What are the Basics of Narrative Writing for Children in the Second Grade?

All stories need at least one character, a hero. A student's character doesn't need to be a human being; it doesn't even need to be a living being. However, whatever the character is, it needs to exhibit human-like characteristics. Even if a student's hero is a rock, it still needs to have a personality, and -- most importantly -- needs. A second grader's characters need to want something, and want it badly. The desires and needs of characters drive a story. For example, if this rock really wants to fly, it will make decisions that will cause other events to happen. It might convince a bird to carry it in its beak, or demand to be rolled downhill so it can roll off a cliff.

Young writers need to understand that stories use words to paint pictures. Encourage your students to describe what things in their stories look like, or even use actions to imply sensory experiences. Furthermore, stress to them that they have five senses, and that each one can be used when telling a story. Simply saying that a character removed a fresh apple pie from the oven can evoke a powerful reaction in a reader, and the student never even had to say how it smelled. Young writers should strive to give us rich descriptions of their imagined worlds, and describe how characters and objects look, sound, smell and feel.

It doesn't matter if you have a character in a beautifully described setting -- if the character isn't engaged in a conflict, it isn't a story. Young writers must understand that their main characters need to try to overcome obstacles. These obstacles are linked directly to the character's needs and desires. For example, if the rock really wants to fly, his first obstacle might be that he is unable to move because he is a rock. Therefore, he is in conflict with himself, and with nature. Explain that conflicts can be between characters and other characters, or between characters and themselves, society, nature or even machines.

The only structural information that second graders really need to understand is that every story needs a beginning, middle and end. In the beginning, we get introduced to the main character and see something happen that initiates the conflict. For example, the rock gets chastised for wanting to fly. The middle of the story is dedicated to the character trying -- and struggling -- to achieve his desire. In the end, the character either gets what he wants or doesn't, but no matter what, he learns something from the experience. This moment of learning is an effective way to introduce theme and the epiphanic moment without having to use jargon or complex explanations.