"Seashells and Similes"
You will need to know similes to
master state standards
 For example, your sixth
grade standards state
that you must:
 Determine the meaning
of words and phrases as
they are used in a text,
including figurative
language such as similes;
 Be able to apply similes in
writing.
Learning Similes Through Modeling
 The DEFINITION OF SIMILE:
 "Similes are used to
encourage the reader to
draw a comparison between
two seemingly unrelated
things, and find similarities
between them, using the
words "like
or "as".
Authors use similes to enrich their
writing, to make their descriptions
more vivid.
His skin was
She looked as
as cold as ice. gentle as a
It felt as hard lamb
as rock
To help you understand, you will play
the "Connect" Game to develop the
idea of comparing "two seemingly
unrelated" ideas.
 Because the definition of
simile might be too
abstract, you will connect
two different ideas, in a
game like structure,
trying to to find a
connection, a similarity,
that two random items
share.
 1. These popsicle sticks
contain four different,
random categories of words
such as household items,
emotions, animals,
technology, etc.
 2. You will pull two different
categories and try to make a
comparison.

"Connecting" Two Unlike Items
 What if you pulled the
words "exercise bike"
and lion"?
 Can you connect how
these might be similar?
 How is music like a taco?
 How is a football game
like a computer?
Listen for the
similes in the
following poem by
Anne Lindberg,
from the book,
Gift of the Sea
Background information on the
author:
 Wife of Charles Lindberg
who was the first man
who crossed the Atlantic
solo.
 She was an aviator in her
own right, and won many
awards for literature and
aviation.
Anne Lindberg's
Gift of the Sea
This is a snail shell,
ROUND, FULL and
GLOSSY as a horse
chestnut.
Comfortable and
compact, it sits
curled up LIKE a cat
in the hollow of my
hand.
Milky and opaque, it has
the pinkish bloom of
the sky on a summer
evening, ripening to
rain.
On its smooth
symmetrical face is
penciled with precision
a perfect spiral,
winding inward to the
pinpoint center of the
shell, the tiny dark
core of the apex, LIKE
the pupil of the eye.
It stares at me,
this mysterious
single eye-- and I
stare back.
Now it is LIKE
the moon,
solitary in the
sky, full and
round, replete
with power.
Now it is like an
island, set in everwidening circles of
waves, alone, selfcontained, serene.
What objects did
she compare to
her seashell?
Chestnut
Cat
Eye
Moon
Island
Using Anne Morrow
Lindbergh’s
patterns, compare
your sea shell with
as many thingssights, sounds,
tastes, textures, and
smells--as you can
imagine.
To help you see
similarities, hold
your seashell in
three different
positions.
Then draw your sea
shell from those
three different
PERSPECTIVES.
In each perspective,
brainstorm what that
new shape looks like.
What does each one of these
perspectives look LIKE?
There are no "wrong" answers






A space ship?
A top of a temple?
A crab?
An ice cream cone?
A vase?
A spider?
Now translate
your ideas into
the following
poetry "frame".
.First Draft
As I gaze into the___________________
of the shell.
First it is like a (add when, where, adjectives and “ing” phrases for detail)
_____________________________________________
And then it is like (add when, where, adjectives and “ing” phrases for detail)
_____________________________________________
And then it is like (add when, where, adjectives and “ing” phrases for detail)
_____________________________________________________________
And then it becomes (add when, where, adjectives and “ing” phrases for detail)
___________________________________________________
And now it is (add when, where, and adjectives for detail)
_____________________________________________
And now it is
like (add when, where, and adjectives for detail)
_____________________________________________
And now I am ________________________________
Introduction to Metaphor
Metaphor is the same as a simile
WITHOUT "like or as.
Share your poem with your neighbor and
read it with the word "LIKE" and "AS".
Now, read it a second time without the
word "LIKE or AS".
Congratulations, you just created a
metaphor!!.
REVISION: FINAL DRAFT
Homework:
Chose either similes and/or
metaphors to revise your
poem.
Look again at Ms. Lindberg's
poem and note her
placement of adjectives.
Option: Attempt to model
how she moves adjectives all
around. Her adjectives are
out of order--in the beginning
and middle of sentences.