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16 questions · 3–5 min
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11+ EnglishIn the full 11+ Arcade
Fireworks Festival: a figurative language game for the 11+
Put on a fireworks show over a riverside town at night. Each right answer launches a rocket and lights a lantern on the bridge, and quicker answers make bigger bursts and win more stars.
Included in every Prep4All plan. Space Mission is free to try first.
A round4 acts · about 4–5 min
LevelsSparkler · Rocket · Supernova
Daily challengeA new challenge every day
Unlock: New Year FestivalEarn the Supernova rank to unlock
About Fireworks Festival
Fireworks Festival practises the figurative language children are asked to spot in 11+ comprehension and use in their own writing, plus riddles that play on words. The show runs in four acts, each leaning on one topic and ending with a harder rocket challenge. Every burst matches its question: a shape for a simile or metaphor, one colour for alliteration, a sound word in sparks for onomatopoeia, and the riddle’s answer spelt out in the sky.
Questions get harder after three right in a row and easier after two misses in a row. The fuse bar never runs out; it only sets the size of the burst and the bonus stars, and the rank counts right answers before stars. A wrong answer is a damp squib: the lantern stays dark, the trap is explained and the show goes on to its closing finale.
How to play Fireworks Festival
- Choose a show (Sparkler, Rocket or Supernova), or take the daily challenge.
- Tap your answer while the fuse is long for a bigger burst and bonus stars.
- Get three right in a row to set off a grand finale of five rockets.
- Beat the harder rocket challenge at the end of each act for three extra stars.
- After the closing finale, open the review to see how each trap works.
What it practises for the 11+
- Similes and Metaphors
- A simile compares using like or as (as thick as porridge); a metaphor says one thing is another (the spelling test was a breeze). Your child learns to spot each device, name the quality being compared and tell both apart from personification. Learn the topic →
- Alliteration
- Alliteration repeats the same first sound in nearby words. The questions train your child to listen for the sound, not the letter, so cat, kite and chemist all alliterate, and to say what effect the repetition has. Learn the topic →
- Onomatopoeia
- Onomatopoeia is a word that sounds like the noise it names, such as crackle, sizzle or buzz. Your child finds the sound words in a sentence, tells them apart from ordinary describing words and picks the one that fits the mood. Learn the topic →
- Solve the Riddle
- Every clue in a riddle must fit the answer, and many play on a second meaning, like the ears on a corn plant. Testing each option against every clue is a habit that helps with any multiple-choice 11+ question. Learn the topic →
Try Fireworks Festival questions
Questions from the game, for you to try together. Have a go before opening the answer.
Question 1 · Similes and Metaphors
What device is used in this sentence? The clock on the wall told us to hurry.
- a metaphor
- alliteration
- personification
- onomatopoeia
- a simile
Show the answer
personification — The clock on the wall is given a human action (told), so it is personification.
Question 2 · Alliteration
Which word continues the alliteration? Six silver ___ swam in the stream.
- salmon
- trout
- fish
- sharks
- minnows
Show the answer
salmon — The sentence repeats an s sound: ‘Six’, ‘silver’, ‘swam’ and ‘stream’. ‘salmon’ starts with the same sound, so it keeps the alliteration going.
Question 3 · Solve the Riddle
Solve the riddle. I have lots of ears, but I cannot hear. I grow tall in a farmer’s field. What am I?
- a tractor
- a rabbit
- corn
- a sunflower
- a pig
Show the answer
corn — Corn passes every clue: the heads of grain on a corn plant are called ears, they cannot hear, and corn grows tall in fields.
More English games
Jungle Expedition
Rainforest trail: vines, a rope bridge, a waterfall and the lost temple
- Comprehension
- Cloze Passage
6 stretches · about 5 min
Deep Sea Dive
Submarine dive: four ocean zones to the treasure chest
- Word Meanings
- Homonyms
- Multiple Meanings
- Analogies
4 zones · about 5 min
Play Fireworks Festival and every other game
Every game, every level and the daily challenge are included in every Prep4All plan, with lessons, practice tests and mock exams. Every plan starts with a 7-day free trial.