Metaphors & Analogies: Power Tools for Teaching Any Subject

by Rick Wormeli

Overview

Metaphors and analogies are more than figurative language suitable only for English classes and standardized test questions. They are “power tools” that can electrify learning in every subject and at all grade levels.  Metaphors show students how to make connections between the concrete and the abstract, prior knowledge and unfamiliar concepts, and language and image.
 
To exploit these powers, however, teachers must learn how to use metaphors and analogies strategically and for specific purposes, helping students discover, create, and deconstruct effective comparisons. In this thoughtful and nuanced book, Rick Wormeli examines a wide range of powerful metaphors—from the rhetoric of political speeches to mathematical models to concrete spellings and body sculptures that symbolically portray abstractions.
 
Metaphors & Analogies is filled with provocative illustrations of metaphors in action and practical tips about using metaphors to improve assessment, professional development, and symbolic sensing. Imagine the possibilities. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781571107589
Publisher:	Stenhouse Publishers
Publication date:	10/05/2009
Pages:	174
Sales rank:	729,124
Product dimensions:	7.30(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	5 - 17 Years

About the Author

Rick Wormeli is a National Board Certified Teacher and a columnist for Middle Ground magazine. The winner of Disney's American Teacher Award for English in 1996, Rick is an internationally known speaker on middle-level education, innovation, and teacher professionalism.

Rick offers a wealth of experience having worked as a middle grades teacher, human growth and development teacher, and staff development educator. He is also an educational consultant to National Public Radio, USA Today, and the Smithsonian Institute.

Rick has presented at the White House, has appeared on Good Morning America, and has worked with school districts all across the country.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments vii

Chapter 1 Events Create Ripples and Equations Are Balances: Metaphors in Every Subject 1

Chapter 2 Familiarity Breeds Content 9

Chapter 3 Archimedes' Metaphorical Legacy: The Right Tools for the Job 23

Chapter 4 Walking in Our Students' Shoes, and Sometimes Making the Shoes Ourselves 33

Chapter 5 Focusing the Lens on English Language Learners 49

Chapter 6 Metaphor in Motion: The Physics of Comprehension 61

Chapter 7 Seeing Is Believing: Developing Visual Metaphors 77

Chapter 8 The Incubation Stage: Hatching New Metaphors & Analogies 97

Chapter 9 Cleaning Out the Metaphorical carburetor: Teaching Students What to Do When Metaphors Break Down 119

Chapter 10 Listening for Harmony and Discordant Sounds: Transcending Current Education Metaphors 133

Appendixes

A Metaphorical Terms and Devices 147

B In the Classroom: Creative Examples of Metaphors from Teachers 151

Additional Resources 165

References 167

Index 171

Editorial Reviews

"So far the most practical title I've seen on the topic, offering teachers simple steps for improving their instruction through the use of metaphors and analogies." - How to Teach a Novel blog



"Metaphors & Analogies provides an excellent starting point for understanding the promise and pitfalls of these important devices… In the spirit of its title, it truly is a buffet for the hungry mind." - Tech in the Middle blog

From the Publisher