I have covered nearly all the tenses there are on my website. But it is the first time I deal with the present perfect continuous tense. It is not an easy tense, but I think it is not really difficult either.
To help you teach this tense there is an infographic, a worksheet, an audio and an online quiz. I hope you find these useful.
[su_spacer][su_heading]Present perfect continuous – audio
[/su_heading][su_spacer] I start the lesson with the following audio file which was created by BBC. My students like these audio files as they are pretty interactive.You should listen to the file first and then stop the recording when the woman is expected to answers.
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This BBC recording can be freely downloaded at http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/radio/specials/1313_gramchallenge28/
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Present perfect continuous – infographic
[/su_heading][su_spacer] Display the following infographic and explain how the present perfect continuous tense is formed.
Then explain the usage of the tense.
[su_spacer][su_heading]Present perfect continuous – worksheet
[/su_heading][su_spacer] Print the following worksheet. Seat students in pairs and give each student one page from the worksheet. Thus each student has a different picture.Activity 1: Students look at their pictures and tell their partners whether they have been doing the activities in the pictures. If they say that they have been doing something, their partner immediately asks how long they have been doing it. In this way you ensure that the students listen to each other.
Activity 2: Students complete the exercise with present perfect simple or continuous.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/grammar/Present perfect continuous/present perfect continuous speaking.pdf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Present perfect continuous worksheet[/su_button] [su_spacer][su_heading]Present perfect continuous – quiz
[/su_heading][su_spacer] The following quiz can help your students practise the present perfect continuous tenseat home. The quiz consists of a simple gap fill exercise. Students should complete the text with either the present perfect simple or continuous tense.The students will be rewarded with a game if they pass. The quiz is in HTML5, so it will play on all desktops and mobile devices. [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/grammar/Present perfect continuous/Present perfect continuous quiz (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Present perfect continuous – quiz[/su_button] [su_spacer][su_heading]Present perfect continuous – Links
[/su_heading][su_spacer] You will find a nice explanation of the present perfect continuous tense at British Council site.
After teaching present simple to my elementary students, we wrote a test and I collected the most common mistakes my students made. I analysed the mistakes and prepared games and exercises to help my students learn from their mistakes.
In this post there is an infographic with all the mistakes, their corrections and explanations. Then there is a worksheet with 4 exercises, two games and an online quiz to practise the most difficult aspects of the present simple tense.
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Common mistakes – present simple – infographic
[/su_heading][su_spacer] In the following infographic there are all the most common mistakes my students make in the present simple tense. I have divided the mistakes into three categories. First, my students struggle with questions (they often forget to use DO/DOES). Second, their negative sentences frequently miss something. And last but not least, they still do not stick to the SVOMPT word order.In the mind map there are all the wrong sentences, their corrections and in blue ink there is an explanation why the sentence was wrong.
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Common mistakes – present simple – worksheet
[/su_heading][su_spacer] Some might find it attractive to start the lesson with the mind map but I do it differently. I use an activity which I found in the book by Scott Thornbury called Teaching Unplugged. I copy all the wrong sentences – each on a separate piece of paper – and I place the sentences around the classroom. Students take a sheet of paper and a pen or pencil and go around the classroom. Their task is to copy and correct the sentences on the sheet. They can help each other. I stop the activity after ten minutes and then I elicit their corrected sentences.Only after this activity I display the infographic and explain the mistakes.
Then it is time to hand out the following worksheet:
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Present-simple-worksheet.pdf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Common mistakes in present simple tense worksheet [/su_button]In the worksheet there are four exercises. The first one is slightly unusual. First the students have to decide where the verbs go and then they have to put the words into the correct order. The rest of the exercises are all standard exercises.
[su_spacer][su_heading]Common mistakes – present simple – games
[/su_heading][su_spacer]The first game is called Penalty Shootout. In this game you should choose the correct form and then try to score a goal. Good luck.
As the game is in Flash, it will only play on desktop computers.
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[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/common_mistakes/present simple/Present simple en garde.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Present simple – Penalty game[/su_button]
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To practise the present simple tense you can play the following game. Its name is En Garde. Your task is to choose the correct answer and then stop the target as close to the centre as possible. Hopefully, you will be faster and more accurate then your opponent. The game is in Flash and will play only on desktops:
The following quiz can help your students practise the past simple tense at home. The quiz consists of two parts. In the first part, students should put the words into the correct order. In the second part, students have to put the verbs into the correct form. Students will be rewarded with a game after each part of the quiz they pass. The quiz is in HTML5, so it will play on all desktops and mobile devices.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/common_mistakes/present simple/Present simple tense quiz (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Present simple tense – quiz[/su_button]
The verb TO BE is the most important verb in English. Unfortunately, it is the most irregular verb in English, too. However, as all students of English manage to master its forms in the end, there is no reason to dispair. This mastery comes through practise.
In this post I would like to share with you several several exercises and games in which your students can practise the verb. There are about 90 different sentences in which students should use the verb TO BE. The vocabulary is limited so that students with a vocabulary of 100 words will be able to do the exercises.
In this post there is an infographic, a worksheet, an online quiz and two games. I hope it is enough and your students will learn the forms of the verb to be.
[su_spacer][su_heading]Verb to be – infographic
[/su_heading][su_spacer] In the following infographic all the affirmative and negative forms are covered. The lower part gives a simple rule of thumb to help your students decide which form of the verb to be they should use.
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If you teach a monolingual group of elementary students it is a good idea to translate the second infographic.
