Narrative Tenses in English

Introduction

• Narrative tenses are used to talk about the past, tell stories, and describe past events.
• The four narrative tenses:
  • Past Simple
  • Past Continuous
  • Past Perfect
  • Past Perfect Continuous

Example Story

1. Setting the Scene:
   • "The sun was shining." (Past Continuous)
2. Completed Action:
   • "I got in my car." (Past Simple)
3. Describing Ongoing Action:
   • "It had been raining." (Past Perfect Continuous)
4. Action Completed Before Another:
   • "All my washing had got wet." (Past Perfect)

Importance in Exams

• Demonstrating the use of narrative tenses is crucial in writing a story for exams.

Detailed Look at Each Tense

Past Simple

• Used for actions that started and finished in the past (completed actions).
• Examples:
  • "Andy Murray grew up in Dunblane..."
  • "Sam whispered, did you hear the argument last night?"

Past Continuous

• Used for background information or to describe situations that continued for some time.
• Examples:
  • "At 8pm, Lee was still sleeping."
  • Form: Subject + was/were + verb-ing
    • "I was working."
    • Negative: wasn't/were + verb-ing

Using Past Simple and Past Continuous Together

• Often used together when one action interrupts another.
• Example:
  • "I was walking on the pavement when I saw a cat in a tree."

Past Perfect

• Describes an action completed before another past action.
• Example:
  • "When Paul arrived, I had cooked a meal."
  • Form: I had + past participle
  • Negative: hadn't + past participle

Past Perfect Continuous

• Describes an action that started in the past and continued until another time in the past.
• Example:
  • "It had been raining."
  • Form: Subject + had been + verb-ing

Challenge

• Write a sentence using a combination of narrative tenses in the comments for feedback.

Conclusion

• Aim to feel more confident using narrative tenses for writing stories and anecdotes.
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