Teach English in Fenglin Zhen - Huangshi Shi

While teaching any language it is very important to pay attention to the slang and idioms of that language. Because when we teach only the literal way, it will be difficult for our students to go easily when they are abroad. So, they will think they don’t know anything about the language they have learnt for many years, Not to be stuck on this, teachers should find ways to teach them slang and idioms. They’re a lot of fun to teach and to learn, and they’ll make your students sound more like native speakers and become better listeners, more in tune to colloquial English. Colorful language and powerful imagery make idioms a lot of fun for ESL learners. When you throw cats and dogs in a scene where they are falling from the sky, it’s hard to know exactly what a phrase might mean. It’s almost like a code-breaking game, where students must learn that when certain words come together in a phrase, they can mean something very different. It’s important to not only teach the meaning of idioms, but to also teach how to use them correctly and effectively. When a non-native speaker uses an idiom correctly, he or she will sound very fluent. But, on the other hand, if they bumble the phrase, they will sound the exact opposite. Learning idioms is appropriate for intermediate to advanced students. If you teach an idiom lesson to beginners or low-intermediate learners, you may well be putting them in the bumbling category mentioned above. Teach idioms wisely and sparingly to ensure your students’ success. Also I would like to speak about the teaching tips. As a teacher we should provide idioms in context, so students can fully understand the meaning. Be sure to provide a sample conversation around it. For example, take the following dialogue featuring the idiom “to be a chicken” when at a local amusement park. Jack: Ooh, wow. Look at that roller coaster, Jane! It goes upside-down! Jane: My stomach aches just looking at it. I will not ride that. Jack: Ah, come on. Don’t be a chicken! Teach idioms in spoken form, not written, and explain to students how they are conversational, rather than formal. Have students practice the idioms in dialogue to help them understand they’re used in spoken colloquial English. Be sure to explain how the individual words have different meanings from the whole idiom phrase. For example, how much does an arm and a leg actually cost? Who knows? Don’t just hand out a long list of idioms. Be sure to provide a small selection of 5-10 idioms (or less!) and explain each one. If you provide too many examples, it’ll simply turn into an introduction of what an idiom is, rather than how to actually remember the meaning and use one effectively in dialogue. Idioms can be taught through pictures Provide a picture to explain the context. This works best if you show an image that humorously illustrates the literal meaning of the idiom. It will make students laugh, but also help them understand or guess what a phrase means. Idioms are full of colorful imagery, perfect for a flashcard or photo. Show the picture to your students and have them guess the meaning of the idiom. From there, give examples of when you would use it and how the words and the actual meaning of the idiom are different. Looking for a good resource? Check out this website for an example of great images to explain the meaning of idioms. And for some beautiful images depicting idioms, be sure to check out this site. For teaching idioms we need to use small groups Break your class into small groups and have each group look up two idioms. Dave’s ESL Cafe has a great collection of idioms and their meanings for student reference. Before they look them up, have the students make an educated guess on what the idiom means, and then let them search for the real meaning. Have students explain the meaning to the rest of the class and use the idiom in a short sample dialogue.