Navigating NAPLAN - Lesson Seven - Intro to Narrative Writing

Resource Description

Our Navigating NAPLAN resources are designed to help Australian English teachers prepare students for the annual NAPLAN writing assessments.  These resources focus on narrative and persuasive writing, and are aligned with the Australian Curriculum (Years 7 & 9).  

Developed and reviewed by a team of educators including senior Australian English teachers, these resources have been professionally designed to create a high quality learning experience.  

Lesson structure

1. Explain to students that the second type of writing that could be assessed in the NAPLAN writing assessment for Years 7 and 9 is Narrative Writing.  
2. Run through the Lesson 7 Narrative Writing PowerPoint slides. 
3. Using the Lesson 7 Narrative Writing PowerPoint slides, capture student interest by talking about the universal nature of storytelling. Brainstorm as a class, ‘what makes a great story’. This could be run as a ‘think, pair, share’ activity, or with students on their own. 
4. Ask students to share examples of their favourite stories (texts), and consider what they hold in common. Possible answers may include engaging storylines, 3D characters, relatable moments, evocative language and unique structure. 
5. Students may like to brainstorm different stories with animals in them, and consider what is unique and engaging about these stories with the featured animals. 
6. Ask the question – ‘what is narrative writing?’ Invite students to share their responses, and then as a class read the definition provided by ACARA on the slides.  
7. Show students the ACARA website, and explain that all information related to NAPLAN is publicly available and can be accessed by anyone who is interested. 
8. Discuss the words in bold text in the definition on the PowerPoint slide. Ask students how this compares to their previous conception of ‘narrative writing’. Recap/clarify/explore with students, what makes good narrative writing.  
9. You may also like to discuss some of the points on the slide relating to the idea of ‘good’ narrative writing. 
10. Use sticky notes, and have students write down as many ideas as they can in relation to the question: ‘Where can you draw inspiration for your imaginative writing?’ Each sticky note should have a different idea. Students should put the notes around the room, reading the notes of other students. Refer students to the PowerPoint slides, where ACARA provides some specific suggestions. 

This Australian Curriculum alignment statement is based on the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) materials, which are licensed under CC BY 4.0. The material has been modified from the Australian Curriculum website (accessed January 2020).

All activities have been created by educators for educators and are linked to the Australian Curriculum (Version 8.4). We advise teachers to consult the ACARA website for the most up-to-date curriculum outcomes.