Present Progressive Tense lesson plan

Introduction 

The present progressive tense is also referred to as the present continuous tense since it indicates an ongoing or continuing action (Morenberg, 2009). For example, the statement “I am sleeping,” is in present continuous tense since it shows an ongoing activity. Importantly, the present progressive tense can suggest an action that is likely to happen in the future especially when a statement consists of verbs that convey a plan idea. For example, the statement, “The team is arriving in one hour,” is in present continuous tense since it uses a verb to show an ongoing activity.

Forms of Present Continuous Tense 

A statement in present progressive tense consists of a subject, an auxiliary be such as am , are , and is and a main verb. Besides that, (be), the auxiliary verb is conjugated in present simple tense such as is, am and are . In addition to that, the main verb in a statement with the present progressive tense is an invariable presented in the present participle form that includes the addition of –ing after the verb. Further, in the negative sentences made in present progressive tense, a person inserts the term not between the main and the auxiliary verb. In addition to that, for the question sentences, an individual exchanges the auxiliary and the subject verb. The table below shows examples on the way in which sentences can be formed in present progressive tense.

Type of sentences	Subject	Auxiliary verb		Main verb
positive	I	am		writing	to you
Positive	We	are		visiting	today
Negative	She	is	not	going	to her house
Question sentences	Is	she		talking	to you
Question sentences	Are	they		waiting	For me

The examples given above in the table shows the way in which present progressive tense is used to construct sentences in positive, negative and question sentences. The main verb for a sentence in present progressive tense often ends with –ing . Besides that, she, he, they , and it become auxiliary verbs in questions constructed in present progressive tense.

Functions of the Present Continuous Tense 

Some of the functions of the present progressive tense include the denotation of the time within which an event takes place. Most people use the present progressive tense to talk concerning the temporary actions that are happening in the present. Here are some of the examples of the present progressive tense used to denote the present time.

I am wiping the windows.

I am cleaning clothes.

She is taking a bath.

She is waiting for you.

The baby is crying.

All the above examples show statements containing present progressive tense since they suggest that an action took place before speaking and it is ongoing at the time the statement is made the statement is made.

On the contrary, the present progressive tense is used to talk about the developing and changing of the current situations. Some of the examples of such sentences include;

You are getting older every time.

The climate is changing constantly.

The weather is changing abruptly.

It is getting dark.

All the statement examples given above shows a situation that is ongoing such as the changing of the climate and weather. The present progressive tense is used to talk about those developing and changing situations.

Besides that, the present progressive tense is used to talk about the future. Some of the sentence examples are as follows.

She is going to the hospital on Saturday.

Your father is coming home soon.

Such sentences describe the future. In addition to that, the present progressive tense is used to portray physical feelings such as ache, feel and hurt amongst others. Examples of such sentences include,

My tooth hurts.

How are you feeling?

The students 

The class learning the present progressive tense comprises of students introduced to this grammar feature for their first time. Most of the students are aged between the years 7-13. In addition to that, the class comprises of about 10 students learning English and lives in the United States of America. Such students have the will to improve their English conversation skills to help them communicate in an effective manner in the society. Importantly, the class takes place at least thrice a week with each class lasting for an hour. The primary focus of the class is to develop learning and speaking skills by focusing on the forms and functions of the present progressive tense. The students were provided with an exercise that would enable them practice the use of present progressive tense in constructing sentences while incorporating the feedback of the teacher and their corrections as well.

Exercise 

After teaching the present progressive tense to the students, it is time for the students to get involved in the use of the new skills that the teacher has taught them. The exercise will be divided into two activities that helps keep the class interesting and fun. The first activity will involve reading and writing whereby the students will spend about half an hour working with two stories on the present progressive. The first progressive story will be as follows.

Violet is in her parents’ house. She is sitting on a chair. In addition to that, Violet is holding a cup of warm porridge. Martin, Violet’s husband, is sitting in front of her. He is fixing his torn shirt. Elizabeth is sitting next to Martin. She is Violet’s niece. Right now, Elizabeth is helping Martin fix his torn shirt. The two are working together. They are fixing clothes. A man is coming in the house. He is wearing torn clothes. In addition to that, the man is carrying a pile of clothes. The three of them, Martin, Elizabeth and the man, are working hard.

The second present progressive story will be as follows.

Abby is visiting her parents. She loves her parents. She is sitting on her father’s knee. She is listening to a story. She is happy and smiling. She loves her father’s stories. Ryan is Abby’s father. He loves his daughter. He is telling a story to Abby. He is holding her knee as he narrates a story. The two are sitting in the study room. Jane is Abby’s mother. Jane is standing in the backyard. She is gathering firewood. She is talking to a friend.

From the two stories, the students are expected to underline examples of sentences in the present progressive tense in thirty minutes.

