Kateb University

English Language Department

Writing
Level Three
Writing
Chapter Two
Narrative Paragraphs
Chapter Objectives
Identify and use time-order signals in narratives
Set a purpose for writing a narrative paragraph
Write, revise, and edit a narrative paragraph
 Narrative Paragraph
 Narrative paragraph is a paragraph that tells a story.

Notes:
 In a narrative paragraph, the writers usually present the events
in the order that they happened.

 They use time order to organize their sentences in their

paragraph.

 Each event starts with a time order signal to show what

happened first, what happened next, what happened after that,
and so on.
 Time order signals
Time order signals are words or phrases that show the order in which
events happened.
Put a comma after time order signals that come before the subject at the beginning
of a sentence. (Exceptions: Then, soon, and now are usually not followed by a
comma.)
Time order signals
Words Phrases

First, (second, third, etc.) Before beginning the lesson,

Next, In the morning,
Then At 12 o’ clock,
Later, After that,
Meanwhile, After a while,
Finally, At last, / at the end,
 How to Write an Awesome Narrative Paragraph
1. Plan to tell your narrative from the first or third person
perspective. Use “I”, “He, She, It, They”
I woke up surrounded by an oppressive fog. It obscured my vision and
hindered my breathing.
2. Use a consistent tense. You can use either past or present tense.
NOT both!
I woke up surrounded by an oppressive fog. I can’t remember where I
am. (tenses being mixed)
3. Create an engaging topic sentence. Draw the reader into your
narrative paragraph by creating excitement or suspense with your
opening sentence.
I’ll never forget the time I picked out my new puppy.
 How I Spent My Weekend.
This past weekend I had the time of my life. First, on Friday night,
I had my best friend over and we made a delicious, mouth-watering
pizza. After we ate, we had a friendly video game competition. On
Saturday, my dad took us out on the boat. The weather was perfect
and the water was warm. It was a great day to go for a swim. Later
that night, we went to the movies. We saw an action packed thriller
and ate a lot of popcorn. Finally, on Sunday, we rode our bikes all
over town. By the end of the day, my legs were very tired. I only hope
that next weekend can be as fun as this one.
Thank you