The participants in this study were 40 schoolboys at a guidance school in Arak, Iran (age=12). They were
subsequently divided in two groups: experimental and control group in this way that OPT (Oxford Placement Test)
was administered and participants were divided into two groups (experimental and control group) based on their
scores so that in each group there were participants with comparable low, intermediate and high scores. In addition,
the number of students who attend classes in language institutes outside the school was kept equal in these groups.
Next, the pre-test was administered to assess the initial command of idiomatic expressions among the participants.
This test consists of a list of idiomatic expressions under the conceptual metaphors HAPPINESS IS UP and SADNESS IS DOWN for which the participants are asked to provide the meaning in Persian. This list is also
prepared to constitute the idioms taught in the treatment as well as the content of the post-test. This list of idiomatic
expressions was prepared using those mentioned in Rodriguez and Moreno’s paper and some other idioms under
concerned conceptual metaphors.