2 Day Lesson Plan:
figurative language and avoiding clichés
This is a two day lesson that will again hammer home the importance of using creative similes and metaphors in student writing as well as a dire warning to watch out for clichés.
CA Standards Focus:
Analysis and Evaluation of Oral and Media Communications
1.11 Assess how language and delivery affect the mood and tone of the oral communication
and make an impact on the audience.
1.12 Evaluate the clarity, quality, effectiveness, and general coherence of a speaker’s important points, arguments, evidence, organization of ideas, delivery, diction, and syntax.
Literary Response and Analysis
3.7Recognize and understand the significance of various literary devices, including figurative language, imagery, allegory, and symbolism, and explain their appeal.
Materials:
HOMS
Paper
Pencil
Writing Devices Handout
Dictionary/ Textbook with Glossary of Terms
OBJECTIVE ON BOARD:
Today we are going to write even better Figurative Language than we have been writing, as well as learn to FEAR clichés.Objectives:
All students will be able to:
-Define various writing devices
-Recognize figurative language in the text
-Use figurative language in their own writing
-Present their own writing in front of the class
-Analyze the effectiveness of an author’s use of figurative language and the importance of avoiding clichés
activities
day one
-Activate Prior Knowledge:
Pass out Writing Devices Handout. Pair students up, or put into groups of four, and tell them to define as many of the terms on the sheet as they can. Do not have them give examples. Just define the ones they know.
Work the Rows and help them write better definitions, and remind them of terms they just can’t remember. They should be able to define half the sheet at least.
-Find Examples
Then tell students to go through House on Mango Street and find examples of each of the writing devices they know. Feel free to use your overhead or doc scanner to do a couple of the simpler ones as a class. An example of metaphor would be “Until then I am a red balloon, a balloon tied to an anchor” (pg. 9).
Homework:
Tell them to finish the Handout for homework, both the definitions and examples from the book. Tell them not to worry about the bottom of the sheet where it says, “Your Writing.”
day two
-Check Homework
Go around at the beginning of class with a post-it and write down the names of the students who didn’t do the work and anyone who is absent. Everyone else should get full credit. If they have empty boxes, write down their name and take off the appropriate amount of points.
-Dueling Similes
Tell students they are about to get in front of the class and battle each other head to head. In order to win, they need to come up with a better simile or metaphor than the other student. The class will vote on each simile or metaphor with a show of hands, however the teacher has the final say of who wins (to avoid a popularity contest). But tell them there’s a catch.
They can’t use clichés.
First you need to define cliché on the board, and have them write it down on their handout (next to the * under the boxes): Cliché- a phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays a lack of original thought. Very predictable or unoriginal.
Ask around the room and see if anyone has an example of a cliché. Help them find easy ones and write them on the board. Dark as a cave. Tall as a skyscraper. Fast as a cheetah. Hot like fire.
Tell them that if they use a cliché when battling, they automatically lose. I like to come to an agreement as a class that if someone uses a cliché we get to boo the person off-stage all the way back to their desk. Trust me, after that, they will fear clichés.
Then tell them to spread their writing out on their desk—all the vignettes they’ve written so far. They should go through their writing and look for similes or metaphors they’ve used. When they find them, they should write it down under “Your Writing” at the bottom of the Writing Devices Handout. Once they’ve written them down, they are allowed to edit the phrase to make it more creative or interesting. Some examples you might want to write on the board are: My brother is loud and annoying, like he has five yapping Chihuahuas in his throat. My dad’s legs are so long, it’s like he could cross the street in one step. It was dark in the house, like all of a sudden we were in a black and white movie on a moonless night.
Give them time to find their own examples of either a simile or a metaphor. It is okay if they can’t find any or haven’t used any. Tell them instead to find a place in one of their pieces that could use a metaphor or simile and insert one. As you work the rows you can help them do this individually- find a place in one of their pieces and tell them where to put a simile. They should have a minimum of 3-4 similes written down under “My Writing.”
As time passes tell them they have ten minutes, then five, then two, then one. Give them a sense of urgency to keep them engaged. Also, continually remind them that they are about to get up in front of the entire class. Also continually remind them not to use clichés or they will be humiliated in front of the entire class:)
The Battle:
To prepare, the students should rank their similes from best to worst, so that if their opponent uses a good one, they might have to use their best one, and vice versa. Then begin calling students up in pairs. They should shake hands before they begin. I like to tell them to mug each other and look tough like boxers do before the first bell. But usually what happens is they just start laughing.
You direct who goes first. Once they have both gone, ask the class for a show of hands as votes for the student whose simile or metaphor was better. This will take a long time, especially in a class of 35 students. Remember to HAVE FUN! If someone uses a cliché boo them relentlessly (unless they are one of the shy students who can’t take it). You probably won’t get to the final rounds because there are so many students, and because they probably don’t have enough similes or metaphors to use to get that far into the competition---so…
Extended Activity
When it seems like everyone is out of similes and metaphors and you’ve gone a couple of rounds, tell the students you will do the final rounds later on when everyone has more writing. You might even want to tell them you’ll play again. The point of this exercise is to get them using more figurative language in their writing, and to make them understand they can’t use clichés. This is an activity that can be played over and over!
Assessment of student learning:
Were all students able to:
-Define various writing devices?
-Recognize figurative language in the text?
-Use figurative language in their own writing?
-Present their own writing in front of the class?
-Analyze the effectiveness of an author’s use of figurative language and the importance of avoiding clichés?
Final Thoughts for You the Instructor
This lesson might not be good for every classroom. Clearly it requires a certain amount of community and classroom management so that kids feel comfortable in front of each other and are respectful to the kids in front of the class. And like every lesson, it requires the teacher to facilitate a lot of complicated protocols and moves. It is one lesson where you really have to be on your toes. A lot of it comes down to how tightly you control your class, how effectively you can communicate your lessons and goals, and in the end, how you pull it off. However, if done right, this can be a great lesson that will enhance their figurative language and make them fear clichés!
house on mango street Name______
Writing Devices
termdefinitionexample
AlliterationRepetition
Personification
Rhyme
Symbol
Hyperbole
Imagery
Simile
Metaphor
Tone
Theme
* Cliché
your writing:
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