Similes and Metaphors - Mariposas

Assign Roles

1. Someone to read aloud the slides with no questions

2. Someone to read aloud the question

3. Someone to select the best answer

4. Each of you should be on the same slide or question. Do not work ahead! Work together.

Figurative Language

When we use literal language, we are using words in their usual, most basic sense. When we use figurative language, we use words and phrases to mean something other than their literal meaning.

Multiple Choice

Read the following passage.

The first time Angela visited the museum, her head was spinning from all the new sights around her. The museum was full of displays about different animals and plants. The rooms were packed with strange stuffed birds, glass cases full of feathers. She learned so much information about all the weird and wonderful creatures in the world.

Which detail from the passage is an example of figurative language?

• “It was full of displays about different animals and plants.”

• “The first time Angela visited the museum…”

• “The rooms were packed with strange stuffed birds...”

• “...her head was spinning from all the new sights...”

How are similes and metaphors related?

Similes and metaphors use language to create feelings and vivid images. Similes and metaphors both make comparisons but they do it in different ways. A simile uses the words "like" or "as" to specify how two things are alike. A metaphor doesn’t use "like" or "as." It states the comparison directly.

Multiple Select

Which of the following describes both a simile and a metaphor?

• They both make a comparison

• They both use the word "like"

• They both are humorous to read

• They both use figurative language

Multiple Choice

How could you say "The night was dark" using a metaphor?

• The night was a blanket of shadows.
• The night was a canvas of light.
• The night was a sea of stars.
• The night was a whisper of dawn.

Multiple Choice

Read the following sentence.

The parking lot was hot and empty.

Which of the following revisions uses a metaphor to make the sentence more vivid?

• It was 100 degrees in the parking lot.

• There had never been a hotter place than the parking lot.

• The parking lot was simply scorching.

• The parking lot was a desert.

Not every sentence with the word "like" is a simile. When looking for similes, be sure to find sentences that make comparisons between two different things.

Multiple Choice

Read the following passage.

My new teacher Ms. Grossman could have been a pirate captain in another life. She looks like she is adventurous--I like tall, rugged boots she wears. Sometimes when she stands at the front of the class, I imagine her on a deck or behind a ship’s wheel. To me, her voice is like a loud, rough sea. It’s harsh but also soothing to hear.

Which sentence from the passage contains a simile?

• “My new teacher Ms. Grossman could have been a pirate captain in another life.”

• “And her voice is like a loud, rough sea.”

• “She looks like she is adventurous.”

• “I like the puffy, flowing blouses she wears.”

Fill in the Blanks

_______ is the attitude a writer has toward the subject. _____ can be revealed in word choice and imagery. You want your figurative language to match the ______of your writing.

Multiple Choice

If a story has a mysterious tone, which would be the best simile about the wind to include in it?

• I felt the wind blow as gently as a child’s sigh

• I heard the wind dance wildly, like an energetic kitten.

• I felt the wind at my back, like a friendly pat.

• I heard the wind whispering like a ghost through my curtains.

"Pita was all bug-eyed and big-eared, nodding like a ratoncita, nervous as a little mouse sitting precariously on the edge of a wooden trap" (110).

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Summer of the Mariposas

Multiple Choice

Let's Deconstruct!

Pita was all bug-eyed and big-eared,

What do the words "bug-eyed" and "big-eared" suggest?

• Pita is sleepy and ready for bed.

• Pita eyes are wide and she's listening closely.

• Pita has really big ears.

• Pita is afraid of bugs.

Multiple Choice

nodding like a ratoncita, nervous as a little mouse

What two things are being compared in this simile?

• Pita and a mouse

• Odilia and Pita

• Pita and Juanita

• A mouse and a rat

Multiple Choice

sitting precariously on the edge of a wooden trap

What does the word "precariously" mean?

• safely

• dangerously

• quietly

• sleepily

Start with the background of Ines's kitchen.
Add Pita at the table "sitting precariously on the edge of a wooden trap"
Finish with adding the other characters to the background

On page 39 of your workbook, draw a picture of "sitting precariously on the edge of a wooden trap".

Multiple Choice

"Pita was all bug-eyed and big-eared, nodding like a ratoncita, nervous as a little mouse sitting precariously on the edge of a wooden trap" (110).

What does this sentence tell us about Pita as she listens to Ines ask Odilia questions about her grandmother?

• Pita is afraid to go to her grandmother's house.

• Pita can't keep a secret.

• Pita feel anxious about the story Odilia is telling Ines.

• Pita has a pet mouse.

Word Cloud

Fill in the blanks of the following simile: The cafeteria was like a ___________ when the students heard the announcement.