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Past Tense Past simple Form Regular verbs Affirmative: Subject+base form+ed/d I worked / I played Negative: subject+ did+not+base form I did not play /He did not work Question:Did+subject+base form? Did you play?/Did she work? Irregular verbs: no rule Usages Past action when the time is given: Napoleon died in 1821. When the time is asked about: when did you meet him. When an action took place clearly in a definite time even if this time is not mentioned: the train arrived 10 minutes late. Sometimes the time becomes definite as a result of a question and answer in the present perfect: -where have you been?-I have been to the opera. -Did you enjoy it? Sample Activate stage teaching ideas Narrative story telling in conjunction with past continuous and past perfect. Curriculum vitae. Interview role play. Discussing past holidays/ major events etc. Past Continuous Form Affirmative: Subject+was/were + verb+ing I was working / I was playing Negative: Subject+was/were + not verb+ing I was not playing /He was not working Question:Was/were+subject+verb+ing Were you playing?/Was she working? Usages For interrupted past actions: while I was watching tv, the phone rang. Used without time expression, it can indicate gradual development that took place in the past: It was getting darker. It can express an action which began before that time and probably continued after it: At eight he was having breakfast. We use the continuous in descriptions: When I woke up the sun was shining and the birds were singing. Sample Activate stage teaching ideas Detective game. Use of diaries/journals. Telling stories. Past perfect Form Affirmative: Subject+had+past participle I had worked/ I had played Negative: Subject+had +not+past participle I had not played/He had not worked Question:had +subject+past participle Had you played./Had she worked? Usages For actions that started before other actions in the past:when I started the concert had started. For actions that were completely finished before another action in the past started: After he painted the kitchen, he decided to rest. Sample Activate stage teaching ideas Story telling. Students see a story and retell the story backward. Give students a final situation and ask them to say why that had happened. Past perfect continuous Form Affirmative: Subject+had+been+verb+ing I had been working/ I had been playing Negative: Subject+had +not been+verb+ ing I had not been playing/He had not been working Question:had+Subject+been+verb+ ing Had you been playing./Had she been working? Usages Not frequently taught but it has one major use:to talk about longer actions or situations in the past that have been going on continuously up to the past moment we are thinking about: