Passages Based on the Narrative of Real Life Stories – Basic 4 English Lesson Note (First Term)

A narrative of a real life story is an account of something that truly happened, told in the order in which it happened.

Behavioural objectives

1. State what a real life story is.
2. Pick out the main points of a real life story.
3. Build up each main point with details and link the points in order.
4. Use connectives correctly to join ideas in a story.
5. Narrate one of the given stories in a short passage of their own.

Which stories will we study?

Choose one of the following stories:

1. The Twins Who Reported His Dishonest Brother
2. The Pupils Who Returned The Lost Money
3. The Taxi Driver Who Helped The Blind Man To Cross The Road

Each story teaches a good value: honesty, kindness or helping others.

What are the focus points of this lesson?

1. Narration of a real life story for the main points.
2. Building up points and linking them.
3. Use of connectives to develop the idea of the points.

What is a narrative?

A narrative is a piece of writing that tells a story from beginning to end.

• Real life story: a story about people and events that truly happened.
• Made-up story: a story from the writer’s imagination, such as a folktale.
• Tense: a real life story about the past is usually told in the past tense.
• Order: events follow the order in which they happened.

What are the parts of a real life story?

A real life story has three parts: the beginning, the middle and the end.

• Beginning: tells who the story is about, where it happened and when.
• Middle: tells what happened, step by step, and what the people did.
• End: tells the result and the lesson learnt.

How do we narrate a real life story for its main points?

A main point is the most important thing that happens in one part of the story.

1. Read or listen to the story carefully.
2. Ask: Who? Where? When? What happened? What was the result?
3. Write one short main point for each important event.
4. Put the main points in the order they happened.
5. Retell the story in your own words, using the main points.

Example of main points

Story: The Pupils Who Returned The Lost Money.

1. Some pupils found money on the school compound.
2. They did not keep it.
3. They took it to their teacher.
4. The owner was found and got the money back.
5. The pupils were praised for their honesty.

How do we build up points and link them?

To build up a point means to add details that make the point clear and interesting.

• Who: give the names or roles of the people.
• Where and when: say the place and time.
• What they did: describe the actions.
• How they felt: add feelings, such as happy, afraid or proud.
• What they said: add a short sentence of speech where it helps.

To link points means to join one point to the next so the story flows.

• Follow the time order of the events.
• End one point so that it leads to the next.
• Use connectives at the start of sentences or between ideas.

What are connectives?

Connectives are words or phrases that join sentences or ideas together.

What does a built-up and linked story look like?

This short model uses made-up names to show the method. Your own story must follow the real story given by your teacher.

• Beginning: One morning, two pupils, Ada and Musa, were walking to class.
• Point 1: Suddenly, they saw some money on the ground.
• Point 2: They felt surprised, but they did not pick it up for themselves.
• Point 3: Then they took it to their teacher.
• Point 4: Later, the owner came, and the teacher gave back the money.
• End: As a result, the pupils were praised. We learn that honesty is good.

What mistakes should we avoid?

• Wrong order: do not tell the end before the beginning.
• Wrong tense: do not mix past and present tense.
• No links: do not write sentences that stand alone with no connectives.
• Repeating “and then”: use different connectives.
• Too many details: keep only what belongs to the story.

Evaluation

1. What is a real life story?
2. Name the three parts of a story.
3. Write the main points of the story you chose.
4. Fill in with a connective: The taxi driver stopped ______ he saw the blind man.
5. List four connectives that show order.

Assignment

Choose one of the three stories. Write five main points. Build them into a short passage of at least eight sentences, using at least five connectives. Underline each connective.