Another Example of Recount Text

Joining the Traditional Dance Competition

I joined the Traditional Dance Competition in Jakarta last year. I represented my Junior High School. It was my biggest competition. I practiced hard with my teacher for a month. We also prepared the best costume we had.

We only had one day in Jakarta. We went there by plane. We left at 6 a.m. and arrived in Jakarta at 7 a.m. We took a taxi to take us to the place where the competition was held. It took an hour to get there. There were already some participants when we arrived. The competition would start in an hour.

First, my teacher and I went to the dressing room. My teacher helped me do the make-up and the costume. We spent almost an hour for the preparation. I told my teacher that I was really nervous. I was not ready for this. However, she told me that everything was alright, and I felt better.

Then, the time came for me to perform on stage. There were five judges and about two hundred people watching me. However, I did not feel nervous anymore. I performed on the stage confidently. I really did the best I could. I was glad when it ended smoothly.

After that, we waited for the announcement of the result. It was 4 p.m. when the judges finished making their final decision. I was so impatient to hear the result. I still could not believe when they called my name as the first winner. I was so happy to be given the trophy. My teacher was also proud of my achievement. Finally, we went back to Yogyakarta in the evening. We were so tired. However, we were satisfied because our effort was not useless.

Example of a Simple Recount Text

A Possum in the House

Once there was a small possum that went to visit my house. The possum was very tired and hungry. He went to different places to find food, so he made a big mess around the house.

First, he went into the cupboard in the big kitchen. After that he went to the small washing basket. The possum's next stop was the study room. Here he perched on the top of the bookshelf. Next, he went to lounge and hid in the stereo. After visiting the lounge he went to the bathroom. In the bathroom he squirted all the toothpaste out. Then he hid in the toilet.

Finally, the possum went to the bedroom and slept on the bed. He looked very cute when sleeping.

Question: Can you guess the generic structure of the text above?

Cloze Text of Recount (Example)

Feel in the blanks with the word provided below!

(travel, held, write, food, saw, drink, limited, plenty, done, visit, spend, fearing, departed, success)

My Rush Time as a Journalist

I usually woke up at eight o'clock a.m. and went to the Press Center to check the daily schedule of briefings and press conferences. It was usually (11) ____________ by the United Nation officials or disaster mitigation team.

It was challenging to (12) ___________ different refugee camps to find soft stories, human interest stories. After that I went back to the Press Center to cover the press conferences of the day.

It was heart breaking when I (13) ____________ these survivors fight for food and secondhand clothing. Unfortunately as they said, the food and clothing were (14) __________ and inadequate. Emerging to glaring, fool noon, it was time to go back to Press Center to (15) __________ stories and race against time. I was always (16) __________ that the internet would come crushing down.

After everything was (17) ___________, only then I remembered to eat. Most times, I only ate once a day because I always had to rush and again it was difficult to find (18) __________. I had to (19) ___________ quite far. I needed to (20) ___________ a 30 to 45 minutes by car just to find fresh food.

What is a Recount Text?

A recount tells about something that happened in the past. The details in a recount can include what happened, who was involved, where it took place, when it happened and why it occurred.

A writer or speaker uses a recount to tell us about a story or an event. Recounts are usually given in the order that the event occurred. Recounts can be:

• factual, such as a news story
• procedural, such as telling someone how you built something
• personal, such as a family holiday or your opinion on a subject.

Examples of a recount

Recounts can be either written or spoken. Examples of recounts include:

• biographies and autobiographies
• newspapers or the television news
• letters and postcards
• textbooks
• conversations with friends

Structure

A well-structured recount includes details of the event or topic and personal opinions.

Written recounts often start with a heading or title. Letters and journal entries do not usually have a title. Oral recounts might have a title if you are giving a presentation. If you are just talking with friends a title is not usually needed.

The introductory paragraph, or orientation, of a written recount introduces the topic or event. This paragraph introduces who, what, where, when, why and possibly how.

The following body paragraphs will recount the sequence of events. This is where the recount is told in chronological order (the order that the events happened).

The conclusion, or re-orientation, is where the writer or speaker can give personal opinions about the topic or event. The writer or speaker may also comment on how this event or topic may affect other things in the future.

Preparing a recount

The factual information in a recount must be accurate. Recounts can also include the speaker's or writer's personal thoughts on the event or topic. Recounts are written in the past tense because they tell about something that has already happened.

When writing your own recount, it is important to write everything down in the order that it happened. Use words that show when something happened as well as action words to tell how it happened. You may also include other people's opinions or quotes on the topic or event.

Always check your text for correct spelling, grammar and punctuation.

(Adapted from http://www.skwirk.com)