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Start by thinking of an idea for a story that you would love to read yourself.

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This video explains what a narrative is and what creates a successful story!

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What is a Narrative? | Introduction to Narratives | All About Narratives

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This video will help you get started on writing your story!

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How To Write A Narrative // PART 1 Narrative Writing For Kids

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This explains everything a narrative story can be!

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Here is a list of ideas for your stories, if you cannot come up with one on your own.

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Reading Worksheets, Spelling, Grammar, Comprehension, Lesson Plans

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They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but a narrative essay can also tell an exciting story and create vivid pictures in the reader's mind! We've got 50 narrative essay topics designed to prompt students to craft memorable written narratives. These can be modified for students in elementary, middle and high school. Feel free to print the entire narrative essay topics list for plenty of inspiration for your next narrative essay assignment!

Narrative Essay Topics

1. Your first day of school.

2. Your most exciting day of school

3. A field trip that your class took.

4. Your favorite summer vacation.

5. A trip that included something unexpected or surprising.

6. A time that you experienced something spooky.

7. A time that you experienced something truly frightening.

8. A time that you learned something new that changed you in some way.

9. The moment when you met someone who changed your life.

10. The day that you got your first pet.

11. A move from one place to another.

12. Something funny that happened to you.

13. Something funny that happened to one of your family members or friends.

14. Something embarrassing that happened to you.

15. Your favorite birthday party.

16. A birthday that was disappointing.

17. A big storm (rain, snow or even a tornado!).

18. A time that the power went out.

19. A summer day when the temperature got much higher than expected.

20. A time when you went to an amusement park.

21. A time when you got lost somewhere.

22. A memorable experience with a favorite family member.

23. A sad experience with someone about whom you care.

24. Your most exciting moment playing sports.

25. Your most exciting moment performing in a play, singing, playing music or dancing.

26. An experience that left you feeling frustrated.

27. An experience that was hard but ended up being worth it.

28. A time that you experienced rejection.

29. A weird encounter with a stranger.

30. A random act of kindness.

31. A time that you took a stand for someone or for an issue that you care about.

32. A moment when you thought you might get hurt but didn't.

33. Breaking a bone (or otherwise suffering an injury).

34. Your first time away from home for the night (or longer).

35. A time when you experienced a historic event.

36. Where you were when a major event happened. (Note: You don't need to have been at the site of the event; this prompt is about where you were when you found out about the event and how you reacted.)

37. A time when you rebelled against your parents or teacher.

38. A dangerous experience.

39. A misunderstanding between yourself and someone else.

40. A difficult decision that you had to make.

41. The end of a friendship or relationship.

42. The beginning of a friendship or relationship.

43. A time when you judged someone first and then realized that you were wrong about the person.

44. A time when someone judged you first and then realized that he or she was wrong about you.

45. A moment when you felt that you were starting to grow up.

46. A time when you saw one or both of your parents in a different light.

47. A time when you looked up to your older sibling.

48. A time when your younger sibling looked up to you.

49. A time when you were grateful to be an only child.

50. An experience that you think has only ever happened to you!

Looking for more essay topics?
Compare and Contrast Essay Topics
Descriptive Essay Topics
Cause and Effect Essay Topics
Persuasive Essay and Speech Topics

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50 Narrative Essay Topics | Reading and Writing Resource

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They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but a narrative essay can also tell an exciting story and create vivid pictures in the reader's mind! We've got 50 narrative essay topics designed to prompt students to craft memorable written narratives.

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This website has all of the 5th grade ELA standards. Find the one we are working with, and use the information to create an interesting narrative/

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IXL Skill Plan | Tennessee Academic Standards: Grade 5

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IXL's dynamic language arts practice skills offer comprehensive coverage of Tennessee fifth-grade standards. Find a skill to start practicing!

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This site will give you ideas on how to pick the perfect main character to tell your story!

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Stories are about change - specifically, they are about how characters change. Characters are the heart and soul of any story, which means that we should develop the story around them - starting with your protagonist.

Readers engage in good stories when they know what the protagonist wants and why it matters to them. They become invested in the character's struggles and successes as they pursue those goals, rather than the plot itself. Readers want to see the main character change. We want to see them fail, learn, and ultimately succeed. Our brains are actually wired to put ourselves in the main character's shoes and learn as they learn.

Choosing your protagonist, and the journey they're about to take, is one of the most important decisions you'll make in your story. Whether you already have a main character in mind, or you're just beginning to create them, it's essential to look at this choice critically and with an open mind!

Your main character should be the person in your story with the most to struggle against, and the most to learn. Their struggle, and their growth, is what ultimately proves your story's point. They should begin with a false belief about how the world works, called the misbelief or the internal obstacle. Then, throughout the course of the plot, external events should challenge them to make decisions that are either in line with this internal obstacle or in opposition to it.

For example, in The Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen opens the story with an internal obstacle belief that "Survival, of self and family, is the only reasonable goal." Because of this belief, she decides to volunteer for the Games to save her sister. Her initial goal is to win the games so she can get home to provide for her family, and she plans to do so by working alone, without alliances.

