Past Tense Structure English Grammar JSS 1 Second Term Lesson Notes Week 9

Subject: English Grammar
Class: JSS 1
Term: Second Term
Week: 9
Age (in years): 12-14
Topic: Grammar: Making Sentences with Past Tense
Sub-topic: Using the Simple Past Tense
Duration: 40 minutes

Behavioural Objectives:

By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

1. Understand and identify the use of the past tense.
2. Construct sentences using the past tense to describe completed actions.
3. Differentiate between the present, past, and future tenses.
4. Recognize regular and irregular verbs in the past tense.

Keywords:

Past Tense, Completed Action, Regular Verbs, Irregular Verbs, Sentence Formation, Simple Past

Set Induction:

Ask the students:

• “What did you do yesterday?”
• “Can you tell us one thing you did last weekend?”

These questions will help introduce the concept of actions that happened and were completed in the past.

Entry Behaviour:

Students should already be familiar with present tense and future tense. This will allow them to understand the structure and usage of the past tense in comparison.

Learning Resources and Materials:

1. Whiteboard and markers
2. Flashcards with regular and irregular verbs
3. Worksheet for practicing past tense sentence formation

Building Background/Connection to Prior Knowledge:

Students should recall actions they perform regularly (present tense) and actions that will happen in the future (future tense). Now, they will focus on describing actions that have already happened (past tense).

Embedded Core Skills:

• Critical Thinking: Recognizing the differences between tenses and understanding when to use the past tense.
• Communication: Forming accurate past tense sentences in speech and writing.
• Collaboration: Working in pairs or groups to form and share past tense sentences.

Learning Materials:

• Lagos State Scheme of Work for JSS 1 (English Grammar)
• Teacher’s Guide on Tenses (if available)

Reference Books:

• Lagos State Scheme of Work for Junior Secondary Schools (English Language)
• Oxford English Grammar Course by Michael Swan

Instructional Materials:

• Flashcards with examples of regular and irregular verbs in the past tense
• Worksheets for sentence formation practice

Content:

1. Definition and Explanation of the Past Tense:
   • The past tense is used to talk about actions or events that were completed at a specific time in the past. It often uses verbs that end in -ed for regular verbs.
   • Example: “She washed her clothes yesterday.”
2. Use of the Past Tense:
   • The past tense can describe completed actions in the past.
     Example: “I saw a movie yesterday.”
   • The past tense can also express a series of completed actions.
     Example: “I finished work, walked to the beach, and found a nice place to swim.”
   • Regular Verbs: These verbs end in -ed in the past tense (e.g., walk → walked, talk → talked).
     Example: “She studied all night.”
   • Irregular Verbs: These verbs do not follow the regular pattern and must be memorized (e.g., go → went, eat → ate).
     Example: “He went to the market.”
3. Examples:
   • She washed her clothes yesterday.
   • I saw a movie yesterday.
   • He arrived from the airport at 8:00.
   • I finished work, walked to the beach, and found a nice place to swim.
   • They never went to school, they always skipped class.

Evaluation Questions:

1. “I _________ to the store yesterday.”
   a) go
   b) went
   c) going
   d) will go
2. “She _________ her homework last night.”
   a) do
   b) did
   c) does
   d) doing
3. “They _________ a party last Saturday.”
   a) have
   b) had
   c) will have
   d) having
4. “I _________ my keys on the table this morning.”
   a) find
   b) found
   c) finding
   d) will find
5. “He _________ the book last week.”
   a) reads
   b) read
   c) will read
   d) reading
6. “She _________ to the doctor yesterday.”
   a) go
   b) went
   c) going
   d) will go
7. “We _________ our homework yesterday.”
   a) finished
   b) finishing
   c) finishes
   d) finish
8. “They _________ a letter to their friend last week.”
   a) send
   b) sent
   c) sending
   d) sends
9. “He _________ a movie last night.”
   a) watch
   b) watched
   c) watching
   d) watches
10. “She _________ the meeting last Tuesday.”
    a) attend
    b) attending
    c) attended
    d) attends
11. “I _________ breakfast this morning.”
    a) have
    b) had
    c) will have
    d) having
12. “He _________ his phone at home yesterday.”
    a) leaves
    b) leave
    c) left
    d) will leave
13. “They _________ a car yesterday.”
    a) buy
    b) bought
    c) buying
    d) buys
14. “She _________ a letter to her friend yesterday.”
    a) writes
    b) wrote
    c) writing
    d) will write
15. “I _________ to the library last week.”
    a) go
    b) went
    c) going
    d) will go

Class Activity Discussion (FAQs):

1. What is the past tense used for?
   • The past tense is used to talk about actions or events that have already been completed in the past.
2. What is the difference between regular and irregular verbs?
   • Regular verbs add -ed in the past tense, while irregular verbs change completely (e.g., go → went).
3. How do we form the past tense of regular verbs?
   • Regular verbs form the past tense by adding -ed (e.g., talk → talked).
4. How do we form the past tense of irregular verbs?
   • Irregular verbs change form entirely (e.g., eat → ate, see → saw).
5. Can past tense be used to describe a series of actions?
   • Yes, past tense can describe multiple actions that happened in sequence (e.g., “He ate lunch, went to the park, and returned home”).
6. What do we do when the verb ends in “e”?
   • When a verb ends in “e,” we add only -d to form the past tense (e.g., dance → danced).
7. Can past tense describe something that happened at a specific time?
   • Yes, past tense often includes a time reference, like yesterday, last week, etc.
8. Is it possible to form negative sentences in past tense?
   • Yes, negative sentences are formed by adding “did not” or “didn’t” before the base verb (e.g., “I didn’t go”).
9. How do we ask questions in the past tense?
   • In questions, we use “did” followed by the base verb (e.g., “Did you see the movie?”).
10. What are some examples of irregular verbs?
    • Examples include: go → went, see → saw, eat → ate.
11. What is a common mistake when using past tense?
    • A common mistake is mixing up regular and irregular verb forms (e.g., “I goed” instead of “I went”).
12. Can we use past tense for actions happening right now?
    • No, past tense is only used for actions that happened before now.
13. How do we use past tense with time expressions?
    • Time expressions like “yesterday,” “last week,” and “two days ago” are used to show that the action happened in the past.
14. Can past tense show a habit?
    • Yes, past tense can describe habits that were regularly done in the past (e.g., “I visited my grandmother every summer”).
15. When is it correct to use the past tense instead of the present tense?
    • The past tense is used when talking about completed actions, events, or states in the past.

Teacher’s Activities:

1. Greet the students and introduce the topic of past tense.
2. Explain the use of the past tense for completed actions.
3. Write examples of regular and irregular verbs in the past tense.
4. Guide students in completing the evaluation and class activity questions.
5. Encourage students to create their own past tense sentences.

Learners’ Activities:

1. Participate in the discussion about past tense actions.
2. Form their own sentences using past tense verbs.
3. Complete the evaluation and class activity questions.
4. Work in pairs to practice past tense sentence formation.

Assessment:

• Review students’ answers from the evaluation and class activity.
• Check the formation of sentences in the past tense.

Conclusion:

1. Summarize the lesson by reviewing the use of past tense for completed actions.
2. Go around the class to mark the work and provide individual feedback.