Recognizingandusingfigurativelanguageisanabstractconceptthatsomestudentsmayfindchalenging.Oncestudentshave

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1 Recognizingandusingfigurativelanguageisanabstractconceptthatsomestudentsmayfindchalenging.Oncestudentshave beenintroducedtosimiles,metaphorsandpersonificationtryengagingthem inwritingtheirownexamplesoffigurativelanguage. Firstpromptthem withsentencestarters,andthenletthem createtheirownexamplesfrom starttofinish.shareoutexampleswiththewholeclass andcategorizeexamplesassimiles,metaphorsorpersonificationonlargesheetsofpaperthatcanbearchivedforreferencelater.

2 When you read, look for figurative language and think about how it shows familiar things in new and surprising ways. Figurative language is made up of words and phrases that are not meant to be taken literally. In other words, the words don t mean exactly what they say. Instead, they create imaginative pictures in the reader s mind. Test-Taking TM Tips Strategy Underline any examples of figurative language as you read. Figurative language can make writing more vivid. Three types of figurative language are simile, metaphor, and personification. These are called figures of speech. A simile (pronounced sim uh lee) compares two unlike things by using linking words such as like, as, than, or resembles. Read the similes below. Kirin s voice was as loud as a fire alarm, signaling warning in the night. The news was as unwelcome as an alarm clock at 6 A.M. Of course, Kirin s voice isn t really as loud as a fire alarm, and news isn t really an alarm clock. Instead, the words are used imaginatively. They let you know in a few words what someone or something is like. A metaphor (pronounced met uh fore) compares two unlike things without the use of linking words such as like, as, than, or resembles. In a metaphor, one thing seems to become the other. Metaphors help writers to suggest new and unusual connections between everyday things. Read the metaphors below. The river at night was a sheet of dark glass. Her smile was the sunshine that warmed his heart. Personification gives human qualities to things that aren t human. Notice how the river and the sun are described as though they are people in the sentences below. The clouds cried big, heavy tears. The sun smiled brightly, welcoming the children to a day at the beach. Peoples Education Measuring Up MyQuest TM Lesson and Practice measuringuplive.com 1

3 Read this selection. Then answer the questions that follow it. The Bones Brothers and the Frozen Fence by Carol Ottolenghi-Barga You could search all of Texas and still not find two cowboys as lazy as Slim and Leroy Bones. Folks called them the Lazy Bones Brothers because the boys were always thinking up ways to get out of hard work. Slim and Leroy were as different as two brothers could be. Slim was short, round as a tumbleweed, and mighty proud of his brains. I ve got more brains, he used to tell Leroy, than a hive has bees. Leroy was a tall drink of water. He was so thin that when he turned sideways, you had to look right careful or you d swear that he d disappeared completely. He didn t have much in the way of brains, but his friendly grin could coax the shy jack rabbits out of their burrows for a neighborly game of tag. Mostly, the brothers had a fine time riding the range. They slept under the stars and practiced their lassoing on cacti and rocks and anything else that didn t try to run away. Every once in a while, though, they had to earn money so they could restock their supply of red beans, coffee, and licorice. (Leroy was partial to licorice.) That was how they came to build the fence around Pops Merryweather s southern pasture. Pops was the richest rancher this side of the Texas panhandle. He d heard stories about the Lazy Bones Brothers, but Slim and Leroy didn t charge much, and Pops never could resist a bargain. So he hired them to put up fence posts and string barbed wire around his pasture. It was squalling fierce when the Bones boys rode onto Pop s ranch. Now, squalls don t happen every day in Texas, but when they do, the temperature drops faster than a hawk diving after its breakfast, and the wind wails and moans like a fussy ghost. Slim and Leroy didn t want to go out in the storm, but Pops wanted the fence put up that day, and he wouldn t take no for an answer. Well, the Bones boys rode out to the southern pasture, and sure enough, the ground was frozen harder than a cast-iron frying pan. The brothers faces drooped when they saw that. Digging holes and pounding fence posts into frozen ground was mighty strenuous work. 2 Peoples Education Measuring Up MyQuest TM Lesson and Practice measuringuplive.com

4 Slim squatted back on his heels and pondered how to put up the fence without digging any holes. Suddenly, Leroy screamed. I pricked my thumb on a rattler! he hollered. You got bit by a rattler? Slim yelled. No, said Leroy, sucking his thumb. I said I pricked myself. Looky here. He held up a snake frozen straight as any arrow. Watch out. The tail s fearful pointy. H m, said Slim. He took the frozen rattler from his brother and rubbed his finger across its needle-sharp tail. This gives me an idea, he said. Give me that hammer. Slim hammered that snake into the dirt just like an enormous nail. The snake s tail cut deep and easy into the frozen ground. By the time Slim finished pounding, the snake stuck straight up into the air and made the prettiest fence post you ever did see! The boys let out a whoop and threw their hats high. They collected all the frozen snakes they could find and hammered them into the ground. Then they wrapped those snaky fence posts with barbed wire and rode back to the ranch to collect their pay. Pops couldn t believe they d finished the fence, so he rode out to investigate. Sure enough, he saw wire strung from fence post to fence post as far as the eye could see. I reckon you boys aren t quite as lazy as people say you are, Pops said as he paid them. The brothers thanked him (they d been brought up to say please and thank you), said good-bye, and trotted off. Three days later the sun thawed those frozen snakes. They wriggled off, taking the fence with them. Pops never could quite figure out what had happened. Peoples Education Measuring Up MyQuest TM Lesson and Practice measuringuplive.com 3

5 1 In paragraph 2, the author uses a simile to compare Slim to a tumbleweed to suggest that he is A very slim B growing quickly C dry and humorless D plump; roly-poly 5 In paragraph 7, how are the ground and a frying pan alike? A Both are made of cast iron. B Both are extremely hard. C Both are frozen. D Both are in the southern pasture. 2 In paragraph 2, the author compares Slim s brains to a hive of bees to suggest that his mind is F very slow G very noisy H very active very sweet 3 In paragraph 3, when the author compares Leroy to a tall drink of water, she is using A a metaphor B literal language C personification D a simile 4 In paragraph 6, the author compares the wind to a fussy ghost to describe F the way it moves G how it sounds H the way it sweeps up everything in its path how frightening it is 6 In paragraph 11, how are a frozen snake and an arrow alike? F Both are icy and slippery. G Both are hard and straight. H Both make good fence posts. Both are poisonous. 7 In paragraph 12, the author uses a metaphor to compare the snake s tail to A a hammer B Slim s finger C the frozen rattler D a needle 8 In paragraph 6, how are the temperature and a hawk diving after its breakfast alike? F They both drop quickly. G They both are very cold. H They both are fierce. They both indicate a storm is coming. 4 Peoples Education Measuring Up MyQuest TM Lesson and Practice measuringuplive.com

6 When you read, look for figurative language and think about how it shows familiar things in new and surprising ways. Figurative language is made up of words and phrases that are not meant to be taken literally. In other words, the words don t mean exactly what they say. Instead, they create imaginative pictures in the reader s mind. Test-Taking TM Tips Strategy Underline any examples of figurative language as you read. Figurative language can make writing more vivid. Three types of figurative language are simile, metaphor, and personification. These are called figures of speech. A simile (pronounced sim uh lee) compares two unlike things by using linking words such as like, as, than, or resembles. Read the similes below. Kirin s voice was as loud as a fire alarm, signaling warning in the night. The news was as unwelcome as an alarm clock at 6 A.M. Of course, Kirin s voice isn t really as loud as a fire alarm, and news isn t really an alarm clock. Instead, the words are used imaginatively. They let you know in a few words what someone or something is like. A metaphor (pronounced met uh fore) compares two unlike things without the use of linking words such as like, as, than, or resembles. In a metaphor, one thing seems to become the other. Metaphors help writers to suggest new and unusual connections between everyday things. Read the metaphors below. The river at night was a sheet of dark glass. Her smile was the sunshine that warmed his heart. Personification gives human qualities to things that aren t human. Notice how the river and the sun are described as though they are people in the sentences below. The clouds cried big, heavy tears. The sun smiled brightly, welcoming the children to a day at the beach. Peoples Education Measuring Up MyQuest TM Lesson and Practice measuringuplive.com 1