Throughout the majority of your story, your main character should continually make the wrong choices because of their internal obstacle belief. This is the whole purpose of act two! The misguided choices they make will have consequences that eventually open their eyes to their mistaken beliefs and teach them the true path - the lesson of your story point. Only after unlearning this internal obstacle can they finally achieve their goals. At the climax moment, your main character should make a decision which demonstrates they've unlearned their internal obstacle, and the consequences of that decision are what ultimately proves your point.

Katniss Everdeen's journey of change is about her overcoming her belief that survival is the only worthwhile goal. As the consequences of her decisions begin to add up, the story comes to a head in her alliance with Rue and consequently Rue's death. Katniss learns the story's point "There are goals more worthy and important than simply surviving" and then proves it when she decides to eat poison berries with Peeta, rather than killing him to succeed, proving that standing up to the Capitol is more important than surviving.

It's critical that your main character is the one who needs to learn the story point the most. Without a strong internal obstacle belief, your character will not undergo change, which means that they will have nothing to learn and your story point will not be proven. The character with the greatest opportunity to learn provides the best arc of change, and is the best way to prove your point.

Peeta Mellark would not have been the right main character for The Hunger Games because he already knows the story point, so his journey of change is not as compelling. He enters the Games already trying to protect Katniss, he forms alliances for the purpose of keeping the other tributes away from her, and his decisions demonstrate that he puts others before himself. Because of this, the story's message is best delivered through Katniss's change, not Peeta's.
Note: We typically recommend that there only be one protagonist in your story. Even when you have multiple POV characters, there should be one character arc that stands out as the story's core trajectory. They're the character all your other characters revolve around.
The first step to determining who your protagonist is, or evaluating if they're the right fit for your story, starts with listening out all the potential options. Remember: even if you already have a main character in mind, keep an open mind and think about your choice critically!

Step #1: List all the potential major / secondary characters in your story.

Begin with creating a list of all characters that could possibly be in your story. Aim for about 15-20 different options. This list can include currently unnamed characters (the janitor, the mom, the witch, etc) as well as any characters you've already begun to develop. Try to think outside the box: what kinds of people might live in your story world? Who is at the top of the power system? Who is at the bottom?

Step #2: From the list above, pick three major characters to focus on.

These should be the characters with the most at stake, and the most potential for change throughout the story. Answer the following questions for each of them:

What do they want most in the world? Why?

What will happen if they don't get what they want? Why?

What is the biggest thing standing in the way of achieving what they want? Why?

What internal flaws are holding them back from achieving their goals?

Step #3: Choose your main character.

Look at your answers from Step 2. Answer these questions:

Who faces the most compelling dilemma?

Who has the most at stake?

Who has the most to learn and overcome internally to achieve their goals?

Who's journey of change has the most potential to prove your story's point?

Based on how you answered the above questions, the character who stands to learn the most is your best option for a protagonist.

Now that you know who your main character is, it's time to begin developing their arc of change!

Start with deciding what message you want your story to convey. By creating your characters around your story point, you'll ensure their arcs prove it. Check out our Unearth Your Story Pointguide for additional advice! Next, consider what internal obstacle belief - usually in direct contrast to your story point - puts your character in the best position to change throughout the story. For more information on creating characters that grab the hearts of readers, check out our guide on character development called Craft Complex Characters!

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Stories are about change - specifically, they are about how characters change. Characters are the heart and soul of any story, which means that we should develop the story around them - starting with...

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Make sure you are writing a story that interests you. If it does not interest you, it will not interest your readers.

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"I write books I'd love to come upon" -Anne Lamott
I've interviewed over fifty authors. When I ask why they wrote a common refrain is:

"I thought I could write a better story than what I was reading."

"I felt the genre I liked to read needed a fresh angle."

"How is this a bestseller? I could do better."

I think a little of both.
Maybe these responses are dripping with arrogance from newbie authors who knew little about craft. Or maybe the key to writing books people will love to read.

What ignites and sustains the creative fire of the writer, is not original story lines no one has ever considered in the history of literature . What keeps the imagination of an artist alive is more simple.

It's what Anne Lamott once said:

"I write books I'd love to come upon."

Nothing is new under the sun. Someone has written a version of every story. But what I've preached for years and what makes each new book or piece of art special is you. Your angle, perspective, and the worldview you bring to the page.
The books I'd love to come upon.

Or we could say it this way: what brings the writer to the page day after day, month after month, and year after year, is writing the books you want to read.

Prolific fiction and nonfiction author C. S. Lewis when asked why he wrote books said:

"I wrote the books I should have liked to read if I could have got them. That's always been my reason for writing. People won't write the books I want, so I have to do it myself," (Green and Hopper, C. S. Lewis: A Biography, 169).

Lewis, Lamott, and other authors with last names starting with "L" understand the keys to creation. We write because the books...

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Maybe these responses are dripping with arrogance from newbie authors who knew little about craft. Or maybe the key to writing books people will love to read. What ignites and sustains the creative...

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Watch this video to help use detailed descriptions to create a more vivid story

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Types Of Adjectives | English Grammar & Composition Grade 5 | Periwinkle

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Make sure each sentence makes sense and is easy to understand.

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Remember to use different types of sentences in order to keep the story from becoming monotonous.

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Use transition words throughout your story to make sure the events of the story are in order.

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Transition Words and Phrases to Improve Your Writing | 120+ Transition Words for Essays

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Make sure you story contains each thing on this checklist to make sure you have written a good narrative!