Grammar lesson 1: Verbs
Grammar lesson 2: Nouns
Grammar lesson 3: Adjectives
Grammar lesson 4: Articles and prepositions
Grammar lesson 5: Expanded noun phrases
Grammar lesson 6: Subject-verb agreement
Grammar lesson 7: Tense
Name:
Before unit
Verbs
Transitive verbs
Intransitive verbs
Nouns
Proper nouns
Common nouns
Abstract nouns
Adjectives
Order of adjectives
Comparative adjectives
Superlative adjectives
Definite article
Indefinite article
Prepositions
Expanded noun phrases
The subject in a sentence
The subject of a sentence
Subject-verb agreement
Present simple
Present continuous
Past simple
Past continuous
After unit
Grammar lesson 1: What is a verb?
Read through the following paragraph in which a well-known hero is described. As
you are reading, highlight the VERBS in the passage.
Harry Potter was a wizard – a wizard fresh from his first year at Hogwarts School of
Witchcraft and Wizardry. And if the Dursleys were unhappy to have him back for the
holidays, it was nothing to how Harry felt.
He missed Hogwarts so much it was like having a constant stomach ache. He missed
the castle, with its secret passageways and ghosts, his lessons (though perhaps not
Snape, the Potions master), the post arriving by owl, eating banquets in the Great Hall,
sleeping in the four-poster bed in the tower dormitory, visiting the gamekeeper, Hagrid, in
his cabin grounds next to the Forbidden Forest and, especially, Quidditch, the most
popular sport in the wizarding world (six tall goalposts, four flying balls and fourteen
players on broomsticks).
All Harry’s spellbooks, his wand, robes, cauldron and top-of-the-range Nimbus Two
Thousand broomstick had been locked in a cupboard under the stairs by Uncle Vernon the
instant Harry had come home. What did the Dursleys care if Harry lost his place in the
house Quidditch team because he hadn’t practised all summer? What was it to the
Dursleys if Harry went back to school without any of his homework done? The Dursleys
were what wizards called Muggles (not a drop of magical blood in their veins) and as far as
they were concerned, having a wizard in the family was a matter of deepest shame. Uncle
Vernon had even padlocked Harry’s owl, Hedwig, inside her cage, to stop her carrying
messages to anyone in the wizarding world.
(Taken from ‘Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets by JK Rowling)
A verb is __________________________________________________________.
Now look at the picture of the villain below. With a partner, thought shower as many
verbs as you can think of to describe the movements of this villainous creature.
My verb choices to describe the movements of Voldemort.
Our top 5 verb choices from the feedback session are:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Now you have chosen your verbs, in the space below construct a short paragraph in
which you describe the movement of Voldemort using your verb choices.
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1. Now look over your paragraph and highlight your verb choices.
2. Looking at the verbs you have used, choose two to upgrade with a thesaurus.
Which two verbs have you chosen to upgrade and why?
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3. Now choose three verbs you think are particularly effective. Write these verbs
below and explain why you feel they are a great choice in helping to present
the villainous character of Voldemort.
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Answer the two questions below:
1. What is a verb?
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2. Why is verb choice important when developing a character?
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Look at the following two sentences:
Voldemort struck Harry Potter
Voldemort fell.
What is the difference between the two verbs in the sentence?
Well, in the first sentence an object receiving the action whereas in the second
sentence there is no object receiving the action.
The first sentence uses a transitive verb. This is where the verb has an object
(such as Harry Potter) to receive the action. Here are some more examples:
Voldemort moved the dragon.
Harry Potter rode the Nimbus 2000.
The second sentence uses an intransitive verb. These verbs do not have an object
receiving the action.
Voldemort laughed.
Harry Potter screamed.
Activity 1:
Do the following sentences contain transitive or intransitive verbs?
Transitive Intransitive
verb
verb
Dudley gasped.
Dudley fell off his chair with a crash.
Harry crossed the lawn.
Harry missed his best friends.
Aunt Petunia laughed.
Activity 2:
Now look at the following action shot. Construct five sentences below the picture
that use either transitive or intransitive verbs. At the end of the sentence identify
which type of verb you have used.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Grammar lesson 2:
What is a noun?
1. What is a verb?
2. What is the difference between a transitive and
intransitive verb?
