Free Printable Plot Diagram Template
What is a plot diagram?
A plot diagram maps a story’s structure in five parts: exposition, rising action, climax, falling action and resolution. It is often drawn as a mountain, so teachers also call it a plot mountain or story mountain. Students use it to see how tension builds and releases.
On this page:Free sheetDesignsWhat goes whereHow to use itFAQ
Print the labeled plot diagram template now
A blank, letter-size plot diagram template shaped like a mountain and labeled Exposition, Rising action, Climax, Falling action and Resolution. Print it free, right from this page.
Free downloads for educators coming soon
plot diagram sheet · 1 page · US Letter (8.5 × 11 in)
Free to print and copy for classroom use · Free Use Terms
Plot diagram designs
Each one is a different look. Open any design to see it larger.
- Editorial Grid
- Coloured Crayon
- Comic Panel
- Movement Gym
- Cork and Colour Pinboard
- Reading Nook
- Industrial Loft
- Whiteboard & Markers
- Spectrum Gradient Frame
- Coastal Tidepool
- Bold Cut Paper
- Navy and Gold
- Train Track Lines
- Geology Strata
- Dark Academia
- Printmaking Studio
- Woodland Trail
- Storybook Meadow
- Geometric Blocks
- Desert Mesas
- Technical Blueprint
- Spring Rain
- Highlighter Strokes
- Stone Courtyard
- Quiet Linen
- Scalloped Bulletin Board
- Rainbow Thin Lines
- Monochrome Court
What goes where on a plot diagram
Map a story's plot, from exposition to resolution, on a five-stage arc.
- ExpositionNote the setting and the main characters at the start of the story.
- Rising ActionList the events and problems that build tension, in order.
- ClimaxWrite the turning point, the most intense moment of the story.
- Falling ActionList what happens as a result of the climax.
- ResolutionNote how the problem is solved and how the story ends.
TipHave students retell the story aloud using only the filled-in arc.
Step by step
How do you use a plot diagram?
- Before
Pick a story the class knows well, such as a short folk tale.
- During
Exposition: at the left base of the mountain, note the setting and the main characters.
- During
Rising action: up the left slope, list the events and problems that build tension, in order.
- During
Climax: at the peak, write the one turning point, the most intense moment.
- During
Falling action: down the right slope, list what happens as a result of the climax.
- During
Resolution: at the right base, note how the problem is solved and how the story ends.
After: have students retell the story out loud using only the diagram.
Can you provide an example of a plot diagram?
| Part of the plot | What happens |
|---|---|
| Exposition | Three little pigs leave home to build houses: one of straw, one of sticks and one of bricks. |
| Rising action | A wolf blows down the straw house, then the stick house. |
| Climax | The wolf cannot blow down the brick house and tries the chimney. |
| Falling action | He falls into a pot of boiling water. |
| Resolution | The third pig is safe in the brick house. |
Some classes place the climax when the brick house holds, others at the chimney. Either works if students can explain why.
Benefits
Why use a plot diagram? When should you use it?
It shows how a story builds
Students see tension climb to the climax and ease toward the end.
It helps students retell in order
Each point on the mountain cues the next event.
It gives writers a plan
Students can sketch their own plot before they draft.
Use it once students can retell a story’s events. To list a story’s characters, setting and problem, a story map fits better. If only the order of events matters, try a sequence chain.
Variations
Is a plot diagram the same as a plot mountain or story mountain?
Yes: plot diagram, plot mountain and story mountain are three names for the same five-part chart, though some versions label the stages differently. Some add a stage, such as an inciting incident after the exposition. The five-part shape also echoes the pyramid the German writer Gustav Freytag described for drama in 1863: an introduction, a rise, a climax, a fall and a catastrophe.1
By grade
How do you use a plot diagram in each grade band?
Grades K–2
Use three parts: beginning, middle and end. Draw the mountain with pictures, and add the five labels in later grades.
Grades 3–5
Plot one familiar story together, then have pairs plot a new one from independent reading.
Grades 6–8
Ask students to mark the climax of a short story and defend the choice. Two readers may place it differently.
Grades 9–12
Use the diagram to plan an original narrative, or to compare how two authors build and release tension.
Compare
Plot diagram or story map: which should you use?
Use a story map to list what is in a story. Use a plot diagram to see how its tension builds and releases.
| Feature | Plot diagram | Story map |
|---|---|---|
| What it looks like | A mountain or arc with five labeled points | A set of labeled boxes |
| What goes in it | Exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, resolution | Characters, setting, problem, events, solution |
| Does order matter? | Yes: events climb, peak and fall | Events are listed in order, but nothing peaks |
| Best for | Analyzing and planning how a story builds | Retelling and summarizing a story |
| Limits | Harder for the youngest students | Does not show where the story peaks |
Can you print a plot diagram at 24×36?
Print it at 24×36. Any sheet here prints poster-size too. Printed poster-size, a plot diagram becomes a class anchor chart everyone can see and add to throughout the unit. A school poster maker prints it for as low as $1.30 per 24×36 poster.
Questions
What do teachers ask about plot diagrams?
What are the five parts of a plot diagram?
The five parts are exposition, rising action, climax, falling action and resolution.
- Exposition: introduces the setting and main characters.
- Rising action: the events and problems that build tension.
- Climax: the turning point, the most intense moment.
- Falling action: what happens as a result of the climax.
- Resolution: how the problem is solved and the story ends.
What are the rising and falling actions in a story?
Rising action is the series of events and problems that build tension up to the climax. Falling action is what happens after the climax as the story moves toward its end. In “The Three Little Pigs,” the wolf blowing down two houses is rising action, and his fall into the pot is falling action.
Is a plot diagram a graphic organizer?
Yes. A plot diagram is a graphic organizer that lays a story’s events on a mountain-shaped chart. Students fill it in to analyze a story they have read or to plan one they will write.
Is there a difference between plot and storyline?
Many teachers use the two words interchangeably. If your curriculum separates them, plot is the structured sequence of events that a plot diagram maps, and storyline is the plain account of what happens.
Need an editable plot diagram?
Yes: make a five-row table in Google Docs or Word, label the rows with the five parts and fill them in.2 The mountain shape is optional. The sheet on this page is also print-and-write: print it and fill it in by hand, or project it and fill it in together.
Sources
- Gustav Freytag, Freytag’s Technique of the Drama: An Exposition of Dramatic Composition and Art, authorized translation from the sixth German edition by Elias J. MacEwan (Chicago: Scott, Foresman and Company, 1900). The edition’s biographical note says the book was written in 1863; the chapter “The Construction of the Drama” describes “a pyramidal structure” that “rises from the introduction … to the climax, and falls from here to the catastrophe,” in five parts: introduction, rise, climax, return or fall, and catastrophe. Full text: https://archive.org/details/freytagstechniqu00freyuoft
- Google Docs Editors Help, “Add and edit tables”: https://support.google.com/docs/answer/1696711