Trading
Charts 101CandlesticksIndicatorsRisk managementAll chart patternsHead and shouldersInverse head and shouldersDouble topDouble bottomAscending triangleDescending triangleBull flagBear flagCup and handleFalling wedgeRising wedgeSupport and resistanceTriple topTriple bottomSymmetrical triangleRounding bottomPennantRectangleAscending channelDescending channelBroadening formationGolden crossDeath crossBart patternWyckoff accumulationWyckoff distributionWhat moves marketsTradingViewMarket cap vs price
The short answer
A sharp drop, a weak drift upward, then more selling.
What you are looking at
A steep decline, then a shallow rising channel on lower volume.
How traders act on it
A break below the channel resumes the move, targeting the pole length.
Closes, not touches
Wait for a close beyond the level, not a touch. Intraday spikes through a level that reverse before the close are extremely common, and they exist partly because so many stops sit just beyond.When it fails
A strong reclaim of the pole midpoint usually means the sellers have exhausted themselves.
Failure is normal and it is not a problem, provided you decided your invalidation level before entering and sized the position so that being wrong is survivable. See risk management.
Context that changes the odds
| Factor | Improves the setup | Weakens it |
|---|---|---|
| Higher timeframe trend | Pattern agrees with the daily or weekly direction | Pattern fights the larger trend |
| Volume | Expands on the breakout | Breakout happens on thin volume |
| Duration | Formed over many candles | Formed over three or four candles, which is mostly noise |
| Level confluence | Trigger sits at a well tested level | Trigger sits in empty space with no history |
| Market conditions | Trending, orderly market | Choppy range, where nearly every pattern fails |
Other patterns
Head and shouldersInverse head and shouldersDouble topDouble bottomAscending triangleDescending triangleBull flagCup and handle
Common questions
Why is a bear flag hard to trade?
Because the drift upward looks like a recovery while it is happening, and the whole pattern only means anything if it resolves down. Shorting a bear flag that turns out to be a bottom is a common and expensive mistake.
What confirms it?
A close below the lower edge of the channel, ideally on rising volume, with the previous low giving way shortly afterward.
Where to go next
All 26 patternsThe full set with diagrams.Risk managementSizing and stops.CandlesticksThe building blocks.
Practice spotting these
We go through live charts together and separate the real setups from the shapes your brain wants to see. That second skill is the harder one.