Rain Forest Similes

We have been experimenting with metaphors and similes in class – introduced, in part, by Mr. Van (the poet, Van Jordan, who visited recently). His poetry was so full of metaphors and images, the children were naturally intrigued.

Today, each child wrote between 3 and 5 similes that had to do with something found in the rain forest. They came out so clever and sweet, that I’m thinking I may take the favorite from each child and expand it to an illustrated classroom book. Here are some examples:

The iguana’s tail is like a green whip.
The anaconda’s jaws go as wide as a cave.
The ocelot was as fast as a lightning bolt.
The howler monkey is as loud as a chain saw.
The vines were like ropes to swing on.
The frog is as slimy as goo.
The eel looked like a swimming jump rope.
The snail was like a slow baby.
The corpse flower was a like a rotten egg in pedals.
The tree looked like a flagpole.
The millipede’s legs move like a wave.

And my favorite? The otter was as beautiful as Mrs. Carpenter. Why! That makes me blush like a chameleon in a rose garden!