Look at the two pictures below. One is of a hero’s castle and one is of a villain’s lair.
Choose one of the pictures to focus on. Look carefully at the picture and label as
many nouns as you can see.
Proper, common and abstract nouns
There are three main types of noun:
Proper nouns name a particular place, person, time or event and begin with a
capital letter.
Common nouns are general words for kinds of people, animals, places or things.
Abstract nouns refer to things that cannot be sensed.
On your desk are a series of cards with nouns on them. Your task is to organise
them by deciding which nouns are examples of proper nouns, which nouns are
examples of common nouns and which nouns are examples of abstract nouns.
Copy the nouns into the appropriate columns.
Extension:
Add the nouns from the starter activity and your picture.
Proper nouns
Common nouns
Abstract nouns
Using the nouns from the exercise, and your own choices, now construct a written
description of the hero’s castle or the villain’s lair, making sure your noun choices
conveys the heroic or villainous character and environment.
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Swap your piece of writing with another member of the class. When you receive
someone else’s work, it is your job to highlight the nouns that have been used to
describe the hero’s castle or the villain’s lair. Once you have highlighted the nouns,
determine whether the nouns chosen are Proper (P), Common (C) or Abstract (A).
Extension:
Choose one of the nouns in the piece of writing that you think has been consciously
chosen to create an effect. Write the noun below and explain why you like the noun
choice.
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Activity 1:
Look at the following extract from Beauty and the Beast. Using one colour, highlight
the verbs and, in another colour, highlight the nouns.
Once upon a time there lived a wealthy merchant and his three daughters.
One day, the father was to go to a far-off place and he asked his daughters what they
wanted on his return. The first and the second daughter asked for lovely dresses. But the
third daughter, whose name was Beauty, said, “Father, I only need a rose plucked by your
hand.” The merchant, on his way back, had to cross through the deep forest. It was dark
and the merchant tried to find a place to sleep. He suddenly found a huge castle and went
inside to find nobody. There was a huge table with delicious food and he ate it all. Then the
merchant went into the bedroom and slept on a soft and fluffy bed. The next day, too, the
merchant did not find anyone in the castle. He saw a beautiful rose bush growing in the
lawn and remembered Beauty’s gift. He plucked a red rose from the bush.
Suddenly, a ferocious looking beast sprang out of the bush. He was wearing fine silk
clothes and roared, “I gave you food and a bed to sleep in! And now, you are stealing my
roses!” The merchant was frightened and told the Beast about Beauty’s gift. The Beast
decided to let him go only if he promised to send Beauty to this castle. The merchant
agreed and ran back home. He cried and told his daughters about the Beast. But Beauty
loved her father a lot and agreed to go stay with the Beast.
Activity 2:
Look at the nouns you have highlighted above and now categorise these, identifying
whether they are proper nouns (P), common nouns (C) or abstract nouns (A).
Proper nouns (P)
Common nouns (C)
Abstract nouns (A)
Activity 3:
Read the next paragraph in the story. Continue this paragraph choosing your nouns
carefully. Choose nouns that continue to present the Beast in a kind way and in a
warm environment.
The Beast treated Beauty with a lot of kindness. He was never rude to her. He let
her stay in the biggest room and let her roam in the beautiful garden. Beauty would
sit near the fireplace and sew while the Beast kept her company. At first, Beauty
was afraid of the Beast but slowly, she began to like him.
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Grammar lesson 3: What is an adjective?
Below is an extract describing a heroic scene. Read through the description of this
scene with a partner and highlight the adjectives that have been used.
Suddenly Frodo noticed that a strange-looking weather-beaten man, sitting in the
shadows near the wall, was also listening intently to the hobbit-talk. He had a tall
tankard in front of him, and was smoking a long-stemmed pipe curiously carved. His
legs were stretched out before him, showing high boots of supple leather that fitted
him well, but had seen much wear and were now caked with mud. A travel-stained
cloak of heavy dark-green cloth was drawn close about him, and in spite of the heat
of the room he wore a hood that overshadowed his face; but the gleam of his eyes
could be seen as he watched the hobbits.
