Figurative Language in Poetry

Active learning helps students grasp figurative language because these devices rely on sensory details and emotional responses. When students create, perform, and discuss their own examples, they move beyond abstract definitions to feel how sound and imagery shape meaning.

• Year 6
• English
• 4 activities
• 25 min–45 min

Learning Objectives

1. Analyze how personification in a poem creates a sense of life or emotion in inanimate objects or abstract ideas.
2. Compare the sonic effects of alliteration and onomatopoeia on the rhythm and mood of a poem.
3. Identify examples of personification, alliteration, and onomatopoeia within selected poems.
4. Create an original stanza of poetry incorporating at least two distinct types of figurative language studied.
5. Explain the intended effect of specific figurative language choices made by a poet.

Trading Cards

⏱ 30 min·Pairs

Pairs: Personification Workshop

Pairs select five everyday objects and brainstorm human actions for them, such as 'the clock ticks impatiently'. They write a four-line poem using these, then swap with another pair for feedback on emotional impact. Conclude with pairs reading aloud to the class.

Prepare & details

Explain how personification brings inanimate objects to life in a poem.

Facilitation Tip: During the Personification Workshop, circulate and ask pairs to read their sentences aloud, listening for the human traits they assigned to objects.

Setup: Standard seating for creation, open space for trading

Materials: Blank trading card template, Colored pencils/markers, Reference materials, Trading rules sheet

• Remember
• Understand
• Apply
• Create
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills

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⏱ 45 min·Small Groups

Small Groups: Sound Device Hunt

Provide poem excerpts rich in alliteration and onomatopoeia. Groups highlight examples, discuss sound effects on mood, and rewrite a stanza swapping devices. Groups present one rewritten version, explaining changes.

Prepare & details

Compare the impact of alliteration and onomatopoeia on a poem's sound.

Facilitation Tip: In the Sound Device Hunt, provide highlighters so students can mark alliteration in one color and onomatopoeia in another for quick visual comparison.

Setup: Standard seating for creation, open space for trading

Materials: Blank trading card template, Colored pencils/markers, Reference materials, Trading rules sheet

• Remember
• Understand
• Apply
• Create
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills

Trading Cards

⏱ 25 min·Whole Class

Whole Class: Poetry Performance Chain

Teacher models a line with figurative language. Each student adds one line building on it, incorporating a device. Class performs the chain poem, voting on most effective lines and why.

Prepare & details

Construct a stanza using at least two different types of figurative language.

Facilitation Tip: For the Poetry Performance Chain, model how to pause before a sound word to let the audience anticipate the effect.

Setup: Standard seating for creation, open space for trading

Materials: Blank trading card template, Colored pencils/markers, Reference materials, Trading rules sheet

• Remember
• Understand
• Apply
• Create
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills

Trading Cards

⏱ 35 min·Individual

Individual: Device Stanza Challenge

Students receive a theme prompt and construct a stanza using two devices. They annotate effects, then share in a gallery walk for peer comments on successes.

Prepare & details

Explain how personification brings inanimate objects to life in a poem.

Facilitation Tip: During the Device Stanza Challenge, remind students to read their stanzas aloud to test whether the devices create the intended rhythm or mood.

Setup: Standard seating for creation, open space for trading

Materials: Blank trading card template, Colored pencils/markers, Reference materials, Trading rules sheet

• Remember
• Understand
• Apply
• Create
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills

Teaching This Topic

Experienced teachers know figurative language must be experienced, not just explained. Start with short, vivid examples students can visualize immediately, then guide them to create their own. Avoid over-focusing on definitions—instead, prioritize discussion and performance so students feel the difference between a literal and figurative phrase. Research shows that when students produce their own examples, retention of these devices increases significantly.

What to Expect

Successful learning looks like students confidently identifying figurative devices in unfamiliar poems and explaining their emotional or rhythmic effects. By the end of these activities, they should use personification, alliteration, and onomatopoeia deliberately in their own writing.

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

Common Misconception

During Personification Workshop, watch for students who create silly or nonsensical examples without purpose.

What to Teach Instead

Prompt pairs to explain what human trait they chose and why it fits the object, like 'The clock hands danced' to show time passing quickly.

Common Misconception

During Sound Device Hunt, watch for students who confuse alliteration with rhyme because both repeat sounds.

What to Teach Instead

Have them highlight only the repeating initial consonants and read the phrase aloud to feel the rhythm before moving to onomatopoeia.

Common Misconception

During Personification Workshop, watch for students who think personification only works for animals or nature.

What to Teach Instead

Use the brainstorming sheet to list objects like 'traffic light,' 'computer,' or 'backpack,' and ask pairs to assign a human trait to one they did not expect.

Assessment Ideas

Exit Ticket

After Personification Workshop, provide a poem excerpt and ask students to underline one example of personification and write what human trait it gives to the object.

Quick Check

During Sound Device Hunt, display a sentence like 'The kettle hissed and bubbled on the stove.' Ask students to signal if they hear onomatopoeia, then write the word that imitates the sound.

Peer Assessment

After Device Stanza Challenge, have students swap stanzas and use a checklist to identify devices used. Partners circle one example and write one word describing its effect, such as 'frightening' or 'joyful'.

Extensions & Scaffolding

• Challenge: Ask early finishers to write a second stanza using the same object or sound but a different device, then compare effects.
• Scaffolding: Provide sentence stems for the Device Stanza Challenge, such as 'The ______ [object] ______ like it was ______.'
• Deeper exploration: Have students research how poets from different cultures use figurative language, then present one example to the class.

Key Vocabulary

Personification	Giving human qualities, characteristics, or actions to inanimate objects, animals, or abstract ideas. For example, 'The wind whispered secrets through the trees.'
Alliteration	The repetition of the same consonant sound at the beginning of words in close proximity. For example, 'Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.'
Onomatopoeia	Words that imitate the natural sounds of things. For example, 'The bee buzzed lazily,' or 'The clock ticked loudly.'
Figurative Language	Language that uses words or expressions with a meaning that is different from the literal interpretation, used to make writing more effective or impactful.