Lesson 38: Unit 95 - Past Tenses. Retelling Stories.
A lesson on the three past tenses in English (Past Simple, Past Continuous and Past Perfect) through reading and retelling authentic stories.
About this lesson
In this lesson you will learn how to use the past tenses (Past Simple, Past Continuous and Past Perfect) to retell stories in English. We will analyse the difference between the three past tenses through specific examples and two engaging stories. You will expand your vocabulary with words from the texts and practise retelling stories in an authentic way. The practice includes reading, listening and interactive exercises inspired by the real lesson.
40 minutes
What you'll learn
- Understand the difference between Past Simple, Past Continuous and Past Perfect in the context of a story.
- Use the three past tenses correctly when retelling stories.
- Learn and use key vocabulary from the two stories (Mrs. Jones and Dickie Colson).
- Briefly tell a story in English using the tenses you have learned.
- Recognise the use of past tenses in a text about the ship Bismarck.
Lesson vocabulary
- to boast She boasted of the fact that she had never been punished for a driving offence.
- to punish She had never been punished for a driving offence in thirty-five years.
- judge When Mrs Jones came before the judge, he looked at her severely.
- severely The judge looked at her severely and said she was too old to drive.
- sewing Mrs Jones opened her handbag and took out her sewing.
- to hand She handed both the needle and the thread to the judge.
- doubt 'I suppose you have no doubts about your own eyesight,' she said.
- eyesight The judge said her eyes had become weak, but her eyesight was perfect.
- attempt She threaded the needle at her first attempt.
- notable Richard Colson was one of the most notable figures in our town.
- shabby He looked so wet and shabby that the assistant refused to serve him.
- to reprimand The manager apologized and reprimanded the assistant severely.
- to apologize Recognizing who the customer was, the manager apologized.
- to contain The bag contained 300 pounds in penny coins.
- to refuse The assistant refused to serve him because he looked shabby.
In other languages: Български