Reading Part 2-Narrative Reading

Section 2- Narrative Reading

Narrative reading is a series or sequence of related events that happen in an order based on the time things occur. A basic model of a narrative structure is like this:

1^st A happens- 2^nd   B happens – 3^rd C happens…and so on 

Below is a reading passage that functions as a narrative.

Keith has listened to music since he was a baby. By the time he was five years old he was attracted to the sound of the piano. He started to study the piano when he was 7 years old. When he was a teenager he could play different styles of music on the piano including classical music, jazz and popular music. Today he focuses on playing only classical music and he plays music that he has written. Keith also performs piano concerts in America. Europe and Asia half of the year. The other part of the year he records his piano playing in a studio. He has managed to earn a living doing the thing he loves the most.

1^st– Keith listened to music as a baby

2^nd– When he was five he liked the sound of the piano

3^rd– When he was seven he started to play the piano

4^th– When he was a teenager he could play different styles of music on the piano.

5^th– He plays concerns around the world and records his piano music and loves doing it.

    Below is another reading passage describing someone’s schedule or routine. Then think about the following things as you read it.

• What time of day is it?
• Is the dress code at Jack’s job formal or informal?
• What kind of animal is his pet, Coco?
• What type of vehicle does he drive to work?
• What would be the best title for this reading passage?

 Jack gets up at about 7:00. The first thing he does is fix something to eat which usually includes, fruit, yogurt, toast, and hot tea with lemon and honey, it a very nutritious meal. After he eats he has a shower, brushes his teeth and shaves. He usually dresses for work in a pair of blue jeans, a polo shirt and a pair of running shoes. He works for an IT company so the dress code is quite casual. After he dresses he feeds Coco, his pet parrot and gives it fresh water. He goes to work on his Ducati Monster 797, it’s a quick journey to work because he can move around cars, trucks and other four wheeled vehicles easily and safely in traffic jams. He gets to his office at around 8:45 and works until 1:00, then goes out to lunch with his colleagues.

 The best title for this passage may be “Jack’s morning routine, because it describes the things he does before he goes to work, including how he goes to work. It’s similar to Jane’s routine, the difference is that his routine takes place in the morning and hers takes place in the afternoon and evening. Jack does the following morning activities in the following order:

• He wakes up
• He eats breakfast
• He has a shower, brushes his teeth & shaves
• Gets dressed
• He feeds his pet bird
• He goes to work on his motorcycle