Writing

    7th grade Narrative Writing | PPT Upload 7th grade Narrative Writing Nov 1, 2014 • 8 likes • 4,591 views K krochalek Follow Education Lucy Caulkins Narrative Writing for 7th grade Bends 1 and 2 put onto Powerpoint slides for sharing with class 1 of 59 Download Now Recommended narrative writing english jane genesila

  3. A Step-by-Step Plan for Teaching Narrative Writing

    Step 2: Study the Structure of a Story. Now that students have a good library of their own personal stories pulled into short-term memory, shift your focus to a more formal study of what a story looks like. Use a diagram to show students a typical story arc like the one below.

  4. 7th grade writer's workshop narrative bend 1

    1. 7th Grade Writer's Workshop Writing Realistic Fiction. 2. Bend One Creating and Developing Meaningful Stories and Characters. 3. Teaching Target You will begin to collect ideas for stories by paying attention to the small moments around your own life. 4.

  5. Narrative Writing Teaching Resources for 7th Grade

    Teach narrative writing this school year with writing prompts, printable worksheets, storyboards and story maps and more teaching resources created by...

  6. Year 7-8 Narrative Writing Quick Writes PowerPoint

    This handy PowerPoint provides you with ten quick writing activities, perfect for your class warm-up for narrative writing. Each quick write features a scene, some 'I Wonder' questions, some interesting words that might appeal to your students, and an optional story starter. There is also a teacher guidance slide laying out a suggested sequence for using the resource.

  7. Year 7-8 Narrative Writing Powerpoint (Teacher-Made)

    2 reviews English/Literacy Writing Narrative Writing How can I give my students an overview of narrative structure? This PowerPoint explains the planning and structure of a narrative piece of writing, taking your Year 7-8 learners through the four distinct sections of set-up, development, crisis, and resolution.

  8. Narrative Writing Lesson PowerPoint

    This useful Narrative Writing Lesson PowerPoint is a great way to get children aged 9-11 ready to write their own narrative story. A perfect whole-class introduction to this topic, it provides a wealth of information in a clear and easy-to-follow format. This resource is great for an introduction into narratives and how to write an orientation.

  9. Narrative Text Structure

    This teaching presentation has been designed to teach your students about the text structure and language features of narrative writing. It addresses the following content: an overview of the purpose and types of narrative texts an explanation of narrative text structure, with annotated examples

  10. Developing Narrative Writing Skills PowerPoint

    This PowerPoint presentation has been designed to teach your students about the text structure and language features of narrative writing. It addresses the following content: an overview of the purpose and types of narrative texts an explanation of narrative text structure, with annotated examples

  11. Unit #1: Narrative Writing

    a. Engage and orient the reader by establishing a context and point of view and introducing a narrator and/or characters; organize an event sequence that unfolds naturally and logically. b. Use narrative techniques, such as dialogue, pacing, and description, to develop experiences, events, and/or characters. c.

  12. Narrative Writing Rubric for 7th grade

    Use this standards-based Narrative Writing Rubric for 7th grade to assess your students' narrative writing skills! This helpful rubric covers the major standards in seventh-grade narrative writing, including organization, technique, transitions, style, and conclusion.

  13. Narrative Writing Grade 7 Teaching Resources

    Teacher's College Writer's Workshop: Narrative Writing, Grade 1, this bundle includes sessions 1 through session 7. This is unit is the first unit in the workshop curriculum. Some lessons have been modified to include more turn and talks, or for share-outs to align with student activities, so as to better align with the Danielson Rubric.

  14. PPTX Deer Valley Unified School District / Homepage

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  15. Narrative Writing: A Complete Guide for Teachers and Students

    A narrative can spark emotion, encourage reflection, and convey meaning when done well. Narratives are a popular genre for students and teachers as they allow the writer to share their imagination, creativity, skill, and understanding of nearly all elements of writing. We occasionally refer to a narrative as 'creative writing' or story writing.

  16. Narrative Writing PPT for 4th

    View 55,309 other resources for 4th - 7th Grade English Language Arts. This Narrative Writing PPT is suitable for 4th - 7th Grade. A comprehensive presentation on narrative writing, this should be shown to a class before the writing process begins. There are not activities listed, so pupils can take notes on the elements of narrative writing ...

  17. 45 Narrative Writing Prompts for 7th Grade

    You can use this guide to help students come out of their shell, or keep it handy for when they have some down time in between activities. Consider challenging your students to write using one prompt a day for an entire school week, and express to them the importance of thinking deeply about the things they think, feel, and remember.

  18. Free Printable Narrative Writing Worksheets for 7th Grade

    Narrative Writing worksheets for Grade 7 are an essential tool for teachers to help their students develop strong reading and writing skills. These worksheets focus on various aspects of narrative writing, such as creating engaging characters, building a compelling plot, and using descriptive language. By incorporating these worksheets into ...

  19. 7th grade writer's workshop narrative bend 1 (1)

    7th grade writer's workshop narrative bend 1 (1) 1. 7th Grade Writer's Workshop Writing Realistic Fiction. 2. Creating and Developing Meaningful Stories and Characters Bend One. 3. You will begin to collect ideas for stories by paying attention to the small moments around your own life. Teaching Target. 4.

  20. Narrative writing

    Recommended. Narrative Writing PPT Rahul Jose. Personal Narratives Introduction Sam Georgi. Descriptive writing 1 mzickefoose2. Introduction to descriptive writing englishteacher-tnt. Narrative Powerpoint mrswjohnston. Personal narrative powerpoint anniekrespil.

  21. 7th grade Narrative Writing

    DESCRIPTION Lucy Caulkins Narrative Writing for 7th grade Bends 1 and 2 put onto Powerpoint slides for sharing with class TRANSCRIPT 7th Grade Writer's Workshop Writing Realistic Fiction Session 1-Imagining Stories from Everyday Moments Fiction Writers get their ideas from real life not from the clouds!

  22. Narrative Writing PPT

    Jan 9, 2015 • 15 likes • 20,344 views Rahul Jose Student at The Westminster School Education Explaining how to create an effective Narrative Piece... Included with animations and attractive photos... perfect for Grade 6 and upwards... Also includes Homework at the end of PPT... 1 of 17 Download Now Recommended