Idioms VS Peribahasa

This morning, my students performed a dialogue consists of idioms and its Malay equivalent (peribahasa). It was for the language programme held every Tuesday morning, replacing the recitation of Yasin. The programme is a good alternative to classroom learning but in order for it to work, the performance must be quite creative. 

The Dialogue:

Fatin: Hai Hajar, apa khabar?

Hajar: Hi, Fatin. I’m in the pink of health, thank you. How about you?

Fatin: Saya sihat, tapi saya sedih sikit. Markah Bahasa Inggeris saya amat rendah.

Hajar: Fatin, don’t worry. You can study harder. Remember, no pain, no gain.

Fatin: Betul, usaha itu tangga kejayaan. Saya akan belajar lebih rajin lagi. Saya akan pastikan takkan pisang berbuah dua kali.

Hajar: Yes, Fatin. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. How about we ask Mr. Azizul for help? We can learn English from him, and at the same time we can learn chess also. It’s like killing two birds with one stone.

Fatin: Bagus cadangan tu. Sambil menyelam, sambil minum air. Sambil belajar Bahasa Inggeris, sambil belajar catur. Saya rasa, jika kita betul-betul mahu, kita boleh menguasai kedua-duanya. Di mana ada kemahuan, di situ ada jalan.

Hajar: Marvellous! Where there is a will, there is a way. I think we also have to increase our vocabulary. Learn a word a day. You know, in for a penny, in for a pound.

Fatin: Saya setuju. Sedikit-sedikit lama-lama jadi bukit. Mari kita pergi berjumpa Cikgu Azizul sekarang. Masa itu emas, tau!

Hajar: Yes, I agree. Time is money. Let’s go!

Describing a Situation at the Canteen

Today I asked my students to describe a situation at the canteen. I told them you need not write about a story of about a year in order to make it informative and catchy. A lot could happen in the space of 30 minutes too!

Here is a sample I gave them:

Fifteen minutes has passed since the bell rang for recess. Ahmad was still finishing up what was left from his fried noodle made by his mother. His syrup glass was now half empty, or half full, as somebody with more positive attitude might say. Syazwan, on his left, had finished his fried rice five minutes ago. He was indeed a very fast eater.

Ahmad could see that some of the students were still queuing at the counter, impatiently waiting for their food. Ahmad really felt lucky because his mother spared some time to prepare his meal, thus saving him from the trouble that those students were currently having.

The canteen was quite noisy with students chatting over their meals. Some of them were talking about the lesson they had this morning, while others were talking about something else.

“Let’s go, Wan. We better hurry to class now. Mr. Azman will be really upset if we are late,” Ahmad blurted after sipping the last of his refreshing syrup.