Word wall past simple and continuous

Filling in the gaps or choosing appropriate Tense forms is definitely much easier than using these Tenses in speech. Even high-level learners sometimes face obstacles when it comes to speaking and using Tense forms properly. To make things easier we have prepared a list of activities that will help your students memorize Past Simple, Past Continuous and Past Perfect better and to have more practice with them.

Picture Prompts

The best and the easiest way to get your students to speak is by providing picture prompts and corresponding questions.

For example:

Task

What do you think happened in this place?

When did it happen?

What was the house owner doing at that time?

Had the owner left the house when the criminal broke into?

Ask me a question

Apart from being able to tell a story using appropriate Tense forms, an English learner must also know how to ask questions with these Tenses.

For example:

Task

Ask me questions using Past Tenses to find out some details about this photo.

If the student has some difficulties, you can provide prompts of the questions.

Where/go?

When/be?

With whom/go?

Who/take a photo?

What/wear?

Why/smile?

Who/look at?

Conversation Topics

Here you can give your students different topics to choose and to talk about. Make sure you also ask corresponding questions to get them to use Past Tenses.

For example:

Talk about the last time

— you were invited to a wedding party.

When was it?

Whose wedding was it?

Had they invited

What was the bride wearing at the party?

What dances did the bride have? Had she prepared for it beforehand?

Who did you meet there? How long hadn’t you met them?

When and how did you get home?

— you went on holiday.

When did you go?

How long had not you had a holiday before that?

With whom and how did you go there?

What were you doing in the evenings when you were alone?

Alibi

This activity is of great fun, especially for detective story fans. Make up an introduction to a crime story (e.g. Last night at 9 pm Mr Thomson was murdered in his bedroom. When his wife came in, the murderer had already left…) and choose a student to become a detective and to investigate the case. Choose two or three students to be suspects, they should go outside the room and agree on the details of everything they did yesterday between 8 pm and 10 pm. The detective then asks questions to the witnesses and suspects using appropriate Past Tenses.

For example:

— What were you doing at 11 p.m. yesterday?

— Who did you call when you found the dead body?

— Had anyone else entered the room before you went there?

— Where were you when you heard Mr Thomson’s wife screaming? What were you doing?

If you have a big group let all the students (except two or three who are suspects) be investigators, divide the class and ask each group to question suspects one by one. Students should make notes and then report back if they have noticed any differences in suspects’ stories.

Watch and Comment

Here you can choose a short episode from movies your students like. Ask them to watch the episode and comment on it. If necessary, provide some questions. They can also retell the plot of the episode using Past Tenses.

For example:

Questions.

— What do you think had happened to Kara (Supergirl) before she saved James’s life?

— How did she save his life?

— What were school children doing when Supergirl came?

Funny Newspaper Headlines

Prepare the list of headlines. Ask students to work in pairs and prepare a few sentences about these headlines. They should include information about what was happening and what had happened before that. Then students tell the stories to the next pair and see if they can expand on the headline.

Examples of the headlines:

“Hamster case” solved.

Cows lose their jobs as milk prices drop.

Thursday is cancelled.

Voters to vote on whether to vote.

Alphabet Story

Divide students in groups. They should take turns and make sentences using past tenses. The first letter of the verbs must follow the sequence of the alphabet. If a student can’t think of one, they are out of the game.

Example:

A — Peter arrived in London at 6 pm last Sunday.

B — He immediately bought a ticket to Oxford.

Picture Story

The last but not the least is using picture sequences to make up a story in Past Tenses. You can find lots of options on Pinterest or just make your own one.

This was the list of the activities that I personally use in my classes. You are free to elaborate and adapt them to your lessons.

Let us know in the comments below who you practise Past Tenses in speech?

Упражнение 1. Определите время глагола в предложениях ниже и сделайте данные предложения вопросительными и отрицательными

1. She was in New York.

2. She visited her friends in New York.

3. He was speaking to John.

4. He spoke to John about his work.

5. They were in the office.

6. They were working in the office.

7. They finished the work.

Упражнение 2. Раскройте скобки, употребляя глаголы в Past Simple или Past Continuous.

