{"id":3071,"date":"2018-10-08T22:55:07","date_gmt":"2018-10-09T05:55:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/patternbasedwriting.com\/elementary_writing_success\/?p=3071"},"modified":"2024-07-21T00:15:50","modified_gmt":"2024-07-21T07:15:50","slug":"narrative-story-essay-non-fiction-checklist-cheat-sheet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/patternbasedwriting.com\/elementary_writing_success\/narrative-story-essay-non-fiction-checklist-cheat-sheet\/","title":{"rendered":"Master Student Narrative Writing: Your Ultimate Checklist and Cheat Sheet"},"content":{"rendered":"

Narrative is one of the more important words in the English language. It\u2019s how we make sense of the world; it\u2019s also how we see and understand ourselves. Narrative story is so powerful that Plato (circa 427 BC\u2014347 BC), one of history\u2019s greatest minds, banned storytellers from his Republic.<\/p>\n

In a narrative, the writer tells what happened<\/strong><\/span>. It\u2019s that simple. When we tell what happened, we tend to turn it into a story. The most skilled communicators (frequently, the most powerful people in the room), know how to construct, control, and tell narrative stories that have a purpose, that have a message, that entertain, and that persuade. Furthermore, they know how much story to tell, how many story elements and story techniques to use, which story elements and story techniques to use, and what kind of story to tell.<\/p>\n

The following Five Levels of Narrative<\/span><\/a><\/span>\u00a0model provides a framework for teaching students about narrative. Interestingly, the bottom two levels are NOT narratives. Although they use narrative or narration, the main genre is not narrative.<\/p>\n

Narrative vs. Story:<\/span> All narratives have a goal of telling what happened<\/em>, but telling what happened<\/em> is not the same thing as telling a story<\/em>. Level 1 contains the most<\/em> STORY. Level 1\u2019s entire narrative goal is to tell a STORY. For the most part, the narrative goal of telling a STORY diminishes as we move down the levels. In general, as we move down the levels, the writer uses fewer obvious story elements, and the writing becomes more formal.<\/p>\n

Level 1:<\/strong><\/span> Narrative Story
\nLevel 2:<\/strong><\/span> Narrative Essay: Personal Narrative Essay
\nLevel 3:<\/strong><\/span> Narrative Non-Fiction<\/p>\n

Level 4:<\/strong><\/span> Expository Text that Is Narration
\nLevel 5:<\/strong><\/span> Narrative as a Tool in Other Types of Writing<\/p>\n

Below you will find two narrative checklists and cheat sheets:<\/p>\n

1.<\/span>\u00a0 Narrative Story
\n2.<\/span>\u00a0 Narrative: Non-Fiction: Essay, Biography, News Story, Historical Narrative, etc. (First-Person vs. Third-Person)<\/p>\n

As you read through these two lists, you will want to consider them in respect to the Five Levels of Narrative. Which techniques, which concepts, which strategies, and which vocabulary applies most to the narrative that you are teaching or writing? Writing is all about making choices.<\/p>\n

========================================================<\/p>\n

Narrative Story Checklist and Cheat Sheet<\/h2>\n

1.<\/span>\u00a0 Plot:<\/strong> The writer uses effective sequencing that keeps the story moving forward. There are no digressions or troublesome interruptions of sequence. The writer may have successfully used an advanced sequencing skill such as a flashback or other time trick. The sequence of events is clear, natural, and logical.<\/p>\n

2.<\/span>\u00a0 Narrative Genre:<\/strong> The writer clearly establishes the specific genre of the narrative early in the narrative. The writer stays true to the narrative genre, or perhaps, skillfully blends genres.<\/p>\n

3.<\/span>\u00a0 Point of View and Narrator:<\/strong> The writer clearly establishes the point of view and narrator early in the narrative.<\/p>\n

4.<\/span>\u00a0 Plot:<\/strong> The writer constructs the narrative around a central problem. The characters attempt to solve the problem more than once. But solving the problem either creates new problems or proves to be a temporary fix. Finally, the characters solve the problem.<\/p>\n

6.<\/span>\u00a0 Action:<\/strong> The writer uses action purposefully to enhance the story. The action does not overwhelm the story or the character development.<\/p>\n

