TEFL Mountain City Georgia

Though colloquial english is often overlooked or only briefly discussed in many english classes, it is a very important aspect of the language that many students strongly desire to learn. Colloquial english goes beyond pronunciation and contractions. Slangs and idioms, whether english speakers know it or not, is a very common element of spoken english that deserves to have more attention. Without a basic grasp of common American slangs and idioms, American films, television shows, news, and even basic conversations with native speakers can be incredibly very challenging. Students should be aware of how slang and idioms are different. Slang, as defined by David Durke, is a nonstandard word. For instance, the word ‘dude' is an American slang term used to address a young man, ‘awesome' is something great and someone getting some ‘grub' is getting food. Idioms are phrases that have a meaning that is different than their literal meaning. For instance, when someone says “If you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours,” it is quite possible that they are not referring to back-scratching at all, but instead offering to return a favor. Be sure to communicate to students that slang and idioms are not necessarily vulgar and not part of just the “lower class”. They are used by everyone, whether they realize it or not. Common people, business men, and all kinds of people use slang and idioms on a daily basis, so students and teachers alike should be encouraged to take it seriously. In order to show students the importance of these colloquial elements of english, present them with a paragraph filled with idioms. Learning these elements of english is a welcome break for many from the teaching of Standard english and is just as useful. Acquiring these words and phrases can be difficult as there are so many to teach, some common and others belonging to certain regions, cultures or subcultures. Introducing students to the new vocab and phrases should be done in the form of written sentences or a dialogue, passed out to each student, with no more than twelve new words or phrases for them to learn. These sentences should attempt to make the meaning of the idiom or slang term as obvious as possible through context clues. Students should then try and guess the meanings of the words in question. Alternatively, present students with a list of slang words or idioms which are used in a 5-7 minute clip of a film or TV show. Have students read them and guess their meaning. Then, watch the clip, pausing and rewinding if necessary, to have the students hear the vocab in context. Afterwards, discuss the words in question and have students guess their meanings. At the end of a class where students have learned idioms and slang, it is vital that they demonstrate an understanding of the terms and have the ability to use them correctly. Have students write a skit amongst themselves using the new vocab and have them perform them in front of the class. Alternatively, present students with a series of pictures divided into two columns, one with an illustration of an idiom or word's literal meaning, the other column a picture of the actual meaning. Students must match pictures in the two columns. Slang is not only essential for a student to understand english on a greater level, but also a fun, enjoyable experience. Students are often eager to learn the authentic spoken language, and such classes are often more relaxed and offer students the chance to learn things that are not present in the average course book.