Reading: Comprehension

Acting Out Cliches

 

            Today's Snack: These little improv's (short for "improvisations," or quick dramatic sketches) remind you of going to the theater. What snack do you have at the theater? Popcorn, of course! So have a bowl with a glass of your favorite fruit juice instead of pop.

 

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Supplies:

Write these clichés on index cards | Dictionary

Write them on the board or on a big piece of butcher paper on the wall

Assemble props to go with any of these if you wish, but not necessary

 

 

A great way to practice reading comprehension skills is to set up little games like this. This is a dramatic improvisation, or "improv," technique. There are enough clichés listed here to do this activity several times and not repeat any. You can also add your own, or assign the kids to collect more.

 

1.      In advance, write one cliché on each index card and make a stack.

 

2.      Before students arrive, write the clichés on the board, or on a big piece of shelf paper or butcher paper and tape in place on the wall.

 

3.      Set the stack of index cards with these clichés on a table, upside down. Kids can take turns picking up an improv card, reading it silently, acting out what it says, letting the other kids guess which cliché he or she is acting out, and then reading it aloud.

 

4.      If you have a lot of students, they can play this game in pairs or teams.

 

5.      If a student does not recognize or cannot pronounce an unfamiliar word, model good dictionary skills by showing the kids how to look up words that they don't know. One of the biggest helps to comprehension is to help kids learn how to develop their own vocabularies, and dictionary use is Job One in that effort.

 

6.      If a student is really stumped, and does not understand what the cliché means, the leader can read it aloud and lead a quick discussion with the group on the meaning. In fact, there's a cliché for that - "two heads are better than one." Then let the student go ahead and act it out. Don't make this a pressure situation; it's supposed to be fun!

 

7.      If neither you nor the students understand the meaning of a cliché, or want to know where it came from, and if you have Internet access, it would be worthwhile to google explanations for those that the kids don't understand.

 

8.      If you have time to assemble props to help some of these along, that's fun, too.

 

Cliches:

 

All for one and one for all

 

All's well that ends well

 

The best-laid plans of mice and men go oft awry

 

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush

 

Don't cut off your nose to spite your face

 

Don't look a gift horse in the mouth

 

A fool and his money are soon parted

 

A friend in need is a friend indeed

 

Good fences make good neighbors

 

He who hesitates is lost

 

A friend in need is a friend indeed

 

Good fences make good neighbors

 

He who hesitates is lost

 

He who laughs last laughs best

 

Hitch your wagon to a star

 

If wishes were horses, beggars would ride

 

The leopard can't change its spots

 

Little strokes fell great oaks

 

Money is the root of all evil

 

Necessity is the mother of invention

 

It's not over 'til it's over

 

Nothing will come of nothing

 

Once bitten, twice shy

 

Procrastination is the thief of time

 

The proof of the pudding is in the eating

 

Rome wasn't built in a day

 

A stitch in time saves nine

 

Strike while the iron is hot

 

There's more than one way to skin a cat

 

Truth is stranger than fiction

 

Have a bee in your bonnet

 

Bite the dust

 

Catch as catch can

 

Eat humble pie

 

Give the devil his due

 

Nose out of joint

 

On tenterhooks

 

Pot calling the kettle black

 

Rule of thumb

 

Tempest in a teapot

 

Tenderfoot

 

Wolf in sheep's clothing