The Note in the Library Book — Narrative Writing — Answers
Answer sheet with model answers and success criteria for the Year 4 narrative writing writing prompt.
Year 4 · English · Narrative Writing
The Note in the Library Book — Narrative Writing — Answers
The prompt
You borrow a book from the school library. When you open it at home, a folded piece of paper falls out. On it, in handwriting you do not recognise, is your name, and underneath: 'Meet me by the big gum tree at lunch tomorrow. Come alone. I know what you lost.'
Write a story about what happens next.
A good narrative has:
• An orientation that sets the scene and introduces the character.
• A complication that builds tension, with the character facing a problem or a choice.
• A resolution that answers the mystery and shows how the character has changed.
• Show, don't tell: show feelings through what characters do and say.
• Paragraphs for each new stage, place or speaker.
Plan
Spend five minutes planning. Short notes are fine.
Answer: Noah, who lost his grandfather's old compass at the school cross-country last month.
Answer: His hands go cold and he reads the note four times, then hides it under his pillow.
Answer: Nobody at first. Then a Year 6 girl, Ines, steps out. She found the compass but it is broken, and she was too scared to say so.
Answer: The compass is not broken. It only points one way: towards the creek, where something else is waiting.
Answer: They follow the compass together and find the lost class time capsule. Noah decides not to walk alone to the tree next time.
Write
Model answer: Come Alone. The note was folded into a tight square, the kind of fold that takes practice. Noah read it four times. Then he looked over his shoulder, even though he was alone in his bedroom, and slid it under his pillow. 'I know what you lost.' Nobody knew about the compass. Nobody except Grandpa, and Grandpa was not the note-writing type.
Success criteria:
- Orientation introduces the character, setting and the note
- Tension builds before the meeting at the gum tree
- Feelings are shown through actions and dialogue, not just stated
- The resolution explains the mystery in a believable way
- A new paragraph for each new stage, place or speaker
- Dialogue is punctuated correctly with speech marks
- A range of sentence lengths is used for effect
Marking tips
- Give credit for correct method even when the final answer slips — the working shows where the thinking went right.
- For open-ended tasks, use the success criteria as a checklist rather than looking for one "right" answer.
- Celebrate what went well first, then pick one thing to work on next.
Great work. Here's what to try next: