Literary devices are common structures used in writing

Foreshadowing An author's use of hints or clues to give a reader an idea of what may happen next Example from Little Red Riding Hood: "Go straight to your Grandma's house and back. Don't talk to any strangers and watch out for the wolf in the woods!"

Imagery Examples: 'She smelt sweet like roses' Words or phrases that appeal to one or more of the five senses and help to create a vivid description for the reader. Examples: 'She smelt sweet like roses' ‘The rumbling sound of clouds, indicated start of monsoon.’

Mood The atmosphere or feeling an author creates within the piece of writing Example:- “It was a dark and stormy night: the rain fell in torrents.”

Figurative Language This describes a number of types of ways that writers use to make their work more colourful and improve its voice. Some of these create effective word pictures by using special comparisons and are referred to as, “Figures of Speech”. Others are called, “Sounds of Poetry” as they give writing rhythm and are commonly found in poems or music.

Alliteration The repetition of first consonants in a group of words - as in “Peter Piper Picked a Peck of Pickled Peppers.” Example: Garry gathered the garbage. Lazy lizards lying like lumps! Paula planted the petunias in the pot.

Metaphor Example: A comparison made without using 'like' or 'as' 'The boy's room is a disaster zone' 'My mother is a rock‘ ‘She was a fish in the water!’ A comparison made without using 'like' or 'as'

Personification A type of figurative language in which a non-human subject is given human characteristics Example: The stars danced playfully in the moonlit sky. The earth coughed and choked with all the pollution.

Simile A comparison between two things, using “like” or “as” Examples: 'Busy as a bee' 'Happy as a clam‘ ‘Sneaky as a snake’

Idiom A phrase or a sentence in which the meaning of the whole phrase is different from the meaning of its parts Examples:- She could talk the tail off a donkey! Cat got your tongue? I’ll just hang around. < http://www.readwritethink.org/files/resources/interactives/idioms/>

Hyperbole intentional, dramatic exaggeration usually for emphasis or comic effect “The things you don't know would fill a whole library and leave room for a few pamphlets.” He's got tons of money. He’s older than the hills.

Onomatopoeia The use of words whose sounds make you think of their meaning Buzz Thump Snap Crackle Pop Chug

Oxymoron The close placement of words having opposite meaning in order to create a unique description Example: 'Short wait' 'Jumbo shrimp' 'Great Depression'

Links... (from YouTube) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHBP5zsxFcE - ppt intro lesson & examples personification http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKexdSZNiLc – personification in music http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eF0gyQ6V74Q - similes, metaphor, hyperbole & alliteration in music http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6QbV81Ilq0I - figurative language tutorial http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p50_yNQLj5c - quick summary of literary devices & figurative language tools.