Adjectives describe nouns. There are two main types of adjectives: opinion
adjectives and fact adjectives. Opinion adjectives always come first followed by
fact adjectives. When there are two or more fact adjectives in a sentence, they
usually go in the following order:
size – weight – shape – colour – material
Look at the following adjectives which have been chosen to describe our heroes.
These adjectives, however, have been jumbled up. Construct sentences describing
our heroes but ensure that you sequence the adjectives into the correct order.
1. To describe Batman’s cloak: black / leather / bulky / weighty
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2. To describe Katniss’s arrows: brown / elongated / reedy / wooden / fearsome
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3. To describe Mufasa’s mane: handsome / flowing / dense / golden / furry
Extension:
Now construct two sentences of your own, describing two heroes of your choosing,
that uses a range of adjectives, ensuring that you sequence these adjectives into
the correct order.
Look at the heroine below. You are going to get creative and think of ambitious
adjectives to describe this heroine. Around the classroom are different stations,
according to the type of adjective, so you are going to have to think carefully about
the range of adjectives you could use to describe this character. (Use the thesaurus
to upgrade your vocabulary). Use the post it notes to record your chosen adjective
at the appropriate station.
Let’s record the class’s adjective choices here:
Adjectives to describe Katniss:
Opinion
adjectives
Size
Weight
Shape
Colour
Material
Another two types of adjective are comparative adjectives and superlative
adjectives.
A comparative adjective compare two nouns. If the adjective has one syllable, then
in most cases you need to add –er. E.g. ‘slow’ to ‘slower’ in the sentence: ‘The bus
is slower than the broomstick.’ However, if the adjective has two syllables or more,
the word more or the word less should be placed in front of it. E.g. ‘colourful’ to
‘more colourful’ in the sentence ‘The potion was more colourful than the other
potions.
A superlative adjective compare more than two nouns. If the adjective has one
syllable, you usually add ‘-est’. If it has two syllables or more, the word most or the
word least should usually be placed in front of it. E.g. ‘slow’ to ‘slowest’ as in the
sentence ‘This method of transport is the slowest’ and ‘colourful’ to ‘most colourful’
in the sentence ‘The potion is the most colourful of all of them.
Look at the table below and the adjectives on the left hand side. Can you construct
the comparative and superlative form for each adjective? The first one has been
done for you.
Comparative
Superlative
compassionate
pleasant
kind
warm
good
evil
Ancient
revolting
foul
wicked
Extension:
Using the picture of Katniss on the previous page, construct one sentence that
contains a comparative adjective and one sentence that contains a superlative
adjective.
1. ______________________________________________________________
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2. ______________________________________________________________
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Now, using all the work you have done in building up your adjectives this lesson,
construct a description of Katniss. Your description must incorporate a range of
adjectives. Highlight these adjectives in your piece of writing and to extend yourself,
make sure you identify what type of adjective they are!
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Read through the following description of Thor – Norse God of Thunder taken from
www.mythicalrealm.com/legends/thor.html. As you are reading this extract, highlight
the adjectives that have been used to describe Thor.
The son of Odin and Jord, the earth goddess. Thor was the strongest of the Aesir,
the collective name for the principal race of Norse gods; they who lived in Asgard,
and with the All-Father Odin, ruled the lives of mortal men. Known as the god of
thunder, his hall is Bilskirmir, which is located in the region Thrundheim (“place of
might”). Thor married the golden-haired Sif, a Goddess of fertility.
Thor was usually portrayed as a large, powerful man with a red beard, flowing hair,
hearty enjoyment of food and drink and eyes of lightening. Despite his ferocious
appearance, he was very popular as the protector of both gods and humans against
the forces of evil. He even surpassed his father Odin in popularity because,
contrary to Odin, he did not require human sacrifices. In his temple at Uppsala he
was shown standing with Odin at his right side. The 11th century Christian
missionary Adam of Bremen, on noting the great temple of the gods in Uppsala,
Sweden, wrote, “Thor, they say, presides over the air, he governs the thunder and
lightening, the winds and rains, fair weather and crops…If plague and famine
threaten, a libation is poured to the idol Thor.”
Now, having read this passage, think about the range of adjectives used to describe
Thor. Which type of adjectives has the writer used?
