Name: Evangelister Mapesa

Date: 08 June 2022

Assignment 3: Teaching Grammar Can Be Fun

Introduction:

Tenses indicate time of action.

There are three main tenses, which are
- The Present tense: used for anything that happens now or for general statements.
- The past tense: used for anything that happened before this moment in time.
- The future tense: used for anything that will happen later than right now.
Each of these tenses are grouped into four forms, which are
- Simple
- Continuous
- Perfect
- Perfect Continuous.

THE 12 TENSES OF ENGLISH

1. Present Simple tense: this tense is mainly used to describe things that are
permanent; describe how often something happens and talk about scheduled events.
Verbs ending in y-ies, verbs ending in o; sh; tch; x and ss add es.

Examples

Verb In general, add Verb Verbs ending Verb Verbs ending in o; sh;
s in y, y=ies tch; x and ss add -es
start starts Dry dries do does
tell tells Apply applies catch catches
take Takes Carry carries fix fixes
sing Sings Worry worries push pushes
sit sits Reply replies pass passes

When “We”; “I”; “You” and “They” are used, the verb remains unchanged
When “She”; He” or “It” is doing the action, add an -s to the end of the verb.
If one wants to tell someone about themselves or their sport or when they will play the next
game, this tense is used.

Examples:

I run to school.
You run every day.
We run together.
They run fast.
He/She runs away from police.
 Activity: Catch the ball

Students sit in a circle with a ball that they will throw at each other as they ask present
simple questions like
 Do you play any sport?
 What kind of food do you like?
 Where do you sleep?
The person with the ball asks the question and throw it to the person he/she wants to
answer. That person answers the question and asks a different question and throws the ball
to the next person to answer.

2. Past Simple tense: this tense is used to talk about a completed action in time before
now or is no longer true. Simple past verbs used -ed, but there are many irregular verbs
that don’t use the -ed form

Examples

Base Verb Past Simple form

Start started
Talk talked
mix mixed
meet met
Have had
Go went

The past simple tense can also be used for many of the same reasons as the simple
present, that is to describe a sport, a hobby or something you used to have.
The words “used to” are often used in this sense.

Examples:

I ran to school when I was in primary, or I used to run to school when I was in primary
I mixed water and oil.
I went to church on Monday.
I talked a lot when I was young, or I used to talk a lot when I was young.

 Activity: Memory Circle

Students will play the memory circle game. The first person says a sentence in the past.
Example: “I ate porridge this morning.” Then the next person repeats the sentence then
adds their own. If a student makes a mistake, thy are “out” and the game continues until
one person is left.
3. Simple Future tense: the simple future used to refer to actions that begin and end in
the future. The events have not happened yet but will happen sometime in the future
and expresses facts or certainty. Speaking about the future is adding the words “will” or
“going to” before the unchanged verb.

Examples

verb Simple Present

teach will teach
sing will sing
eat going to eat
cook going to cook

The slight difference of using “will” or “going to” is in the meaning, “going to” is used more
often for things that are planned or used to make plans and “will” is used more often for
promises and things you do by choice.

Examples:

I will teach you how to cook.

I am going to eat dinner with my dad.

 Activity: Holiday

In this game students use the future form “will” to make decisions about a holiday plan and
then present their planned holiday to the class using “going to”. In groups students imagine
they have invited friends to spend some time in their country. Each group discusses and
agree on a holiday plan and present to the class who votes for the best one.

4. Present Continuous: this tense is used for something that is happening now, soon
frequently and may continue.
It uses the -ing ending of a verb

Examples

verb Simple Present

teach teaching
sing singing
stay staying
cook cooking

Adding the words “always” or ‘constantly” expresses the frequency of the action
Examples:

I am teaching Math online.

My sister is always singing love songs.
I am cooking chicken stew.
She is constantly crying.

 Activity: present continuous search

Students race to find a picture matching the present continuous sentence they hear as
quickly as possible, e.g. “The Elephant is under a tree”. This can be done with a magazine,
flash cards, photos or pictures from the textbook.

5. Past Continuous tense: is used to describe a continuous action that got interrupted. The
tense can be formed in the following way: Subject + Be form (was/were) + ‘ing’ form of
verb

Examples:

I was reading when the light switched off. “I” =subject; “was” =Be form reading= “ing” verb.
They were drinking wine before noon.
My sister was baking a cake.

