Using Picture Books to Teach Narrative Writing

This post may contain affiliate links.

Using picture books to teach narrative writing is so much fun! This book list and free worksheets will help kids learn to write personal stories.

One thing I always struggled with was teaching writing. I am not great at creative writing, but it is something my daughter is really good at. So, this year, I am actually using a formal writing curriculum that will cover all different writing styles.

However, you don’t need a curriculum to teach writing if you get creative. I believe the easiest style of writing to teach is narrative writing. Narrative writing is storytelling from a personal perspective. 

Kids can choose an event from real life to relate to their audience.

Using Picture Books to Teach Narrative Writing

There are many picture books that you can use to demonstrate narrative writing – stories in which the main character is telling a story from their perspective. This is a great place to start, because children can relate and are eager to tell a story of their own.  

Choose a book from the list below to read to or with your children. If you read aloud, be sure to share the pictures so that the children can “see” the story, as well. Read it again if you’d like. Then…

• Talk about the hook that grabs the audience’s attention.

• Discuss the fact that a good story has a beginning, a middle, and an end. There’s an obvious order and flow to the story – no skipping around.

• The story sticks to the point.

• A good narrative focuses on a small amount of time.

• A good narrative has a clear understanding of the main character and the setting of the story.

• Events flow from one to the next with transition words.

• A well-written narrative is full of detail so the reader can create a ‘picture’ in their mind – but it doesn’t ramble.

Picture Books to Teach Narrative Writing

Fill your book basket with a great collection of picture books to teach narrative writing. Most of these books can be found at your local library or used bookstore.

If you have a hard time finding them, you can order them through my Amazon affiliate links by clicking the images below.

Some fun books that you can use to teach narrative writing include The Relatives Came, Owl Moon, When I Was Young in the Mountains, and Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. You can find more suggestions below.

How to Teach Narrative Writing

In this narrative writing printable pack, you’ll find an anchor chart, three pages of writing prompts (one for pre-readers, one for elementary students, and one for middle/high school students), and two styles of writing pages.

DOWNLOAD YOUR PRINTABLES

This pack of narrative writing worksheets is only available to my readers. Click the button below and enter your information to download your printables.

Related Posts