Present Simple vs Present Continuous

Present Simple vs Present Continuous

Learning Objective

At the end of the lesson you will be able to understand and use the Present Simple and Present Continuous tenses correctly.

Explain to students that by the end of the lesson they should be able to know the difference between the two tenses and use them correctly.

What do you already know about the difference between Present Simple and Present Continuous?

Present Simple

The Present Simple is used to describe general truths, habits, and daily routines.

Explain to students that Present Simple is used for things that happen regularly, never, or every day.

Present Simple Examples

I wake up at 6am every morning. She speaks three languages. They always play football on Saturdays.

Provide examples of Present Simple sentences for students to practice.

Present Continuous

The Present Continuous is used to describe actions happening now or around now.

Explain to students that Present Continuous is used for things that are happening now, at the moment of speaking.

Present Continuous Examples

I am currently studying for my exams. She is writing an email to her boss. They are playing football right now.

Provide examples of Present Continuous sentences for students to practice.

Key Words

Use 'always', 'never', and 'usually' with Present Simple. Use 'now', 'at the moment', and 'right now' with Present Continuous.

Explain to students the key words that are used with each tense.

Practice Exercise

Choose the correct tense for each sentence: 1) I ___ (watch) TV every night. 2) She ___ (read) a book right now. 3) They ___ (play) football every Saturday.

Provide a practice exercise for students to test their knowledge.

Conclusion

Congratulations! You now know the difference between Present Simple and Present Continuous and how to use them correctly.

Summarize the lesson and congratulate students on their achievement.

Write down 3 things you learned in this lesson.

Have students enter three things they learned in this lesson. With this they can indicate their own learning efficiency of this lesson.

Write down 2 things you want to know more about.

Here, students enter two things they would like to know more about. This not only increases involvement, but also gives them more ownership.

Ask 1 question about something you haven't quite understood yet.

The students indicate here (in question form) with which part of the material they still have difficulty. For the teacher, this not only provides insight into the extent to which the students understand/master the material, but also a good starting point for the next lesson.