past simple vs continuous

The past simple

The Past Simple

and

The Past Continuous

Grab your notebook and pen.

Timetable

Aims

After today's lesson, you know:

*The difference between the past simple and the Past continuous.

* How to use the past simple and the past continuous.

13:00	Start of the lesson
13:05	Revision and explanation
13:30	Game
13:45	Learning exercises
14:00	Worksheet
14:20	Summary

Past Simple

Past continuous

A completed action that started in the past.

An action that started in the past but has been going on for a longer period.

Past Simple

verb examples	Spelling rules	past simple form
Walk Play	Base form + ed	Walk ed Play ed
Lik e Mov e	verbs ending with e + d	Lik ed Mov ed
Car r y Stu dy	Verbs ending with a consonant Y + ied	Carried Studied

Write this down in your notebook.

Past Continuous

subject	Was/were	Verb + ing
I He She It	was	singing playing reading going
You We They	were	writing listening screaming

Write this down in your notebook.

Past continuous

	Positive	Negative	Questions	Short answer
I	was working	wasn't working	Was I working?	Yes, I was No, I wasn't
You	were working	weren't working	Were you working?	Yes, you were No, you weren't
he/she/it	was working	wasn't working	Was he working?	Yes, he was No, he wasn't
we/you/they	were working	weren't working	Were we working?	Yes, we were No, we weren't

Write this down in your notebook.

Past Simple of 'bake'?

Fill in the Past Continuous:
We ________ (learn) the past continuous.

Past Simple of 'play'?

Fill in the Past Continuous:

____ they ____ (learn) the past continuous?

Past Simple of 'cry'?

Past Continuous
They _____ (drive) last week.

Past Simple of 'watch'?

She ______ (listen) to Taylor Swift before the concert.

Past Simple of 'study'?

                  Difference Past simple - Past continuous

The past simple is used for completed actions in the PAST.

Example: Yesterday I WENT to the store. 

The past continuous is used for actions that were ongoing at a particular moment in the past.

Example: I WAS GOING to the store when it started raining.

Write this down in your notebook.

Worksheet

If you have a question or don't understand the assignments:

Please raise your hand!

Let's check our answers!

1.

a) Helen was watching a documentary.

b) Richard was drawing a picture.

c) Simon and Alice were playing video games.

d) The dog was sleeping on the rug.

e) Mom was talking on the phone.

2

a) Was / wasn't

b) Did / was / did

c) Were / was

d) Were / were

e) Were / weren't

Let's check our answers!

3

a) were walking / saw

b) got / wasn't raining

c) was crossing / fell

d) was getting / arrived

e) was driving / received

f) was wearing / met

g) listened / was playing

h) scored / were cheering

i) were rehearsing / came

4

Jonathan was born in Canada. He went to school and he became an astronomer. He earned a lot of money, and soon he began to write books. He married a clever woman from Germany. They enjoyed their life because they were rich and famous.

Let's summarize

When do you use Past Continuous?

You use the past continuous when something happened in the past but has been going on for a longer period.

When do you use the Past Simple?

You use the past simple for a completed action in the past.

What is the difference between Past Simple and Past Continuous?

The past simple is used for completed actions. The past continuous is used for actions that happened for a longer period of time in the past.

Did you enjoy today's lesson?

😒🙁😐🙂😃