1. The Narrative Essay: It Differs From a Simple Story!
Literacy
**Success Criteria: I can write an effective narrative in chronological order about a real or imagined experience using dialogue and descriptions.
Copyright 2007 by Catherine Wishart. All rights reserved.

2. What is a Narrative Essay?
A narrative is a story
A narrative essay is a story that has a specific point
A narrative essay strives to teach a lesson OR
A narrative essay strives to make a specific point
A narrative essay is not a diary entry – the story is linked to the purpose of the essay

3. What Should Be Included in a Narrative Essay?
Often written in 1st person – I or we – because it is based on a personal story, real or imagined
Can also be written in 3rd person (he, she, it)
Can never be written in 2nd person (you, your)

4. What Else Should be Included in a Narrative Essay?
Has specific sensory details to get the reader hooked on the story (details that appeal to the senses—sight, smell, taste, hearing, touch)
Is developed in chronological order (in order by time—beginning/before, middle/during, and end/after)
Has verbs that help paint a picture and draw in the reader (Example: instead of “jump”—”hop”, “leap”, or “bound”)
Contains dialogue—make your characters speak

5. What Else Does the Narrative Essay Need?
Since this is a story, the narrative essay needs everything a story needs (these are known as the story elements):
Has a plot
Has characters
Has a problem
Has a climax
Often uses dialogue

6. Planning the Narrative Essay
Write a thesis statement, just as with any other essay (Note: You do NOT need to use the Funnel Method in a narrative essay.)
Your narrative must include an introductory paragraph, body paragraphs, and a conclusion paragraph:
Write an introductory paragraph that includes the thesis statement, and then write the story
Because this is a story, use as many paragraphs as necessary to tell the story
Write the conclusion that reflects on the thesis statement

7. Start With a Thesis Statement
The thesis will depend upon the story to be written.
The thesis can be something general in the case of a narrative essay. For example, you may write, “Often, people do not follow simple directions. However, these campers learned just how important following directions can be.” (Remember: You are teaching a lesson or making a specific point!)

8. What Would You Expect From This Thesis?
As the reader, you will expect to learn why following directions is important.
As the reader, you will expect to read a story about camping.
As the reader, you will expect there to be a twist in the action.

9. Outline the Parts of the Story and Write Out the Story
An Informal Outline of the Story:
Two campers go camping and ignore rules
They leave out food
An animal finds the food
One of the campers tries to scare off the animal
Campers learn to follow the rules

10. Let’s Read the Essay – The Introduction
The two friends thought it was a wonderful week to camp in the great outdoors, even if some of their other friends thought it was a strange way to spend a vacation. Ben and Jeff were looking forward to their week at Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee. Little did they know what a learning experience this trip would be. Often, people do not follow simple directions. However, these campers learned just how important following directions can be.

11. Setting the Scene of the Story
After a scenic drive through the glorious mountains, Ben and Jeff arrived at the camping area. A ranger at the booth handed them a map and asked, “Have you ever camped with us before?”
“A better question would be if we ever camped before,” Jeff answered wryly.
“You’ll be fine. Just remember, this isn’t a hotel. We do have bears and other animals in the area, so lock your food up in the car,” said the ranger as he handed them a list of Do’s and Don’ts of Camping.

12. Developing the Plot
Exhausted from their first attempt at setting up a campsite, Ben and Jeff crawled inside the tent that evening, telling ghost stories to each other. They doused the light inside the tent to go to sleep and ignored the world outside the canvas. The ranger’s list was left laying on the tent floor.

13. Continuing the Action – Vivid Word Choices
Just before sunrise, Jeff was awakened by the sounds of metal ripping. He quietly slipped out of the tent. A fully grown black bear was sitting on their picnic table busily prying the lid off the cooler they neglected to store in the car the night before. Finding the pound of bacon he smelled, the bear leaned back on his haunches and began to devour the bacon. Jeff started screaming at the bear, “Get out of here! What do you think you’re doing?”

14. Reaching the Climax
By this point, most of the other campers had exited their own tents and watched the scene unfold. The bear was not amused by Jeff’s threatening, especially with the remainder of the bacon at stake. The black bear stood on top of the picnic table to his full height. While the bear actually stood only four feet tall, the extra height of the table caused him to loom over Jeff’s head. The bear suddenly fell forward, striking the table with his full weight and snarled. The table cracked in response.

15. The Climax Continues
Much more quickly than anyone anticipated, the bear reached out his huge, menacing paw towards Jeff. Fear leapt into Jeff’s eyes as he turned and ran back into his tent. Zip! He closed the zipper.
Now, one can only imagine how much time passed before Jeff and Ben realized the futility of zipping the tent. How was a flimsy flap of canvas going to stop a full-sized, angry bear?

16. Finding the Solution
Fortunately, the bear was much more interested in the left-over bacon than in Jeff and Trudy. The bear cautiously turned around, climbed back on top of the table, and continued to eat his early breakfast. He carefully examined the remaining contents of the cooler. Finding nothing else as delectable as the bacon, the bear jumped off the picnic table, grunted, licked his paws and mouth, and then lumbered off into the deeper woods that surrounded the campground.

17. The Concluding Paragraph
The audience that had gathered applauded spontaneously, then slowly returned to their own campsites, shaking their heads in disbelief. Meanwhile, inside the thin canvas tent, Ben and Jeff had lit their lantern and were carefully studying the items listed on the Do’s and Don’ts of Camping list. The rest of their trip was enjoyable as they made sure to follow all the rules at the campsite.

18. Additional Ideas for Your Thesis
Without a thesis, or a point, you are not really writing a narrative essay but a narrative – make sure to have a point. You can get help finding a point when you:
Think about sayings or quotes that teach a lesson
Think about lessons learned from Aesop’s fables
Think about a time when you learned something valuable
Read quotations to spawn ideas
Read your own journals for a time something happened worth telling others about

19. What Do You Remember?
Directions: On a piece of notebook paper, answer the following: 1. A narrative is a story that has a specific ________. 2. Write an example of a detail you might use in a narrative to appeal to the senses. 3. Making your characters speak in a narrative is called using ______________. 4. You must develop your narrative in _______________ order. 5. The thesis statement can be (specific/general) in a narrative essay.

20. Narrative Essay Writing Assignment:
Imagine you are a member of Emperor Shih Huang Ti’s army. Write a narrative account of your experience as one of his soldiers. Make sure to include information and details from the story “The First Emperor” in your ELA book to improve your narrative. Make sure you develop your character(s), setting, and the plot. Use details, dialogue, and description where appropriate.