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It is difficult for a non-native speaker to understand the idioms of a new language. And it is that in any language certain idiomatic expressions and idioms are easier to understand in context. For this reason, many teachers resort to stories so that their students learn more easily.
There is a wide variety of activities that teachers can propose to their students so that the learning of idioms has a lasting effect over time. One of them is to read a story briefly, that is, without necessarily understanding all the content of the story. By reading the story a second time, the student can be provided with the meanings of idioms and other idioms that may be unfamiliar to the new reader. They are very useful resources for the teacher that go very well if combined with other teaching methods.
Stories in English with idioms and idioms to teach in context
The following stories for young people can be very useful to see how idioms are used within a traditional narrative context. The website that hosts them also has many special options for those people who are learning English and whose native language is Spanish. Each story has its translation to make the most of it. These are some examples:
Cinderella – The Brothers Grimm classic in which the young and beautiful Cinderella, with the help of her fairy godmother, manages to make it to the ball despite the odds. At her ball she meets a handsome prince who will fall totally in love with her.
The Happy Prince : In this story by Oscar Wilde a young prince who was always happy watches the sorrows and miseries of his people from his vantage point on a golden statue. A beautiful story with a touching ending.
Thumb – Charles Perrault’s tale about Thumb and his adventures finding his way home will allow you to learn many expressions and idioms in a fun way.
Tips for teachers
Stories with idioms and idioms are very useful for the more advanced levels of teaching English. It’s amazing how many idioms can naturally fit into a story. They are ideal as long as there are activities at the end of the story to check what has been learned.
Some of the most common suggestions for teachers are as follows:
- Check the student’s written production with a creative writing activity where they are asked to use what they have learned.
- Dialogue writing can never be missing.
- Students can create a text as a group and exchange it with other groups in the classroom. One of the options can be a text in which missing words are completed.
- Some linguistic situations sometimes work better in one language than another. You might try using your students’ native language to make such comparisons with English.
How do we learn idioms in context?
When reading a new text, browsing the Internet, or enjoying audiovisual content, it can be difficult to realize what the idioms are. Follow some of these steps to find out if you’ve come across an idiom or idiom:
An idiom is often not understood literally
In Spanish we have for example that:
The early bird God helps.
Meanwhile, in English there is:
The early bird catches the worm . (the early bird catches the worm)
This idiomatic phrase reveals the importance of getting out of bed early in the morning to start the day with a good attitude and be productive from the early hours. Use the early bird as a metaphor to express that whoever gets up earlier has a better chance of being productive during the day. Of course, those who don’t get up early can probably also be very productive during other hours of the day. Here the sentence cannot be followed to the letter; to begin with, we are not birds.
Expressions are not always what they seem
If an expression seems out of place, it is most likely an idiom. Consider these phrases in the context of a business meeting:
The ship will arrive at a good port.
This ship has sailed . (the ship has sailed)
Naval phrases are certainly not expected when talking to businessmen. It is easy to see how this reveals to us that we are dealing with an idiom or idiom.
It is also important to note that, although both speak of ships, these expressions are not related to each other. The Spanish expression means that something is on the right track; meanwhile, the English denotes that it is already too late to do anything, so it is a missed opportunity.
Idiomatic phrases can be verbal locutions
Verbal locutions can have a figurative meaning. Let’s say:
Luis makes me fat.
In this case, Luis didn’t fall on me while I was fat. The phrase means that I don’t like Luis. And this is the case every time someone talks about “falling fat”. The meaning and the way of writing the phrase are fixed.
I feel in seventh heaven . (I feel in seventh heaven)
In this case, the phrase in English refers to feeling very happy and pleased with some situation.
By keeping the above considerations in mind it is easier for non-native speakers to recognize idioms and idioms in English and Spanish.
References
- Peter, Matthew, Douma (2019). Language Attack, Vol . 1 – Everyday Living: Idiom Attack 1 – Everyday Living. Available: https://books.google.co.ve/books?id=JP2jDwAAQBAJ&dq
- Prieto, M. (2007). Speaking in Silver: Of Idioms and Cultural Metaphors . Available at: https://books.google.co.ve/books?id=YjhcNxohmgIC&dq
- Stories for boys. Available at http://www.cuentosparachicos.com/ .
