{Guest Post from Language Lizard}

Congratulations to Mindy R. from Rachel Kohl Community Library in Glen Mills, PA who won a  set of Language Lizard Idiom Books in English and Simplified Chinese!

These colorful books come with free teaching resources are a great way to teach English idioms in a multicultural context. Use them during Idiom Week (Jan 24-30)!

Multicultural Idiom Learning Fun

Language Lizard is kicking off the holiday season with a special December giveaway, just for Multicultural Children’s Book Day readers! Read on to learn about the Language Lizard Idiom Book Series, and how to enter for a chance to win a FREE set of your own.

What is an Idiom?

An idiom is a phrase with an underlying meaning that’s generally agreed upon by a large group of people. The meaning of the phrase can’t be understood by understanding the words alone.

Some common English language idioms in the US are:

• A breath of fresh air
• A piece of cake
• Over the moon
• When pigs fly

Thanks to familiarity, these phrases are easily understood by a native English speaker in the US. But we can see they are indeed idioms, because their meanings are more than the sum of their words.

Look up idioms from other cultures, and you can see their meanings are not immediately discernible. For example, it wouldn’t be obvious that the Russian phrase “to hang noodles on someone’s ears” means that you are fooling them.

Multicultural Learning With Idioms

Learning idioms is a great way to celebrate diversity and bring multicultural learning to students. It’s also a great way to enhance the school-home connection. Students can ask their parents for strange or funny idioms in their home languages to share with the class. Classmates can try to guess the meanings, or compare idioms from different languages. Some examples:

In English, a sad person may “have the blues,” but in French, that person would “have the cockroach.” Or, in English, a practical person is “down to earth,” and in Spanish, that person would be described as having their “feet on the earth”.

Idioms Are Especially Important For Language Learners

Idioms are an important part of language learning, too. Every language and culture has thousands (maybe even tens of thousands) of them, so there’s a significant amount of casual communication conducted by way of idioms.

Without lessons in local idioms, communicating effectively is going to be more difficult. Plus, learning idioms is one of the most fun parts of learning a new language!

Remember to have students practice how to use each idiom properly since this type of communication can be very nuanced. It’s best to teach idioms verbally, and have students practice by role-playing.

Language Lizard Idiom Books Support Virtual & In-Person Learning

Language Lizard Idiom Books are a great resource for teachers in virtual, in-person, or blended classrooms, as well as homeschooling families. They are available in English and 9 language editions, offering literal translations and meanings in a second language. Illustrations show characters and settings from around the world, providing an opportunity to teach children about other cultures and communities.

Free Multicultural Lesson Plans

Language Lizard Idiom Books come with links to 3 free lesson plans:

• Understanding Idioms and Figurative Language
• Learning Color, Nature, Food, and Animal related Idioms
• Understanding the History and Context of Idioms

The lesson plans include an exploration of idioms in a multicultural context and provide exercises that students can do with their families, even those that speak a language other than English at home.

Idiom Activities & Resources

Language Lizard Idiom Books come with many fun, free activities. Here are just a few of them:

• Animals in Mexico: fill-in-the-blank short story using animal idioms
• Hindu Holi Festival: fill-in-the-blank short story using color idioms
• Hanami “Flower Viewing” in Japan: fill-in-the-blank short story using nature idioms
• Guess the National Animal Activity
• Animal Idiom Games Video
• Multicultural Street Foods Activity
• Favorite Foods Activity

Each Idiom Book also includes resources and links to learn the in-depth history and background information about all the idioms that are featured in the books.

Perfect for Take-Home Learning Packs

Teachers can create “learning packs” for students to take home that include idiom books in their home language, along with the free included activities. It’s a great way to strengthen school-home connections, and non-English speaking parents will appreciate being included in their child’s learning.

eBook versions of Language Lizard Idioms Books are also available, to make sharing online even easier. They are available through most major eBook platforms, including Amazon, Apple, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, and Overdrive.

Enter to Win a Set of Language Lizard Idiom Books

Enter for a chance to win a FREE set of Language Lizard Idiom Books! Head to our Giveaway Page and include “MCBD” in the comments section. A winner will be selected at the end of December. (As a bonus, you will be included in our other Language Lizard book giveaways, too!)

Free Bonus: Idiom Word Searches

To help jump-start the Idiom learning fun, MCBD readers can access our FREE Idiom Word Searches now!

What are the strangest or most amusing idioms you’ve heard in any language? Share them here, or on social media and tell us why #IdiomsRock!