EATRI Tcnico Interpretacin de enlace Gramtica I 2013 Gloria Montenegro Friedl

THE SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE

form
Forming a sentence in the Present Simple is easy. To form a declarative sentence, all you need is the subject of the sentence. You also need the verb. Questions and require an auxiliary verb. I, you, he, a dog, my sister, the boy, Libertad, Joaquin Be, talk, swim, jump, have, read, sing, play, eat, sleep

SUBJECT

VERB

+ (Complement)

Declarative Sentences

subject A dog I They The course The man

Questions Questions require the auxiliary verb "to do" In the third person singular you use does".

verb

is learn have starts enters

(Complement) an animal. English twice a week. two books. in March. the room.

When asking a question, the verb does not conjugate

Do/DOES + Subject + Verb + (COMPLEMENT)

DO/DOES SUBJECT
she Mara Paz they Natalia and Karin

VERB

COMPLEMENT
going to the disco? A dog? to pop music? French?

Does Does Do Do

like have listen study

For the verb "to be", we do not use an auxiliary:

is/are Is Are Is Are

Negative Sentences

subject
Andy they your cat his classmates

complement
a lawyer? at the library? under the chair? in class?

subject They She He I You

Dont/Doesnt

verb

dont doesnt doesnt dont dont

live like go walk understand

(Complement) in Santiago anymore. Winter. to the cinema. my dog. the question.

THE SIMPLE PRESENT TENSE

SETTING THE CONTEXT Conversation CLAUDIA: Hi, Valentina. Lets have coffee, okay? VALENTINA: Hi Claudia. Sure. Where do you want to go? CLAUDIA: Lets get a cup of coffee from the vending machine. VALENTINA: Fine. Get a table and Ill go for the coffee. What do you take in your coffee? CLAUDIA: Cream and sugar, please. (Claudia sits at a table and Valentina brings the coffee.) VALENTINA: How do you like your classes this semester? CLAUDIA: I like them all, except for grammar. I dont understand. VALENTINA: Why dont you understand? CLAUDIA: Well, the teacher only speaks in English and she doesnt talk loud enough and she never takes breaks. VALENTINA: Does she ever give homework? CLAUDIA: Sure she does. She gives assignments every Wednesday, and it is really hard. We dont understand a thing! She tries to explain again and again, but I still dont understand VALENTINA: Lets seeMaybe you need a tutor. Dont wait until the exams. CLAUDIA: Thats a good idea. Who can I get? VALENTINA: I know someone. She never talks fast. She always speaks clearly. She seldom gets angry. And she teaches grammar too! CLAUDIA: I like her already. Please tell me her name! VALENTINA: Her name is Mrs. Montenegro. Shes my grammar teacher. CLAUDIA: Mrs. Montenegro? Shes my grammar teacher too!

EXERCISE 1: Answer true or false to these statements about the conversation. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. _____ Valentina and Claudia are students and they are friends. _____ Claudia has problem with her math teacher. _____ She thinks her grammar teacher is a very good teacher. _____The teacher never gives homework. _____ The teacher always explains. _____ The teacher doesnt speak in English. _____ The teacher speaks too loud. _____ The teacher is Claudias teacher too.

The Present Simple is the most basic tense in the English language. We use this tense to express the following: 1. Facts , generalizations and universal truths 2. Habits and routines 3. Permanent situations 4. Events that are certain to happen 5. Arrangements that we cant change (e.g. timetables, meetings) 6. State of being verbs (be, have, know) 7. Narrations, instructions or commentaries

Use 1: Facts, Generalizations and Universal Truths

We use the Present Simple to talk about universal truths (for example, laws of nature) or things we believe are, or are not, true. It's also used to generalize about something or somebody. Water boils at 100 degrees Celcius. It is a big house. The Earth goes around the Sun. Dogs are better than cats. Berlin is the capital city of Germany. The Elephant doesn't fly. London is the capital city of France. It always rains in July. Universal Truth Fact Universal Truth, Fact Generalization Fact Fact Fact ( The sentence doesnt have to be true) ??

Use 2: Habits and Routines

We also use this tense to describe actions that happen frequently. For example: habits, routines, tendencies. We leave for work at 7:30 AM every morning. My husband watches TV in the evening. Mara Jos often meets with her friends after classes. Luis and Vairo usually play basketball on Sunday Bryan and Fabin rarely go to Church. Bruno usually studies grammar on Saturdays. Routine Habit, Routine Habit, Routine Habit, Routine Tendency Tendency

Adverbs of Frequency The Present Simple is often used with the frequency adverbs:
always often rarely sometimes occasionally frequently usually every week/year/month never seldom

Here you have a few examples how to use them in sentences: I always go to church on Sundays. I never eat anything after 10 pm. They often ask questions in class. Cristofer usually wears jeans.

Use 3: Permanent Situations

Use the Present Simple to talk about situations in life that last a relatively long time. Loreto lives in Valdivia. Sebastin works as a fireman. Carolina rides a byke. Marco doesn't study French at the institute. He studies English. .

EXERCISE 2: Underline all the sentences in the simple present tense in the following text. Mr. Lopez is a bus driver. Every day he gets up at 7:00 a.m. and prepares for his day. He showers, eats his breakfast, and puts on his uniform. His wife drives him to the station where he checks in with his supervisor. Then, he gets on Bus #405 and starts the engine. He pulls out of the parking lot and begins his route. At his first stop, he picks up Mrs. Gonzalez who lives in a red house on the corner of Los Leones Street and Providencia Avenue. She works at the post office and has to be to work by 9:00. At the next stop, the Martinez twins get on the bus. They attend class at EATRI Institute. More children get on at the next three stops, and they ride until the bus reaches their school. Mr. Lopez enjoys seeing the kids every day and is happy to see them again in the afternoon when he drives them safely back home.

