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What is Narrative Writing?

What is narrative writing? The purpose of a narrative writing is to tell a story. Narratives may be written as a story, poem or play and can be either fiction or non-fiction. Narrative stories include an orientation, complication, resolution and ending.

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Narrative Writing Graphic Organizers Click Here

A narrative stories are written to entertain and share personal or fictional experiences with the reader. The Narrative Story Mountain shows how a narrative can build up suspense, reach a climax and resolve the problem or complication through a series of events.

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Narrative Writing Structure includes:

Orientation:

This section of your narrative story includes a setting, time, main character and can introduce minor characters in your story.

Complication or Series of Events:

The complication is an event or series of events that involve the main character. There are often minor complications or conflicts that are designed to engage and entertain readers.

Resolution:

The resolution is the solution to the complication. It explains how the complication was resolved, who solved it and any details associated with resolving the complication.

Conclusion:

The conclusion shows what has changed and what the character has learnt. It often highlights a moral to the story and lessons learnt.

Language Features:

Transitional phrases

Transitional words and phrases help tie together ideas in a narrative story. They help ideas and paragraphs flow. Some example of transitional phrases are:

Beginning – One day; One evening; Initially; A long time ago

Middle – Meanwhile; Next, After That; Unfortunately; Also; Suddenly

End – Also; Eventually; In conclusion; As a Result; Finally

Appropriate paragraphs

Narrative writing has a specific paragraph structure, with a minimum of 3 paragraphs – orientation, complication, resolution.

Descriptive Words

Descriptive words help describe people, places, things and actions. They help entertain readers.

Concrete and Abstract Nouns

Concrete nouns can be detected and felt by our five senses: house, newspaper, dog, bird, coffee, bucket, airplane, glasses, elephant, book

Abstract Nouns are words that name something you cannot see hear, taste, smell or touch: Happiness, hurt, kindness, anxiety, power, relief, wisdom, pride, hurt, anger

Time Sequence Temporal

Beginning – One day; One evening; In the beginning; A long time ago

Middle – Next; Meanwhile; After that; Suddenly

End – Also; Eventually; Moreover; Furthermore; Finally

Literary Devices

  • Metaphor
  • Simile
  • Alliteration
  • Hyperbole
  • Personification

If you are looking for graphic organizers and teacher notes for writing narratives, take a look here.

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Narrative Writing Prompts also help students get rolling with their ideas too. Take a look at these narrative writing prompts for a range of grades. Learn more about resources for your grade here.

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