1. I (to go) to the cinema yesterday.

2. I (to go) to the cinema at four o’clock yesterday.

3. They (to go) to the cinema when they met me.

4. She (to learn) words the whole evening yesterday.

5. She (to learn) words when mother came home.

6. He (to work) in the garden yesterday.

7. He (to work) in the garden from five till eight yesterday.

8. My sister is fond of read­ing. She (to read) the whole evening yesterday.

9. The children (to do) their lessons at six o’clock yesterday.

10. I (not to play) the pi­ano yesterday. I (to write) a letter to my friend.

11. I (not to play) the piano at four o’clock yester­day. I (to read) a book.

12. He (not to sleep) when father came home. He (to do) his homework.

13. When I (to go) to school the day before yester­day, I met Mike and Pete. They (to talk) and (to eat) an ice-cream.

14. The baby (to sleep) the whole evening yesterday. She (feel) bad.

15. What your father (to do) from eight till nine yesterday?

16. Why she (to cry) when I saw her yesterday?

Упражнение 3. Заполните пропуски глаголами в Past Continuous или Past Simple и переведите предложения.

1. Peter (stay) at a seaside hotel on holiday when he (meet) his friend.

2. While I (have) lunch the sun (come) out again.

3. Who … you (talk to) on the telephone when I came?

4. When Mary (read) the letter she (notice) many spelling mistakes.

5. She (go) to bed when suddenly she (see) a mouse.

6. We (sit) down to dinner when the door bell (ring).

7. Mary’s grandfather (hurt) his back while he (dig) in the vegetable garden yesterday.

8. While he (sleep), the doctor (arrive).

9. What … she (wear) when you (see) her at the party?

10. What… she (want) when she (visit) you yesterday?

11. Somebody (knock) on the front door as I (have) breakfast.

12. How much money … you (spend) last Christmas?

13. My father (give) me money and I (spend) it all in one day.

14. Peter (not/feel) very well, so he (consult) his doctor.

15. Where …you (live) this time last year?

16. Peter (not/look) at me as he (speak).

17. When the ambulance (arrive), the patient (sleep) like a child.

18. I (read) when he (called).

19. They (wait) for the bus when I (see) them.

20. What …you (do) when you (see) them?

Две английские формы времени Past Simple (прошедшее простое) и Past Continuous (прошедшее длительное) обозначают события, которые произошли в прошлом и не имеют никакой связи с настоящим. Главное отличие Past Simple от Past Continuous заключается в том, что в первом случае нам важно показать последовательность событий в прошлом, а во втором — подчеркнуть длительность действия в конкретный момент времени в прошлом.

Как отличить Past Simple от Past Continuous?

Past Simple используется для последовательности событий в прошлом, когда нам важно показать, какое событие произошло первым. Past Continuous выражает процесс в определенный момент в прошлом.

Например:

Сравнительная таблица Past Continuous и Past Simple.

Past Simple образуется с помощью вспомогательного глагола did (в вопросительных и отрицательных предложениях) и второй формы основного глагола. Если глагол правильный, то достаточно прибавить окончание –ed, а если неправильный, то нужно использовать вторую форму из таблицы неправильных глаголов. Past Continuous, в отличие от Past Simple, образуется с помощью вспомогательного глагола be (was или were) и основной формы глагола с окончанием — ing:

Слова–маркеры для Past Simple и Past Continuous.

Важным отличием Past Simple от Past Continuous является употребление различных слов-маркеров или наречий времени, которые указывают на необходимость использования того или иного времени.

Правила употребления Past Simple and Past Continuous в косвенной речи.

В косвенной речи мы обычно используем Past Simple и Past Continuous, если в прямой речи глагол стоит в Present Simple и Present Continuous соответственно.

Например:

Чем Past Simple отличается от Past Continuous.

1. Мы часто используем Past Continuous и Past Simple вместе. Когда это происходит, Continuous описывает более длительное действие или ситуацию, на фоне которой происходит однократное событие.

e.g. When I woke up this morning it was raining.
I was walking home, when I saw my old friend buying a newspaper.

Часто действие, описываемое Past Simple, прерывает длительную ситуацию, которую описывает Past Continuous. Например:

I broke my leg when I was skiing.
I was playing a computer game when my phone rang.

В данных примерах Past Continuous описывает ситуации, которые продолжаются в течение некоторого времени — «was skiing» и «was playing», в то время как Past Simple описывает действия, которые происходят быстро — «broke» и «rang».

2. Мы используем Past Continuous, когда говорим о том, что происходило в определенное время или в период времени в прошлом. В отличие от Past Continuous Past Simple употребляется для выражения однократного действия в прошлом.