Simile Applications

1. Point to each of the pictures on the board. Ask students to
name each item, and write the correct name underneath.
2. Have students try to come up with words to describe each item.
Explain that certain traits are associated with particular things.
For example, the sun is hot. Write the words on the board next
to each picture and its name. You should have the following:
o Mouse - quiet
o Fish - swim
o Snake - sneaky
o Sun - hot, bright
o Wind - fast, whistle
3. Have students raise their hands if they’ve ever been told they:
o Are as quiet as a mouse
o Swim like a fish
o Are as sneaky as a snake
o Are as bright as the sun
4. Write the word simile on the board. Explain to students what a
simile is (a figure of speech that compares two items using the
words like or as). Make the connection between the words
similar and simile.
5. Ask students if the phrases just presented sound like similes.
Go through each phrase.
6. Give students examples of phrases that use the words like or as
but don’t make sense, such as "as quiet as a lion" or "as tiny as
an elephant." Discuss why sometimes these comparisons make
sense and other times they do not make sense.
7. Ask students to think of other similes. Write them on the
board.
8. Have students write a sentence using a simile that describes
them and draw a picture of that situation (example: draw self
being as quiet as a mouse).
9. Have students read their similes and show pictures to the class.
10. Take simile pictures around the classroom and post on the bulletin
board under the heading "Similes That Make Us Smile." You
may also want to post the definition of a simile with the
pictures.