7.<\/span>\u00a0 Description:<\/strong> The writer uses description effectively and with purpose. The writer blends the description with action and character. The writer avoids large chunks of purple prose.<\/p>\n

8.<\/span>\u00a0 Characters: The Hero:<\/strong> The writer creates an interesting main\/central character\u2014i.e., the hero. The hero may be an ordinary person in extraordinary circumstances. The hero may have a flaw that illustrates and highlights what the hero needs to learn. The writer creates a strong problem and strong motivations for the hero. The hero has a need, a want, and a goal. And the stakes are high!<\/p>\n

9.<\/span>\u00a0 Characters: Likable Characters:<\/strong> The writer creates likable characters. They are all interesting people, and they all have redeeming qualities. The best and the worst of them all have qualities that we admire in people: e.g., they enjoy having fun, they love puppies, they work hard, they never give up, they are passionate, etc. Even the villain takes great joy in being amazingly villainous. Even the villain believes that he or she is right and can give reasons for his or her position and actions.<\/p>\n

10.<\/span>\u00a0 Characters:<\/strong> The writer limits the number of characters in order to develop each character more fully. The characters have a personality and a physical appearance. The writer develops the characters by using the three main character-development strategies: 1) what the characters say, 2) what the characters do, and 3) what other characters say about them.<\/p>\n

11.<\/span>\u00a0 Characters:<\/strong> The writer creates vivid, detailed characters. The reader feels as if they know the characters or have met people just like them. For this reason, the reader cares about the characters. Readers care about characters that they can picture in their mind.<\/p>\n

12.<\/span>\u00a0 Characters:<\/strong> The writer constantly reveals new aspects (parts) of the characters by what they say, by what they do, and by what others say about them. The writer creates interesting and complex people! In fact, they are like real human beings!<\/p>\n

13.<\/span>\u00a0 Setting:<\/strong> The writer creates a story that takes place in a real<\/em><\/strong> place and time, even if it is an imaginary<\/em><\/strong> place and time. The setting feels real because the writer creates vivid details and because real people (characters) are living real life in that space. The characters see the space, use the space, fight against the space\u2014they live in the space.<\/p>\n

14.<\/span>\u00a0 Setting:<\/strong> The writer\u2019s setting feels like an ever-present character influencing the story. The setting contributes to what is taking place. At times, the setting acts or feels like a reflection of a character in the story: e.g., a character is sad, and it starts to rain.<\/p>\n

At times, the setting acts like or feels like a reflection of the dramatic situation or the main problem. Scary stories take place in haunted houses late at night just as a storm is gathering strength, not at the park on hot and sunny summer days. On the other hand, if your scary story does take place at the park on a hot and sunny summer day, it will be a very different kind of scary story\u2014and that may be a good thing!<\/p>\n

15.<\/span>\u00a0 Setting:<\/strong> Where the story takes place reflects or contributes to what actually does take place. The setting is a time and place, but it\u2019s also symbolic.<\/p>\n

16.<\/span>\u00a0 Setting:<\/strong> The writer creates vivid, detailed, sensory descriptions that helps the reader imagine being there. The setting helps the reader escape into the narrative. If the reader can\u2019t picture the setting, the reader can\u2019t escape into it.<\/p>\n

17.<\/span>\u00a0 LFR \u2122: Literary Techniques, Figures of Speech, Rhetorical Devices:<\/strong> The writer skillfully uses a variety of LFR to create a compelling and stylistic artistic expression that adds to and heightens the story experience.<\/p>\n

18.<\/span>\u00a0 Scene and Summary \/ Show, Don\u2019t Tell:<\/strong> The writer skillfully balances live action with exposition and description. This balance brings the reader into the story but also keeps the story racing forward.<\/p>\n

19.<\/span>\u00a0 The Story is About Two Things: Plot and Theme:<\/strong> The writer creates a story that is about two things:<\/p>\n

a.<\/span>\u00a0 Plot:<\/strong> The story is about<\/strong><\/em> what happened.
\nb.<\/span>\u00a0 Theme:<\/strong> The story is about<\/strong><\/em> one or more aspects of human life: e.g., friendship, success, honor, ambition, love, society, good vs. evil, etc.<\/p>\n

