WHAT'S THE PAST OF THESE VERBS?

Let's practise the past of irregular verbs with these exercises. Remember, practice makes perfect!!!!!

Exercise 1
Exercise 2
Exercise 3
Exercise 4
Exercise 5
Exercise 6
Exercise 7

Now let's make sentences
Exercise 1
Exercise 2
Exercise 3
Exercise 4
Exercise 5
Exercise 6
Exercise 7
Exercise 8

THE PAST

In English there are regular and irregular verbs. We have to know if a verb is regular or irregular to know how to form the past.

To make the past simple of REGULAR verbs you only have to add -ed to the verb.

               live ----- lived
               walk ----- walked

To make the past simple of IRREGULAR verbs you have to know the form of that verb in the past. Remember it's the second column of the verb. Unfortunately there is no way to know if a verb is regular or irregular, so study them!!!!

               go ----- went
               speak ----- spoke

But we are lucky because in the past the verb has the same form for all the persons, there is no change in the third person singular.

                                   I           worked          went  
                                   you       worked         went

                                   he         worked          went

                                   she       worked           went

                                   it          worked          went

                                   we        worked          went

                                   you       worked          went

                                   they      worked          went

POSITIVE

The structure of a sentence is the same as in the present, we only have to use the verb in the past.

               Present: I work as a musician
               Past: I worked as a musician
               
               Present: They go to the cinema every weekend
               Past: They went to the cinema every weekend
               
               Present: She lives in Galway
               Past: She lived in Galway

               Present: He speaks very fast
               Past: He spoke very fast

To form the -ed of the regular verbs in the past there are some rules:

1. If the verb ends in -e we only have to add -d
               live ----- lived
               hate ----- hated
               love ----- loved

2. If the final syllable of the verb is stressed and it is a consonant, then we have to double the consonant
               stop ----- stopped
               admit ----- admitted
               prefer ----- preferred

3. If the verb ends in -l then we also duouble the -l
               travel ----- travelled

4. If the verb ends in -y and the -y is preceded by a consonant, the -y turns into -i and we add -ed
               try ----- tried
               study ----- studied

    But if before the -y there is a vowel we just add -ed
               play ----- played
               enjoy ----- enjoyed


NEGATIVE AND INTERROGATIVE

The structure of the negative and interogative sentences is the same as in the present, we know it is past because instead of the auxiliaries do and does, we use auxiliary DID. And, again, it is the same which person it is, 1st, 2nd, or 3rd, singular or plural, the auxiliary is always did.
In positive sentences we have to know if the verb is regular or irregular to know its past form. In negative and interrogative sentences it is not necessary because we use the infinitive of the verb, in the same way we use it in the present simple.

Examples of negative sentences:

               Present: They don't like going to the cinema
               Past: They didn't like going to the cinema

               Present: She doesn't drink a lot of water
               Past: She didn't drink a lot of water yesterday.

Example of interrogative sentences

               Present: Do they like going to the cinema?               
               Past: Did they like going to the cinema?

               Present: Does she drink a lot of water?
               Past: Did she drink a lot of water yesterday?

Watch this video to learn more about the past simple.

OBJECT PRONOUNS

A pronoun is the word that takes the place of the noun. The subject pronouns are the pronouns that are the subject of a sentence (I, you, he, she, it, we, they)

          Mary has a car ------> She has a car
          Peter and I are happy -----> We are happy

The 'Object Pronouns' or complement pronouns are the pronouns used as a complement of the verb or after a preposition (me, you, him, her, it, us, them)

           Peter buys flowers for Lorraine -----> Peter buys flowers for her
           I like those shoes -----> I like them

Don't confuse them with the possessive adjectives. The possessive adjectives are adjectives, so they come before a noun. The pronoun substitutes the noun, so they come alone.

           Possessive adjective: Tom and Bob live with their parents
           Object pronoun: Tom and Bob live with them

.......................................................................................................................................

LET'S COMPARE THEM

Now it's time to practise!

Exercise 1
Exercise 2
Exercise 3
Exercise 4
Exercise 5
Exercise 6

PRESENT SIMPLE OR CONTINUOUS? grammar

This is a picture for you to understand when to use the present simple or the present continuous and clue words to help you. If you right-click on the picture you can save it to your device. If you want to have it as a PDF document, go to GRAMMAR - Unit 5

PRESENT SIMPLE vs PRESENT CONTINUOUS

We have studied the present simple and the present continuous separatedly, but what about using them together? Do you really know when to use one and when to use the other? Let's have a look at them.

Present simple

It is used to speak about routines, hobbies, things that are always true.

Present continuous
It is used to speak about what is happening now or around now, temporal things or situations.
REMEMBER: there are some verbs which are not used in the continuous: believe, want, love, hate ...

Watch this video where both the present simple and continuous are explained





And now let's see if you understood. Do the following exercises and check your knowledge!!!