Opinion
Size
Weight
Shape
Colour
Material
Comparative
Superlative
Which types of adjectives has the writer not included? Based upon your
understanding of the character, can you fill in the gaps by creating further
adjectives?
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Look at the following sentences describing our heroes and villains. Fill in the gap
using either a comparative or superlative adjective.
1. Harry Potter is _______________ than Voldemort.
2. Batman’s costume is _______________than Spiderman’s.
3. Katniss is ______________ female hero.
4. Thor is ______________ god.
5. Aragorn is _______________ than Boromir.
Now construct three of your own sentences using either the comparative or
superlative form.
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Grammar lesson 4: What is the difference between an indefinite and definite
article? What is a preposition?
Read the following extract, taken from Beowulf. As you are reading the extract,
identify the writer’s use of nouns, verbs and adjectives.
I am Hygelac’s kinsman, one of his hall-troop. When I was younger, I had great
triumphs… My kinsmen seen me bolstered in the blood of enemies when I battled
and bound five beasts, raided a troll-nest and in the night-sea slaughtered seabrutes. I have suffered extremes and avenged the Geats (their enemies brought it
upon themselves: I devastated them).
Extension:
Choose one noun, one verb and one adjective you think are particularly effective
and explain why.
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In English, there are two articles: the definite article and the indefinite article.
The word ‘the’ is known as the definite article and indicates a specific thing.
The word ‘a’ is known as the indefinite article because it is more general. The
meaning of the article is similar to the number one.
Look at the following two sentences and consider the difference in meaning that is
created by using the indefinite or definite article.
Harry Potter is a wizard.
Harry Potter is the wizard.
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It is important to remember that when using the indefinite article, we use ‘a’ before a
word beginning with a consonant and ‘an’ before a word beginning with a vowel.
Look at the following sentences and underline the articles that are used within the
sentences.
1. Aragorn was at the inn waiting for the hobbits to arrive. Suddenly, a door opened
and they appeared.
2. A gust of smoke appeared from Harry Potter’s wand. The wand did not like the
spell that had been cast with it.
3. Katniss was a formidable opponent. The training she had received meant she
was strong enough to take on the others.
Now look at the next three sentences. Choose an appropriate determiner to fill in
the gaps in the sentences below.
1. Batman was riding ______ bat-mobile when it crashed into _______ bridge.
2. _______ angry looking Thor was approaching his father. _______ storm had yet
to pass and he was preparing for _______ battle.
3. Dick Turpin was _______ highwayman. He travelled with _______ horse, named
Bess.
A preposition is a word that shows the relationship between nouns or pronouns.
They can show position according to place or time.
Dumbledore put the sorting hat on the table.
Frodo hid under the cliff face.
Batman waited until after the hall had cleared.
Thor left before the storm began and could not be found.
Prepositions of place
Prepositions of time
After, among, at, behind, between, in, in front of, next to,
beside, by, on, over, above, under, below
at, in, on, before, during, after, from…to, past, til, until,
by, since, for, ago
Look at the following sentences take from our heroic tales. Underline the
prepositions in the sentences and identify whether they show time or place.
1. He crouched like a tiger about to spring / Then he looked up, and he looked
down: / And chuckling low, like a country clown.
2. Aragorn and Gimli slept fitfully, and whenever they awoke they saw Legolas
standing beside them, or walking to and fro, singing softly to himself in his own
tongue, and as he sang the white stars opened in the hard black vault above.
So the night passed until, together, they watched the dawn grow slowly in the
sky.
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3. And then the chair was facing Frank, and he saw what was sitting in it. His
walking stick feel to the floor with a clatter. He opened his mouth and let out a
scream. He was screaming so loudly that he never head the words the thing
in the chair spoke, as it raised a wand. There was a flash of green light, a
rushing sound, and Frank Bryce crumpled. He was dead before he hit the
floor.
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Now look at the following sentences. These sentences are missing a preposition.
Complete the sentences ensuring your choices are suitable.
1. Katniss waited __________ the signal had come that another had died.
Looking __________ to the sky, she knew the odds were ever in her favour.
2. Beowulf stood __________ King Hrothgar. He bowed and __________ King
Hrothgar could speak, he introduced himself.
3. Hermione stood __________ the hall entrance and breathed in. She had
waited __________ to enter.