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Verb to be – worksheet
[/su_heading][su_spacer] The following worksheet is nothing fancy. There are no sophisticated communicative activities or unusual exercises. There are six simple exercises to practise all the forms of the verb TO BE. [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Verb-to-be-worksheet.pdf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Verb to be worksheet[/su_button] [su_spacer][su_heading]Verb to be – online quiz and games
[/su_heading][su_spacer] The following quiz can help your students practise all the forms of the verb to beat home. The quiz consists of two parts. In the first part, students should match the beginnings and ends of the sentences and complete the sentences with the verb TO BE. In the second part, students have to put the verb TO BE into the correct form. The students will be rewarded with a game after each part of the quiz they pass. The quiz is in HTML5, so it will play on all desktops and mobile devices. [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/grammar/Verb to be/Verb to be quiz (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Verb to be – quiz[/su_button]The first game is called Penalty Shootout. In this game you should choose the correct form of the verb to be and then try to score a goal. Good luck.
As the game is in Flash, it will only play on desktop computers.
The second game is in Flash and will play only on desktop computers. It is called On Target, and your task is to choose the correct option and then shoot all the bad cows and ducks. You can shoot one of the bottles on the wall to get a bonus. Enjoy.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/grammar/Verb to be/Verb to be on target.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Verb to be – On Target game[/su_button] [su_spacer][su_heading]Verb to be – links
[/su_heading][su_spacer] There are some great activities to practise the verb to be at British Council site.If your students do not know the adjectives used in this post, there is great song teaching the adjectives by my friend Jules from English Through Music Madrid.
I have created this post for my students to learn the seven days of the week. They are not difficult to remember but some students confuse them. In this post there is a simple infographic, a song, a worksheet and two games. I hope you like this post and find it useful for your students too.
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Days of the week – song
[/su_heading][su_spacer] This song is by my friend Jules from English Through Music Madrid. I like it and it helps introduce the topic. [su_spacer][su_heading]Days of the week – infographic
[/su_heading][su_spacer] Introduce the way the days are spelt in the following infographic.
Days of the week – worksheet
[/su_heading][su_spacer] Print the following worksheet and hand it out. [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Days-of-the-week-worksheet-complete.pdf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Days of the week – worksheet[/su_button]In the first part, students translate the words and copy the red words into the squares provided. The aim of this activity is to give students an opportunity to practise the spelling of the words.
The other three activities are puzzles. In the first crossword students have to complete the crossword with the days Monday to Saturday.
In the second wordsearch, students should find the seven days of the week.
In the third crossword students should fill in the days of the week according of the clues provided.
[su_spacer][su_heading]Days of the week – games
[/su_heading][su_spacer] The first game is called Teacher Invaders. In this game you should type the correct day of the week and then you try to shoot all the invaders. The invaders look a lot like the teachers, but we do not mind as long as you learn all the words :-). Good luck.As the game is in Flash, it will only play on desktop computers. [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/Days of the week/Days of the week invaders.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Days of the week – Invaders game[/su_button]
The second game is in Flash and will play only on desktop computers, too. It is called Half a Minute, and your task is to type the correct answer before half a minute runs out. Enjoy.
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[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/Days of the week/Days of the weekhalf a min.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Days of the week – Half a minute game[/su_button]
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Days of the week – links
[/su_heading][su_spacer] You will find great activities to teach Days of the week at British Council site.
This is the first post in a series on irregular verbs. It is called irregular verbs worksheets because in these posts I am going to publish worksheets in which your students can practise irregular verbs. There will be 10 irregular verbs each time and at least four exercises to practise them. Moreover, there will be an interactive version of the worksheets, so your students can practise at home too.
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In this post your students can learn the past tenses and past participles of the verbs: be, make, drink, have, sing, write, give, read, run and sleep. In the worksheet there are seven exercises to practise the verbs: three crosswords and four fill in the blank exercises.
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Irregular verbs worksheet – infographic
[/su_heading][su_spacer] The worksheet starts with a simple infographic.
If you use this material in a class, first present the irregular verbs using the infographic. Present the verbs and ask the students to translate the verbs.
[su_spacer][su_heading]Irregular verbs worksheet
[/su_heading][su_spacer] Print the following worksheet for each student. (Use a duplex print to save paper). [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Irregular-verbs-worksheet-001-complete.pdf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Irregular verbs worksheet 1[/su_button] ADVERT:[showmyadsa] As I write above there are seven exercises. On the first page, there are crosswords which students should complete by writing the past tense and past participle of the verbs.
Exercises 4 and 5 are simple fill in the blanks exercises. Students should use either the past participles or past tenses of the verbs they learnt.
Exercises 6 and 7 are fill in the blanks exercise again. But this time the students complete questions and once they finish, they could use the questions for speaking. They work in small groups and ask and answer the questions. In smaller print there are additional questions students should ask to make the conversation longer and give students more opportunities to use the target language.
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Irregular verbs worksheet – online quiz
[/su_heading][su_spacer] The following quiz can help your students practise the irregular verbs at home. The quiz consists of two parts. In the first part, students should complete the sentences with the past tenses of the ten verbs. In the second part, students have to complete the sentences with the past participles of the ten verbs. The students will be rewarded with a game after each part of the quiz they pass. The quiz is in HTML5, so it will play on all desktops and mobile devices. [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/irregular_verbs/worksheets/Irregular verbs worksheet 001 (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Irregular verbs quiz[/su_button]
To count uncountable nouns in English students need to know the containers they are most often sold or served in. In the textbook I teach at school I need to teach six of these containers: a loaf, a tin, a packet, a glass, a cup and a bar.
In this post you can find a video, an infographic and two games to teach the six containers and their usage. I hope you like the post.
[su_spacer][su_heading]Simple containers – video
[/su_heading][su_spacer] Play the following video and let the students repeat the phrases after you. After the first 30 seconds, your students have to say the phrase before it appears on the screen. Play the video at least twice and share the link so that the students can practise the vocabulary at home.ADVERT:
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Simple containers – infographic
[/su_heading][su_spacer] After presenting the vocabulary in the video, it is time to present the information in print. The following infographic summs up the containers vocabulary and the food it is most frequently used with.
