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Imagination and Words
The Power of Language
1:3:37:Metaphor and Simile
TITLE OF LESSON
English 1 Unit 3 Lesson 37 – Metaphor and Simile
TIME ESTIMATE FOR THIS LESSON
One class period
ALIGNMENT WITH STANDARDS
California – Eng 9-10: R1.0-3, 3.11, W1.0, 1.2, 1.9, W/O1.0-2, L/S1.0-1, 2.0
MATERIALS
Sandstorm of Kisses – Reading
Butcher paper
Markers
Humorous Metaphors and Similes – Student Page
Poetry Revision – Student Page
LESSON OBJECTIVES
•
To revise partner name poems
• To determine what metaphor and simile are and are not
• To extend the metaphor or simile for a poem
• To create a class poem
• To create an individual love poem
FOCUS AND MOTIVATE STUDENTS – WARM-UP ACTIVITY
1) Homework Check – Stamp/initial homework.
2) Daily Log – Have students copy down the Daily Log entry below.
3) Revise Partner Poems – Take out the name poems written last night. Distribute the Poetry Revision handout
and tell students to make revision suggestions on their partner’s poem, using the handout as a guide. Allow
them ten minutes for this. Tonight, they should rewrite the poems using the revision suggestions from their
partners.
Date
Journal
Lecture
Activity
Readings
Homework
Discussion
1. Revise Partner Poems
“Sandstorm
1. Rewrite partner
2. Metaphor and Simile definitions of Kisses”
name poems.
3. Class poem
2. Study vocabulary.
4. Love poem
ACTIVITIES – INDIVIDUAL AND GROUP
1.
Review Metaphor and Simile – Ask for a volunteer to give definitions for the terms Metaphor and Simile. Write the
definitions on the board and ask the class if they agree with the definitions given. Does anyone have anything to
add or take away? Try to get class agreement on a definition, and then offer these definitions below:
Metaphor – A figure of speech in which a word or phrase literally denoting one object or idea is applied to
another, thereby suggesting a likeness between them. Example: All the world’s a stage (William Shakespeare)
Simile – A figure of speech in which an explicit comparison is made between two essentially unlike things,
usually using like, as or than. Example: My love’s like a red, red rose (Robert Burns).
Definitions modified from http://www.poeticbyway.com/glossary.html
What do these definitions mean? Are they close to what the students came up with? If there is any information
missing from the class definition, modify it as necessary. Then have the students add them to their Poetry Toolbox.
The students should have easily picked up on the fact that the two definitions are almost exactly alike, except that a
simile uses the words like, as, or than. This makes remembering which is which a little easier.
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Imagination and Words
The Power of Language
1:3:37:Metaphor and Simile
2.
Practice Metaphor and Simile – Yesterday the students saw how rhythm, line breaks, and stanza breaks can take an
idea and intensify it. By manipulating the language, they get the words to work harder, to say a lot with a little. Tell
them that today they will work with metaphor and simile, experimenting with intensifying an image by drawing
comparisons.
3.
When is a metaphor not a metaphor? – Distribute the handout Humorous Metaphors and Similes. Tell the
students to work in groups. They should select four of the metaphors/similes on the handout and explain why they
are not very good examples of metaphors and similes, according to the definitions given today in class. Give them
about ten minutes to do this.
4.
Present – Call on each group to present one metaphor and one reason that it is not a good metaphor. Hopefully,
students will have come up with some reasons like the following: “Her eyes were like two brown circles with big
black dots in the center” is not a good simile because it does not compare two essentially unlike things. It compares
eyes to a description of eyes. (In other words, the language is literal, not poetic, expressive, or figurative.) If no one
noticed this element, make sure to point it out, asking them to read the definition of simile again.
5.
Visualize – Now tell the students that they are going to use metaphor and simile to create poetry. They will be
writing love poems. Tell them to take out a clean sheet of paper. Ask if anyone remembers any metaphors or
similes used in Romeo and Juliet. Perhaps someone will remember, “What light through yonder window breaks/It
is the East, and Juliet is the sun”. Tell the students to think about that feeling, of Romeo being in love and trying to
find a brilliant object to compare Juliet to. Tell them to remember the first time they fell in love or had a crush on
someone. Visualize what it was about that person that was distinctive (e.g, their hair, their smile, their eyes, their
lips, their laugh, etc.). Remind them of Romeo, talking about Juliet’s eyes: “Two of the fairest stars in all the
heaven, Having some business, do entreat her eyes/ To twinkle in their spheres till they return. What part of their
first crush first drew their attention? Write down that part of the person on their paper (without mentioning the
person’s name). Do not write a metaphor at this time, just the part.
6.
Class Metaphor/Simile – Have the students take turns reading aloud what they have written. Keep a list on the
board. Ask them to choose one from the list to use as a class sample. Explain that the class will create a poem all
together; then students will create their own poems. Tell the class to think of a metaphor/simile for the part written
on the board. You may want to offer some samples to get the ball rolling (e.g., his lips are like cantaloupes, her legs
are two pieces of spaghetti, his hair is a mop, etc.). Make them funny. Humor helps to lighten the tone. Love poems
are usually pretty intimidating. Also, be sure you use items that are truly opposite of the item they have chosen.
Write down the class decision.
7.
