Similes

What It Is

Similes compare two unrelated things. For example, “Mitochondria are like engines in that they produce power for the cell.” Similes can provide opportunities for abstractly portraying the big picture of concepts in a way that sums up their meaning. 

To use similes after a teacher-directed presentation, teachers can ask students to make a connection between the topic they’ve been studying and something unrelated. This activity will need to be modeled and scaffolded by first providing examples of similes and asking students to explain why the simile might be true. For example, a teacher might ask students to complete the following statement: “Adaptations are like bank accounts in that _.” Or after modeling the activity several times, a teacher can ask students to create their own simile. 

How It Works
  1. Create similes using some of the topics you are studying. Use the format “________ is like _______ in that _______.”
  2. Ask students to formulate an explanation for how the simile might be true, 
  3. Ask students to share with their partners in small groups or in a Chalkboard Splash so that all can see. 
  4. After similes have been modeled a few times, ask students to create their own similes based on the topics they are learning about. 
How to Ensure Higher-Order Thinking

By creating similes or explaining them, students are being asked to compare components within both items. In doing so, they are analyzing the topic for which you have asked them to create a simile. This activity takes just a few minutes and can ensure that students are understanding the intricacies or the big picture of whatever you are teaching.  

Try to come up with your own similes for what you are teaching soon, and see if the students can develop explanations for how the statements might be true. Their reasons may be different from what you originally intended to be the rationale behind the similes, but if their reasons make sense, students have just participated in analyzing the concept you have taught. 

Source

Himmele P., and Himmele, W. Total Participation Techniques: Making Every Student an Active Learner. ASCD, 2017, pp.52-53.

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