You can download the high-resolution image here:
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/Containers/simple containers/containers simple.jpg” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Infographic full size[/su_button] [su_spacer][su_heading]Simple containers – games
[/su_heading][su_spacer] The first game is called Teacher Invaders. In this game you should type the correct container and then you try to shoot all the invaders. The invaders look a lot like the teachers, but we do not mind as long as you learn all the words :-). Good luck.As the game is in Flash, it will only play on desktop computers. [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/Containers/simple containers/containers simple.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Simple containers – Invaders game[/su_button]
The second game is in Flash and will play only on desktop computers, too. It is called Half a Minute, and your task is to type the correct answer before half a minute runs out. Enjoy.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/Containers/simple containers/containers simple half.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Simple containers – Half a minute game[/su_button]ADVERT:
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Simple containers – Links
[/su_heading][su_spacer] I have already published a post on containers. This post contains more containers than this one.British council has a nice post on containers here.
Irregular verbs in English are forever. No matter how you teach them, the students resist. I have already designed about twelve different ways to teach irregular verbs and my students still struggle. I have tried to teach the verbs in context, through rhymes, straightforward and in songs but to no avail. However, the last method, using picture rhymes was quite successful, so here I come with another set of 18 irregular verbs.
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In this post there is the infographic with all the verbs, a simple worksheet and two games to practise the irregular verbs in English. I hope you find this activity useful.
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Irregular verbs in English with rhymes – infographic
[/su_heading][su_spacer] Go through the infographic with your students. Read the words aloud and explain that the words in the pictures rhyme with the past tenses and the past participles.
Give your students time to study the words (about 4 minutes should be enough). Now hand out the second page of the worksheet and ask the students to write the past tenses and past participles of the verbs using the picture clues.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Irregular-verbs-in-picture-rhymes-2.pdf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Irregular verbs in picture rhymes – worksheet[/su_button] [su_spacer][su_heading]Irregular verbs in English with rhymes – games
[/su_heading][su_spacer] The first game is called Penalty Shootout. In this game you should choose the correct past tense and past participle of each verb and then try to score a goal. Good luck.As the game is in Flash, it will only play on desktop computers. [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/irregular_verbs/irregular verbs rhymes/Irregular verbs in rhymes Penalty.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Irregular verbs in picture rhymes – Penalty shootout[/su_button]
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The second game is called Fling the Teacher. To win the game, you have to answer all the questions by choosing the correct forms of the given verb. If you answer all the questions correctly you will fling your teacher. (But I am sure, that he/she will not mind as long as you know all the irregular verbs 🙂 ). The game is in Flash and it will only play on desktop computers.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/irregular_verbs/irregular verbs rhymes/Irregular verbs in rhymes fling.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Irregular verbs in picture rhymes – Fling the teacher[/su_button] [su_spacer][su_heading]Irregular verbs in English with rhymes – other posts
[/su_heading][su_spacer]- Irregular verbs again
- Irregular verbs again 2
- Irregular verbs – third time lucky?
- Irregular verbs in context 1
- Irregular verbs straightforward
- Irregular verbs straightforward #2
- Irregular verbs straightforward #3
- Teach 9 irregular verbs in one lesson
- Irregular verbs in context – Scream
- Irregular verbs in context – Teacher story
You can see a wonderful video by Fluency MC here:
The phrase USED TO is one of the highly productive chunks in English. I have already published a post on Used to but I have created several new activities since, and I would like to share those with you. So, in this post you will find several USED TO grammar activities which will help you teach this grammar point.
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In this post there is a song by my friend Chris Barickman, a speaking activity, a game and a grammar worksheet.
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Used to – song
[/su_heading][su_spacer] This song is by my friend Chris Barickman. He is a tallented musician and the song is a great way to introduce the grammar. Ask the students to listen to the song and choose the photo of the man who sings the song. Is it the man in picture A, B or C?
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Used to – mind map
[/su_heading][su_spacer] After the song, it is the ideal time to highlight the grammar. Display the following infographic and show how affirmative sentences, negative sentences and questions are formed.
Remember to emphasize that USED TO is used for repeated actions or states in the past.
[su_spacer][su_heading]Used to – speaking activity
[/su_heading][su_spacer] Print and hand out the following worksheets. Students work in pairs and one of them has got worksheet A and the other worksheet B.
Ask the students to look at their worksheet and tick the things they used to do when they were younger. Remind them that they should tick only the activities they used to do often and yes, they can do them now too.
Students work in pairs and tell their partners what they used to do and didn’t use to do.
Then students ask their partner whether he/she used to do the activities in the pictures.
In the end students can write about their partner what he/she used to do.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Used-to-speaking-worksheet.pdf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Used to – speaking worksheet[/su_button] [su_spacer][su_heading]Used to – grammar worksheet
[/su_heading][su_spacer] Print the worksheet and ask the students to complete it. [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Used-to-grammar-worksheet.pdf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Used to grammar worksheet pdf[/su_button] [su_spacer][su_heading]Used to – games
[/su_heading][su_spacer] The first game is called Penalty Shootout. In this game you should choose the correct option and then try to score a goal. Good luck.As the game is in Flash, it will only play on desktop computers.
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[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/used_to/Used to/Used to penalty game.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Used to – Penalty game[/su_button]
The second game is in Flash and will play only on desktop computers. It is called On Target, and your task is to choose the correct option and then shoot all the bad cows and ducks. You can shoot one of the bottles on the wall to get a bonus. Enjoy.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/used_to/Used to/Used to On target game.swf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Gerund or infinitive – On target game[/su_button] [su_spacer][su_heading]Used to – links
[/su_heading][su_spacer] As I write above, I have already created one post on USED TO. You can find here.There are some great games and exercises at British Council site too.
