Crafts: Mother's Day!

Ahoy!

Mother's day is coming and with it children's excitement for doing something for their beloved mother.
I would like to show you this year handcraft, specially designed for children between 3 and 6 years old. They enjoy tracing letters and it's also good to help them to develop writing skills.

First, there's a Mother's Day Card you can do with some Cupcakes paper molds - I chose hearts printed but actually any print would do just find-. Some fluffy fur balls (you can see what I mean in the pictures above these lines) and the basics: Glue, scissors and cardboard.
Second, there's also a Bookmark which they can trace the letter and decorate as they please. It's very simple but very efficient. My personal recommendation with them if you printed them in just printer paper, you - or children- can stick it in colour cardboard so it's more sturdy and also personalised.

Mother's day bookmark

Mother's day card

Click in the images and save:

   - Mother's day Card.

   - Bookmarks printables.

Monday idiom: At the drop of a hat.

Hello again!

Mondays are for idioms. Idioms are a manner of speaking, not very recommended in formal style writing but students love to guess their meanings and they feel more confident with their English, once they are able to used it properly.

This week:

Do hats fall down slowly or quickly?

Exactly, quickly!. So, that's the meaning of this idiom. Being able to to think or do something without hesitation, instantly. 'She was ready to go at the drop of a hat' or 'you can't just buy a car at the drop of a hat, you need to give it a thought'.

Enjoy your week!

Regards,

BP.

Monday idiom: An arm and a leg.

Hello again!

How was your weekend? I hope you've had a good one and are ready for our Monday idiom!

Today, we have one which is body related even in Spanish, let's see if you can guess its meaning with some examples:

   'This jacket cost me an arm and a leg'

   'Food there doesn't cost an arm and a leg, it's quite affordable'

Any clues? What if I say in Spanish we say 'cost me an eye' or 'cost me a kidney'?

That's right! In English things don't cost eyes, they are expensive as an arm or a leg. There're many stories about its origin, my favorite is the one Art related. It's said that painters used to charge you according to the size of the painting, therefore the cheapest option would be head and shoulders, then including arms and so on, being a full body with legs the most expensive.

More info about its origin at: www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/arm-and-a-leg.html

Until next Monday idiom!

Regards,

BP

Proof's in the pudding

      Hello to everyone! 

As an English teacher I sometimes see my students struggling with some verb tenses, for others the issue is Vocabulary and how to practice it. Learning English shouldn't be a constant challenge and so with this project I'm aiming to share helpful techniques and information to make the process easier. So, let's get down to business.

That is probably one of the most common sentences that my students listen to when they feel lost trying to understand the inner logic in English. What's the meaning of it?

Well, basically it means that you have to try, use or experience something before judging its quality*. For my students, it's the sentence to say 'Don't give up without giving it a go' and so far it's prove itself helpful.

Fun enough, according to The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations is attributed to Cervantes in Don Quixote. Much has been said about it and many say it's a 'loose paraphrase', crucially the Spanish word for pudding: 'Budín', doesn't appear in the text. If you are curious about it check the links below to read more about it. 

http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/proof-of-the-pudding.html

http://www.word-detective.com/2008/12/the-proof-is-in-the-pudding/

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*http://dictionary.cambridge.org/es/diccionario/britanico/the-proof-of-the-pudding-is-in-the-eating