Are your young learners excited about the World Cup? Sprout English has a NEW Word Bank lesson plan on Football (a.k.a. Soccer) that is designed for young learners. After you’ve tried the lesson, why not share this related story with your students? This story teaches the idiom “on the ball”.

The Dog That Was On The Ball

Once upon a time, there was a dog named Pickles. The dog was out for a walk with its owner when it spotted an object in a garden. The object was wrapped in some newspaper. The dog’s owner picked up the object. It was a trophy. This was not just any trophy. It was the missing World Cup Trophy! Earlier that week, a thief had stolen the trophy from a museum in London. (more…)

“Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of our thanksgiving.” —W. T. Purkiser

Thanksgiving is a time to express gratitude for family, friends, food, warmth, clothing, and other wonderful things and memories. This week, teach your students the expression “count your blessings”. Then try this fun pre- or post-Thanksgiving activity to practice vocabulary and counting in English!

count your blessings: to concentrate on the good things in your life

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