Reading Tutoring: Finding the Plot

Here's a simple truth: Kids love stories. That's why toddlers demand to hear their favorite tale over and over again, and it's why teens rush out to get the latest installment in the Twilight series. It's practically within our DNA to love well-crafted stories about interesting characters. Good stories can teach us a lot, too — we can use them not just to become better readers, but also to become better writers. Next week, we'll take a look at some of the best bets for summer reading. But today, we're getting down to basics by talking about plot.

From an early age, students grasp the basics about plot. They might say that plot is what happens in a story. And that — as basic as it sounds — is correct. It's important, though, for students to understand the major components of plot. This is where a simple diagram, such as Freytag's pyramid, comes in super-handy. When you're tutoring your child in reading or writing, take some time to teach (or remind) her about the elements of plot.

First, there's the rising action. This is when things really get going. Rising action introduces the conflict in a story. Maybe a group of kids wander into a spooky, abandoned house. They look around the house, terrified but putting on brave faces. They try to egg each other on, daring one another to climb up a spooky staircase or take a peek inside a musty old room. All of this rising action builds up to the next part of the plot: the climax.

The climax, also commonly called the "turning point," is where the tension is at its highest. In our scary-house example, the climax could be the house's owner scolding the kids for being on her property. Or, the climax could take a more supernatural turn, with the kids encountering a ghost. When we describe a book as a "real page-turner," we're actually saying that the rising action is really exciting, and we can't wait to arrive at the turning point.

You could say it's "all downhill" from the turning point — although, with plot, that's not a bad thing! The turning point is followed by the "falling action." During the falling action, the characters begin to take steps to solve the problem or the conflict introduced during the climax. Our scary-house explorers might scramble off the property after being scolded, or they might run away after encountering a ghost. If they're particularly intrepid, they might try to stay and chat with their new supernatural friend.

And then: the resolution. Whether we realize it consciously or not, we as readers live for the resolution. We want to "closure" — we want to know how the conflict was resolved. Did the kids apologize for trespassing? Did they make friends with the ghost? Did they realize that the ghost was not a ghost at all . . . but rather a squirrel running around in the attic? The resolution ties it all together for us.

When your child reads, it is a good idea for him to make a diagram of the plot, containing the four elements we've just discussed. This activity helps him take note (both literally and figuratively) of the way the author has crafted the story. It helps him to remember key points better, and gives him real-world examples of each of the major plot elements. This type of diagramming is also tremendously helpful when your student is writing his own stories. A story must contain each of the four elements in order to have a true plot — and in order to hold readers' attention.

If you're seeking a writing or reading tutor for your child, a great place to find the best one for you is TutorsAnywhere.com.