There is a nice explanation at BBC learning English.
Do your students struggle with the words somebody, anybody, something, anything, everything, everybody, nothing and nobody? Do they get these basic words wrong nearly every time? If your answer is yes, then this post is just for you.
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In this post I would like to share with you several tools to help your students use the words somebody, anybody, something, anything, everything, everybody, nothing and nobody correctly. In this post you will find an infographic and two games. I hope you will like it.
Somebody or anybody, something or anything – infographic
[/su_heading][su_spacer] Display or print the following infographic and ask the students to read through it. Then elicit what they learnt. If you feel that they did not get the message, explain the grammar using either their MT or your own words.Mention please, that the word BODY, could be replace with ONE and the meaning will be the same. Emphasize the spelling of NO ONE (two words instead of one). [su_spacer][su_heading]
Somebody or anybody, something or anything – games
[/su_heading][su_spacer] To practise the usage of the words somebody, anybody, something, anything, everything, everybody, nothing and nobody your students can play the following game. Its name is En Garde. Your task is to choose the correct answer and then stop the target as close to the centre as possible. Hopefully, you will be faster and more accurate then your opponent. The game is in Flash and will play only on desktops: [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/irregular_verbs/withFluencyMC/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f8d23c” size=”6″]En Garde game[/su_button] ADVERT:[showmyadsa] The second game is in Flash and will play only on desktop computers. It is called On Target, and your task is to choose the correct option and then shoot all the bad cows and ducks. You can shoot one of the bottles on the wall to get a bonus. Enjoy. [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/verb patterns/Gerund or infinitive on target.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Gerund or infinitive – On target game[/su_button] [su_spacer][su_heading]
Somebody or anybody, something or anything – What more?
[/su_heading][su_spacer] I realize that the post is rather short. What do you think would be the best activity to add?What activity should I add?
A few days ago the scholars Mélodie Garnier and Norbert Schmitt published a list of most common phrasal verbs in English. Moreover, they listed the most frequent meanings of the verbs. The pedagogical impact of this discovery is really big. Finally we have the list of the phrasal verbs we should teach. You can see the abstract of the article here.
Having the list at my disposal I could not resist and I created the following post. There is an infographic with 8 most common phrasal verbs, two games and a worksheet with 4 exercises.
[su_spacer][su_heading]Most common phrasal verbs – infographic
[/su_heading][su_spacer] According to the research the most common phrasal verbs in English are come up, go out, come back go on, find out, come out, go back and pick up. I have displayed the verbs in the following mind map. There are the phrasal verbs, their meanings and example sentences.ADVERT:
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Most common phrasal verbs – games
[/su_heading][su_spacer] To practise the phrasal verbs you can play the following game. Its name is En Garde. Your task is to choose the correct answer and then stop the target as close to the centre as possible. Hopefully, you will be faster and more accurate then your opponent. The game is in Flash and will play only on desktops: [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/Phrasal verbs/Most common phrasal verbs En Garde.html” target=”blank” background=”#f8d23c” size=”6″]En Garde game[/su_button]The second game is called Fling the Teacher. To win the game, you have to answer all the questions by choosing the correct phrasal verb. If you answer all the questions correctly you will fling your teacher. (But I am sure, that he/she will not mind as long as you know all the phrasal verbs 🙂 ). The game is in Flash and it will only play on desktop computers.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/Phrasal verbs/Most common phrasal verbs Fling.swf” target=”blank” background=”#f8d23c” size=”6″]Fling the Teacher game[/su_button] [su_spacer][su_heading]Most common phrasal verbs – worksheet
[/su_heading][su_spacer] You can download a worksheet with all the phrasal verbs here. [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/Phrasal verbs/Phrasal verbs worksheet.pdf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Phrasal verbs worksheet[/su_button]ADVERT:
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In the worksheet you can find a text which contains all the phrasal verbs. I think the teenagers will love the story 🙂 Then there are comprehension questions.
In task two, students should use the phrasal verbs and complete the questions. Check their answers. Now ask them to choose three questions they would like to ask you. Answer the questions as well as you can. Then the students work in pairs and discuss the questions in pairs.
In exercise three students complete the crossword.
In exercise fours students can complete the text either in writing or orally.
The usage of Some and Any in English is quite simple. Some is used in positive statements, requests or offers and ANY is used in questions and negative sentences. However, many textbooks confuse students by mixing this simple concept with the concept of countability.
In this post I will try to keep the explanation as simple as possible. There is an infographic, an online quiz and two games in this post.
[su_spacer][su_heading]Some or Any – infographic
[/su_heading][su_spacer] Print or display the following infographic and ask your students to explain it to you. I am sure that there will be at least one student who will understand the infographic and will be able to pass the knowledge. If there is none, you should explain that SOME is used for positive statements, requests and offers while ANY is used in negative statements and questions.ADVERT:
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Some or Any – games
[/su_heading][su_spacer] The first game is called Penalty Shootout. In this game you should choose the option and then try to score a goal. Good luck.As the game is in Flash, it will only play on desktop computers. [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/some and any/Some any football.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Some or Any – Penalty[/su_button]
The second game is in Flash and will play only on desktop computers. It is called On Target, and your task is to choose the correct option and then shoot all the bad cows and ducks. You can shoot one of the bottles on the wall to get a bonus. Enjoy.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/some and any/Some any on target.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Some or Any – On target game[/su_button]ADVERT:
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The following quiz can help your students practise Some or Any either at school or at home. The quiz consists of two parts. In the first part, students should complete the sentences with Some or Any. In the second part, students have to match the beginnings and ends of the sentences. The students will be rewarded with a game if they pass. The quiz is in HTML5, so it will play on all desktops and mobile devices.
