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Picture of the Week: Nativity
A common religious decoration for Christmas is a scene showing baby Jesus in the manger with his parents. Sometimes the three wise men and various animals are also included....
Phrase of the Week: You’ve Got It Bad
"She wants a puppy really badly." "She says she doesn't care about him, but I can tell she's got it bad." Sometimes "bad" can be used as an intensifier for something that isn't necessarily bad. An intense desire can feel uncomfortable, and love is often compared to a...
TOEIC Practice Question of the Week
"He has offered to find the project in exchange for 10% of the profits. Without his financial help we wouldn't be able to launch this product." Find the mistake. A. offered B. find C. exchange D. profits...
Is it a frog? Ask and answer about animals and insects! カエルかな？動物や昆虫について質問して答えましょう！
In this week's video, let's look at some animals and insects your child might see when you visit the pond! Then we can use them to practice asking and answering some yes-or-no questions. 今週の動画で池に行けば会えるかもしれない動物や昆虫を見てみましょう！ Yes またはNo で答える質問の練習に使えますよ。 Classroom Tip...
Trivia of the Week: Inflatable Castle
Inflatable castles have many names, but the one that describes them best may be "closed inflatable trampolines". They are inflatable like balloons, but they are shaped like a small house or tent and function as trampolines. They are a lot of fun for kids and might be...
Idiom of the Week: Yadda yadda yadda
"It's her tenth birthday, so we're going all out, cake, balloons, clowns, a bouncy house, yadda yadda yadda." "The teacher said we have to include our sources and proof read and use correct punctuation and yadda yadda yadda." "Yadda yadda yadda" can be used as a...
Word of the Week: Treat
"Who's a good dog? You get a treat!" "I took the kids out for ice cream as a treat." "I treated my friend to pizza on his birthday." As a noun, a treat often means a sweet food, but it can mean any special food or experience, sometimes given as a reward. As a verb, it...
Picture of the Week: Mouse
The well-known Christmas poem "The Night Before Christmas" starts out with these lines: 'Twas the night before Christmas And all through the house Not a creature was stirring Not even a mouse. 有名なクリスマスの詩「クリスマスの前の晩」は、こう始まります。 クリスマスの前の晩 ひっそりと静まりかえった家の中は なにひとつ動きません...
Phrase of the Week: A Matter of Course
"It may come as a surprise American exchange students, but in Japan, students clean their own classrooms as a matter of course." A matter of course is something that is routine and unremarkable, to be expected. 「アメリカの留学生は驚くかもしれませんが、日本では生徒が当たり前のように自分の教室を掃除します。」 「A...
TOEIC Practice Question of the Week
"I could not _____ my mother to let me buy a new video game console." Fill in the blank. A. convince B. contract C. adopt D. threat 「新しいゲーム機を買ってくれるように母を納得させることはできなかった。」...
Learn English by Moving Your Body! 体を動かして英語を覚えましょう！
Moving around and dancing are great ways to make studying English fun and memorable. Try it with this week's video! 体を動かしたり踊ったりしながら英語を学ぶと、とっても楽しく記憶力もアップします。今週の動画でやってみましょう！ Classroom Tip My Body Wiggle can be use with Happy Valley Student Book 1, Unit 7. Enjoy dancing...
Trivia of the Week: Toque
The iconic chef's hat is called a toque, or toque blanche, which is French for "white hat". The modern toque dates back to mid-19th century France. Sometimes the height of the hat shows where the chef ranks in the kitchen. The many folds in the toque are said to...
Idiom of the Week: Your Place
"We have three dogs, and they have a hierarchy. There's no trouble so long as the younger dogs know their place." "Now that I have a job I love and a house of my own I feel like I've found my place in the world." Your "place" is where you fit into a group or society....
Word of the Week: Serve
"Welcome to Sandy's Sandwiches. I'll be your server today." "This food is awful! I can't believe you serve this garbage." A waiter or waitress can be called a server, because they bring food to the customers. You might also serve food to your family or guests in your...
Picture of the Week: Sweetgum
The sweetgum tree has star-shaped leaves that turn yellow, purple and red in autumn. You can also see the seed pods in this picture. Varieties of sweetgum (or liquidambar) can be found in North America, Turkey, Greece, China, Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, Laos and Vietnam....
Phrase of the Week: It Grew On Me
"The first time I heard this song, I thought it was annoying, but my kids kept playing it and it grew on me." If something grows on you, you don't like it at first, but over time you start to like it more. This can be true of many things—a movie you didn't like the...
TOEIC Practice Question of the Week
"The support ticket was closed because the issue was resolve." Find the mistake. A. support ticket B. was closed C. because the issue D. was resolve 「問題が解決されましたのでテクニカルサポートのチケットを閉めました。」...
Let’s Count From One to Ten in English! 英語で１から１０まで数えましょう！
Let's practice basic numbers with this week's video! 今週の動画で基本の数字を練習しましょう！ Classroom Tip After last week’s video, work more with counting and even trying to match the numbers they hear to the numerals. Play games, like having a student choose a flashcard, then hold up...
Trivia of the Week: Underdog
"I'm rooting for the Tigers in this game. They're the underdogs." The underdog or underdogs are the side of a game that seems likely to lose. If the teams or players are evenly matched, there is no underdog. If it's logical to expect that a certain team or player will...
Idiom of the Week: Run a Tight Ship
"I don't know why Mr. Smith was so mad. It was just a little mistake." "Well, he runs a tight ship. He wants everything to be perfect for the customers." A business or home is not a ship, but we can use ships as a metaphor for anything. When things are run tightly, it...
