You can teach your ELLs that idioms are expressions that have a literal and figurative meaning.
The literal meaning is "exactly what the words say."
The figurative meaning is "what the idiom really means".
I have them chant:
Literal - what the words say
Figurative - what it really means
You can make a T-chart with an illustration in each of the columns: literally and figuratively. For raining cats and dogs, for example, you can draw cats and dogs falling from the sky on the literal side of the T-chart, and you can draw a very rainy day on the figurative side of the T-chart. Explain to the students that an idiom is meant to be understood figuratively.
I have them chant:
Idiom - Figurative
Here is a packet of idioms to help you start. Adding images will make this material more comprehensible.
Idioms packet
The literal meaning is "exactly what the words say."
The figurative meaning is "what the idiom really means".
I have them chant:
Literal - what the words say
Figurative - what it really means
You can make a T-chart with an illustration in each of the columns: literally and figuratively. For raining cats and dogs, for example, you can draw cats and dogs falling from the sky on the literal side of the T-chart, and you can draw a very rainy day on the figurative side of the T-chart. Explain to the students that an idiom is meant to be understood figuratively.
I have them chant:
Idiom - Figurative
Here is a packet of idioms to help you start. Adding images will make this material more comprehensible.
Idioms packet