The Unit Poem TeacherVision

The metaphor is first cousin to the simile. Like the simile, it compares two objects but does not use like or as or than. Examples: Simile: Her cheeks are like polished apples. Metaphor: Her cheeks are polished apples. A caterpillar is an upholstered worm.

Complete each metaphor: 1.My legs were ___________________ as I raced for the tape. 2. Faced with failure, I felt my heart become a (an) __________________. 3. As the audience listened in shocked silence, my fingers became ___________________, stumbling over the ivory. 4. My feet were _____________________ as I set out to investigate the peculiar noises coming from the attic.

Metaphor for a Family My family lives inside a medicine chest: Dad is the super-size band aid, strong and powerful but not always effective in a crisis. Mom is the middle-size tweezer, which picks and pokes and pinches. David is the single small aspirin on the third shelf, sometimes ignored. Muffin, the sheep dog, is a round cotton ball, stained and dirty, that pops off the shelf and bounces in my way as I open the door. And I am the wood and glue which hold us all together with my love. By: Belinda Fifth of July My family is an expired firecracker set off by the blowtorch of divorce. We lay scattered in many directions. My father is the wick, badly burnt but still glowing softly. My mother is the blackened paper fluttering down, blowing this way and that, unsure where to land. My sister is the fallen, colorful parachute, lying in a tangled knot, unable to see the beauty she holds. My brother is the fresh, untouched powder that was protected from the flame. And I, I am the singed, outside papers, curled away from everything, silently cursing the blow torch. By: John

Think of different categories or “units” to use to build your metaphor poem like the medicine cabinet or the 4 th of July used in our examples. Units Groceriesdishessilverware drawers Clothesbooksfurniture Closetstoolsshoes or boots Windowsbarncars What units can you think of? List 5

Now that we brainstormed some units or categories select one and draft a metaphor poem to describe every member of your family (4 members)as an element in that unit Once you are done – revise and edit your poem, exchange with a fellow student and peer review as well- sign the poem you reviewed at the bottom.- Use your editing sheets to assist you in making corrections. Finish your draft and be ready to publish in the Lab tomorrow