How to teach children narrative writing using a shared writing technique
Working together to create a narrative
writing
story is a great shared writing activity. For young children it is
usually easiest to narrate a story that really happened to them, but
you can also use this technique to make-up a fiction story or to retell
a story that they already know.
Here is an example of a shared writing, narrative story.
We visited Alum Rock Park. While the children enjoyed the whole trip, seeing the animals was definitely a highlight. They learned something about patience too! We wrote the following story together. I prompted with questions that lead them to come up with the beginning, middle, and end of the story.
The first thing to do with narrative writing is to make sure the children understand the parts of a story. The story must begin, have a middle, and an ending. You can model for the children a quick story.
“Lonnie rode his bicycle. On the way to school he fell down and got all muddy. He went home and changed his clothes.”
- Help the children understand the following:
- Who the story is about
- How the story begins
- What happens
- How it ends
- Then guide them in building their own story. Encourage them to use vocabulary words related to the shared experience.
The length of this activity should be age appropriate. For very young children it should be very short. For older children you can probe a little deeper to help them come up with more thoughtful ideas.
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