Invitational Education theory and metaphorical metacognition were synthesized in this longitudinal qualitative study as students explored the impact of experiential learning. During university literacy courses for pre-service teachers, multimodal instruction was used to augment the impact of metaphorical metacognition. Participants discussed their insights from designing book talks and digital stories in discovery circles to introduce their strategic literacy lesson plans. Through provision of an intentionally inviting environment pre-service teachers collaborated while preparing multimodal projects for personalized learning experiences with students from kindergarten to second grade and avatars representing students in this age range. Utilization of metaphorical metacognition to reflect upon class sessions and field experiences produced results confirming the study's efficacy and alignment with the overarching goals, elements, and domains of Invitational Education theory and practice.