The second task will involve a different activity. The class will be divided into groups and the teacher will take turns with the students to act out an activity such as running, sleeping, and playing basketball amongst others. The students, in their respective groups will make a guess on the activities demonstrated by the teacher and the students. The first team to respond towards those activities demonstrated will gain points. Importantly, a team will need to make a grammatically correct sentence. At the end of the exercise, the team that has attained the most points will win. The exercise will involve a variety of movement that will make the activity a fun one. The activity will help sharpen the students in their knowledge regarding the present continuous tense.

Another activity that will help the student learn on the present progressive tense would be the use of storyboard games. The teacher is required to prepare a story before the next class by drawing and finding pictures that create either an illogical or a logical story. The teacher should place the story in a jumbled order on a whiteboard. The students will be required to arrange the pictures in an order by telling the teacher what events happened before and after an event. For instance, is there are four pictures in a story arranged in the following order.

A man standing outside his porch with an envelope.

A boy throwing a newspaper in a porch.

A woman standing outside.

A child slamming the door.

The activity requires the students to talk about the pictures in relation to each other for them to be put in the required order. For instance, a student could identify that, “The man was standing outside his porch because he saw a boy throw a newspaper onto the porch.” After the construction of the sentences by connecting two pictures, a student is required to highlight the present continuous tense in the statement constructed (Li, 2010). After the student’s comprehend the connection behind the pictures, the teacher could select a student to re-arrange the pictures for the other students to derive meaning from the statements highlighting the present progressive tense in the statements. The activity would be relevant in sharpening the skills of the students in the comprehension of the present continuous tense.

Another activity that a teacher could hold to teach the present progressive tense in a class would be to write a communal story that would enable the students to identify the present progressive statements in the sentences. In some cases, the present progressive tense is quite difficult for the English students to comprehend (Biber, Conrad & Leech, 2002). By doing so, a teacher can select a newspaper article or a book excerpt that is quite difficult for the students to identify the present continuous statements. Besides that, the teacher could give the students the task to write a story with about 10 statements with present progressive statements. Once a teacher comes up with a communal story, the students will be required to select statement with present progressive tense. As a result, the students will sharpen their skills regarding the present continuous tense and the way in which it is used in writing. In addition to that, the teacher could assess the skills gained by the students by telling them to write a story with about 10 statements that contain present progressive tense. As a result, this will help the teachers analyze the various issues that students have with the present continuous tense and come up with relevant ways to boost the comprehension of the tense among the students (Carter & McCarthy, 2006). The teacher could allow the students to read their colleagues stories while highlighting the progressive continuous tense in the stories. Therefore, this is likely to boost the student’s understandings on the present continuous tense.

Contrary to that, other activities that could help in boosting the learning of the present progressive tense among the students involve involving the learners in brainstorming activities where the teachers ask the learners to look around the room and window and describe the various activities the occurrences n their surroundings. Some of the expected statements include; “The people are walking.” If the activity includes the actions of the other students, the teachers could encourage the students to make different actions that would enable the other students make different statements. The game would help encourage the students gain knowledge on the progressive tense sharpening their tenses. Besides that, the teacher can expose the students to express what they hear. The various sounds heard in class could form part of the happening in a class. The teacher can blindfold the students telling them to describe the various sounds they hear. As a result, this would sharpen the skills of the students regarding the present progressive tense.

Conclusion 

This paper focuses mainly on the present progressive tense. The present continuous tense indicates an ongoing or continuing action. A statement in present progressive tense consists of a subject, an auxiliary be such as am , are , and is and a main verb. Besides that, (be), the auxiliary verb is conjugated in present simple tense such as is, am and are . In addition to that, the main verb in a statement with the present progressive tense is an invariable presented in the present participle form that includes the addition of –ing after the verb. Some of the functions of the present progressive tense include the denotation of the time within which an event takes place. Most people use the present progressive tense to talk concerning the temporary actions that are happening in the present. For the students to get knowledge on the present progressive tense they require an exposure to various exercises. a teacher could hold to teach the present progressive tense in a class would be to write a communal story that would enable the students to identify the present progressive statements in the sentences. In some cases, the present progressive tense is quite difficult for the English students to comprehend. By doing so, a teacher can select a newspaper article or a book excerpt that is quite difficult for the students to identify the present continuous statements. Besides that, the teacher could give the students the task to write a story with about 10 statements with present progressive statements. Once a teacher comes up with a communal story, the students will be required to select statement with present progressive tense. As a result, the students will sharpen their skills regarding the present continuous tense and the way in which it is used in writing.

References

Biber, D., Conrad, S., & Leech, G. (2002). A student grammar of spoken and written English (1st ed., p. 487 pages). Longman.

Carter, R. & McCarthy, M. (2006). Cambridge Grammar of English: A Comprehensive Guide (1st ed.). Cambridge University Press.

LI, T. (2010). The Syriac Active Participle and the Expression of the Past Imperfective and the Present. Journal Of The American Oriental Society , 130 (2), 141-165.

Morenberg, M. (2009). Doing Grammar (4th ed., p. 336 pages). Oxford University Press.