Practice with Verb Tense Using Verb Tense Correctly: Been There, Done That! ACC ESOL Department

Review of Past Tense Remember to use past tense for describing: What you did yesterday or last weekend or last year. (Last year I visited Italy.) What happened on the news or to your friend or before now. (The robber escaped with the money.) What used to be true but is no longer the case. (I liked eating cotton candy when I was a child.) Use the past tense to describe events started and finished in the past. Most past tense verbs end in -ed. The irregular verbs have special past tense forms which must be memorized.

Review your Lessons on Past Tense Remember to use your verb charts and pay close attention to irregular verbs. ex. drive droveeat ate do didhave had catch caught think thought Remember to use “did not” for negatives. ex. He did not come to the party. We did not leave until 4:00am. Use “did” for questions also, and remember to invert the subject and first auxiliary. ex. Did you stay at the party late? Were you still at the party when I left?

Let’s Practice a Few Click the correct form of the verb (either present or past) that best fits the context of the sentence. ex. My friends (drive) all the way to California last summer. Answer: ? Use drove (simple past tense) to indicate a past event. 1. Last night I (see) a great film at the theatre. seewas seenseensaw No, that’s the base form of the verb. YES! No, that’s the past participle No, that’s passive voice!

Practice with Past/Present (cont’d) 2. The building (catch) fire during the thunder storm. catch getsgot catchedcoughtcaught get drawdrawsdrawndrew 3. Sandra usually (get) A’s on her tests because she studies hard. 4. The artist (draw) a sketch of the joggers on Town Lake yesterday. No, that’s the base form catch is irregular Check your spelling! YES! That’s it! Yes! Correct! No, check the tense carefully No, that’s the past participle No, that’s the base form No, check the tense carefully No, that’s the past participle YES! Right! gotten

Practice with Past/Present (cont’d) 5. I can usually solve the math problem if I (think) about them long enough. think teachtaught thoughttaughtthinking tought meetmeetingmeetsmet 6. I (teach) my sister how to ride a bike when she was six years old. 7. During my first week in Austin, I (meet) several of my neighbors. YES! Good! No, check the tense carefully No, that’s a different verb No, that’s the present participle. No, that’s the base form Yes! Correct.No, that’s a different verb No, check your spelling No, that’s the base form No, that’s the present participle No, that’s present tense YES! Right! thought

Are you ready to try some sentences? Practice using the past tense with “Been there, done that.” Whatever you friend suggests that you do, tell him/her that you did it yesterday. ex. Q: Would you like to go bowling with me? A: No, thank you. I went bowling yesterday. Q: Let’s eat at Bennigans tonight. A: I don’t think so. I ate at Bennigans last night.

Practice Writing Your Answers Q: Hey, there. Let’s swim at the lake this afternoon. Your answer? Write an answer and then click “Check Answer” to see a sample correct answer. Check Answer Sample Answer: No, thank you. I swam at the lake yesterday.

Practice Writing (cont’d) Q: I’m hungry. Let’s eat some Chinese food for lunch. Your answer? Write an answer and then click “Check Answer” to see a sample correct answer. Check Answer Sample Answer: That’s okay. I ate Chinese food yesterday.

Practice Writing (cont’d) Q: I have a great idea! Let’s take tennis lessons together! Your answer? Write an answer and then click “Check Answer” to see a sample correct answer. Check Answer Sample Answer: I don’t need to. I took tennis lessons last year.

This Has Been a Sample More interactive practice will be provided with the WebQuest ACC ESOL Department