Extension:
Construct three sentences of your own that incorporate prepositions for time or
place.
1. ______________________________________________________________
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2. ______________________________________________________________
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3. ______________________________________________________________
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Answer the following questions to review your learning so far:
1. What is a verb?
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2. What is the difference between an intransitive and a transitive verb?
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3. What are the three main types of noun? Alongside the terms, construct a
definition and an example for each.
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4. How can nouns and verbs enhance a description of a hero or a villain?
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5. What are adjectives?
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6. What order should adjectives go in, within a sentence?
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7. Construct an exemplar sentence that contains a verb, a noun and at least two
adjectives in the correct order. Underneath the sentence, explain your verb,
noun and adjective choices in terms of what effect you would like them to have
on the reader.
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8. In what way are comparative adjectives different from superlative adjectives?
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9. What is the rule for adjectives that contain more than one syllable if you want
to make them comparative or superlative?
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10.
How are definite articles different from indefinite articles?
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11.
What are the two types of preposition? Can you provide examples?
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Grammar lesson 5: How can I expand my noun phrases?
A phrase is a small group of words that form part of a sentence. Noun phrases have
a noun as the main word in the phrase. For example, the noun ‘man’ becomes a
noun phrase by adding the definite article ‘the’ in ‘the man’.
Look at the following stanza taken from the poem ‘The Highwayman’ and underline
the noun phrases you can see.
The wind was a torrent of darkness among the gusty trees,
The moon was a ghostly galleon tossed upon cloudy seas,
The road was a ribbon of moonlight over the purple moor,
And the highwayman came riding –
Riding – riding –
The highwayman came riding, up to the old inn-door.
Noun phrases can be expanded.
One way in which they can be expanded is by adding adjectives. For example,
The stormy wind
The brilliant moon
The winding road
The strong, ferocious highwayman came riding
Another way is by adding a prepositional phrase. For example,
The wind blew in the park
The moon shone down on the earth
The road ran along a river
We are now going to drag some noun phrases out from The Highwayman himself.
Decide whether these noun phrases have been expanded by adding adjectives OR
by adding prepositional phrases.
Adjectives
Prepositional phrases
Look at the third stanza, taken from The Highwayman. The noun phrases have
been highlighted for you.
Over the cobbles he clattered and clashed in the dark inn-yard,
And he tapped with his whip on the shutters, but all was locked and barred;
He whistled a tune to the window, and who should be waiting there
But the landlord’s black-eyed daughter,
Bess, the landlord’s daughter,
Plaiting a dark red love-knot into her long black hair.
Can you identify five expanded noun phrases in the stanza above?
1. ______________________________________________________________
2. ______________________________________________________________
3. ______________________________________________________________
4. ______________________________________________________________
5. ______________________________________________________________
Now look at the other noun phrases from the stanza. Use either adjectives or
prepositional phrases to expand the noun phrases.
1. The cobbles
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2. His whip
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3. A tune
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4. The window
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Now, in your group table, look at the picture on the next page. Thought-shower as
many noun phrases as you can think of to describe what you can see in the picture.
Then, as a group, work to expand these noun phrases by adding adjectives or
prepositional phrases.
Finally, put these expanded noun phrases into either a piece of prose describing the
scene as presented in the picture or a stanza describing the scene as presented in
the picture.
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Now choose two of your expanded noun phrases and explain the effect that
expanding the noun phrases would have on the reader:
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Read through the following stanza, taken from The Highwayman. Can you identify
the noun phrases in this stanza?
She twisted her hands behind her; but all the knots held good!
She writhed her hands till her fingers were wet with sweat or blood!
They stretched and strained in the darkness, and the hours crawled by like
years,
Till now, on the stroke of midnight,
Cold, on the stroke of midnight,
The tip of one finger touched it! The trigger at least was hers!
Now expand these nouns phrases by either adding adjectives or by adding
prepositional phrases.
Adding adjectives
Her hands
Her fingers
The hours
The trigger
Adding prepositional phrases
Now have a look at the following picture. Thought-shower expanded noun phrases
that could be used to describe the scene. Then construct a paragraph of descriptive
writing or a stanza that would feature in this poem, describing this scene.
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Grammar lesson 6: What is subject verb agreement?