Extending the Metaphor – Tell the students to work in groups for the next part of the exercise. Each group will be
extending the image named on the board. One person in each group must volunteer to begin the poem. Tell the
volunteer to take out a sheet of paper and write the part named on the board as well as the metaphor or simile. Then
they must add a sensory image (a sight, smell, taste, sound, touch, or action) that extends the metaphor/simile, says
something more about it. For example, if someone compared their first love’s hair to a mop, they should say how it
is like a mop: “Like a dustmop, his hair is long, shaggy and soft.” “His lips are sweeter than a cantaloupe”. The first
example gives a sensory image for look and touch, the second for taste. Remind them that they will not be using
rhyme in this poem, but they should incorporate the other poetic devices: rhythm, metaphor, simile, and so on. Each
student must write at least one line. If they are feeling inspired, they can add more. Then it will be passed to the
next person, who will add to the image. Repeat until every member of the group has extended the metaphor, and the
group has created a stanza. Allow five to seven minutes for this activity. While they write, tape butcher paper on to
the walls.
8.
Post Stanzas – Tell the students to write their stanzas on to the butcher paper. Each group will read their stanza.
Every member of the group should read – they may read in unison or they can take turns reading lines.
9.
Organize and Revise Poem – Now post an overhead transparency of the Poetry Revision sheet. Tell the class that
they all need to work together to revise the poem. The first step will be to order the stanzas. Tell the class to decide
on an order for the stanzas, determining what sequence will work best to intensify the ideas. Then assign each
group one step of poetry revision (i.e. the first group must work on adding line breaks, the second group must
remove unnecessary words). Call on each group to “revise out loud” in front of the class. While each group is
working through their step, the other groups should be contributing ideas as well, where appropriate. Finally, the
class must decide how to tie the stanzas together, and what words or lines should be added in order to do so. Have
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Imagination and Words
The Power of Language
1:3:37:Metaphor and Simile
students keep in mind that poetry is keeping something concise, saying something powerful with as little words as
possible.
10. Titles – Then ask them to decide on an original title for the piece. Remind them that titles often come from the
poem itself. It should be memorable and powerful. Not boring! Boring would be something like Cantaloupes or
Spaghetti. Have them look for a couple of words or a phrase that stands out. Write as many ideas as students come
up with on the front board. Then ask students to vote. Write the winning title on the class poem. Type up the class
poem tonight.
11. Sample Poem – On an overhead, post the poem “Sandstorm of Kisses,” a group poem created by another class.
Read it aloud to students. You may want to ask a student to read it dramatically. Ask the students to identify the
central metaphor, and what sensations (poetry tools) were used to extend it.
12. Individual Poems – Now they will be creating their own love poems. Tell them to return to the part listed on their
own sheets of paper. Just as with the class model, they must create a metaphor for that part. Then they should
extend the image to at least four stanzas, focusing on sensory images like sight, smell, taste, sound, touch, or action.
They should give the poem an original title, as well. Give them until five minutes before the end of the period to
finish this. They may not copy the class poem. The person whose part was chosen for the example still has to create
a unique extended metaphor/simile. Under their names on this piece, they should write draft 1. This is the first draft
of a piece they could potentially take through the drafting process. So they should not throw it away, whether they
like it or not.
13. Spoken Word Performance – Ten minutes before the end of class, call time. Tell the students that they will be
writing poems and reading them at a class “poetry café” at the end of the unit. Right now, they will practice their
spoken word art by standing up and delivering a dramatic reading of their poems. No pauses between readings.
Have students bring their poem (whether its finished or not) and themselves to the middle of the room and form a
circle. Ask for a volunteer to start. If no one volunteers, you pick. That usually gets someone to volunteer. Ask that
person if she would like to go to her right or left. Whichever way she chooses, that is the next person who will read.
Then they will continue in that same direction until all students have read. Hopefully, you had time to create a
poem too so that you can join the circle and read yours too!. Have the first person start. As soon as she is finished,
the next person should go and so on until everyone has read. Its always nice to clap at the end. Usually, students
naturally do it. If they don’t you remind them to give themselves a hand. Its not easy reading your work out loud to
others.
14. Review Homework –Tonight, the students should rewrite the partner name poems, using revision suggestions as a
guide. In Lesson 38, they will be doing an activity about a favorite item of clothing, so tell them to bring something
in tomorrow. It shouldn’t be a fancy or expensive article, just something with a lot of meaning to them.
HOMEWORK
1) Rewrite partner name poems.
2) Study vocabulary to date.
GROUP ROLES
None
DOCUMENTATION FOR PORTFOLIO
Unit 1
• Final Exam Unit 1
• Hero Myth
• Trickster Myth
• Monster Myth
• Creation Myth
Unit 3
Character Diary 3
•
Unit 2
Final Project #1: Creating Your Own
Autobiography Web Page
• Final Project #2: Book Project of all of their
writings to date: 4 Autobiographical Incidents, 2
Evaluation Essays, and 4 Myths
• Final Exam Unit 2
•
Unit 4
None
3
© 2003 ESubjects Inc. All rights reserved.
Imagination and Words
The Power of Language
•
•
•
•
1:3:37:Metaphor and Simile
Character Diary 5
Exit Scene Prologue
Exit Scene
Exit Scene Promptbook
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© 2003 ESubjects Inc. All rights reserved.