How to introduce

1

• How to introduce
• Irregular Past Tenses
• to Young Learners (from 11 to 13 y.o.)
• Silvia Fusi
• Scuola Frassati Seveso (MB)

2

• You can start from any text (oral or written) you
  have in your course book or in your lesson plans.
• Usually students like short thrillers or mystery
  stories.
• The one I chose was easy but the students enjoyed
  it.

3

• GETTING THINGS STARTED

1.
The aim of these lessons is to get students to
find the past tenses of verbs themselves.
Students approaching this text were already
familiar with the simple past tense of be (was
and were). They had already listened to a story
in the past and already understood that something
changes in the verb when you talk about past
actions.
2.
3.

• Choose a text which
• is interesting for your students
• contains the past of the verb to be, of some
  common regular verbs and of some common irregular
  ones
• is easy enough to be understood by your students
  without too much help from you.

The following activities took 3 lessons to teach
irregular verbs plus 2 for regular ones. Remember
you need a few days to practise using the verbs.
NB.
4
STEP 1
Reading, Comprehension and verb detection

• The students start by reading the story
• Then they use the chart both to work out and
  match the infinitives to their past forms
• After filling in the chart, you make them notice
  some spelling rules for regular forms (silent
  -e, y)
• Students use the verbs to complete part 2.

Excerpt taken from Doff Jones Relay Loescher
/ CUP 2001
5
STEP 1
Listening Comprehension and Verb detection

• You can ask your students to describe the picture
  and try to make up a suitable ending
• Then students listen to the end of the story
  curiosity plays a big role!
• They complete the exercise
• You help them listen to new past forms (told,
  wrote, came) and understand the interrogative
  sentences (Were you awake?, Did you see
  anything?)

Excerpt taken from Doff Jones Relay Loescher
/ CUP 2001
6
STEP 2
Organizing knowledge to learn quicker and better

• REGULAR VERBS
• Prepare a few lessons in which youll teach
• spelling rules
• -ed pronunciation (suggested activity on the
  right students can work in groups you provide
  pronunciation and help). Working on pronunciation
  will make students aware that some irregular
  verbs get their rules from pronunciation (such
  as built, smelt, spent)

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S T E P 2

• IRREGULAR VERBS
• Now ask students to look at the irregular verbs
  they have met so far and classify them into
  families
• The ones which dont change (we say they are a
  Happy Family)
• Those ending in ought (e.g. bring brought
  brought) remember to include teach (tAught) and
  catch (cAught) in this family (we say they
  arethe different twins)
• Those with a vowel change (i.e. sing sang
  sung)

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Ask students to create and fill in charts on
paper or on the computer which they can
keep. Make sure they leave some empty spaces for
new verbs. There are some more examples on the
right. Even though you are not going to use
the past participle form, make students learn it
anyway it will be harder later.
S T E P 2
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• Each time you find a new verb with your
  students, ask them to put it in the right file.
• Test them frequently on the verbs you meet in
  context.
• Their files will grow very quickly.
• Youll be impressed when you realize how soon
  they learn by themselves to detect irregular
  verbs and predict the past forms.