Proverbs

1. Prepare individual copies of a list of well-known proverbs using the present simple.
2. Read through the list of proverbs with the class, clarifying any difficult vocabulary and making sure the significance of each is understood. Then divide the class into small groups, and ask each group to pick out proverbs they think are untrue or misleading, discuss what is wrong with them, and invent a version that seems to them preferable.

1 A rolling stone gathers no moss.
2 Still waters run deep.
3 Eavesdroppers hear no good of themselves.
4 Love makes the world go round.
5 Actions speak louder than words.
6 Too many cooks spoil the broth.
7 A bad workman blames his tools.
8 Every cloud has a silver lining.
9 Absence makes the heart grow fonder.
10 The early bird catches the worm.
11 A new broom sweeps clean.
12 Dreams go by contraries.
13 It's an ill wind that blows nobody any good.
14 Familiarity breeds contempt.
15 Bad news travels fast.
16 The more you have the more you want.
17 Nothing succeeds like success.
18 God helps them that help themselves.
19 Practice makes perfect.
20 Two wrongs don't make a right.