Planning the opening to an impactful narrative
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can plan the opening to an impactful narrative.
Key learning points
- Stories might have an impact on someone's life by changing their perspective, or revealing something about humanity.
- All stories are composed of five different elements: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action and denouement.
- In order to write an effective opening, we need to know the rest of the narrative to set up the atmosphere.
Keywords
Impactful - having a powerful effect on a situation or person
Atmosphere - the overall mood of a story or poem
Exposition - sets up the setting, characters and atmosphere of the story
Climax - the most intense moment within a story, marking a turning point for the protagonist(s)
Denouement - the end of the story; the resolution of conflict
Common misconception
You can write the opening of a story without knowing the ending.
An effective opening builds up the atmosphere in order to lead the reader to the ending; therefore, you have to know what the ending is in order to create a cohesive atmosphere in the opening.
Teacher tip
It would be useful for pupils to share their ideas about what an impactful narrative might be as it is a big question and they might struggle for ideas.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Depiction or discussion of serious crime
Depiction or discussion of mental health issues
Supervision
Adult supervision required
Licence
except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.'An intention or decision about what one is going to do' is the definition of which word beginning with 'p'?
Q2.'The overall mood of a story or poem' is the definition of which word beginning with 'a'?
Q3.'The main idea or underlying meaning a writer explores in a novel, short story or other literary work' is the definition of which word beginning with 't'?
Q4.'Having a powerful effect on a situation or person' is the definition of which word beginning with 'i'?
Q5.'The most intense moment within a story, marking a turning point for the protagonist(s)' is the definition of which word beginning with 'c'?
Q6.Starting with the first, put these events from Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet' in chronological order.
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Which of the following is the definition of the 'rising action' in a narrative?
Q2.Which of the following is the definition of the 'falling action' in a narrative?
Q3.Starting with the first, put the five stages of a narrative in chronological order.
Q4.'Sets up the setting, characters and atmosphere of the story' is the definition of which word beginning with 'e'?
Q5.'The end of the story; the resolution of conflict' is the definition of which word?
Q6.The five distinct stages of a narrative are known as Freytag's .
To help you plan your 11 English lesson on: Planning the opening to an impactful narrative, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 11 English lesson on: Planning the opening to an impactful narrative, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 4 English lessons from the Fiction: books that changed my world unit, dive into the full secondary English curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.