Exercise 1
Exercise 2
Exercise 3
Exercise 4
Exercise 5
Exercise 6
Exercise 7
Exercise 8
Exercise 9
Exercise 10

PRESENT CONTINUOUS

Use the Present Continuous with normal verbs to express the idea that something is happening now, at this very moment. It can also be used to show that something is not happening now.

Example: I am watching TV now.
                he is not reading a newspaper now.

To make a statement in the present continuous we need the present of verb to be (AM/IS/ARE) + the -ing form of the verb we want to use

          I AM READING a book
          She IS DRIVING a red car
          They ARE HAVING a shower

To make negative sentences we just add NOT after verb to be.

          I am not reading a book
          She is not driving a red car
          They are not having a shower

To make questions we just place the verb to be before the subject.

          Are you reading a book?
          Why is she driving a red car?
          Are they having a shower?


With this video you can practise negative and questions in the present continuous




Let's see if you have understood, let's practise with these exercises
Exercise 1
Exercise 2
Exercise 3
Exercise 4
Exercise 5 Watch the video and make full sentences, You can check the answers if you have a look at the comments to this post.

THE -ING FORM

Remember that there are some rules to add -ing to the verbs:

* most of the times we just add -ing directly to the verb
          
          go ---> going                 work ---> working
          study ---> studying        play--->playing

* but when the verb ends in a silent final e preceded by a consonant, we drop the -e and add -ing

         live ---> living                write ---> writing

* when the verb ends in a consonant and it is a strong one syllable verb then we double the final consonant. Also when the verb has two or more syllables but the stress is on the last syllable.

        stop ---> stopping         begin ---> beginning

CONNECTORS AND SEQUENCERS

When we speak or write we have two options. We can use the formula  sentence + sentence + sentence + sentence + ..... which doesn't sound too natural

          I like Sundays.
          I don't work on Sundays.
          I wake up at 8.30.
          I get up at 10.00.
          I have a big breakfast.
          I sometimes read the newspaper.
          I sometimes work in the garden.
          I go out for a walk.
          I have lunch with my family.
          We watch TV.
          We talk. 
          We don't work.
          We don't study.

Or we can link the sentences and the discourse using CONNECTORS (and, or, but, because) and SEQUENCERS (then, before/after breakfast, ...) which sounds a lot more natural, don't you think so?

I like Sundays because I don't work. I wake up at 8.30 but I get up at 10.00 and I have a big breakfast. Then I sometimes read the newspaper or work in the garden. Before lunch I go out for a walk. Then I have lunch with my family. After lunch we watch TV and talk. We don't work or study.

Now time for you to practise!!!!!

Exercise

Write a composition about your daily routine and send it to your teacher!!

.............

CAN / CAN'T

The verb can is used to express ability to do something and to ask for permission.
             I can sing quite well
             Can we go out on Saturday?

The verb can is special. It doesn't add the '-s' in the third person singular
            She can dance very well 
            *NOT She cans dance very well

It is always followed by another verb in the plain infinitive, that is, in the infinitive without 'to' .
            They can play tennis
            *NOT they can to play tennis

To make the negative we add not to the verb and to make questions we just swap places between subject and verb.

            We can't go out tonight
            Can you play the guitar?

Note that in the negative it is either can't or cannot but NOT can not.

Watch the video and sing with the busy beavers. Remember that songs are good practice to learn. Pay attention to the pronunciation!!

And now time to practise!!!!

Exercise 1
Exercise 2
Exercise 3
Exercise 4
Exercise 5
Exercise 6
Exercise 7
Exercise 8

ADVERBS OF FREQUENCY

We not always say just what we do but we also say how often we do things and that's when we use 'adverbs of frequency'. The most used frequency adverbs are always, usually, often, sometimes, hardly ever (or seldom) and never.

Example: I usually go to the cinema

Remember that they are placed immediately before the verb:

Example: She often plays tennis.

But they come after the verb to be:

Example: They are never happy with the results.

This graphic will help you learn their degree of frequency:

And now you can practise. Good luck!!!!

Exercise 1 
Exercise 2
Exercise 3
Exercise 4
Exercise 5
Exercise 6

THE POSSESSIVE

When we want to show that something belongs to somebody, we usually add an apostrophe + s ('s) to a singular noun and an apostrophe (') to a plural noun, for example:

•    the student's book (one student)
•    the students' book (two or more students)

Proper Nouns (Names)

We very often use possessive 's with names:
•    This is Mary's car.
•    Where is Ram's telephone?
•    Is this Anthony's pen?
•    I like Alice's hair.

When a name ends in s, we usually treat it like any other singular noun, and add 's:
•    This is Charles's chair.

