1. Question for Learning How do I use similes and metaphors effectively?
Stupendous Similes
and Miraculous Metaphors!
Question for Learning
How do I use similes and metaphors effectively?
Key Words
Simile – Comparing two things using ‘as’ or ‘like’
Metaphor – Comparing two things by saying one is the other
He was a grizzly bear, huge and hairy.
He was huge and hairy like a grizzly bear.
WHICH IS WHICH?

2. Starter
You are going to be shown a series of pictures, with sentences written underneath describing them. All that you have to do is decide whether the sentence is a simile or a metaphor! Raise your ‘simile’ or ‘metaphor’ card, so that everybody gets a chance to answer!

3. SIMILE
‘He thought that he could fly like a bird. He was wrong’

4. ‘He was a pig when he ate.’
METAPHOR
‘He was a pig when he ate.’

5. ‘The surfers were as startled as a deer in headlights.’
SIMILE
‘The surfers were as startled as a deer in headlights.’

6. ‘The faces that he can pull are out of this world.’
METAPHOR
‘The faces that he can pull are out of this world.’

7. Why should we use similes and metaphors?
Now Think…
Why should we use similes and metaphors?
WHY USE SIMILES AND METAPHORS?
When you are describing, you are trying to create an image in the reader’s mind. It helps them to ‘see’ or ‘hear’ what you are describing if you compare your subject to something they have seen or heard before.
To get great results in your English exams, you need to show that you can be creative, and mix up your writing with some original ideas. Similes and metaphors are a great way to achieve this.
When people read creative writing, they want to be challenged and think beyond the obvious. Similes and metaphors can make them think, and infer the hidden meanings.

8. Development Take a look at the worksheet that you have been handed.
It contains several limericks. You have two tasks.
Task A: Underline each simile or metaphor that you see in the limericks.
Task B: Present the image that the simile or metaphor gives in your mind, either by drawing a picture in the box, writing a sentence, or showing the image through a freeze frame.
Extension Superstars!
Try to answer the question at the bottom of the page, in as much detail as you can!

9. Making Similes and Metaphors
It’s as easy as 1, 2, 3!
Think of a verb or adjective to describe your subject 1.
‘A lion creeps up on it’s prey.’ 2.
Think of another thing that shares the same characteristic
An assassin ‘creeps’ as well.
Write down that you are ‘like’ or ‘as’ the other object - simile
Write down that you are the other object - metaphor
‘I creep up on my prey like a silent assassin.’ - simile
‘I am a silent assassin, creeping up on my prey.’ - metaphor 3.

10. Main Task This is a game called ‘What Am I?’
You have to pretend that you are any animal from the animal kingdom.
Writing in the first person, you should use similes and metaphors to describe yourself. You could think about:
- Your appearance
- Your personality
- Your eating habits
- Your home
- Your fears
Remember not to give away the name of your animal, as this is for your classmates to guess at the end!

11. ‘ALL’ Response
Lion
“I am the king of the jungle. I snarl my teeth like a big cat. I eat meat like a carnivore. I live in Africa which is big like a giant. I am scared of nobody as I am a killing machine.”
What was good about this piece?
What could have been better?
Basic writing – In most of the writing imagination has been used, but the similes and metaphors are basic and not always relevant.

12. ‘MOST’ Response
Lion
“I am the king of the jungle, and the other animals must obey me. I am always moody, like a grumpy godzilla. I eat meat like a carnivore. I live in Africa which is big like a giant. I am scared of nobody as I am a killing machine.”
What was good about this piece?
What could have been better?
Mid-level writing – Across the writing, ideas are written in more detail, with the similes and metaphors including more thoughtful comparisons.

13. ‘SOME’ Response
Lion
“I am the king of the jungle, and the other animals must obey me. I am constantly agitated, like a grumpy godzilla. I race after my prey as fast as a Formula One car. Africa is my home, where the plains are as wide as the open ocean. I fear nobody as I am a killing machine.”
What was good about this piece?
What could have been better?
Higher level writing – Across the writing, almost all ideas are developed and described, with the similes and metaphors chosen deliberately for effect.

14. Success Criteria The similes and metaphors that you use make sense.
They are appropriate to what you are trying to say.
They help the reader to gain a visual image in their minds.
Your similes and metaphors are imaginative and thoughtful.
Your similes and metaphors show that you have a range of vocabulary.

15. Peer Assessment
Look over your partner’s work. Could you guess the animal? How well have they described the animal using similes and metaphors?
Using the success criteria, give them:
One tick,
And one target

16. Image Rights
All images are licensed for commercial use, and unless otherwise stated, images have been obtained from
Slide 1: 16th Century Unknown painters ‘The Hairy Man from Munich’ commons.wikipedia.org Slide 2: John Harley ‘I Can Fly!’ Slide 3: Ben Garrison ‘Messy Eater’