Grammar for Everyone - Barbara Dykes 2007

Tense
Introduction
Part II The parts of speech

Definition: The word ’tense’ is from Latin tempus meaning time.

Before learning about tense, students should be able to:

• recognise nouns

• recognise pronouns and understand their purpose

• know the meaning of the word verb

• recognise verbs and name verbs

Tense is indicated whenever we use a finite verb. A useful way to explain tense to students is by standing facing the students and making symbolic gestures. As the direction of reading in English is from left to right, we use a corresponding sequence. To the students’ left we indicate something occurring in the past. Directly in front indicates something occurring now, in the present, and to the right something which is to happen in the future.

3.2 Activities: tense

1. Students draw the tense chart in their grammar exercise books. Provide more verbs for which students enter the correct forms on their chart, for example:

wreck, chip, say, hurry

It will help the students if they think in terms of the verb having a subject, for example:

Remember that many of these activities can be done orally, but students should do some examples in their grammar exercise books.

2. Students are given a list of subjects to which they add their own choice of verb, for example:

the old car

the gate

my friend

thunder

the cow

a bull

the milk cart

lightning

the monster

slime

Students may want to add more to their sentence.