Some or Any – links
[/su_heading][su_spacer] You can find some interesting materials on Some or Any at the British Council site.And on Youtube you can see the following great video with the explanation of Some and Any.
All the pedagogy books tell you that pictures are much more memorable than words. There is even this saying “A picture is worth thousand words”. So why don’t we use this fact and use pictures for teaching for example irregular verbs?
Unfortunately, things are not that easy. In fact, the research shows that it is more difficult to learn from a pictionary than from a simple word list. However, the research as well showed that pictures can help you remember the words if they are used as a support.
In this post I come up with an original way of presenting irregular verbs in English using pictures. It is not a pictionary, but the pictures just serve as a way of supporting your memory in remembering the past tense and the past participle. Moreover, there are two games, a worksheet and an online quiz to practise what the students learn.
[su_spacer][su_heading]Irregular verbs in pictures – infographic
[/su_heading][su_spacer] Print the following infographic and explain that students should have a look at the pictures and find words for the pictures which rhyme with the form of the irregular verb above it. For example: sent – ant, paid – eight, went – vent etc.Put simply, the pictures do not represent the irregular verbs, they rhyme with them.
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Check the rhymes with the students and ask them to memorise them for two minutes. Then hand out the second page from the file and ask them to complete the tables with past tense and past participle of the verbs.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Irregular-verbs-in-pictures.pdf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Irregular verbs in pictures – pdf file[/su_button]The last page of the hand out contains two simple exercises: In the first one students should complete the table and in the second, they use the past tenses of the verbs from the table and complete the sentences.
[su_spacer][su_heading]Irregular verbs in pictures – games
[/su_heading][su_spacer] The first game is called Penalty Shootout. In this game you should choose the correct past tense and past participle of each verb and then try to score a goal. Good luck.As the game is in Flash, it will only play on desktop computers. [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/irregular_verbs/Irregular verbs in pictures/Irregular verbs in pictures penalty.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Irregular verbs in pictures – Penalty[/su_button]
The second game is in Flash and will play only on desktop computers. It is called On Target, and your task is to choose the correct option and then shoot all the bad cows and ducks. You can shoot one of the bottles on the wall to get a bonus. Enjoy.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/irregular_verbs/Irregular verbs in pictures/Irregular verbs in pictures on target.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Irregular verbs in pictures – On Target[/su_button]The following quiz can help your students practise the irregular verbs either at school or at home. In the quiz you have to choose the correct verb for each sentence. The students will be rewarded with a game if they pass. The quiz is in HTML5, so it will play on all desktops and mobile devices.
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[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/irregular_verbs/Irregular verbs in pictures/Irregular verbs in pictures (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Irregular verbs in pictures – quiz[/su_button]
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Irregular verbs in pictures – lesson plan
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- Print the pdf file.
- Hand out the first page.
- Students find the rhymes.
- Check the answers.
- Hand out page two.
- Students complete the tables.
- Play the game Penalty.
- Play the game On Target.
- Hand out page three.
- Students complete exercise 1.
- They check their answers on page one.
- Students complete exercise 2.
- Check their answers.
Irregular verbs – links
[/su_heading][su_spacer] You can find some interesting materials to teach irregular verbs at British Council site.Here is a great video on irregular verbs by my friend Fluency MC.
Once elementary students master forming questions in the present simple tense, their communicative ability grows by hundreds of percent. Students then can ask nearly about anything, and all of a sudden they can communicate meaningfully. However, for many teachers the questions are a nightmare because only a few students do really learn to form the questions.
To help you and your students I will share a set of activities I have used and which worked really well in my classes. In this post you can find an infographic, a video drill, a speaking activity, two games and an online quiz.
[su_spacer][su_heading]Questions in present simple tense – infographic
[/su_heading][su_spacer] Start the lesson by explaining the grammar. I use the following infographic to explain the way in which questions are formed.ADVERT:
[showmyads] Remind your students that the word order in English is given (SVOMPT) and that they have to follow it. To form a question they need to add the words DO or DOES at the beginning and a question mark at the end.
To form the short answers students have to start with YES or NO, the pronoun representing the subject from the question and DO, DOES, DON’T or DOESN’T. You can tell your students that the word which was at the beginning of the question appears at the end of the answer.
You can see my explanation of the process in the following video:
The following quiz can help your students practise the short answers either at school or at home. The quiz consists of two parts. In the first part, students should match the questions and answers. In the second part, students have to write the short answers. The students will be rewarded with a game after each part of the quiz they pass. The quiz is in HTML5, so it will play on all desktops and mobile devices.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/grammar/present_simple/Short answers quiz (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Short answers quiz[/su_button] [su_spacer][su_heading]Questions in present simple tense – speaking activity
[/su_heading][su_spacer] In the following activity students should work in pairs or in small groups of three or four. Print the worksheet once for each pair or group.ADVERT:
[showmyads] One of the students chooses a picture and the others form questions about the pictures. Their task is to ask YES/NO questions in such a way to find out which picture their partner is thinking about. [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/daily-routine-speaking-questions.pdf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Speaking activity worksheet[/su_button] [su_spacer][su_heading]
Questions in present simple tense – question words
[/su_heading][su_spacer] Before you move to questions starting with the question words, it is a must that students know, and are able to produce, the question words.Start with the following drill. On the first slide students listen and repeat the words. From the second slide on, they have to produce the question words before the native speaker says them. Play the video at least twice.
Now, hand out the following worksheet and ask the students to complete the first exercise with the question words
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Present-simple-questions-eng.pdf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Present simple worksheet[/su_button] [su_spacer][su_heading]Questions in present simple tense – WH questions
[/su_heading][su_spacer] Now explain that WH questions are formed by adding the WH words at the beginning of the question. You can explain it using the infographic below:
Questions in present simple tense – games
[/su_heading][su_spacer] Use the following games to practise the grammar your students learnt.The first game is called Penalty Shootout. In this game you should choose the correct question and then try to score a goal. Good luck.
