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Cool as a cucumber
Max and Moon are building a house of cards. Max is trying to stack the final cards, but topples it over instead. Moon tells Max he is not "as cool as a cucumber," which is a saying that means to "not be rattled by anything."
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Upper crust
Max and Moon are at an upscale restaurant. Max examines the table placement and declares that the restaurant is very fancy. Moon tells Max the place seems suited for the "upper crust", which means the top tiers of society.
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Spill the beans
Max is snacking on some jelly beans when he tells Moon he found something out today. Moon is curious and tells Max she wants to know. Max keeps asking if Moon really wants to know until Moon finally says "spill the beans," which means to...
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Piece of Cake
Max is practicing his golf skills but gets frustrated because the ball won't go into the hole. Moon shows Max some tips, and says that it's a "piece of cake," which means that something is easy, or won't take too much effort.
Curated Video
The Big Game: an Igbo Proverb
“The big game often appears when the hunter has given up the hunt for the day” This saying really resonates with me as often I feel called to just quit, to give up and do something easier. I can Imagine the hunter, tired, deflated and on...
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Seen Better Days
Max is trying to fix his backpack with duct tape. Moon tells Max it looks like his backpack has seen better days, which means it was in better condition in the past.
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Get Someone's Goat
Max is playing a computer game when his screen freezes. Moon tells Max not having internet access "gets her goat," too. Max thinks someone took a goat he didn't even know Moon had. Moon explains that when you find something annoying, it...
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Smell a Rat
Max receives a message on his computer. The message says the computer is infected and Max must download special software. Moon stops him, telling Max she "smells a rat."
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Toss Up
Max and Moon are outside on the bleachers getting ready to watch a football game. They are talking about which team they think will win. Max thinks the green team will win, but Moon says it'll be a real toss-up, which means there's an...
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Chop Chop
Max and Moon are swimming laps. Moon tells Max they only have two laps to go and says "chop chop," which means to hurry up.
Curated Video
The Man Who Never Lied: an African Proverb
This episode is about a wise man who offends a whole village and outwits a King. Is it always wise to tell the truth? And how to you tell the truth when you're not sure if the message delivered to you was actually truthful?
Curated Video
12 Common Proverbs in 12 Minutes | Advanced English Vocabulary
Proverbs are a very important part of the English language. Native speakers use them a lot, so if you want to improve your comprehension, and also express yourself better, it's necessary to learn some common English proverbs! Proverbs...
Curated Video
Grain Basket: an Ovambo Proverb
It’s taken me ages to finally admit that I'm a procrastinator. So this particular proverb really hits home for me. “Supposing doesn't fill the grain basket “if” doesn't fill the larder.” This sounds so sounds obvious, it’s even a little...
Out of this Word
Funny Bone
Moon in nose deep in her book as Max dances around her making funny faces. Max accidentally hits his elbow on the chair and makes dramatic noises when Moons asks Max if he hit his funny bone again. “Funny bone” is often used to refer to...
Curated Video
6 Common English Proverbs
Learn 6 common English proverbs. In this lesson Anna is joined by special guest Chris.
Next Animation Studio
Bad Hair Day
Max storms into the room and throws his backpack on the bed. Moon asks Max what was wrong and he starts listing out all the things that went wrong today. Moon tells him he's had such a "bad hair day," which means to have a bad day in...
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Busy as a Bee
Max is wearing a bee costume for his science class presentation. He tells Moon that there is still so much left to prepare for the presentation. Moon cracks a joke and says that Max is "busy as a bee", which is an old saying that means...
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Hot Potato
Max tells Moon he thinks that boys are better than girls at math and science. Moon disagrees and tells Max it’s a “hot potato” subject, which means that it is a topic or situation that causes a lot of disagreement, like politics or...
Out of this Word
All Greek to Me
Moon is having a hard time with her math homework because her new class is harder than she thought. Moon tells Max that her homework is “all Greek to her,” which means you don’t understand something.
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A Little Bird Told Me
Max finds two movie tickets on his desk, so he asks Moon if he knows where the tickets came from. Moon replies that it was a gift from her because she heard that Max had a rough week, and that he also did well on his test. When Max asks...
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Talk to the Hand
Moon is confused when she finds Max talking to his hand in the kitchen. Max was trying to get help for a test, when his classmate replied "talk to the hand". Moon explains that it was a rude thing to say, as the phrase is used when...
Next Animation Studio
You Can't Judge a Book By Its Cover
Moon walks in on Max pouting on his bed, and asks him what is wrong. Max explains that he has a new teacher, but he's unhappy because she seems to be mean and boring. Moon responds that she might seem intimidating, but that Max shouldn't...
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Old Chestnut
Max told his teacher that a dog ate his homework and is upset that the teacher gave him a detention. Moon says that teachers won’t fall for that “old chestnut”, which is a joke or comment that has been heard over and over again.
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Start from Scratch
Moon is getting ready to bake cookies with Max. Max wonders why they just can’t buy cookies at the store and Moon said she wants to “start from scratch,” which means starting from the beginning with no preparation or advantage.