Narrative Essay Flow Map
INTRO – 3 to 5 sentences
1. Comment on prompt/theme.
2. Background on you/your experience with theme.
3. Thesis (When I was _____ I learned _____.)
EXPOSITION
SNAPSHOT
Jump right
in; describe
the setting &
initial action.
½ page
SNAPSHOT 2
Build to
climax. Use
dialogue, FL,
& imagery!
½ page
SNAPSHOT 3
Build to
climax. Use
dialogue, FL,
& imagery!
½ page
FINAL
SNAPSHOT
The moment
you changed
or grew. ½
page
CONCLUSION – 3 to 5 sentences
1. Comment on prompt/theme (no copy/paste!)
2. Restate thesis ( _____ taught me _____).
3. Comment on future you (Since that day…).
Narrative Essay Flow Map
1.
2.
3.
Judging others seems to be a way of life in high school. No biggie. It is what it is.
Throughout my high school career, I was judged by others for everything, from the friends I joined for lunch to the look on
my face as I walked down the hallway alone. I didn’t want to feel sorry for myself, though. So I decided that rumors,
backstabbing, fair weather friends, and the drama of it all was just part of being a teenager and I became part of the
problem.
Then, in October of my junior year, on a seemingly harmless Tuesday afternoon, Ricky Rodriguez took his own life and
taught a whole high school how deadly “Just being a teenager” could be.
Walking into the front of the
school.
Sight: eyes adjusting, looking
for Jen and Amy
Hear: sniffles and coughing
(cold season? crying?)
Smell: ???
Taste: Pop Tart I just ate; need
water
Physical: sick to stomach from
Pop Tart
Emotional: excited about
homecoming performance
Friday and date with Ryan
Knowing: Best year of high
school so far; can’t wait to tell
Jen about phone call with
Ryan last night
Sight: Jen and Amy hugging,
crying
Hear: “I can’t believe it. I just
saw him yesterday after
school…”
Smell: ???
Taste: ???
Physical: weight in stomach
Emotional: frozen
Knowing: realization that
something is horribly wrong
Dialogue: “What? What
happened?”
Jen and Amy grabbing me;
won’t tell me what happened;
getting impatient, angry
“It’s Ricky.”
1.
2.
3.
Look over to Ricky’s locker; see
flowers
Time freezes; voices muffled;
lockers squeaking/slamming
Flashback to Ricky; people
made fun of him for being
different, quiet; we always told
him not to take things so
seriously; he didn’t want to
join us yesterday; didn’t push
him; didn’t feel like dealing
with his drama; “Hi, Ricky! Bye,
Ricky!” Giggling, “Cheer up,
silly goose! I’ll see you
tomorrow!” Noticed he looked
a little different than usual;
“should call him later”; had too
much fun; didn’t call
Jen’s cracking voice pulls me
back to the present, “Missy
found him this morning… dad’s
gun… note…”
Note: I can’t take it anymore...
It’s different for me. I’m alone.
Realization that I could have
stopped this, yesterday, days
past.
Realization that he’s gone –
physical feeling, tears on my
cheeks, salty taste in my
mouth, then bile/Pop Tart
coming back up.
Seeing a note on his locker as I
run to the bathroom, blurry in
my tears, “We love you,
Ricky.” But we didn’t... really.
Being a teenager shouldn’t hurt, yet teens seem to accept that bullying is somehow supposed to come with the territory
and so they take the hits, they join in on the judging, and they expect each other and themselves to remain unaffected.
Unfortunately, it took the death of a dear friend to teach me that no one can escape the pain of being judged and
ridiculed and neglected, not even those of us who think we have.
As time passes, the pain of that October Tuesday has naturally waned, but I’m reminded of the significance of Ricky’s
pained life and untimely death everyday that I see and hear students making what they think are harmless judgments of
each other and I pray that they don’t have to lose a friend in order to learn the truth.