14 Free Storyboard Template Printables (PDF Download)

This storyboard template printable gives you 14 different layouts for sketching scenes, mapping out a story, and getting ideas on paper before the writing starts.

It’s black-and-white line art, so it prints clean on any home printer. And like the rest of my blank paper printables, it’s free.

I taught for 15 years and I can tell you exactly when a kid gets stuck: the blank page. Give them six boxes and a couple of lines underneath, and suddenly they have something to say. 🙌

These work for a fourth grader retelling a folktale, a middle schooler planning a video project, or you at the kitchen table trying to remember what happens in chapter three. Same sheets. Different jobs.

Grab the free PDF below 👇

What’s Included

14 single-page portrait layouts, all in minimal monochrome line-art:

• Header for name, date, and title on every page
• Rounded drawing boxes in varied panel counts, from one large frame up to eight
• Ruled writing lines paired with each drawing area
• Left-column and right-column variants (boxes left, lines right, and the reverse)
• Paired drawing-and-note rows for scene-by-scene breakdowns
• Full-page layouts with one big illustration space and lines underneath
• Print-ready PDF, no signup

Features & Benefits

• Variety from 3 to 8 boxes per page.
• Drawing boxes are big enough to actually draw in. I’ve used printable teaching resources where the panels were the size of a postage stamp 😂.
• Ruled writing lines sit right next to or underneath every panel..
• Black-and-white line art means no ink guilt. Print 30 copies for a class set and your printer will still be speaking to you on Monday.

For note-taking systems pair it with the Cornell notes template for a full unit, or grab numbered lined paper when you want them tracking steps in order.

Who It’s For

• 3rd-5th grade teachers doing story sequencing, retells, or narrative writing units
• Homeschool parents who want one printable that covers reading comprehension and writing
• Middle school ELA teachers running script breakdowns or video projects
• Content creators and student filmmakers planning shots before they film
• Anyone who thinks in pictures before words (me, always)

How to Use It

1. Pick your panel count. Fewer boxes for younger kids and simple retells. More boxes for detailed sequences and video planning.
2. Fill in the header. Name, date, and the story or project title. Takes ten seconds and saves you sorting through a stack of anonymous papers later.
3. Sketch first, write second. Stick figures are completely fine. The drawing is a thinking tool, not the assignment.
4. Use the lines for what’s happening. Dialogue, action, camera notes, whatever the project needs.
5. Print a class set and keep the extras. These live nicely in a writing center folder.

Teacher Tip: Run one page through as a whole-class model on the document camera before students get their own. Fill in the first two panels together. Then let them go. It cuts the “I don’t know what to draw” hands in half. Works every time.

Mom Tip: These are shockingly good for summer. My six-year-old storyboarded a movie about a dragon who works at a bank. I have no notes.

If you need more blank sheets for the writing side of things, my handwriting paper printable is the one I reach for with early writers. And for anything that needs measured spacing, like comic panels or layout planning, large grid graph paper does the job.

You can browse everything under literacy printables if you’re building out a whole unit.

You Might Also Like

• FREE Printable Lined Paper PDF
• Printable Graph Paper with Numbers for Easy Reference
• Handwriting Paper Collection

Print a few different panel counts and see which one your kids actually reach for. Then come poke around the rest of my paper and stationery printables while the printer warms up. 🎉