As the game is in Flash, it will only play on desktop computers. [su_button url=”https://engames.eu/grammar/present_simple/Present simple questions penalty.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Present simple questions – Penalty Shoot out[/su_button]
The second game is in Flash too, and it will play only on desktop computers. It is called En Garde, and your task is to choose the correct option and then stop the circle as close to the centre of the target as possible. Enjoy.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/grammar/present_simple/Present simple questions engarde.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Present simple questions – En Garde[/su_button]
Halloween is coming, and it would be nice if we had a set of fresh activities for this occasion. Children remember everything, and it is pretty embarrassing when you recycle something and the children shout out- “I know this!!! We’ve already done it.” Or, “My sister told me that you did this last year with her.” To help you out a bit, here is a set of new activities for Halloween.
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In this post you can find a colouring activity for young learners, a new song with lyrics and a Halloween board game. I hope your Halloween lesson goes well.
Halloween activities – song
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]You can do several things with this song. First, you can ask the students to watch the video and sing along.
Second, you can print the following worksheet and ask the students to listen and complete the lyrics. Play the recording at least twice.
Third, especially with young learners, ask the students to do some physical activity whenever they hear the word “Halloween”.
You can download the lyrics worksheet here:
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Halloween-song1.pdf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Halloween song – worksheet[/su_button]
Lyrics:
Halloween Halloween
Spooky kooky Halloween
Halloween Halloween
Creepy freaky Halloween
Witches’ broomsticks fill the sky
While zombies rise from graveyards
Such a gruesome sight on Halloween night
Better hope you don’t die of fright!
Chorus
Moans and groans to chill your bones
A werewolf howls at the full moon
Banshees add to the hullabaloo
You know there’s room in my coffin for two!
Chorus
All alone
The room goes cold
Something slithers in the shadows
Better shut your eyes
You’re in for a surprise
Soon you won’t fear a thing
Chorus
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Halloween activities – rap
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]My friend Jason -better known as Fluency MC– has created the following rap song.
I like it and that is why I created the following activities:
First students listen and complete the following worksheet with the lyrics.
Then ask the students to complete the following mind map with the words from the lyrics. If you teach a group of advanced students you can skip the first step and ask them to listen and complete the mind map:
At the end of the activity you can display the following questions and ask your students to work in pairs and ask and answer the questions.
- What are you going to do on Halloween night?
- What are you going to be?
- Where are you going to go?
- What are you going to wear?
Halloween activities – vocabulary activities
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]The lyrics above contain a lot of words connected with Halloween. It might be a good idea to exploit them.
Print the following mind map and ask the students to complete it with the words from the song.
You can find the mind map in the following pdf file:
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Halloween-vocabulary.pdf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Halloween vocabulary – mind map pdf[/su_button]
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[su_heading]
Halloween activities – present simple questions
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]Here is a speaking activity for elementary students. Print the worksheet and hand out the tables.
Students work in pairs or in groups of three. If they work in pairs cut the first page and give each student one of the tables.
If they work in groups of three print page two and cut the paper in three and hand them out.
Students must not look into their partner’s worksheet. They ask questions in present simple and complete their tables.
They must speak English all the time.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Halloween-speaking-activity-present-simple1.pdf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Halloween – pair speaking[/su_button][su_spacer] [su_heading]
Halloween activities – colouring activity
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]Young learners of English like to colour. However, every colouring activity should be educational. In the following activity students will practise colours and parts of body.
First, print the worksheet. There are two pages. Students should work in pairs, and within each pair the students should have different worksheets.
Check that the children remember the colours and parts of the body, and ask them to colour the pictures according to the instructions.
Next, ask the students to tell their partners what colours they used. The other student listens and colours the pumpkin in their worksheet. When they finish, they swap roles.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Halloween-colouring.pdf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Halloween colouring activity[/su_button]
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[su_heading]
Halloween activities – board game
[/su_heading] [su_spacer]In the following game students should practise their speaking and Halloween vocabulary. The rules are simple.
- Students should play in groups of three or four.
- Students place their tokens wherever they like in the haunted house. They throw the dice and move in one direction. They can change direction only at a crossroads or at the end of a corridor.
- The aim of the game is to collect as many ghosts as possible.
- If they land on a ghost, they get a card with a ghost.
- If they land on a TREAT or TRICK, they draw a card.
- TREAT cards contain a task the students have to do (usually telling a story.) At the end of each TREAT card there is a REWARD section which states the maximum number of ghosts the student can get. The other students listen and then decide how many ghosts the student deserves.
- A TRICK card just says whether the student receives or loses some number of ghosts.
- Set a time limit (15 minutes should be fine), and finish the game.
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The picture of the time was purchased at DREAMSTIME.com
What do you like best in this post:
Mistakes that students make should serve as an opportunity to learn. But more often than not students just look at or listen to your correction and pass the opportunity. And that is a pity. As I do not want my students to miss this precious opportunity any more I have come up with a lesson plan which does not allow the students just to pass the common mistakes they make in English, but gives them a fair chance to learn from them.
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In this post you will find an infographic, a game and a worksheet with the most common mistakes my students made in their essays.
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Common mistakes in English – beginning
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Print the following worksheet and give a copy either to each student or ask the students to work in small groups and give a copy to each group. Ask the students to look at the first exercise. That the sentences come from the essays written by other students and that they should correct the red places.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Common-Mistakes-in-English_worksheet.pdf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Common Mistakes in English – worksheet[/su_button]
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Common mistakes in English – infographic
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First elicit the mistakes students have found and corrected.
