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The key aspects of a Narrative are...
Plot events follow a clear structure (e.g., orientation, complication and resolution).
Characters come alive through their description, actions and speech.
Setting gives the story a realistic sense of when or where the plot takes place.
Language is imaginative and used to engage the reader (adjectives, adverbs, imagery, senses, varied sentence structure).
When modelling how to write a narrative it is important to...
Focus on the importance of planning before writing: who is the main character? Where/when is the story set? What happens during the exposition/action/climax/resolution? Refer back to the plan frequently during writing.
Break aspects of the writing down into shorter activities that allow students time to practice/plan using the target language before attempting the final piece (a descriptive setting paragraph focusing on the senses, write a short action sequence paragraph in present tense, up-level a character description using imagery etc).
Demonstrate thinking skills out-loud when modelling writing each section: "When did I say I was going to set this story? What sort of things would I be able to see during that time? How do you think he said that? Would we be able to hear anything there?"
To the right please find a video lesson on writing narratives from Stephen Graham.