English grammar: Past simple

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past simple

Affirmative
I played
You played
He/she/it played
We played
You played (plural)
They played

Negative
I did not play
You did not play
He/she/it did not play
We did not play
You did not play
They did not play

Question
Did I play?
Did you play?
Did he/she/it play?
Did we play?
Did you play?
Did they play?

We use the past simple to talk about finished actions and time.
I went there last year.
You lived in Paris when you were younger, didn't you?
He worked there in 1980.
She saw him yesterday.
We didn't see Jack and Liz at the party last night.
What did they talk about at the meeting in Zurich?

See also  Past continuous  |  Past perfect

Richard said...
"I first make statements in the present using a weekly schedule, then I tell students what I did last week.

She goes to the movies on Fridays.
She went to the movies last Friday

Did she go to the movies last Friday?
Yes, she did. Or Yes, she went to the movies last Friday.

Did she go to the movies last Thursday?
No, she didn't. Or No, she didn't go to the movies last Thursday.

When did she go to the movies?
She went to the movies last Friday."

Brad said...
"I play a game called "You did it!" In this game, I pretend to accuse students of doing miscellaneous naughty acts and ask them to defend themselves. For example:

T: You STOLE my cell phone!
S: No, I didn't STEAL your cell phone.

T: You ATE my cookie!
S: No, I didn't EAT your cookie.

This works best with irregular verbs. A brainstorming of irregular verbs and a simple review of past tense verbs using the did + ___ construction would precede the playing of this little game.

Another way I practice is by asking them about past events using did + ____ questions. I try to ask ridiculous questions so they will answer in the negative and practice using the correct verb conjugations. For example:

T: Where did you GO last summer?
S: I WENT to Mexico.
T: Did you EAT spaghetti there?
S: No, I ATE tacos, pozole, enchiladas, etc.
T: What kinds of animals did you SEE there?
S: I SAW chickens, donkeys, horses, and dogs.

Jennifer said...
"I show colorful pictures from a book with a well known story like Hansel and Gretel. The students take turns telling the story."

Jessica said...
"'Tic-tac-toe' is a very good idea to practice the simple past in a funny and quite 'free' way. You divide the class in two groups (one is X the other is O) and then stick or draw the game on the board. Put verbs in the infinitive form with a question mark, a plus or a minus depending on whether you want your students to form interrogative, affirmative or negative sentences. This activity is a very good one to give your students a purpose to practice the form of the past simple. They will feel the need to choose and respond correctly in order to make tic-tac-toe."

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