Figurative Language Teacher Resources

A definitive resource for your figurative language unit includes several worksheets and activities to reinforce writing skills. It addresses poetic elements such as simile and metaphor, personification, hyperbole, and idioms, and...

Play a figurative language game! Starting with a review of terms, this presentation quickly launches into a quiz game with hyper-linked answers. Simply click an answer to find out if it's wrong or right. The option to try again is always...

Reinforce understanding of five literary terms with a single-slide flow chart. Learners figure out if various words and phrases are examples of simile, metaphor, hyperbole, understatement, or personification. 

Want a handy way to remember the difference between metaphors and similes, or allusions and alliteration? Individuals craft their own figurative language booklet, complete with definitions, examples, and illustrations, following...

Review and discuss literary devices using this resource, a PowerPoint about personification, simile, and metaphor. Learners can talk about metaphors, similes, and personification. This could a part of a more in-depth discussion of these...

Meet with the school library specialist and work together to plan a visit and presentation on figurative language. After defining and examining examples of targeted terms, the class travels to the library where the SL has collected...

How does one identify a simile, and why is it important to understand what they are? Here's a very basic review. This short presentation defines the term, provides examples, and gives learners a chance to identify which two things are...

Help your young writers decipher the literal meanings of metaphors. After reading several metaphors, learners write the real meanings that the phrases are describing. Use this resource in a figurative language lesson, or when preparing...

Students interpret figurative language.  In this language lesson, students are read the poem "I Love the Look of Words" by Maya Angelou and are to find examples of hyperbole and personification in the poem.  Students then...

When is a staple remover a fanged monster? In your ELA classroom when you're teaching this fun figurative language instructional activity, of course! Get your young writers using figurative language by making a game of it. Give groups a...

What's the difference between a simile and a metaphor? Show language arts learners a presentation that identifies different types of figurative language used in poetry.

Third and fourth graders study literary devices and figurative language. They view a PowerPoint presentation (which you must create) to review hyperbole, idiom, simile, and metaphor. They read and discuss the book There's A Frog in...

Prepare your learners to identify figurative language in poetry. Tips for reading poetry and what to look for are listed on these slides. Rhetorical devices are defined and plenty of examples are given. 

Break this presentation into two or three days so as not to overwhelm your kids. Fifty-four slides is a lot of slides, but the PowerShow is well-organized, and terms are defined clearly and illustrated in examples provided. A general...

A brief, dialogue-rich passage from Jerry Spinelli's novel Maniac Magee is accompanied by a well-written literacy assessment tool. Thematic content lends itself to age-appropriate discussions about race relations and social justice....

Immerse your students into the wide world of poetry with this presentation, which opens a poetry unit. By first introducing the art of poetry and then providing examples of poems with figurative language, the presentation guides students...

“Mom said I was a sheepdog…” After reading a brief definition of metaphor, readers are directed to underline all the examples of this type of figurative language found in a short passage about getting a haircut. An answer sheet is included.

After a quick explanation of idioms, learners evaluate the meanings of three PowerPoint examples. The slide show could be augmented or used as a presentation model for upper elementary or ELD classes.

Students create a PowerPoint show illustrating two types of figurative language. They demonstrate understanding of personification by creating and interpreting simple examples. They also demonstrate understanding of alliteration.

Do your class members know where the phrase "raining cats and dogs" come from? They will after viewing a presentation about metaphors. The concise definitions and clear examples make for a strong introduction to this element of...

Everyone loves the tales involving King Arthur and his knights. After reading Knights of the Round Table by Gwen Gross, learners draw inferences and conclusions, analyze story elements, and discuss figurative language, including...

Language arts learners don't need a lecture about poetry; they listen to poetry every day on the radio! Apply skills from literary analysis to famous songs and beautiful lyrics with a lesson about literary devices. As...

Bring writing to life with this lesson plan in which elementary and middle schoolers create a display of the imagery they identify in a series of Gary Paulsen books. They read the suggested materials, identify imagery and descriptive...