EXERCISE 3: Using the Verb "To be" Write the correct form of "to be" in present tense. My name (be) ________ Bryan. I (be) ________ 21 years old. I live on a farm. It (be) _______ in the country. It is quiet in the country. It (be, not) ____ ____ loud in the country. I wake up early. Sometimes, I wake up before the sun rises. Sometimes, it (be) ________still dark when I wake up. But I dont mind. I like waking up early. I like the way the country looks in the morning. The first thing I do after I wake up is milk the cow. After I have finished milking the cow, I bring the milk to my mom. I think she uses it to make breakfast. She makes a delicious breakfast. My mom (be) ________ a really good cook. Next, I feed the pigs. One time, I asked my mom why my little sister doesnt feed them. She said it is because my sister (be, not) ____ ____ strong enough. But I still dont understand. She is almost as strong as me! I guess my mom doesnt want my sister to get hurt. After all, the pigs can (be) ________ pretty rough, especially when they (be) ________ hungry. The last thing I do (be) ________feed the chickens. That (be) ________ easy. I just throw some food down on the ground and they run out and eat it. While the chickens are eating, I go into their house to collect their eggs. Chicken eggs (be) ________ really good to eat. They (be) ________ easy to cook too. That is what I do in the mornings. I (be) ________ pretty busy

EXERCISE 4: Circle the correct form of the verb in simple present tense.

1) I ( bake / bakes ) cakes. 2) You ( work / works ) in an office. 3) We ( take / takes ) pictures of birds. 4) They ( talk / talks ) about cars. 5) He ( think / thinks ) about school. 6) She ( play / plays ) soccer. 7) It ( rain / rains ) here a lot. 8) I ( like / likes ) chocolate. 9) He ( like / likes ) chocolate. 10) You ( watch / watches ) movies. 11) She ( watch / watches ) movies EXERCISE 5: Complete the following text putting the verbs provided in the simple present tense Hi. My name (be) _______ Albert. My friends (call) _______ me Al. You can call me Al if you (like) _______. I _______(want) to tell you about a problem I (have) _______. It (be, not) _______ _______ a big problem, but it is not a small problem, either. I (guess) _______ it's somewhere between big and small. I (have) _______ a best friend. His name (be) _______ Joe, but everybody (call) _______ him Joey. Joey and I have been friends for a long time. That's the problem. Joey (like) _______ to smoke. He (say) _______ he (do, not) _______ _______, but I (know) _______ he (do) _______. He (try) ______ to hide it from me, but I (see) ______ him do it sometimes. When I see him do it, he just (laugh) _______ and (walk) _______ away. Now, Joey (smoke) _______ every day. When he (come) _______ over to my house, he (always, bring) them in his pocket. He (think)

_______ _______ his cigarettes with him. He (keep) _______

_______ they are cool. He (not, think) _______ _______ _______ it's a bad idea to smoke. He (say) _______, "(not, worry) _______ _______ _______ , Al. I'm okay." He (tell) _______ me that I (not, understand) _______ _______ _______, but I (think) _______ I (do) _______. I (feel) _______ like it's his right to smoke. He can do what he (want) _______ to do, right? But I can (not, help) _______ _____ worrying. He's m my best friend.

EXERCISE 6: Match column A with column B to make a meaningful sentence in the Simple Present I Alexis Sanchez Girls Shakira We Superman a b c d e f sings very well is a hero. like to read science fiction. study English. plays soccer. usually like shopping.

Write the sentences you formed. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

EXERCISE 5: Questions. Put do or does into the gaps. 1) _______ Peter live with his father? 2) _______ you study English? 3) _______ Andrew and Martin ride their bikes to school?

4) _______ they play in the garden? 5) _______ Natalia's hamster live in a cage? 6) _______ the cats sit on the wall? 7) _______ we work in front of the computer? 8) _______ you play the guitar? 9) _______ Johanna wear jeans? 10) ______ I clean my bedroom?

EXERCISE 6: Put in the correct verb forms and the nouns into the gaps. Use Simple Present.
1) ________________________________ to the institute? (you/to walk) 2) ________________________________ a banana in the morning? (Ronda/to eat) 3) ________________________________ cats? (your father/to like) 4) ________________________________ a room with her sister? (Carolina/to share) 5) ________________________________ a lot in Valdivia? (it/to rain) 6) ________________________________ sports after school? (your friends/to do) 7) ________________________________ camping in summer? (Paz and Melissa /to go) 8) ________________________________ their friends to the party? (they/to invite) 9) ________________________________ at the bus stop? (we/to wait) 10) ______________________________ in the mornings? (he/to smile)

EXERCISE 6: Write the correct form of the verb "To be" in present tense. 1) John (be) ________ happy. 2) Maria Jos and Bruno (be) ________my friends. 3) Marco (be) _______ intelligent. 4) Fabin (be) _______ young. 5) The hammer (be) _______ new. 6) My mother and father (be) _______married. 10) This exercise (not be) _______ hard! 11) Loreto (not be) _______ in my house.

EXERCISE 7: Write a short text about your daily routine using 6 action verbs in the simple present tense. ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________

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