British Council
Shakespeare’s Idioms
Lie low. Break the ice. He's a night owl. Idioms, in this case idioms created by Shakespeare, are the focus of resource that includes a PowerPoint presentation, an activity, and a brief lesson, all intended to give kids a chance to...
Curated OER
Ageless Idioms
Students translate and define idioms between English and Spanish. For this ageless idioms lesson, students discuss elements of expression and how a language's vernacular does not always make sense. Students illustrate a variety of...
Curated OER
Railroad Idioms Art Lesson Plan
Sixth graders research railroad idioms. In this idiom lesson plan, 6th graders read through a glossary of different railroad idioms and their meanings. They illustrate a chosen idiom.
Achieve3000
Context Clues and Idioms
Kids practice using five types of context clues (definition, synonym, antonym, example, and general) to decode idiomatic language.
Curated OER
Theater: Create a Script
Figurative language is the focus in the book Teach Us, Amelia Bedelia. After reading Peggy Parish's book, class members dramatize idioms from the text, using dramatic strategies such as characterization, exaggeration, and improvisation....
Curated OER
Idiom Games
Learners identify idioms as groups of words with special meanings that paint a mental picture for the reader.They compete in a game in which they draw and interpret pictures of idioms.
Curated OER
Understanding Idioms Is a Piece of Cake
Interpreting idioms is a piece of cake! In groups, learners discuss the meaning of some common English idioms and choose 10 to use in sentences. Then, they illustrate the silly, literal meanings of those idioms and can engage in a fun...
Curated OER
It's Raining Cats and Dogs
Make a beeline to this activity. Prepare paper strips with the provided idioms to engage teams in illustrating their literal meanings. The drawings provide the impetus for a guessing game where class members compete to be the first to...
Curated OER
Idioms
Young scholars explore the use of common idioms and deduce the correct meanings of idioms.
Curated OER
Idioms Lesson Plan
Sixth graders discover idioms. In this idioms lesson, 6th graders evaluate idioms and discover their meaning. Students read Runny Babbit by Shel Silverstein and create unique idioms. Assessment rubric is provided.
Curated OER
Idiom Conversations
In this idioms worksheet, students choose the answer that is closest in meaning according to the preceding conversation. All of the sentences include different idioms and slang.
Curated OER
J'ai mal à la tête! (I have a headache!) -- Health Expressions in French
Oh, no! Everyone is getting sick! Young French speakers use French expressions regarding physical health, some of which are idioms. With the use of health expressions provided in the lesson plan, pairs work together to write stories that...
August House
The Clever Monkey
Your clever kindergartners will enjoy a series of activities based on the West African folktale, The Clever Monkey, adapted by Rob Cleveland. They sequence the story with pictures, copy sentences, illustrate idioms about cats, and taste...
EngageNY
Conducting Research: Analyzing a Variety of Sources to Capture Information about My Insect
From picture to words. Scholars analyze a picture of an ant and then list two facts they observed and any questions that may arise. Expert groups from the previous instructional activity then look at a diagram about either an ant or...
Curated OER
Jump-Start the Reading of Authentic Latin
Are your advanced learners reading authentic Latin this year? Whether you're teaching Caesar, Cicero or Virgil, use some of these strategies to map out your unit. What do you focus on? Consider taking small passages and making that the...
Curated OER
Hats Off to You!
Students research why people wear hats, caps or bonnets. They investigate various occupations, world costumes, sports, or idioms around hats. Students become more aware of cultures different from their own within this lesson.
Curated OER
The Bernstein Bear's Trouble with Money: Financial and Academic Literacy
What do figures of speech have to do with financial literacy? Take an interdisciplinary look at The Berenstain Bears' Trouble with Money to find out. Young analysts read about the cubs' spendthrift ways and how Mama and Papa Bear teach...
Film English
My Shoes
Engage your pupils in short story and short film. Using a still from the film as inspiration, pairs compose short stories, which they later share and compare with other members of the class. They then watch the film and respond to a...
EngageNY
Close Read, Part 2: “Hugo, the Lord’s Nephew”
No, not literally. Scholars read Hugo, the Lord’s Nephew to compare figurative and literal language. Readers learn about simile, metaphor, personification, and idioms with a graphic organizer. Pupils then answer text-dependent questions...
Curated OER
You Don't Say!!
Fourth graders write and respond to sayings throughout the school year. They define the idioms, illustrate them and compare their meanings with other groups in the class.
Curated OER
Valentine's Day Hearts
Students consider idiomatic expressions that use the word, "heart". They illustrate an assigned idiom and present it to the class. They use the illustrations to guess which idiom is being represented.
Smith Family Home
Transportation
Here's an interesting lesson that combines elements of language arts, sociology, and a study of the many ways that people use transportation to get from one place to another. The eight-page plan includes worksheets and a word search that...
Curated OER
Reading Between the Lines: Making Inferences About Idioms
Students discover idioms. In this inferencing lesson plan, students identify idioms from passages and infer meanings of unknown idioms using prior knowledge and experience. Students write sentences using newly learned idioms.
Shmoop
ELA.CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.9-10.4
The fourth standard for reading literature in the Common Core calls for young readers to be able to determine the figurative and connotative meanings of words and phrases. Use this resource, a continuation of a series of Common Core...