 Activity: Memory Challenge

Students in group A will pick up a picture from a table and study it for one minute and then
give it to Students in group B. Group B students will ask Group A students questions about
what was happening in the picture. E.g., What was the dog doing? How many people were
eating?

6. Future Continuous: this verb tense indicate that something occurs in the future. The
action will have started and might be interrupted in the future.
Adding “-ing” form of a verb after the words “will be” or “going to be” forms future
continuous.

Examples:

I will be working an eight-hour shift.

She is going to be cleaning the yard.
They will be playing soccer on Saturday.
We are going to be painting the wall tomorrow.
 Activity: Changes

Students will take turns to choose one of a list of changes they could make in their life (e.g. I
am going to start exercising and be fit) and then predict their future life until their partner
guesses which change they chose.

7. Present Perfect: shows action that is complete at the time of speaking and has been
continuing and repeating long-term It focuses on the result of the action. The tense is
formed by “have/has” + the past participle (formed by adding “-ed” or d to the base
verb but there are a few verbs that have irregular past participle (e.g., thought, gone,
felt)

Examples:

I have walked on this road before.

I have passed the exam.

 Activity: Answer me

Each student is given 3 to 7 cards with a different number or length of time on each e.g.,
“about 4 years”, “since October”, “9” and “15”. They can look at their cards but should not
show their partners. They should ask questions to get those answers from their partners e.g.
How long have you had that bag? If they obtain an answer that is on one of the cards, they
discard it. The first person with no cards let is the winner.

8. Present Perfect Continuous: shows action that started in the past and is continuing
in the present time. It focuses on the duration of the action. The tense is formed by
“has/have been” + the present participle (Base+-ing)

Examples:

He has been eating for 30 minutes.

I have been staying at the complex since December.

 Activity: Answer me

Each student is given 3 to 7 cards with a different number or length of time on each e.g.,
“about 4 years”, “since October”, “9” and “15”. They can look at their cards but should not
show their partners. They should ask questions to get those answers from their partners e.g.
How long have you been leaving together? If they obtain an answer that is on one of the
cards, they discard it. The first person with no cards let is the winner.
9. Past Perfect Tense: this tense refers to an event or action happened in the past
before another event in the past. At least two events are on the timeline

Example:

I had left by the time my husband got to the house.

She had eaten all the meat before we arrived.
The man told me that he had escaped from prison.

 Activity: Who was more Mature?

In this game students try to outdo each other with their experiences up to a certain age with
questions like “When you turned 18, had you already finished high school?” or “When you
turned 21, had you already moved out of your parent’s place?
The students who had done most of the things asked wins the game.

10. Past Perfect Continuous: shows that an action that started in the past continued up
until another time in the past. Emphasizes the activity. It is formed using had been + the
verbs present participle (base + -ing)

Examples:

I had been working at the company for 10 years when I got fired.
The dog had been barking when I walked into the garden.
He had been playing soccer before joining the basketball team.

 Activity: Answer me

Each student is given 3 to 7 cards with a different number or length of time on each e.g.,
“about 4 years”, “since October”, “9” and “15”. They can look at their cards but should not
show their partners. They should ask questions to get those answers from their partners e.g.
How long have you been working here before becoming CEO? If they obtain an answer that
is on one of the cards, they discard it. The first person with no cards let is the winner.

11. Future Perfect: refers to an action or state that have not happened yet in relation to
another event even further in the future. We use the future perfect tense to indicate
that one future event will happen before the other. This tense is also used to refer to
actions that will be finished in the future.
Examples:

I will have finished my tea before it gets cold.

This meat will have spoiled by the time the fridge gets fixed.
She will have walked 5km before reaching the school.

 Activity: This Time next year

First, Students make predictions about what their life will be like this time next year (e.g.,
“This time next year I will have finished my English course”.) Next, in groups students talk
about their predictions and discuss what their lives will be like year from now. Finally, there
is a feedback section.

12. Future Perfect Continuous: this tense describes actions that will continue up to a
point in the future. It consists of ‘will’ + ‘have’ + ‘been’ + ‘the verbs present participle
(verb base + -ing)

Examples:

When I turn 40, I will have been teaching for 10 years.

On Tuesday, I will have known you for a month.
When I finish this assignment, I will have been typing for 10 hours.

 Activity: This time next year

First, Students make predictions about what their life will be like this time next year (e.g.,
“This time next year I will have been working for 6 months”.) Next, in groups students talk
about their predictions and discuss what their lives will be like year from now. Finally, there
is a feedback section.