Then display the following infographic and explain the mistakes and the corrections.
You can hand out the infographic if you think your students might profit from it. Once you have explained everything (as we always do), it is time to give your students a chance to use the knowledge. Now they have to do the exercise 2 and complete the sentences with the words from the infographic.
At the end check their answers – be open to more than one correct answer.
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Common mistakes in English – game
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The second game is in Flash and will play only on desktop computers. It is called On Target, and your task is to choose the correct option and then shoot all the bad cows and ducks. You can shoot one of the bottles on the wall to get a bonus. Enjoy.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/common_mistakes/common mistakes 2a/common mistakes holiday 2 target.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Common Mistakes – On target game[/su_button]
I have already published several speaking activities. There is Summer Holiday Speaking activity or School Subjects Speaking Activity. However, this post is different as the speaking activity here is a sample FCE exam speaking test.
The FCE speaking exam consists of four parts. In this post you can find an example of each part and there are instructions how to use them in a class.
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FCE Speaking Exam – part one
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There are always two students examined at the same time (if there is an odd number of students there are three students.) There are two examiners. One of them speaks and the other does not. She only takes notes of what is said. The examiners are always very friendly.
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In the first part the interlocutor (the examiner who asks the questions) asks some general questions to get to know the students. Here are some examples of the questions:
Hello, what is your name?
Where do you live?
What do you think of the area where you live?
What kind of music do you listen to?
Has your taste in music changed in the past?
Where do you like listening to music?
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FCE Speaking Exam – part two
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In this part each student gets two pictures and they have to compare them for one minute. Then they have to listen to their partner and react to what they say. They have about 20 seconds for their reaction.
Examiner: In this part of the test, I´m going to give each of you two photographs. I´d like you to talk about your photograpraphs on your own for about a minute, and also to answer a short question about your partner´s photographs. Candidate A, it´s your turn first. Here are your photographs. They show different activities people do alone. I´d like you to compare the photographs, and say why the people want to be alone. All right?
Then the examiner says: Thank you. Candidate B, what do you like doing alone?
Thank you.
Now, Candidate B, here are your two photographs. They show people being together in groups. I´d like you to compare the photographs, and say why you think people are together in these situations. All right?
Thank you.
Candidate A, what do you think of formal meetings?
Thank you.
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FCE Speaking Exam – part three
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The third part is a cooperative task. In this task the students have to take turns and agree on the answer together. This part lasts about 4 minutes.
The examiner says: Now, I´d like you to talk about something together for about three minutes. There is a youth club in your town and you would like to offer to teenagers some activities they would like. You have to choose form the activities in the pictures. First, talk to each other about why you think people would like these activities and then decide which two activities you would offer to people and why. All right?
Why do teenagers like these activities? Which two activities will your youth club offer?
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FCE Speaking Exam – part four
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In this part the examiner asks the students several questions connected with the topic in part three. This part takes between three and four minutes.
Examiner:Which of these activities do you enjoy doing?
Which activities do you hate doing?
Are there enough activities for teenagers in the area where you live?
What are the problems teenagers in your area have?
What should be done, so that teenagers would cause no problems?
Are there any activities which aren´t suitable for teenagers?
(The examiner will add these as he/she thinks appropriate:
What do you think?
Do you agree?
And you?)
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FCE Speaking Exam – Classroom notes
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You can either ask your students to work in pairs or in groups of three. If they work in pairs, one of them asks and the other answers. They swap roles after the given time. If they work in groups of three, one of them is the interlocutor and he/she reads the instructions and times the parts.
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The teacher should monitor and note the mistakes students make to deal with them later in the lesson.
You can download the full worksheet here:
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/FCE-speaking-exam_full-test.pdf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]FCE Speaking Exam – pdf worksheet[/su_button]
Youtube is one of the most popular websites on the internet. 4 billion videos are watched every day there. Therefore we should not ignore it and try to use it to teach English. In this post I take one of the Youtube videos and I build the whole lesson around it. It is the video of Susan Boyle´s first performance and it not only gives you a chance to improve your students´ knowldedge of English, it also allows you to discuss some serious questions like ageism.
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In this post you can find the Youtube video and a worksheet with a set of questions.
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Susan Boyle – worksheet
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Print the following worksheet (one copy for each student).
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Susan-Boyle-video-activity1.pdf” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Susan Boyle video worksheet [/su_button]
First, ask the students to work in pairs and discuss the questions from activity 1. Give them about three minutes to do this. When they finish ask several students the questions and listen to their answers.
Then play the video and the students have to complete the exercises 2-4.
Here is the key to exercise 2: dream, love, young, song, tigers, hopes, dream, dream, weather, life, different, dream.
Play the video twice to give the students a chance to absorb the video while doing the tasks which are not that easy.
Once they finish, ask the students to choose three questions from exercise 5 and ask you. Answer the questions and well as you can. Thus you will demonstrate the way your students should speak and at the same time you will tell your students something about you. In this way you might get closer to them and they will get some time to think about their own answers. Be honest in your answers, students, especially teenagers, hate insencere teachers.
After the three questions, ask the students to work in pairs and discuss the questions. Then elicit the most interesting answers.
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Susan Boyle – more YOUTUBE lessons
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You can find one more video activity here. There is another video, this time with a short poem. Enjoy
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Please, could you answer the following poll.
Which activity do teenagers enjoy most in lessons?
There are some grammar points which I have been struggling with for years. Not that I would not understand them or use them incorrectly, but I always fail when I try to pass my knowledge to my students. And the usage of present continuous for future arrangements was one of the grammar points that I could not explain clearly no matter how tallented my students were.
Till this day!!
Today I feel that I broke the curse and I created a set of materials that help me explain the grammar clearly and correctly. And here I would like to share them with you.
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You can find here an infographic, a game and an interactive quiz.
