Syllabus topic 4: Narrative writing step by step
140–190 words · Story. Write a story about someone who makes an unexpected discovery while helping another person. Establish the situation, build a problem or uncertainty, and resolve it. Use a detail from the opening again near the end.
Write 140–190 words. Write a story about someone who makes an unexpected discovery while helping another person. Establish the situation, build a problem or uncertainty, and resolve it. Use a detail from the opening again near the end.
An ending feels earned when an earlier detail becomes important. Do not introduce an unexplained new solution in the final sentence.
Your progress
Mark this lesson as studied when you have finished the explanation.
Use these phrases if they fit your ideas. There is no single correct response.
140 more words to reach the suggested range.
This is guided self-review, not automatic grading. The word range is a guide. Editing your text clears the checklist so you can review the new version; previous lesson completion stays in your history.
The tiny silver bell above Mrs Lane's door rang as I carried in the last box. I was helping her pack before she moved closer to her daughter. Most of the afternoon had been spent wrapping cups and sorting books. At the bottom of a cupboard, I found an envelope with my grandfather's name on it. He had died before I was born, and I had never seen his handwriting. Mrs Lane looked surprised when I showed her the envelope. She explained that they had worked together years ago. Inside was a sketch of the shop where they had first met. I recognised the doorway immediately, but something small was missing from the drawing. Then Mrs Lane smiled and pointed upwards. My grandfather had given her the silver bell when she opened her own business. Before I left, she placed the sketch in my hands. The bell rang again as I stepped outside, but this time its sound meant something completely different.
This example illustrates structure and tone and may be shorter than the suggested range. Develop your own response.
Keep learning
Continue this topic or practice every English skill at the same level.
35 min · Email
15 min · Tenses
10 min · Technology
10 min · Monologue
10 min · Story
15 min · Mixed practice
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