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The climax is the turning point of a story when the main character’s problem begins to be solved or resolved. We can also think of the climax as the most important and exciting moment in an entire story, or we can think of it as the most intense and emotional part of a narrative. The climax is an element of the plot, or a single moment in the part of an entire story.

You can think of a story like a mountain. As you climb up the mountain, you are moving through the plot. Then, you reach the top. The very top of the mountain is the climax. Many people call this point in the story, or the climax, the turning point. If you think about the mountain, you must turn and go back down the mountain. The downward slope, or the climb down, is the ending of the story.

In popular and easily recognizable stories, the climax is often the moment when the hero wins or loses. In many fantasy stories, the climax is the moment the hero defeats the scary dragon. In comic book stories, or superhero stories, the climax is the moment when the superhero defeats the villain. For instance, the climax is the moment Batman defeats the Joker or the Riddler. With Superman, the climax is the moment Superman defeats his enemy, Lex Luther. For many stories about princesses, the climax occurs when the princess finally meets the prince. In the modern version of Cinderella, the climax of the story occurs when the prince places the glass slipper on Cinderella’s foot, which indicates that the two will live happily ever after.

A climax occurs in video games too. Think of the classic story of Mario, who runs through castles and landscapes to find Princess Peach. For each level, the story and game lead to Mario facing Bowser, Jr., an evil turtle, in a battle. The climax reaches its peak, or the top of the mountain, when Mario defeats Bowser and saves Princess Peach.

A question to ask in order to help find the climax is to ask, “Is the main conflict or main problem being solved?” You first need to identify the main problem or situation that the main character is facing. You should then look for the moment in which this problem begins to be solved. With the climax, the main problem may not be solved entirely; in fact, the character’s main problem may not be solved completely most the time. In some cases, like in comic book stories, the climax is very clear. The problem in most comic book stories is the villain, and when the superhero defeats the villain, the problem is solved. If we think back to the Cinderella story, the problem Cinderella faces is being trapped by her mean stepmother and stepsisters. This problem is solved once the prince places the glass slipper on her foot and discovers she was at his ball. The problem Superman faces is Lex Luther’s evil plots to take over the city, and Superman solves this problem by defeating Lex Luther. The climax, looking at these stories, can be seen as the turning point of the story where the main character’s problem is beginning to be solved.

Climax Worksheets

This bundle contains 5 ready-to-use Climax worksheets that are perfect to test student knowledge and understanding the climax of which is the turning point of a story when the main character’s problem begins to be solved or resolved.

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Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

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