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Present continuous for future arrangements – infographic
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In my opinion this infographic has it all. It explains the difference between an arrangement and a plan and states which tense should be used. At the same time it acknowledges that native speakers often do not feel any difference between the two tenses.
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Present continuous for future arrangements – a game
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In the lesson my students were really excited about the game below. It is called On Target, and your task is to choose the correct option and then shoot all the bad frogs and ducks. You can shoot one of the bottles on the wall to get a bonus. The only problem with this game is the fact it is in Flash and will play only on desktop computers. Enjoy.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/future/Arrangements_ontarget.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Future arrangements – On target game[/su_button]
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Present continuous for future arrangements – an online quiz
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The following quiz can help your students practise the difference between present continuous and BE GOING TO. In the quiz, students should complete the text using either present continuous tense or BE GOING TO form. The students will be rewarded with a game if they pass the quiz. The quiz is in HTML5, so it will play on all desktops and mobile devices.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/future/Arrangements quiz (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Future arrangements – quiz[/su_button]
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Present continuous for future arrangements – Your opinion
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Have a look at the following poll and tell us how you feel about this grammar.
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Which one is better
Irregular verbs are an evergreen in TEFL. There are a lot of them and students have to memorise them. There seems to be no way around it. However, I still try to come up with something that will make this hard work easier for my students. And this time I try to teach 31 irregular verbs in two lessons using simple rhymes.
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In this post you can find a worksheet with the short rhymes, an interactive quiz where students can practise their knowledge of irregular verbs, an interactive game and a worksheet with two exercises. I hope you find the activities interesting, useful and effective.
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Irregular verbs – rhymes
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Start the lesson with the following rhymes. The verbs are organised into rhyming sets and a simple short story is added. This should help the students remember the irregular verbs.
In the lesson, ask the students to read the rhymes aloud. Then translate the stories and tell them to memorise 4 of them. In the following lesson check that they have learnt the rhymes and ask them to memorise the rest of the rhymes.
Here you can find the pdf file with the rhymes for easier printing:
Irregular verbs rhymes
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Irregular verbs – worksheet
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Once your students learn the rhymes, it is time to concentrate only on the irregular verbs. Print out the following worksheet:
In the first exercise students should complete the mind map with the verbs they remember from the rhymes. They have to write the verbs only on the branches belonging to the appropriate rhyme. Check their answers.
In the second task students have to write the past tense and past participle of the verbs given.
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Irregular verbs – quiz
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The following quiz can help your students practise the irregular verbs either at school or at home. The quiz consists of two parts. In the first part, students should write the past tense and the past particples of the verbs. In the second part, students have to drag the correct verbs into the sentences. The students will be rewarded with a game after each part of the quiz they pass. The quiz is in HTML5, so it will play on all desktops and mobile devices.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/irregular_verbs/Irregular verbs rhymes quiz (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Irregular verbs – quiz[/su_button]
I think that your students will love usind the following game. Their task is to click the correct past tense and past participle. While the first round is easy, the others are very difficult indeed.
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[su_button url=”http://www.classtools.net/widgets/quiz_77/Vocabulary_game_iqBGs.htm” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Irregular verbs – games[/su_button]
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Irregular verbs – links
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You can find a list and several interactive activities at British Council site.
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Irregular verbs – your opinion
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Which post on irregular verbs is the best?
In my opinion the modal verb CAN is one of the easiest grammar points in English to teach. That is why I have not produced a post on this topic yet. However, this is going to change, as I am in need of one and I am going to share it here with you.
In this post you can find a simple mind map explaining the usage of the modal verb CAN. Then there are two speaking activities and an interactive quiz to give your students a chance to practise the grammar.
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Modal verb CAN – songs
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Having taught the modal verb CAN yesterday I added these two songs. Both of them are from British Council pages and they serve as a great introduction of the affirmative sentences and questions.
Here is the song I can run.
And here you can find a great song to introduce questions with CAN which is called Can a Flea Climb a Tree.
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Modal verb CAN – mind map
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In the last week I created two mind maps about the verb CAN. However, I felt that the first one was unnecessary complicated and therefore I decided to replace it with this one.
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If you are interested in the first version of the infographic, you can download it here:
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Can-explanation.jpg” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Modal verb Can explanation[/su_button]
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Modal verb CAN – speaking activities
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In this part I would like to share two speaking activities. For the first one you need to download and print the following worksheet.
Can pdf speaking
Now you can choose what you will do with it. You can either cut the worksheet and give each student just one picture and ask them to write the questions with can below the picture. Then check their questions. Next, ask the students to stand up and mingle and ask their classmates whether they can do the activity.
If you do not like mingling activity you can print one worksheet for everyone and ask them to write the questions. Then check their questions and ask students to work in pairs and ask and answer the questions in pairs.
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The second speaking activity is called LIAR. Prepare 4 sentences with the modal verb CAN and say them aloud. Now tell your students that one of them is a lie and your students have to guess which one. Now, ask your students to write 4 sentences with the verb CAN and one of them must be a lie. Let the students work in groups of 4. One student reads all 4 sentences and the others write down which sentence they believe to be a lie. Then another student reads and so on. At the end all the students say which sentence was a lie and they see who guessed it.
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Modal verb CAN – quiz
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The following quiz can help your students practise the modal verb CAN either at school or at home. The quiz consists of two parts. In the first part, students should match the pictures and the sentences. In the second part, students have to complete the sentences with the missing words. The students will be rewarded with a game after each part of the quiz they pass. The quiz is in HTML5, so it will play on all desktops and mobile devices.
[su_button url=”https://engames.eu/modal_verbs/Past tense of Modals (Web)/index.html” target=”blank” background=”#f56b68″ size=”6″]Modal verb CAN – quiz[/su_button]