Further Practice in the Use of Tense – Basic 4 English Lesson Note (First Term)

Tense is the form of a verb that shows when an action happens: in the past, in the present or in the future.

Behavioural objectives

By the end of the lesson, pupils should be able to:

1. State what tense is and name the three tenses.
2. Use the past tense to talk about actions that have finished.
3. Use the present tense correctly with I, you, he, she, it, we and they.
4. Use the future tense to talk about actions that are yet to happen.
5. Change a sentence from one tense to another.

What is tense?

Tense is the form of a verb that tells the time of an action.

• Verb: a word that shows an action, such as eat, go, travel or win.
• Tense: the way the verb changes to show if the action is past, present or future.
• Time words: words such as yesterday, every day and tomorrow help us know the tense.

What are the three tenses?

There are three tenses: past tense, present tense and future tense.

What is the past tense?

The past tense is used to talk about actions or events that happened before now.

Examples of the past tense

1. I went to the home economics centre yesterday.
2. I ate an apple this morning.
3. John travelled to America last year.
4. My father died last year.
5. He lived in Lagos.
6. You dropped your bag.

How is the past tense formed?

• Regular verbs: add -ed (walk becomes walked, travel becomes travelled).
• Verbs ending in e: add only -d (live becomes lived, die becomes died).
• Verbs ending in consonant and y: change y to i and add -ed (try becomes tried).
• Short verbs ending in one vowel and one consonant: double the last letter and add -ed (drop becomes dropped).
• Irregular verbs: change their spelling in a different way, so they must be learnt.

What are some common irregular verbs?

What time words go with the past tense?

• yesterday: I ate rice yesterday.
• last week, last month, last year: John travelled to America last year.
• this morning (when the morning is over): I ate an apple this morning.
• ago: She came two days ago.

What is the present tense?

The present tense is used to talk about actions that happen regularly, or things that are true now.

Examples of the present tense

1. She goes to school every morning.
2. I always study at school.
3. He understands English.
4. It covers the sand and the water.
5. She tries very hard.
6. He enjoys playing the game.

How do we use the present tense with different subjects?

• I, you, we, they: use the plain verb (I study, they play).
• He, she, it and one person or thing: add -s or -es (he enjoys, she goes).
• Verbs ending in s, sh, ch, x or o: add -es (watch becomes watches, go becomes goes).
• Verbs ending in consonant and y: change y to i and add -es (try becomes tries).

What time words go with the present tense?

• every day, every morning: She goes to school every morning.
• always, often, usually: I always study at school.
• never, sometimes: He never comes late.

What is the future tense?

The future tense is used to talk about actions or events that are yet to happen.

Examples of the future tense

1. I will see you tomorrow.
2. He will win tomorrow.

How is the future tense formed?

• Rule: put will before the plain verb (will go, will eat, will play).
• Shall: shall can be used with I and we (I shall come, we shall win).
• Verb stays plain: the verb does not take -s or -ed after will (she will go, not she will goes).

What time words go with the future tense?

• tomorrow: I will see you tomorrow.
• next week, next month, next year: We will travel next week.
• soon: She will arrive soon.

How do we change a sentence from one tense to another?

To change tense, change the verb and the time word together.

1. Find the verb in the sentence.
2. Find the time word, such as yesterday or tomorrow.
3. Choose the new tense and its time word.
4. Write the verb in the new form.

What are common mistakes with tense?

• Wrong verb form: write “I ate rice yesterday”, not “I eat rice yesterday”.
• Missing -s: write “She tries very hard”, not “She try very hard”.
• Extra -s after will: write “He will win”, not “He will wins”.
• Mixed tenses: keep one tense in a sentence when the time is the same.

Evaluation

1. What is tense? Name the three tenses.
2. Write the past tense of these verbs: go, eat, see, try, live.
3. Choose the correct word: She (go, goes) to school every morning.
4. Rewrite in the future tense: He enjoys playing the game.
5. Rewrite in the past tense: John travels to America.

Assignment

Write two sentences each in the past tense, the present tense and the future tense about your family or school. Underline the verb in each sentence.