Look at the following sentence describing The
Highwayman. Can you identify the noun, verb,
adjective and preposition within the sentence?
The Highwayman rode over the wasted land before arriving at the inn.
Noun/s: ____________________________________________________________
Verb/s: ____________________________________________________________
Adjective/s: ________________________________________________________
Preposition/s: ______________________________________________________
Extension
Now construct three of your own sentences using nouns, verbs, adjectives and
prepositions.
1. ______________________________________________________________
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2. ______________________________________________________________
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3. ______________________________________________________________
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The majority of sentences contain a subject and a verb. The subject is the person
or thing doing the action whilst the verb is the doing or being word. For example,
look at the following line (taken from our work on The Highwayman last lesson)
Over the cobbles he clattered and clashed in the dark inn-yard,
‘He’ is the subject with ‘he’ referring to the highwayman and ‘clattered’ is the verb.
Now look at the following sentences taken from ‘The Pied Piper of Hamelin’ by
Robert Browning. Can you identify the subjects and the verbs within each
sentence?
1. They fought the dogs and killed the cats.
Subject: ______________________________________________________
Verb: _________________________________________________________
2. At last the people in a body / To the Town Hall came flocking
Subject: ______________________________________________________
Verb: _________________________________________________________
3. At this The Mayor and Corporation / Quaked with a mighty consternation.
Subject: ______________________________________________________
Verb: _________________________________________________________
4. At length the Mayor broke silence.
Subject: ______________________________________________________
Verb: _________________________________________________________
5. He advanced to the table.
Subject: ______________________________________________________
Verb: _________________________________________________________
It is important that there is agreement between the subject and the verb. For
example, the Pied Piper might say:
I hate rats – this shows agreement between the subject and the verb.
However,
I hates rats – does not show agreement between the subject and the verb.
Look at the following sentences.
1) Identify the subject and the verb in each sentence.
2) Which sentences show subject-verb agreement and which don’t? Identify by
ticking the appropriate box.
3) Correct those sentences you don’t feel have subject-verb agreement.
Shows
agreement
They fought the dogs and killed the
cats.
Subject:
Verb:
They bit the babies in the cradles.
Subject:
Verb:
At last the people in a body / To the
Town Hall comes flocking.
Subject:
Verb:
An hour they seated in council.
Subject:
Verb:
At this the Mayor and Corporation /
Quaked with a mighty consternation.
Subject:
Verb:
At length the Mayor breaks silence.
Subject:
Verb:
Doesn’t
show
agreement
Corrections
“Bless us,” cried the Mayor.
Subject:
Verb:
“Come in!” – the Mayor cried.
Subject:
Verb:
He advancing to the table.
Subject:
Verb:
Into the street the Piper stepped.
Subject:
Verb:
Re-write these sentences, changing either the form of the subject or the form of the
verb, so that they agree.
1. The Piper blows the pipe.
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2. A brown rat following the Piper for his life.
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3. The Pied Piper are leading the rats.
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4. The Mayors is happy that the Pied Piper got rid of the rats.
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5. The children has stepped onto the street.
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1. What is the subject of a sentence?
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2. What is the verb of a sentence?
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3. Identify the subject and the verb in each of the sentences below:
a. The Mayor looked blue.
Subject: ______________________________________________________
Verb: _________________________________________________________
b. The Mayor gave a knowing wink.
Subject: ______________________________________________________
Verb: _________________________________________________________
c. The Piper’s face fell.
Subject: ______________________________________________________
Verb: _________________________________________________________
d. “I’ve promised to visit by dinner-time.”
Subject: ______________________________________________________
Verb: _________________________________________________________
e. Once more he stept into the street.
Subject: ______________________________________________________
Verb: _________________________________________________________
Look at the following sentences.
1) Identify the subject and the verb in each sentence.
2) Which sentences show subject-verb agreement and which don’t? Identify by
ticking the appropriate box.
3) Correct those sentences you don’t feel have subject-verb agreement.
Shows
agreement
The Council standing as if they were
changed into blocks of wood.
Subject:
Verb:
The children is merrily skipping by.
Subject:
Verb:
As the Piper turned from the High
Street / To where the Weser rolled its
waters.
Subject:
Verb:
Doesn’t
show
agreement
Corrections
Grammar lesson 7: What are tenses?
