Fortnight Games. Speaking activity. Blast from the past.

Hello Puddings! 

How is your week going? are you ready for a new game? 

It's well-known we respond better to grammar if its contained inside of a game and in this fortnight game I would like to show you: Blast from the Past! 

Blast from the past is an excellent way to revise the past tenses, also, it's very easy. The dynamic is either in teams or individually if it's a small group. Each student has to pick a card and to speak about that topic for a certain amount of time to win a point for their team/or themselves. 

I normally adapted to their level: 

 - A2 - 30 seconds, 

 - B1 - 45/60 seconds - Depending on time, number of students. 

 - B2 - They need to go over 60 seconds to score. 

My B2 students really enjoy and it's also a fun way to prepare them for the speaking exam -Trinity, Cambridge, or any of them-.  Click on the name to download Blast from the past

Enjoy! 

BP. 

Monday idiom. By the skin of my teeth

Hello Puddings! 

This Monday I almost didn't post anything however I did it by the skin of my teeth. It has being a busy month and with the exams just around the corner my time is running rather short, however this Monday I manage to keep my appointment with you and our idioms! 

"She got in the train by the skin of her teeth."

"We made it for the deadline by the skin of our teeth"

I'm sure you've guessed its meaning by now but just in case: By the skin of someone teeth means 'just in time' or 'just barely'. We all know teeth don't have skin and so the idiom refers to such lack.

 It was first written in the Geneva Bible, 1560, Job 19:20 - literal translation of the original Hebrew - "I haue escaped with the skinne of my tethe"(1). A pious man, King James Version, tested by the god, lost family, friends, money and even health. Nonetheless, at the end he still kept his faith, and he was supposed to say: "My bone cleaveth to my skin and to my flesh, and I am escaped with the skin of my teeth"(2).

Despite its biblical origins it simply means 'Just barely' nowadays.

Have a jolly week and get everything done not by the skin of your teeth!

BP

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(1) http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/83000.html

(2) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skin_of_my_teeth

Fortnight Games. Personality Adjectives Taboo.

Hello everyone!

Today I bring you a must have game in every teacher's folder. Maybe one of the most loved games (among with Hangman - which is a Must game to review vocabulary-) could be Taboo. From young learners to adults, Taboo, is an excellent way to improve their speaking skills. Also, this version of Taboo would help them to reassure their knowledge.

Taboo Preview

The idea of this Taboo is explaining the word on top of the card without using the adjectives below. It is a different concept from the common taboo because I believe they are more receptive to increase their vocabulary when they are playing. So, by showing them synonyms students start to remember different ways to say a word. In addition, I found that when they play normal taboo some students tend to block and start to fell too self-conscious  to talk. 

There's another possibility for this cards. After a few days of playing with them, students can play in reverse, which means only saying the three adjectives below the team needs to guess the Main adjective. It has had good results because when they play common taboo they read the adjectives and allow themselves to remember maybe one or two from the list, so the new adjectives become part of their back-up list of vocabulary. 

Here is the link for the first set of cards:Download Personality Adjectives Taboo.

Enjoy and have a fun learning!! 

BP 

Monday idiom. Know something by heart.

Hello all again!

Ready for today's idiom? Its origin is quite uncertain however it should be part of every student set of idioms. 

'I know Shakespeare poems by heart'. 

'He's learnt many equations by heart'. 

For Spanish people it would be easy to understand if we say 'know something from memory' as they will translate it.  Also, you could say its meaning is very similar to 'Learn by heart' and I guess they share an origin. 

For the ancient Greeks the heart was the most noticeable internal organ and so for them it was the seat of memory and intelligence. This belief was passed down through the ages and became the basis for the English expressions 'Learn by heart' and 'Know by heart'. 

Again, both idioms origin is uncertain however it's always good to relate them with a story the students can remember. 

Cheerio and have a jolly week! 

BP

Monday idiom. Cry wolf!

Hello!

Let's star the week with a great idiom which also comes with a story.

Once upon a time there was a shepherd boy who was bored of just watching the village sheep. He decided to do something funny to amuse himself, so, he took breath and cried 'Wolf! Wolf! The Wolf is chasing the sheep!' and the villagers came running up the hill to help the boy chase away the wolf. But once they arrived, they found no wolf. The boy was laughing at the sight of their angry faces. 

'Don't cry wolf' if there is NO wolf!' The villagers told the boy off, but he just grinned and laugh. 

He did the same every morning for two days. 

The third day, a real wolf came by and alarmed the boy sang out as loudly as he could 'WOLF! WOLF!' however, no one came. The villagers thought he was fooling them again and so they didn't come.

Later on, everyone wondered why he hadn't returned to the village and they went up the hill to find the boy. He was weeping behind a rock. 'There really was a wolf today' he said. 

As they walked back to the village an old man tried to comfort him saying 'Nobody believes a liar... even when he is telling the truth'. 

So, can you guess the meaning of today's idiom?

That's right! Exagerate, lie or simply ask for help when you don't truly need it. 

If you want to show this idiom to children or you want them to know it by heart, there's a video in youtube telling the story. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gKWktweAZb0  Even adults have enjoyed it! 

Have a jolly week! 

BP