A NARRATIVE ESSAY

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2005-12-31

Check pp. 20-21 in Student's Book and pp. 78-79 in

Workbook.
 A NARRATIVE ESSAY

A narrative essay is a story written

in the past.

It can be real or imaginary and

should have a clear beginning,
middle and end.

It usually involves an unexpected

event which is often frightening or
funny.

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 STRUCTURE OF THE WRITING PROCESS
Check pages 76 & 77 in the Workbook

1. UNDERSTAND THE TASK

1. Read the task carefully.
2. Decide what kind of composition you have to write.
3. Read the task and make notes about what you need to write. Remember: you will get low marks if
you write acomposition which does not follow the instructions.

2. THINK OF IDEAS
1. Make notes of your ideas. Don't worry about grammar or spelling.
2. Brainstorm vocabulary connected to the topic/idea & choose the best options to be included in the
essay.
3. Visualization (especially for narratives, descriptions, biographies and dialogues): Close your eyes and
try to imagine an event, person or place in your mind. Think about as many details as possible. Write
down your best ideas.

3. PLAN
1. Organize your notes logically. Which ideas do you need to include at the beginning, middle and end of
your composition?
2. Decide which information you are going to include in each paragraph. Remember: you need to start
a new paragraph for each main idea.
3. Think about the language you need to use. Think about the following: formal or informal language;
useful topic vocabulary; useful adjectives and adverbs; linkers to organize your ideas; tenses and
time expressions.
4. Remember: in order to get good marks, you need to use a variety of vocabulary and grammar in
your composition.

4. WRITE
1. Read the task again, then write your essay. Use the correct layout and organization.

5. CHECK
1. Always read your composition afterwards and check it carefully. Think about the following:
a. Have you answerred the task?
b. Have you used the correct layou?
c. Are your ideas presented clearly and in a logical order? 3
d. Have you used a variety of language?
PARAGRAPH STRUCTURE OF A NARRATIVE ESSAY

1. INTRODUCTION- Introduce the characters and explain

the background.

TIP Use past perfect and past continuous to refer to

events leading up to the main event.

2. MAIN EVENTS Describe the main event.

TIP Use time expressions and sequencers to make the

order clear, and use adjectives and adverbs to make your
story interesting.

3. ENDING Explain what happened in the end.

TIP Describe your thoughts and feelings.

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 INTRODUCTION

Introduce the characters and explain the

background. Use past perfect and past
continuous to refer to events leading up to the
main event.

A frightening encounter

Last summer I had an experience that I'll never

forget while I was staying with my friend Sergio
in Andalusia. We had been walking in the
woods and were just relaxing under a tree,
when all of a sudden we heard a strange noise.

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 MAIN EVENTS

Describe the main event. Use time expressions

and sequencers to make the order clear, and
use adjectives and adverbs to make your story
more interesting.

We immediately sat up and saw an animal in

the distance. At first we thought it was a dog,
but we quickly realized that it was a wild boar.
Before we knew it, it was running straight
towards us! For a second we stood there with
our mouths wide open until Sergio shouted,
'Run!' Amazingly, we managed to climb a tree
just as the boar caught us up. What a close
shave! 6
 ENDING

Explain what happened in the end. Describe

your thoughts and feelings.

After a while the boar went away, but we

waited for an hour until we were absolutely
sure the coast was clear. I'll certainly think
twice about going into the woods in the future!

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 CONTENT OF A NARRATIVE ESSAY

Add detail. Think about character, background,

feelings and atmosphere.

Make sure that your story has a logical order.

Give it a clear beginning, middle and end.

Try to make your narrative interesting. Use a

variety of language, including adjectives and
adverbs.

Use a range of narrative tenses. Useful tenses

include: past simple, past continuous, present
perfect, past perfect, used to/would.

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 CHECK!!!!

Read your essay carefully. Have you used

the correct past tense forms?

a variety of adjectives and adverbs?

correct spelling and punctuation?

the correct number of words?

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 USEFUL VOCABULARY

TIME EXPRESSIONS
Main sequence
At first
By the time
Eventually
Finally
In the end
Next
Then
Before and after
After a while
Afterwards
Before
Earlier (on)
Later (on)
In the end
Simultaneous events
As
As soon as
During
When
While

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 USEFUL VOCABULARY

ADVERBS
Manner adverbs
Angrily / apprehensively / fearlessly /
immediately / quickly / straight

Comment adverbs
Amazingly / luckily / sadly / suddenly /
surprisingly / unfortunately / worryingly

Adverbs of certainty
Certainly / definitely / possibly / probably

Adverbs of degree
Absolutely / a bit/little / pretty / quite / rather /
really / slightly / very

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 USEFUL VOCABULARY

ADJECTIVES
Atmosphere
Dangerous / dirty / exciting / fascinating /
friendly / frightening / gloomy / noisy /
incredible / lively / romantic / stressful /
unusual / welcoming / wild

Emotion
Amazed / apprehensive / confused / delighted /
disappointed / embarrassed / exhausted / lonely
/ proud / relieved / shocked / terrified / thrilled
/ worried

Comparisons
It was the best/worst day of my life! / it was the
most frightening/exciting thing I've ever done! / I
was too scared to... / It wasn't hot enough to / I
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felt much happier when / I was so shocked that
 USEFUL VOCABULARY

LINKERS

Also / although / as / as well / because / but /

since / so / too

MORE USEFUL EXPRESSIONS

I will never forget it.

was the most exciting/frightening thing that has

ever happened to me.

The happiest/scariest moment in my life was when

One of my worst/happiest memories

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It was the best/worst day of my life.