What is tense?
Tense (noun): a verb-based method used to indicate the time, and sometimes the
continuation or completeness, of an action or state in relation to the time of
speaking. (https://www.englishclub.com/grammar/tense-what.htm)
How many tenses are there in the English Language?
There are two tenses in English – past and present.
Present simple (e.g. I work, I play, I study)
We use the present simple for




Permanent states, repeated actions and daily routines (I live in Tidworth)
Scheduled actions (The bus to Wellington Academy leaves at 9.00am)
Likes and dislikes (He likes English).
General truths or laws of nature (The sun rises every morning over
Ludgershall)
Now construct four sentences using the present simple tense.
1. To describe something you do on a daily basis.
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2. To describe something that is scheduled.
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3. To describe a like or a dislike.
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4. To describe a general truth or law of nature.
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Present continuous (e.g. I am working, I am playing, I am studying)
We use the present continuous for
 Actions happening now, at the moment of speaking (I am writing)
 Temporary actions (I am searching for my pen at the moment)
 Actions that we have already arranged to do in the near future, especially
when the time and place have been decided. (We are walking to school
tomorrow morning).
Now construct three sentences using the present simple tense.
1. To describe an action happening now.
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2. To describe a temporary action.
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3. To describe an action that has already been arranged to do in the near future.
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Look at the following sentences and decide whether the present simple or present
continuous has been used:
Present
simple
Present
continuous
form.
The Highwayman is riding his horse.
The Pied Piper walks the streets of Hamelin.
Bess is plaiting her hair.
Bess lives in an inn.
The Mayor shouts in anger.
The Mayor is shouting in anger.
Now re-write the sentences into the alternative form. So, for example ‘The
Highwayman is riding his horse’ is written using the present continuous. To write it
using the present simple, we would need to adjust the verb. The new sentence
would read: ‘The Highwayman rides his horse’.
1. The Pied Piper walks the streets of Hamelin.
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2. Bess is plaiting her hair.
______________________________________________________________
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3. Bess lives in an inn.
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4. The Mayor shouts in anger.
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5. The Mayor is shouting in anger.
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Past simple
We use the past simple for
 Actions which happened or finished at a definite time or stated time in the past
(We left the house at 7.30am this morning)
 Actions which happened repeatedly in the past but don’t happen anymore. (I
often played football when I was younger).
 Actions which happened immediately one after the other in the past. (First I
showered, then I brushed my teeth and then I got dressed)
Now construct three sentences using the past simple tense.
1. To describe an action which happened or finished at a definite time or stated
time in the past.
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
2. To describe an action which happened repeatedly in the past but doesn’t
happen anymore.
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
3. To describe an action which happened immediately one after the other in the
past.
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Past continuous
We use the past continuous for
 An action which was in progress at a stated time in the past. We do not know
when the action started or finished. (At 8 o’clock last night I was doing by
homework)
 A past action which was in progress when another action interrupted it. The
past continuous is used for the action in progress and the past simple for the
action which interrupted it. (I was writing my essay when my friend phoned
me)
 Two or more actions which were happening at the same time in the past. (My
mum was reading the newspaper while my dad was watching the television)
Now construct three sentences using the past continuous tense.
4. To describe an action which was in progress at a stated time in the past. We
do not know when the action started or finished.
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
5. To describe a past action which was in progress when another action
interrupted it. The past continuous is used for the action in progress and the
past simple for the action which interrupted it.
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
6. To describe two or more actions which were happening at the same time in
the past.
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
Now look at the following sentences and underline the correct form (past simple or
past continuous) of the verb.
1. The Pied Piper slept / was sleeping at 9 o’clock this morning.
2. The residents of Hamelin all went / were going out last night to the inn.
3. Bess ate / was eating breakfast when the Highwayman arrived / was arriving.
4. The Mayor took / was taking notes when he was / was being at the meeting.
5. Bess had / was having a sleep when a parcel arrived / was arriving.
6. The Highwayman met / was meeting Bess yesterday.
What helped you to identify the correct verb choice?
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___________________________________________________________________
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Summarise what you have learnt about the present simple and present continuous
and the past simple and the past continuous in today’s lesson.
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