Oxymoron

Fifth Grade Reading, Writing

by Rhondra Lewis August 9, 2015

Is it fairly accurate there is a 100% chance that trying to teach your students about oxymora is controlled
chaos? Your students will find their lack of knowledge growing smaller after this teacher-approved figurative
language lesson.

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to identify and use oxymorons.

Materials and preparation Key terms

Oxy-Moron Guided Practice worksheet oxymoron

Oxy-Moron Assessment worksheet contradiction
figure of speech

Attachments

Oxy-Moron Guided Practice (PDF)

Oxy-Moron Assessment (PDF)

Introduction (10 minutes)

To begin this lesson, have students write what they already know about oxymora on a sheet of paper.
Ask students to share their written responses with the class.
You can write a list of responses on the board so students have a written log of previous responses.
You can also write a list of oxymora, e.g. "found missing" on the board and have students try to explain
their meanings.
Tell students that an oxymoron is a combination of two contradictory words, or words that cancel each
other out, usually side by side in a sentence.
Explain to students that in this lesson they will identify, use, and explain oxymora to gain an
understanding of how they are used for dramatic effect in writing.

Explicit Instruction/Teacher modeling (10 minutes)

Have students read the directions on the Oxy-Moron Guided Practice worksheet.
Look at the first example: "near miss." Have students discuss what the meaning of this oxymoron might
be.
Advise students to identify the meaning of each term separately and combine the meanings to create
one meaning.
Remind students that an oxymoron is a combination of two contradictory words.
Students should write that "near" means not far and "miss" means fail to hit. They should decipher that it
means "close but not hitting or touching" (or something similar).
Go through a few more of the examples and allow students to come up with the oxymoron for each
example.

Get more lesson plans at https://www.education.com/lesson-plans/

Guided Practice (10 minutes)

Have students work in pairs or small groups to complete the remaining oxymora on the Oxy-Moron
Guided Practice worksheet.

Independent working time (20 minutes)

In this section of the lesson, students will create a short story that uses oxymora.
Have students work alone to complete this part of the lesson.
Tell students that they have to create a short story or poem that uses an oxymoron in the title and at
least five oxymora in the body.
Students can use examples from the Oxy-Moron Guided Practice worksheet if they are struggling to
create examples of their own.

Related books and/or media

VIDEO: Oxymoron Examples by Jenny Halupnik

VIDEO: Oxymorons by WhatYouOughtToKnow

Differentiation

Enrichment: Allow advanced students to create a product of their choice that identifies and explains
their favorite oxymora. Students may need to conduct research.
Support: Instead of writing a short story, allow struggling students to identify at least five oxymora that
describe them personally.

Assessment (10 minutes)

Have students use the Oxy-Moron Assessment worksheet to identify examples of oxymora in literature.
Give students about 10 minutes to complete this assignment independently.
Collect the worksheets once they're finished. Review them later to assess understanding.

Review and closing (5 minutes)

Recap today's lesson.

Have students explain in their own words what an oxymoron is and list as many examples as they can
remember from what they learned today.
Allow students to ask questions that they still have about oxymora.

Get more lesson plans at https://www.education.com/lesson-plans/

 Oxy-Moron:Guided Practice
An oxymoron is a combination of two
contradictory words usually side by side in a
sentence.

Directions:
Look at each example. Define both terms and then
combine them to create a single meaning for each.

# oxymoron 1st word 2nd word Combined Meaning

definition definition
1 “near miss” near=not far Miss=fail to hit close but not touching
2 “rolling stop”

3 “old news”

4
“only choice”
5 “same
difference”
6 “clearly
confused”
7 “act natural”

8 “pretty ugly”

9 “love hate”

10 “good grief”
 Oxy-Moron:Guided Practice--KEY
An oxymoron is a combination of two
contradictory words usually side by side in a
sentence.

Directions:
Look at each example. Define both terms and then
combine them to create a single meaning for each.

# oxymoron 1st word 2nd word Combined Meaning

definition definition
1 “near miss” near=not far Miss=fail to hit close but not touching
2 “rolling stop” moving no movement slow down without stopping

3 “old news” having many years recent or important already known information
information or
event
4 Alone, one, sole, Selection, variety supposed to make
nothing else a choice but do not have a
“only choice”
real choice because there
is only one thing you can do
5 “same identical, no not the same, two or more things are
difference variations essentially the same, in
difference”
spite of apparent
differences.
6 “clearly easy unable to think, obviously difficult to
interpretation puzzled, understand
confused”
7 “act natural” pretend, fake it not made up of quick reaction during an
fake unexpected event
8 “pretty ugly” attractive not attractive unattractive or not cute

9 “love hate” deep affection or dislike conflicting and/or

like complicated relations
10 “good grief” Well, approved or deep sorrow Expression of irritation,
desired surprise or frustration
 Oxy-Moron: Assessment
An oxymoron is a combination of two contradictory words
usually side by side in a sentence.

William Shakespeare was famous writer who used oxymorons

often to express the emotions of his characters. His most
famous play, Romeo and Juliet, is filled with them.

Directions:
Use what you know about oxymorons to identify as many as you can. Hint: there
are nine in the first and at least seven in the last.

Act 1, Scene 1:

Why then, O brawling love! O loving hate!

O anything of nothing first create!
O heavy lightness, serious vanity!
Misshapen chaos of well-seeming forms!
Feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, sick health!
Still-waking sleep, that is not what it is!
This love feel I, that feel no love in this!”

Act 3, Scene 2:
O serpent heart, hid with a flow'ring face!
Did ever dragon keep so fair a cave?
Beautiful tyrant, fiend angelical!
Dove-feathered raven, wolvish-ravening lamb!
Despised substance of divinest show!
Just opposite to what thou justly seem'st,
A damnèd saint, an honorable villain!
O nature, what hadst thou to do in hell
When thou didst bower the spirit of a fiend
In moral paradise of such sweet flesh?
Was ever book containing such vile matter
So fairly bound? O, that deceit should dwell
In such a gorgeous palace!
 Oxymoron: Assessment--KEY
An oxymoron is a combination of two contradictory words
usually side by side in a sentence.

William Shakespeare was famous writer who used oxymorons

often to express the emotions of his characters. His most
famous play, Romeo and Juliet, is filled with them.

Directions:
Use what you know about oxymorons to identify as many as you can. Hint: there
are nine in the first and at least seven in the last.

Act 1, Scene 1:

Why then, O brawling love! O loving hate!

O anything of nothing first create!
O heavy lightness, serious vanity!
Misshapen chaos of well-seeming forms!
Feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, sick health!
Still-waking sleep, that is not what it is!
This love feel I, that feel no love in this!”

Act 3, Scene 2:
O serpent heart, hid with a flow'ring face!
Did ever dragon keep so fair a cave?
Beautiful tyrant, fiend angelical!
Dove-feathered raven, wolvish-ravening lamb!
Despised substance of divinest show!
Just opposite to what thou justly seem'st,
A damnèd saint, an honorable villain!
O nature, what hadst thou to do in hell
When thou didst bower the spirit of a fiend
In moral paradise of such sweet flesh?
Was ever book containing such vile matter
So fairly bound? O, that deceit should dwell
In such a gorgeous palace!