Year 8 · English · Short stories · Lesson 4
Structure, tension and twists
Short story structure: the narrative arc, pace, tension, twist endings, cliffhangers and flashbacks, with a model micro-story.
20-minute video lesson
Teaching, worked examples and 20 practice questions solved step by step.
Watch free for a monthWhat your child will learn
- Name the five stages of a narrative arc
- Explain how pace builds tension
- Analyse a twist ending
- Identify cliffhangers, flashbacks and circular structure
- Plan a twist
The method
- Find where you are in the arc.
- Look at how pace is controlled.
- Quote a structural feature.
- Explain its effect.
Key words: narrative arc, exposition, climax, resolution, pace, twist, cliffhanger.
Worked examples
The first three practice questions from the lesson, with every step.
Question 1
What happens in the exposition?
- Step 1: Introduces characters and setting
Answer: Characters and setting are introduced
Question 2
What happens in the rising action?
- Step 1: Problems and tension build
Answer: Tension and problems build
Question 3
What is the resolution?
- Step 1: How things end; problems are settled
Answer: The ending, where things are settled