Irregular Plurals
Some nouns have irregular plural forms without s (man → men). To show possession, we usually add 's to the plural form of these nouns:
singular noun          plural noun
my child's dog           my children's dog
the man's work         the men's work
the mouse's cage       the mice's cage
a person's clothes      people's clothes

Let's practise the possessive.

exercise 1 (Choose the correct word) 

exercise 2 (Put the words in the correct order) 

exercise 3 (Make correct sentences)

exercise 4 (choose the correct word)

exercise 5 ( click on the words in the correct order)

WHAT TIME IS IT?

WHAT'S THE TIME?

Knowing how to tell the time is very important. Sometimes we have a meeting, or an appointment, or we want to get on time for that film we want to see or just to get to work .... I hope this presentation helps you learn how to tell the time in English and, of course, the extra exercises will give you extra practice. Enjoy!!!

Exercise 1 (Match the times)
Exercise 2 (Match the clocks with the times)
Exercise 3 (Very interesting exercise to review not only the time but also the numbers!!!, with audio)
Exercise 4 (Choose the correct answer by listening to the sentences)
Exercise 5 (Write the time you hear)

PRESENT SIMPLE (+) (-) (?)

How do we form a sentence in the present simple? When do we use it? Watch the video and do the activities below.


exercise 1  Complete the sentence with one word.
exercise 2 Click on the words in the right order.
exercise 3
exercise 4 Is there a mistake in the sentence?
exercise 5 Choose the correct answer.
exercise 6 Word order in questions.
exercise 7 Put the words in the correct order.

PRESENT SIMPLE (+) (-)

Let's practise present simple afirmative and negative sentences. How good are you?

Exercise 1 
Exercise 2
Exercise 3  
Exercise 4 
Exercise 5  
Exercise 6
Exercise 7 
Exercise 8

IMPERATIVES

 We use imperatives to tell someone to do something or to give instructions, orders, warnings, directions, etc.

Imperatives are divided into two groups:
a) Positive Imperatives
b) Negative Imperatives

POSITIVE IMPERATIVES

To form a positive imperative we use the base form of the verb. The base form is the form in the dictionary. Some imperative verbs: read, listen, put, run, walk, move, eat...


Examples:
- Listen!
- Raise your hands.
- Do your homework.
- Speak English.
- Come here.
- Be quiet!.

NEGATIVE IMPERATIVES

To form a negative imperative we use: Do not + the base form of the verb

Examples:
- Do not come here.
- Do not put your hat on the chair.
- Do not drink it.
- Do not park your car here.

NOTE: The contraction for do not is don’t.
- Do not come here. = Don’t come here.
- Do not speak Spanish in the class. = Don’t speak Spanish in the class.
- Do not sit there. = Don’t sit there.
- Do not park your car here = Don't park your car here.

ADJECTIVES

An adjective describes how something 'is'. For this reason, we usually use the verb 'to be' when using adjectives. Adjectives are used to describe nouns.
Examples: 
- He is a good doctor. 
- Beautiful trees.
- They are happy.

Be careful!

    * Adjectives don't have a singular or plural form OR a masculine, femine or neuter form.

    * Adjectives are always the same! Never add a final -s to an adjective.

Example: these are difficult books.

NOT!!: difficults books

Rule: Adjectives are placed before the noun.

Example: 
- a wonderful book 
- very interesting people

Be careful!

    * Don't place an adjective after the noun

NOT!!: an apple red

LET'S PUT THEM IN PRACTICE

Exercise 1 (Put the words in the correct order)
Exercise 2 (A crossword)
Exercise 3 (Choose the correct answer)
Exercise 4 (Put the words in the correct order)
Exercise 5 (Choose the correct answer)
Exercise 6 (Crossword, opposites)
Exercise 7 (Wordsearch, colours)

Exercise 8 (Match the adjective and the correct picture)

THIS - THAT - THESE - THOSE - DEMONSTRATIVES

There are 4 demonstratives in English: that, this, these and those. They are used to state the distance from the speaker.

    * "This" is used for singular nouns that are close to the speaker.

    * "That" is used for singular nouns that are far from the speaker.

    * "These" is used for plural nouns that are close to the speaker.

    * "Those" is used for plural nouns that are far from the speaker.

How good are you at using them? You can test yourself now. Take your notebook and a pen or pencil and go ahead!

SINGULAR INTO PLURAL

Are you good at forming the plural of the nouns? In case you need some extra help this is a presentation for you to review how to make singular nouns plural. If you download it to your computer you will see it better.

Now it's time to practise! Look up the words you don't understand in the dictionary and you will learn more vocabulary.

In these exercises each time you load them you will get new words, do them more than once. Remember, the more times you do the exercises the more words you will learn!
Exercise 1
Exercise 2
Exercise 3

Exercise 4 (Singular or plural?)

A or AN

We use 'a' or 'an' with singular nouns, it is the indefinite article.

We use  'a' before consonant sound

   a book
   a cat
   a table
   a university


We use 'an' before vowel sound.

   an orange
   an apple
   an hour

Also remember that the plural is 'some'. Use 'some' only in the positive!
   some books
   some apples

Watch the video below, it can help you!