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INTRO

If you want to sit around and participate in a good argument, listen to a bunch of ESL teachers argue grammar! How to present verb tenses to students is a good topic for argument and discussion.

I introduce explanations for verb tense usage when I notice that a student is making consistent mistakes with specific tenses. Giving students long lectures on the application of tenses may provide a lot of information, but it won't change habits in speaking and writing. However, in order for an instructor to help an adult change a language habit, it helps for the instructor to understand how we use time references with verbs.

What do I tell students about verbs?

• Verbs (simple predicates - not verb forms) are the only words in the sentence that change time.  If you can take a word and put it in the past and future, it's a verb! If not, it ain'teth.

• Verbs (simple predicates - not verb forms) are acted by something or someone. They will always be attached to an actor, or subject, which is either stated (usually) or understood (with commands, only).

• A verb is not always an action, but it refers to a time of something (i.e. Wars are irrational.) For purposes of understanding verbs, I will often refer to them as actions.

VERB FORMS

Following are a few clarifications about verbs in English, according to m'self:

A verb tense in different than a verb form. Verb forms are not time-specific. They are simply parts from which tenses originate. There are three verb forms, from which regular verbs derive their time framework.:

BASE - The root form of a verb, often accompanied by "TO." When the "TO" is included, we say the verb is in the infinitive. In other words, there is no time limitation on the action/existence of the verb (to see, to dig, to go, to be).

PRESENT PARTICIPLE - The base form of the verb accompanied by an "ING" ending. (seeING, diggING, beING)

PAST PARTICIPLE - The base form of the verb accompanied by an "ED" ending in regular verb(waitED, playED). Regular past participles match the past tense expression of verbs. Irregular past and past participle verbs differ considerably in their endings (written, done, eaten, bought). Verbs with irregular past participles also have irregular past tense forms:

Examples:

go - went - gone
write - wrote - written
eat - ate - eaten
buy - bought - bought

NOTE: Guess which verbs are more common, regular or irregular ones? Of course, as fate would have it, irregular verbs are used more often than regular verbs because usage transforms grammar.

HELPFUL SITES

http://www.edufind.com/english/grammar/- verb links

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/esl/esltensverb.html - Review of all verb tenses

http://www.homeworkhelp.com/homeworkhelp/freemember/text/english/high/topic01.htm#01 - Verb forms explained.

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