Past Simple: negative sentences + questions

Use the Simple Past to express an action that started and finished at a specific time in the past.

Signal words

yesterday, last week, a month ago, in 2002, … see previous post on it

I told you we have regular and irregular verbs in the past but negative sentences and questions are similar in both groups. Have a look at the explanation:

Negative sentences:

Use the auxiliary did (Simple Past of do). Remember all subjects take the same form of the verb.

regular verbs	irregular verbs
I did not play football.	I did not go to the supermarket.

NOTE: Short forms in negative sentences in the Simple Past are used quite often.

regular verbs	irregular verbs
I didn’t play football.	I didn’t go to the supermarket.

Questions: (Wh?) + did + subject + verb ? [ Remember formula (Qu) A+ S+I]Use the auxiliary did (Simple Past of do). Remember all subjects take the same form of the verb. .

regular verbs	irregular verbs
Did you play football?	Did I go to the supermarket?

Now, find below some exercises to practise:

negative sentences:		1	2	3	4
questions:		0 1	2	3	4 5

Past Time Expressions

Last month, we studied some prepositions of time. Now we are studying the past, it’s time to add some new expressions:
Time Expressions Often Used in the Past
last- used when speaking about the previous week, month or year
Example: They went on holiday last month.
yesterday- used when speaking about the previous day
Example: I was with my best friend yesterday.
ago- used when speaking about X days, weeks, months, years before. NOTE: ‘ago’ follows the number of days, weeks, etc.
Example: We went to Cleveland three weeks ago.
for- used with a period of time.
Example: We lived in Paris for three years.
when- used with a past time clause
Example: I played tennis when I was a teenager
And, of course, the prepositions of time we studied in January:
Example: She was in Merbourne in 1976.
I was at school on Monday.
We were at home at 7pm.
Ready to try some exercises? Exercise 1, exercise 2, exercise3

Prepositions of place: at, in, on

In general, we use:

• at for a POINT
• in for an ENCLOSED SPACE

• on for a SURFACE

Try to complete these exercises: exercise to complete 1+2+3, AND quiz 1, quiz 2
Remember in, at, on can also be used in time expressions. Check previous post on prepositions of time.

Past Simple of TO BE

The verb TO BE is irregular

exercise 1, exercise 2, exercise 3, exercise 4, exercise 5, exercise 6
Now, watch the video.

Articles: a/an, the, Ø

 

When do we use “A, An or The”?

• a = indefinite article + consonants but an+ vowels (not a specific object, one in general) She has a dog, I work in a factory BUT Can I have an apple?, She is an English teacher.
• the = definite article (a specific object, one or ones in particular) The car over there is fast. The teacher (our teacher) is very good, isn’t he?

RULES:

• The first time you speak of something use “a or an”, the next time you repeat that object use “the”. For example:
  I can see a cat. The cat is sitting on a chair. The chair is brown. The cat can see a mouse. The mouse starts running into a hole when it sees the cat so the cat can’t catch the mouse.

• Ø NO ARTICLE

1. when you are speaking about things in general  (uncountable + plurals)
I like Russian tea.
She likes reading books.

2. when you are speaking about meals, times, some places (home, work, school, university…) and transport.
He has milk for breakfast.              I get up at 7.             I go to the gym on Monday.              I go to university.               I go home.                I go to work.     He comes to work by taxi.

3. with names of languages and nationalities: Chinese, English, Spanish, Russian

4. with names of sports: volleyball, hockey, baseball. Ex. I play football

5. with names of academic subjects: mathematics, biology, history, computer science

6. with countries, states, counties or provinces, lakes and mountains except when the country is a collection of states such as “The United States”, “The United Kingdom”.

• He lives in Washington near Mount Rainier.
  They live in Columbia

BUT use an article with bodies of water, oceans and seas -My country borders on the Pacific Ocean

Now you are ready to complete some exercises to practice:

1. A-an? 1, 2, 3, 4,
2. the or Ø? 1
3. A- an- the? 1,  2 , 3, 4, 5,
4. a / an / plural nouns

Expressing likes and dislikes.

          

This is not the first time you read about like. There is a previous post on this blog with songs and examples, check it here. Let’s have a more thorough explanation here:
To talk about your preferences, you can use these expressions:

 Finally, you can state your preference over two different things:
I prefer tomatoes to lettuce.
Things to remember about likes and dislikes:
1. When these expressions are followed by an action, the verb needs the -ing form. Check -ing spelling rules in a previous post.
Examples: I like listening to music, I hate wearing sunglasses.
American English has an alternative structure: they do not use the -ing form of the verb after like, they use -to infinitive. Look at the examples:
I like listening to music (UK) – I like to listen to music (US)
I hate wearing glasses(UK) – I hate to wear glasses (US)
Note: Our textbooks use the UK format.
2. You can agree on someone’s likes and dislikes…
(+) Mary likes oranges and I like them too = Mary likes oranges and I also like them.
(-) Mary doesn’t like oranges and I don’t like them either.
…or you can have a different opinion:
I like chocolate but she doesn’t – She doesn’t like chocolate but I do.
Are you ready to complete some exercises? Click on Mrs Haquet’s book

Present continuous.

 

Present continuous is formed with be+ing.

Do you remember +ing spelling rules? If you don’t, check it here.

Now, pay attention to these examples:

positive sentences: 

(subject- be (am, are, is) - infinitive + -ing):

I am playing football. I’m playing football.

You are playing football. You’re playing football.

negative sentences (subject -be- not -verb+ing):

I am not playing football. I’m not playing football.

You are not playing football. You aren’t playing football.

questions? (Auxiliary – Subject – Verb +ing):

Am I playing football?

Are you playing football?

Let’s practice with some exercises: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.

To contrast present simple (for habits and routines) and present continuous (at the moment of speaking), try exercise 1, 2

As usual, Mrs Haquet has a wonderful book ready for you to practice.