What are the key elements of the plot in "All Summer in a Day"?

The exposition for "All Summer in a Day" occurs when the narrator explains that the children of pioneers who have come to live on the planet Venus are in class and that it is always raining on this planet. However, the sun is due to come out today.

The rising action occurs as the rain slows down and the children wonder what it will be like to see the sun. They are jealous and hostile in their attitude toward Margot, the one girl who has already seen the sun when she lived on earth, and lock her in a closet.

The climax of the narrative is when the rain stops and the sun comes out.

The falling action comprises the children rushing out to play in the sunshine, their joy at finally seeing the sun, and the swift, sudden return of the rain. After seeking shelter inside, they suddenly remember that Margot is still locked in the closet.

The resolution occurs when the children let Margot out of the closet.

Which plot elements should be used to outline "All Summer in a Day"?

An outline should be a detailed synopsis of the plot, following it in the sequence it unfolds and making sense of how the story is structured. I would go from the opening, which introduces the idea that something is going to happen, move to the fact that it has rained for seven years nonstop on Venus, and then move to the idea that the rain is about to stop and the sun to come out for an hour.

Second, I would introduce the facts about Margot, the protagonist, especially that she is the only child in the class of expectant children who has ever seen the sun, that she is depressed by living on a rainy planet, and that she doesn't fit in with the other children, who are jealous of her for her knowledge of the sun.

Finally, I would move to the high point of the story, in which the children lock Margot in the windowless closet, enjoy the thrill of an hour of sunshine, and return ashamed to release Margot from her prison.

I would advise putting the opening about the rain and sun under the heading of "Venus" under Roman numeral I, followed by A, B, and so on; the information about Margot under the heading of "Margot" under Roman numeral II; and the climax under the heading "Climax" under Roman numeral III in order to follow the arc of the story.

One approach to a plot outline might be a discussion of the way Bradbury uses metaphors, particularly those associated with color and heat, to influence character and action in the story. Set on Venus, where constant rainfall has forced inhabitants to live underground and the sun shines only once every seven years, Bradbury evokes a depressing landscape, likening the jungle to “ash” or “white cheese.” This lack of color and warmth has strongly affected the schoolchildren from the compound, turning all of them extremely pale and in some instances, even leaching the color from their eyes and hair. Their outward appearance is not all that has been corrupted, however. The lack of light has also taken a toll on them emotionally, rendering them callous and cynical. Their treatment of Margot, a girl who remembers what sunlight looks and feels like, provides an excellent example of this.