7 Read this selection. Then answer the questions that follow it. The Bones Brothers and the Frozen Fence by Carol Ottolenghi-Barga You could search all of Texas and still not find two cowboys as lazy as Slim and Leroy Bones. Folks called them the Lazy Bones Brothers because the boys were always thinking up ways to get out of hard work. Slim and Leroy were as different as two brothers could be. Slim was short, round as a tumbleweed, and mighty proud of his brains. I ve got more brains, he used to tell Leroy, than a hive has bees. Leroy was a tall drink of water. He was so thin that when he turned sideways, you had to look right careful or you d swear that he d disappeared completely. He didn t have much in the way of brains, but his friendly grin could coax the shy jack rabbits out of their burrows for a neighborly game of tag. Mostly, the brothers had a fine time riding the range. They slept under the stars and practiced their lassoing on cacti and rocks and anything else that didn t try to run away. Every once in a while, though, they had to earn money so they could restock their supply of red beans, coffee, and licorice. (Leroy was partial to licorice.) That was how they came to build the fence around Pops Merryweather s southern pasture. Pops was the richest rancher this side of the Texas panhandle. He d heard stories about the Lazy Bones Brothers, but Slim and Leroy didn t charge much, and Pops never could resist a bargain. So he hired them to put up fence posts and string barbed wire around his pasture. It was squalling fierce when the Bones boys rode onto Pop s ranch. Now, squalls don t happen every day in Texas, but when they do, the temperature drops faster than a hawk diving after its breakfast, and the wind wails and moans like a fussy ghost. Slim and Leroy didn t want to go out in the storm, but Pops wanted the fence put up that day, and he wouldn t take no for an answer. Well, the Bones boys rode out to the southern pasture, and sure enough, the ground was frozen harder than a cast-iron frying pan. The brothers faces drooped when they saw that. Digging holes and pounding fence posts into frozen ground was mighty strenuous work. 2 Peoples Education Measuring Up MyQuest TM Lesson and Practice measuringuplive.com

8 Slim squatted back on his heels and pondered how to put up the fence without digging any holes. Suddenly, Leroy screamed. I pricked my thumb on a rattler! he hollered. You got bit by a rattler? Slim yelled. No, said Leroy, sucking his thumb. I said I pricked myself. Looky here. He held up a snake frozen straight as any arrow. Watch out. The tail s fearful pointy. H m, said Slim. He took the frozen rattler from his brother and rubbed his finger across its needle-sharp tail. This gives me an idea, he said. Give me that hammer. Slim hammered that snake into the dirt just like an enormous nail. The snake s tail cut deep and easy into the frozen ground. By the time Slim finished pounding, the snake stuck straight up into the air and made the prettiest fence post you ever did see! The boys let out a whoop and threw their hats high. They collected all the frozen snakes they could find and hammered them into the ground. Then they wrapped those snaky fence posts with barbed wire and rode back to the ranch to collect their pay. Pops couldn t believe they d finished the fence, so he rode out to investigate. Sure enough, he saw wire strung from fence post to fence post as far as the eye could see. I reckon you boys aren t quite as lazy as people say you are, Pops said as he paid them. The brothers thanked him (they d been brought up to say please and thank you), said good-bye, and trotted off. Three days later the sun thawed those frozen snakes. They wriggled off, taking the fence with them. Pops never could quite figure out what had happened. Peoples Education Measuring Up MyQuest TM Lesson and Practice measuringuplive.com 3

9 1 In paragraph 2, the author uses a simile to compare Slim to a tumbleweed to suggest that he is A very slim B growing quickly C dry and humorless D plump; roly-poly 5 In paragraph 7, how are the ground and a frying pan alike? A Both are made of cast iron. B Both are extremely hard. C Both are frozen. D Both are in the southern pasture. 2 In paragraph 2, the author compares Slim s brains to a hive of bees to suggest that his mind is F very slow G very noisy H very active very sweet 3 In paragraph 3, when the author compares Leroy to a tall drink of water, she is using A a metaphor B literal language C personification D a simile 4 In paragraph 6, the author compares the wind to a fussy ghost to describe F the way it moves G how it sounds H the way it sweeps up everything in its path how frightening it is 6 In paragraph 11, how are a frozen snake and an arrow alike? F Both are icy and slippery. G Both are hard and straight. H Both make good fence posts. Both are poisonous. 7 In paragraph 12, the author uses a metaphor to compare the snake s tail to A a hammer B Slim s finger C the frozen rattler D a needle 8 In paragraph 6, how are the temperature and a hawk diving after its breakfast alike? F They both drop quickly. G They both are very cold. H They both are fierce. They both indicate a storm is coming. 4 Peoples Education Measuring Up MyQuest TM Lesson and Practice measuringuplive.com