AC9E6LA08: Identify authors’ use of vivid, emotive vocabulary, such as metaphors, similes, personification, idioms, imagery and hyperbole

Students learn to identify authors’ use of vivid, emotive vocabulary, such as metaphors, similes, personification, idioms, imagery and hyperbole. They move from recognising the feature to explaining how it works in context, then applying it deliberately in their own reading, speaking, writing or multimodal creation.

Core idea: In English, choices in language, structure, literature and mode create meaning for a particular audience and purpose. A strong answer names the choice, gives evidence and explains the effect.

Success looks like

• identify the relevant feature, strategy or text choice
• use precise English metalanguage
• support the answer with specific evidence
• explain the effect in context
• apply or revise the choice for a new audience and purpose

mode

a channel of meaning such as words, image, sound, gesture, layout or movement

salience

how strongly an element attracts attention

sequence

the order in which ideas or images are presented

Use these terms only when they help explain the actual example. Avoid dropping metalanguage into an answer without showing the evidence.

Content description: identify authors’ use of vivid, emotive vocabulary, such as metaphors, similes, personification, idioms, imagery and hyperbole

• Descriptor focus: identify authors’ use of vivid, emotive vocabulary, such as metaphors, similes, personification, idioms, imagery and hyperbole

• Visuals are decoration — Images, layout, sound and sequence can carry essential meaning.
• One feature has one fixed effect — Explain the effect in this context and with the surrounding text.
• Modes analysed separately only — Show how words, images and sound reinforce, extend or challenge each other.
• Accessibility ignored — Captions, labels and clear layout help audiences access meaning.

Exam routine: feature or strategy → evidence → effect → context → check.

Important questions

• Identify the exact feature or strategy in identify authors’ use of vivid, emotive vocabulary, such as metaphors, similes, personification, idioms, imagery and hyperbole. Answer with precise evidence and a short explanation.
• Point to the evidence that supports the answer. Answer with precise evidence and a short explanation.
• Explain how the choice changes meaning, effect, clarity or audience response. Answer with precise evidence and a short explanation.
• Apply the idea in a fresh sentence, text extract, discussion or multimodal example. Answer with precise evidence and a short explanation.
• Revise one answer or created text using the success criteria. Answer with precise evidence and a short explanation.

• Support: provide a short model, limited choices and sentence stems such as “The feature is …”, “The evidence is …”, and “This affects meaning by …”.
• Core: use an unseen example and require evidence plus a context-specific explanation.
• Extend: compare two texts, modes, audiences or drafts and evaluate which choices are most effective.

Project the fixed branded slide deck one slide at a time. Use it with the same evidence-to-effect routine taught in this topic guide.

Learn from the Topic Guide and fixed Teacher Slides, complete the Worksheet, use Practice for supported feedback, then take the Test when ready.

Curriculum equivalents for Authors’ use of vivid, emotive vocabulary, such as metaphors, similes...

Mapped skill: identify authors’ use of vivid, emotive vocabulary, such as metaphors, similes, personification, idioms, imagery and hyperbole

These references identify matching or closely related learning. Curriculum sequence, terminology and depth vary, so teachers should use the mapped skill and lesson difficulty to confirm suitability.

Australian Curriculum v9.0 is the canonical source for this SkillrHub lesson. Victoria and NSW entries name the closest published state codes or outcomes; international entries are planning references rather than claims of identical curricula.

• Australian Curriculum Version 9.0
• Victorian Curriculum F-10
• NSW Curriculum
• Common Core State Standards
• England National Curriculum
• New Zealand Curriculum
• NCERT textbooks

• AC9E6LA01: Understand that language varies as levels of formality and social distance increase
• AC9E6LA02: Understand the uses of objective and subjective language, and identify bias
• AC9E6LA03: Explain how texts across the curriculum are typically organised into characteristic stages and phases depending on purposes, recognising how authors often adapt text structures and language features
• AC9E6LA04: Understand that cohesion can be created by the intentional use of repetition, and the use of word associations
• AC9E6LA05: Understand how embedded clauses can expand the variety of complex sentences to elaborate, extend and explain ideas
• AC9E6LA06: Understand how ideas can be expanded and sharpened through careful choice of verbs, elaborated tenses and a range of adverb groups
• AC9E6LA07: Identify and explain how images, figures, tables, diagrams, maps and graphs contribute to meaning
• AC9E6LA09: Understand how to use the comma for lists, to separate a dependent clause from an independent clause, and in dialogue