Personification is when a writer gives human characteristics or actions to something nonhuman. As students read Full Cicada Moon, they will come across several examples of this type of figurative language. For this activity, students will identify and illustrate at least three examples of personification. Teachers may ask the kids to illustrate the phrase literally, as it’s intended in the text, or both. The example spider map for this activity shows the literal interpretation of each example of personification. Teachers may also want to give the students a list of examples, or have them do a “scavenger hunt” either as they read, or as an activity after reading.
Page 7: The Full Wolf Moon. It has chased us outside the bus window all the way from Boston.
Page 8: I wish all my dreams will hatch.
Page 14: The icy air pinches my cheeks but my heart is warm.
Page 20: Stars - bright, cold, voiceless - are winking.
Page 22: Thursday is the only day that doesn’t have a personality, so today it borrowed Saturday’s.
Page 60: Mama likes my hair pulled back tight and neat, but a few curls always escape.
Page 94: Instead of falling quietly, now it (the snow) races to the ground hard and determined.
Page 104: And when I press my face against the cold pane, my tears turn into crystals.
Page 145: The moon, so close. It’s peering back at me.
Page 186: I have no words left. They’ve drifted away into the vast, expanding loneliness of space.
Page 213: Those words just traveled around the world.
Page 279: A ghost of light grows in the fog as Mama opens the back door.
Page 353: My heart is pounding out of my chest.
(These instructions are completely customizable. After clicking "Copy Activity", update the instructions on the Edit Tab of the assignment.)
Due Date:
Objective: Create a spider map illustrating and describing three examples of personification in the text.
Student Instructions: