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9th grade · English Language Arts · Unit 2 of 12

Literary Elements

Irony, motif, tone and mood

What your child practices

Recognizing devices such as irony, symbolism, motif, allusion and foils in short excerpts, and describing tone and mood.

Minnesota K-12 Academic Standards benchmark: 9.1.5.1; 9.1.8.1 · literary elements and style choices, and their effect on meaning and tone

How we explain it

Children can open this short lesson before they practice.

  1. Tone is the author’s attitude. Mood is the feeling the reader gets.
  2. A motif is a repeated image or idea. A symbol stands for a bigger idea. A foil is a character who contrasts with another.
  3. An allusion refers to a well-known story or person. Irony is a gap between what’s expected and what happens.

Example: “Fog crept between the gravestones, and somewhere a gate creaked.” What is the mood? Fog, gravestones and a creaking gate feel dark and uneasy. The reader waits for something to happen. Answer: eerie and suspenseful

Literary Elements in Minnesota

In the Minnesota K-12 Academic Standards, this is unit 2 of 12 in 9th grade English Language Arts, after Close Reading and before Grammar & Style.

Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.

Source: Minnesota Department of Education (MDE)

Sample questions

A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.

  1. Question 1

    Which literary device does this excerpt use?

    The trembling candle flickered as the stranger walked in, and every shadow in the room seemed to lean toward him.

    • Onomatopoeia
    • Simile
    • Flashback
    • Foreshadowing

  2. Question 2

    Which literary device does this excerpt use?

    The ancient oak stood for generations as a symbol of the family's strength.

    • Alliteration
    • Flashback
    • Symbolism
    • Hyperbole

  3. Question 3

    Which literary device does this excerpt use?

    Throughout the book, a cracked watch appears each time the family argues.

    • Foil
    • Hyperbole
    • Motif
    • Allusion

  4. Question 4

    What is the tone of this sentence?

    The report notes that the experiment was performed on three separate occasions and that the results were consistent.

    • formal and objective
    • playful and silly
    • angry
    • emotional and personal

  5. Question 5

    Which literary device does this excerpt use?

    Whispering winds wove wildly through the willow trees.

    • Onomatopoeia
    • Irony
    • Simile
    • Alliteration

  6. Question 6

    Which literary device does this excerpt use?

    The smoke alarm shrieked and the toast popped up.

    • Irony
    • Simile
    • Allusion
    • Onomatopoeia

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