Unit 3Narrative Essay

Review

• A narrative essay is a piece of writing that recreates an experience through time.

• Introduction: to engages the reader’s interest.– Attention-getting hook– Thesis statement

• Body: to give details about the main event/action.– Details in time order– Details of descriptions

• Conclusion: to describe the outcome. – Outcome of the event– What the event showed or taught

• (p.62) A Scary Secret.

• Hook?• Thesis statement?• Events? Descriptions?• Outcome? • Learning point?

Writing Model

Language Focus

• To arrange the events in time order.– Showing sequence in Narrative Essay

• To describe the events in correct time period.– Using the past time clauses in Narrative Essay

• To add details to essay.– Asking detail questions about an outline

Showing Sequence in Narrative Essay

• (p.64)• Time expression–Connectors (time adverb)– Subordinating conjunctions

Time adverb

• Afterward, after, that, eventually, finally, later, later on, now, then, suddenly, …etc.

• These connectors usually appear at the beginning of a sentence and are followed by a comma (except for then).

• (p.62) Circle the time adverbs.

Writing Model

Subordinating conjunctions

• As soon as, before, after, when, while,…etc. • A subordinating conjunction joins a subordinate clause to a

main clause. • A subordinate clause is usually introduced by a

subordinating element such as a subordinating conjunction or relative pronoun.

• It does not express a complete thought, so it does not stand alone. It must always be attached to a main clause that completes the meaning.

• They are sometimes called dependent clauses because they "depend" on a main clause to give them meaning.

Subordinating conjunction—Time

Type of Transition Examples

Time

while immediately never after later, earlier always when soon whenever once then at length meanwhile sometimes subsequentlyin the meantime during afterwards now, until now next following simultaneously so far this time

http://www.wisc.edu/writing/Handbook/Transitions.html#time

• Main clause: express the principal and independent idea.

• Dependent clause: express additional information about the main idea (when or where it happened).

• Subordinating conjunctions establish the time relationship btw the dependent time clause and the main clause.

• The dependent time clause can come before or after the main clause. But we use a comma when the time clause comes before the main clause.

Subordinating conjunction—In use

• (p.65) combine each pair of sentences into one complex sentence. Use the subordinating conjunctions in parentheses to clarify time relationships.

Exercises

Describe Events in Correct Time Period

• Usually in a narrative essay, the tense used sticks to the past, including the simple past tense and the past continuous.

• Past continuous: was/were + V-ing– To talk about activities that were in progress at a

specific time in the past. – To describe background actions.

Past time clauses

• (p.70)• Past time clauses can be used to describe the

relationship btw two or more events.– Simultaneous activities– Interrupted activities– Events in sequence

• (p.71) Identify the time relationship btw two clauses in each sentence.

Exercises

• Individual work: To revise assignment 2

• Group work: To discuss the writing mechanics of Essay 1.

Writing Task