20.<\/span>\u00a0 Theme Statement\/The Message:<\/strong> The writer implies (not states) one or more powerful, profound, interesting, thoughtful, common sense, or fun messages about the theme. The readers will either grasp the theme statements (the messages) or enjoy pondering the meaning of the story after they finish reading.<\/p>\n\"pencilIt\u2019s a Foundation, a Framework, and a Methodology for Teaching Writing! Check out Pattern Based Writing: Quick & Easy Essay to Learn More!<\/span><\/a>\n

========================================================<\/p>\n

Narrative\u00a0Q<\/span><\/span> Non-Fiction\u00a0Q<\/span><\/span> Essay, Biography, News Story, Historical Narrative, etc. (First-Person vs. Third-Person)<\/h2>\n

1.<\/span>\u00a0 The writer skillfully turns real life into a gripping narrative. The people, situations, descriptions, and events are all real.<\/p>\n

2.<\/span>\u00a0 Even though it\u2019s non-fiction, the writer still tells a story. The writer successfully combines real-life facts and events with common story elements: e.g., plot, characters, conflict, theme, setting, point of view, etc.<\/p>\n

3.<\/span>\u00a0 The writer uses various literary and narrative techniques that make the story come alive: dialogue, sensory details, description, imagery, sequence, etc.<\/p>\n

4.<\/span>\u00a0 True Non-Fiction:<\/strong> The details and facts of the story are accurate.<\/p>\n

5.<\/span>\u00a0 Non-Fiction and Artistic Freedom:<\/strong> If the story is a dramatized<\/em> account, the writer makes that fact clear to the reader, possibly with a simple statement before or after the text.<\/p>\n

6.<\/span>\u00a0 The writer cites sources and includes a bibliography.<\/p>\n

7.<\/span>\u00a0 Third-Person Non-Fiction Narrative:<\/strong> The writer uses a third-person point of view. Depending on the specific type of writing, the writer may have also successfully used first-person (I), first-person-plural (we), or even second-person (you) point of view on occasion. Of course, all dialogue is first-person from each speaker\u2019s point of view.<\/p>\n

8.<\/span>\u00a0 Personal Narrative Essay (First-Person, Non-Fiction, Personal, Autobiographical, Narrative Essay):<\/strong> The writer selects an important and meaningful event from his or her life and constructs a well-told story. The writer finds just the right tone, balancing formality with great conversational storytelling.<\/p>\n

The writer clearly knows the difference in tone and purpose between writing an email to a best friend and writing a compelling personal essay for a college-admissions officer or a standardized-test evaluator.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Narrative is one of the more important words in the English language. It\u2019s how we make sense of the world; it\u2019s also how we see and understand ourselves. Narrative story is so powerful that Plato (circa 427 BC\u2014347 BC), one of history\u2019s greatest minds, banned storytellers from his Republic. In a narrative, the writer tells […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[457,570,456],"tags":[468,185,55,471,186,470,467,469,465],"class_list":["post-3071","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-genres","category-narrative-writing","category-rubrics-and-checklists","tag-checklist","tag-elementary-school","tag-how-to-teach-writing","tag-kids-writing","tag-middle-school","tag-narrative-techniques","tag-narrative-writing","tag-story-elements","tag-writing-techniques"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/patternbasedwriting.com\/elementary_writing_success\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3071","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/patternbasedwriting.com\/elementary_writing_success\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/patternbasedwriting.com\/elementary_writing_success\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/patternbasedwriting.com\/elementary_writing_success\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/patternbasedwriting.com\/elementary_writing_success\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3071"}],"version-history":[{"count":26,"href":"https:\/\/patternbasedwriting.com\/elementary_writing_success\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3071\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5218,"href":"https:\/\/patternbasedwriting.com\/elementary_writing_success\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3071\/revisions\/5218"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/patternbasedwriting.com\/elementary_writing_success\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3071"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/patternbasedwriting.com\/elementary_writing_success\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3071"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/patternbasedwriting.com\/elementary_writing_success\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3071"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}

5.<\/span>\u00a0 Plot:<\/strong> The writer keeps the reader guessing and interested. The writer creates suspense and curiosity by using delay, withholding information, and even red herrings.<\/p>\n\"pencil Do you teach elementary school writing or struggling middle school writers? If so, be sure to check out Pattern Based Writing: Quick & Easy Essay on the homepage!<\/span><\/a>\n