Vidioms ESL Idiom Video Package The Vidioms series demonstrates common American English idioms in a natural context, through short live-action sketches that are humorous and realistic. Great for adult classes. Vidioms contains three videos and a workbook. In total it is a fifteen-lesson video/workbook package. Ninety high-frequency idioms are featured, six per lesson. $245
About Vidioms - User Comments
Each video segment in a Vidioms lesson is short enough (approximately nine minutes) to permit two viewings in a single class period. There are usually three short skits per idiom, although the easier idioms, such as those where the meaning is fixed (e.g. try on), have only two video representations. The video segments present a wide variety of situations and characters, with the idiom in question clearly represented in each skit's theme. Some skits are serious, but most are funny. Whether humorous or serious, the idiom is central, and North American cultural features are obvious. In spite of a few cases of harmless stereotypical representations, (which serves to aid learners in their understanding of the culture and in their own interaction with the culture), the video is good, clean fun. Each segment is like a short television program, with a beginning, a middle and ending with a punch line.
The Vidioms workbook is designed to take students through a variety of exercises and, ultimately, prepare students for confident use of the idioms they have learned. Each lesson begins with a transcript of what is said in the video. Definitions of the idioms follow the transcripts, with examples. Aspects of idioms use stressed in the exercises are: meaning, working with contextual clues, usage, form, and function. Oral exercises are designed to allow students to be creative with the idioms in particular and with the English language in general, and to combat negative affective factors.
This video/workbook package is designed to bring English idioms off the written page and make them come alive. Aimed at intermediate and advanced level learners of English, Vidioms actively engages students in all aspects of language learning (comprehension, pronunciation, conversation, reading, writing and grammar). The idioms are activated; Students see the idioms in action, and students use the idioms in action.
To begin, the new information to which students are exposed in a Vidioms lesson is seen in a physical, sensory, stimulating and contextualized format: the video. After which, students formalize and reinforce their perceptions by completing the workbook and exercises. These include exercises designed to combat negative affective factors. The presentation of materials in a Vidioms lesson provides a natural flow to the acquisition of new idiom skills. Each lesson follows the right-brain-to-left-brain directionality principle advanced by Danesi (1990), which includes:
With the teacher's help as conductor of this idiom orchestra, this broad exposure will produce speakers of English who will not only know the idioms, but will also use them with the confidence of a native speaker.
"My students love this course. In the workbook the students can practice dialogs in context, each idiom has three different examples of dialogs in context. Students fill in the blanks with the appropriate idiom. They must identify the idiom, which corresponds to an illustration. Vidioms is a lot of fun and is very practical. Students so often hear idioms that they don't understand; Vidioms takes care of this problem. It covers a wide variety of idioms used everyday. I highly recommend this course." Julie Lucas, ESL.net
" I really like Vidioms, it is very useful" T.C. Wu, Student at Shorecrest High School, Seattle, WA
Vidioms ESL Idiom Video Package $245