1. Simple Past & Past Continuous
Past Tenses
Simple Past & Past Continuous

2. Redhill Murder Mystery
Learning Objectives:
Secondary One Normal Academic
1 period
To choose between past continuous and simple past tense.
To form past continuous tense correctly.
Read about the Redhill Murder Mystery. Click to go to the next page. Click on to complete the worksheets provided.
Target Audience:
Objectives:
Redhill Murder Mystery

3. Redhill Murder Mystery
Last night, Mr Lim died at his home in Redhill. Detective Kang was the first person to arrive at the scene after Mr Lim died.
Mr Lim’s wife, Brenda, told Detective Kang, “It was an accident. My husband took a shower at about 10 pm. After his shower, he slipped on a piece of soap and fell down.”
Who is the murderer?
Saddlier, Riggenbach and Samuda.

4. Simple Past & Past Continuous Tense
You use the Simple Past for an action that started and finished in the past.
Eg. Detective Kang arrived at pm.
Mrs Lim drank several cups of black coffee.
You use the Past Continuous for an action that was in progress at a specific time in the past.
Eg. Detective Kang was eating dinner at 10 pm.
Mr Lim was brushing his teeth at 10 pm.

5. Simple Past Tense
Last night, Mr Lim died at his home in Redhill. Detective Kang was the first person to arrive at the scene after Mr Lim died.
Mr Lim’s wife, Brenda, told Detective Kang,
“It was an accident. My husband took a shower
at about 10 pm. After his shower, he slipped on
a piece of soap and fell down.”

6. Past Continuous Tense
You use the Past Continuous with the Simple Past to show that one action began first and was still in progress when the second action happened.
Eg.Detective Kang was reading a newspaper when he heard about the murder.
You use the Past Continuous with the Past Continuous to show 2 actions in progress at the same time.
Eg. Mrs Lim was talking on the phone while her husband was taking a shower.
2nd action
1st action
Worksheet A
Worksheet B

7. Redhill Mystery Worksheet A
Try to solve the mystery and make meaningful statements
about Mr Lim’s death by matching information from column A
with that in column B.
Mrs Lim called the police
While she was waiting for the police to arrive
As soon as Detective Kang heard about the murder
When Detective Kang asked to see the body.
While Detective Kang was searching the bathroom for clues
he became suspicious of Mrs Lim’s story.
Mrs Lim took him to the scene of the crime.
as soon as her husband died.
she drank a cup of freshly-brewed coffee.
he rushed to Mr Lim’s house.

8. Redhill Mystery Worksheet A
This was what happened on the fateful day Mr Lim died.
Click on the question mark to solve the mystery.
Mrs Lim called the police
While she was waiting for the police to arrive
As soon as Detective Kang heard about the murder
When Detective Kang asked to see the body.
While Detective Kang was searching the bathroom for clues
he became suspicious of Mrs Lim’s story.
Mrs Lim took him to the scene of the crime.
as soon as her husband died.
she drank a cup of freshly-brewed coffee.
he rushed to Mr Lim’s house.

9. Redhill Murder Mystery
Solved!
Mrs Lim killed her husband. She entered the bathroom while her husband was brushing his teeth, and she hit him over the head with the bathroom scale. Then she turned on the shower and put soap on the floor. How did Detective Kang know this?
It was not possible to slip from this position.
He was brushing his teeth, not walking out of the shower.
Exit
Worksheet B Answers

10. Acknowledgements:
Collaborative effort by Koh Shio Theng and Rukiah Othman, 8th October 2002.
Dr Myint Swe Khine, for his kind guidance.
The Redhill Murder Mystery is adapted from “Grammar Dimensions” Platinum Edition 2 by Michelle Sadlier, Heidi Riggenbach and Virginia Samuda, Thomson Learning 2000.