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Word of the Week: Hurt
"Ow, that hurts!" "My stomach hurts." In English, "hurt" is a verb. If someone steps on your foot, that hurts. People can also hurt you emotionally. You can describe this with yourself as the object ("It really hurt me when you said that.") or without any object ("It...
Phrase of the Week: I’ll Get Him Back
"My brother ate the pudding I was saving, but I'll get him back. I have to think of a good prank to play on him." "You killed my father! I'll get you for that!" To "get" someone often means to do them some kind of harm, whether it's actual violence or a good-natured...
TOEIC Practice Question of the Week
"Our inventory system is ______. We should adopt a new one." Fill in the blank. A. updated B. expired C. outdated D. postdated 「商品目録システムが古いです。新しいものを導入したほうがいいです。」...
Where’s My Hat? Ask and Answer with Happy Valley’s Kinka and Pinka! 私の帽子はどこ？！ハッピーバレーのキンカとピンカと質問して答えましょう！
This week's video shows how to ask where something is—very useful! Children can also give a simple answer to the question! 今週の動画では「～はどこ？」の形の質問の例を見せます。便利なフレーズですよね！子供は簡単に答えることができます！ Classroom Tip Watch the video and then let students pretend they are Kinka and Pinka....
Trivia of the Week: Counting Plants
Most plants are counted normally: one pine tree, three rose bushes, five apples, ten leaves. But some are more interesting: a blade of grass, an ear of corn, a head of lettuce! ほとんどの植物は普通の数え方をします。たとえば、松の木が1本、バラの茂みが3つ、リンゴが5個、葉っぱが10枚。でも、もっと面白いのがありますよ。英語では草は blade of...
Idiom of the Week: Think Outside the Box
"Consumers are no longer affected by traditional advertising strategies. We need to think outside the box for our new campaign!" "The box" contains all the old and usual ideas. If someone tells you to think outside the box, they want you to be creative and come up...
Word of the Week: OK
"How are you doing?" "OK. How about you?" "Hand me that pen." "OK." "I'm going to take the dog for a walk." "OK." "How was the movie?" "It was just OK." "OK" is a familiar word in Japan but it has more meanings in English. It can mean "fine" as an answer to "How are...
Picture of the Week: Squashes
The most common squash in Japan is the kabocha or pumpkin squash, but there are many kinds, such as acorn squash and spaghetti squash. The more familiar orange pumpkin in America and the zucchini are also members of the squash family. 日本で一番良く知られているsquashは「pumpkin...
Phrase of the Week: Pick Up
"I leaned over to pick up the pencil I had dropped." "I have to pick up my daughter from soccer practice in half an hour." "The sensor is picking up a signal!" "Pick up" has many meanings! 「落とした鉛筆をかがんで拾った。」 「３０分後にサッカーの練習から娘を迎えにいかないといけない。」 「センサーが信号を拾いました！」 「Pick...
TOEIC Practice Question of the Week
"It's a difficult problem, but if we work together we can figure up a solution." Find the mistake. A. difficult B. work together C. figure up D. solution 「難しい問題ですが皆で力を合わせれば解決法がわかるはずです。」 Cook upやthink upなど、upをつけることで意味が変わる動詞がたくさんあります。でも、考える努力によって理解する又は解決法がわかることはfigure...
Pink, Green, Orange, Purple! Look for Some More Colors in Happy Valley! ピンク、緑、オレンジ、パープル！ハッピーバレーでもっと色を探してみよう！
Colors are fun to look at, draw or say in English! Let's learn more color words with this week's video. 色は見るのも描くのも英語で言うのも楽しい！今週の動画でもっと色の単語を覚えましょう！ Classroom Tip Learning colors with this song has never been more fun. Students don’t often have a chance to run around...
Trivia of the Week: Roller Skates
Roller skates are special shoes with wheels. They are more for fun than for transportation. Some types fit over normal shoes and are fastened with keys. You can go skating at a roller skating rink or on a quiet street, but the skating rink is much smoother....
Idiom of the Week: Asleep at the Wheel
"There were signs of trouble for a long time before the dam finally broke, but the corporation that manages it was asleep at the wheel." A driver falling asleep at the steering wheel of his car is a common cause of car accidents. We can use this idiom to describe...
Word of the Week: Have
"Do you have your book?" "No, I left it at home." "Hey, why don't you get this book? It looks like something you would like." "Yes, I already have it!" "Have" can mean that you own something or that you are currently carrying it with you. It's usually clear which...
Picture of the Week: Pears
Pears are in season in September. Have you eaten any recently? Do these pears look like your local pears? ９月は梨が美味しい季節ですね。最近食べましたか？皆さんがよく見る梨はこの写真の梨に似ていますか？
Phrase of the Week: You’re the Best
"Can you drive me to the mall this afternoon?" "Sure, no problem." "Thanks! You're the best." We tell someone "You're the best" to express gratitude. They might not technically be the best in the world at a particular thing. 「今日ショッピングモールまで車で連れてってくれない？」 「いいよ、問題ない。」...
Modern English TOEIC Practice Question of the Week
"If you want to take _____ in the festival, you must sign up by this Wednesday." Fill in the blank. A. role B. part C. piece D. fun 「祭りに参加するなら水曜日までに登録しないといけません。」 「参加する」の部分に空欄があります。「Take」は「取る」など色々な意味はありますが、ここは決まったペアの片方です。Dのfunは、「祭りを楽しむ」という意味だったら「take fun」ではなく「have some...
Fly, Swim, Dive and Crawl Along with Kinka from Happy Valley! ハッピーバレーのキンカと一緒に飛んで、泳いで、潜って、はってみよう！
Kids like to move and play while they learn. This week's video shows you different ways to move. It's great for kids who love animals, too! 子供は動いて遊んで学ぶのが好きです。今週の動画では色々な動きを紹介します。動物が好きな子は大喜び！ Classroom Tip Fly, Swim, Dive, Crawl is a great song for getting everyone...
Trivia of the Week: The Dunning-Kruger Effect
Dunning and Kruger did experiments showing that people with a little skill at something have more confidence in their ability than people with more skill. This is because as you learn more about something, you become more aware of the ways in which you could be better...
Phrase of the Week: Get Along
"We can't leave our two cats alone in the house together. They don't get along." "You need to learn to get along with the other children your age." When two or more people or animals are friendly together and don't fight, we say they get along or get along well....
