NAPLAN · Writing
NAPLAN narrative writing: the five parts of a story
Orientation, complication, events, resolution, coda — what each part has to do, with a complete story showing all five.
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The five parts of a narrative
1. Orientation
Introduce who, where and when.
- — Name the main character and give the reader something to picture
- — Establish the place and the time
- — Set the scene without stalling — a paragraph is usually enough
- — Plant something that will matter later
2. Complication
Something goes wrong, and it matters.
- — Introduce the problem clearly
- — Show how it affects the main character
- — Make the reader want to know what happens next
- — Arrive here early: a complication in the last paragraph cannot be resolved
3. Series of events
The character tries to deal with it.
- — Show the consequences of the problem
- — Have the character react — what they do reveals who they are
- — Connect each event to the next so it does not read as a list
- — Build towards the solution rather than jumping to it
4. Resolution
The problem is sorted out.
- — Solve the complication you set up, not a different one
- — Show how the character overcame it
- — Bring the events to a close
- — Leave the reader feeling the story is finished
5. Coda
Show what changed.
- — Say what is different from the beginning
- — Share the lesson, if there is one, without preaching it
- — Show the new understanding the character has
- — Two or three sentences is plenty
A sample story, marked up
A complete narrative with all five parts, showing what each one has to do.
“The Lost Kitten”
1. Orientation
Last Saturday morning, Sam was walking to his friend's house when he heard a tiny meowing sound. He looked under a big bush and found a small orange kitten with no collar.
Character, time and place in one sentence, and the discovery in the next. "No collar" is the detail that becomes the whole problem.
2. Complication
The kitten looked scared and hungry. Sam felt worried because there was no owner around. He knew he had to help the little kitten find its home.
The problem is named and its effect on the character shown. Arriving in paragraph two leaves room for everything that follows.
3. Series of events
First, Sam picked up the kitten gently and gave it some water from his bottle. Then, he walked around the neighborhood asking people if they had lost a kitten. Next, he put up signs on trees with a picture of the kitten. Finally, an old lady called and said it was her missing kitten, Ginger.
Four connected attempts rather than one. The time connectives keep them in order, and each step follows from the last.
4. Resolution
Sam took Ginger back to the old lady's house. She was so happy to see her kitten again! She thanked Sam and gave him some homemade cookies.
The complication set up in paragraph two is the one resolved. Nothing else is introduced to solve.
5. Coda
Sam learned that helping others feels really good. He felt proud that he had helped Ginger find her way home, and he knew he would always help animals in need.
What changed, in three sentences. The character ends the story different from how he started it.
Words that carry a story
Time words — for controlling pace
Once upon a timeLong agoYesterdayLast weekSuddenlyThenNextAfter thatFinallyIn the endMeanwhileLaterSoonEventually
Describing words
beautifulmysteriousenormoustinysparklingdarkbrightscaryfriendlycuriousbraveworriedexcitedsurpriseddelightedfrightened
Action verbs — stronger than "walked" or "looked"
ranjumpeddiscoveredexploredwhisperedshoutedcreptdashedstumbledsearchedfoundrescuedescapedclimbedcrawledflew
Feeling words — for showing what a character thinks
feltworriedwonderedhopedfearedrealizedunderstoodrememberedforgotdreamedwishedbelieveddoubtedtrustedlovedcared
Story openers
Last weekend, I was…One sunny day, Jake was…After school, Maria found…On Saturday morning, the children…When I got home, I saw…Yesterday at the park, we…My friend and I were walking when…It was a normal day until…
The rest of this section
- The marking criteria — Every piece is scored against ten separate criteria out of 47. Here is what each one is looking for, and what moves a score up a band.
- Persuasive writing — How to build the argument, the words that do the persuading, and a full sample text broken down paragraph by paragraph.
- Practice prompts — Ten prompts, persuasive and narrative, each with the planning questions to answer before writing a word.
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