Present Continuous - Dialogues

8/17/2019 Present Continuous - Dialogues

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Present Continuous (Progressive) for

Beginners

Read the following interview using the present continuous (progressive) tense

On the telephone

Tracy: Hello, can I speak to Alex.

Alex: This is Alex, who is speaking?

Tracy: Hi, this is Tracy.

Alex: Hi Tracy. What are you doing?

Tracy: Oh, I' !ust watching T". What are you doing?

Alex: Well, I' cooking dinner.

Tracy: What are you cooking? Alex: I' #aking soe potatoes, #oiling soe carrots and grilling a steak.

Tracy: It sounds delicious.

Alex: What are you doing $or dinner tonight?

Tracy: Well, I don't ha%e any plans...

Alex: Would you like to coe o%er $or dinner?

Tracy: Oh, I'd lo%e to. Thanks.

Alex: &reat. ary and (ack are also coing. They are arri%ing at se%en.

Tracy: O), I'll #e there at se%en, too.

Alex: O), see you then. *ye.

Tracy: *ye.

We have already discussed teaching Present Continuous earlier. Here's another angle.

The present continuous tense is one that students will learn a$ter learning the $irst three

siple tenses that is siple present, past and $uture. When teaching additional tenses it

is iportant to highlight what tie period is re$erred to and also in what situations

students would used each tense.

How To Proceed

1. 1

Warm up

Ha%e students practice using the siple present tense as they %olunteer to

answer +uestions or play fruit basket to encourage students to ake sentences o$

their own. When you ha%e $inished draw an iage on the #oard illustrating the

siple present tense as a re$erence point and ensure that students understand

when to use the present tense.

2. 2

http://busyteacher.org/3715-how-to-teach-the-present-continuous-tense.htmlhttp://busyteacher.org/classroom_activities-grammar/tenses/present_simple-worksheets/http://busyteacher.org/classroom_activities-grammar/tenses/present_simple-worksheets/http://busyteacher.org/3715-how-to-teach-the-present-continuous-tense.html


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Introduce Present Continuous

&i%e students soe exaple sentences using the present continuous tense. *y

using pairs o$ sentences in your exaples, you can show when to use the present

siple tense and when to use the present continuous tense. A good exaple

ight #e I play baseball every day.- and I a playing baseball !ith "en

#right no!$.- ee i$ students understand the di$$erence in eaning #etween the

two and ask $or translations. It is iportant to illustrate on the #oard the

di$$erence #etween this tense and other tenses your students ha%e learned. The

#est way to do this is #y drawing a siple chart. On the #oard under your iage

illustrating the present tense, draw a siilar iage to illustrate the present

continuous tense. /ou can also discuss the $act that the present tense is used

when talking a#out daily routines while the present continuous tense is used

when talking a#out speci$ic non0routine actions and $uture plans.

3. 3

Practice Present Continuous

&i%e students soe #asic practice exercises so they can get used to changing

present simple verbs into the present continuous tense. This can #e done in

the $or o$ a fill in the blank worksheet #ut this would also #e an appropriate

topic to use #attleship $or speaking practice. tudents can use the #attleship grid

to change I, /ou, play soccer, speak 1nglish, etc. into the sentences I a

playing soccer.- and %ou are speaking &nglish.- I$ students ha%e played this

gae #e$ore, it ight take approxiately thirty inutes to explain and play

twice.

4. 4

Practice More

2hone con%ersations would #e a real life situation where the present continuous

tense is used +uite o$ten so in order to gi%e students practice with this tense as

well as #asic phone con%ersation, ake a short odel dialogue $or students to

practice in pairs. This could #e %ery siple where tudent A asks tudent * $or

soeone and tudent * replies I sorry. Hes not here right no!. Hes playing

baseball !ith "en.- It could also #e ore coplex. Ad!ust the con%ersation to

suit your students3 a#ility le%el and encourage the to create part o$ the

con%ersation, pre$era#ly the present continuous part o$ the con%ersation, on their

own. Ha%e students %olunteer to present their dialogues to the class at the end o$

the acti%ity.

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http://busyteacher.org/classroom_activities-speaking-worksheets/http://busyteacher.org/classroom_activities-speaking-worksheets/


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Produce

Ask students to iagine a situation and then write three to $i%e present

continuous tense sentences to descri#e it without saying the location. tudents

can then work in pairs or groups to guess the locations o$ di$$erent scenarios. An

exaple ay #e I a sitting. I a listening to y usic. I a looking out the

!indo!. I a oving.- It is %ery siple #ut students ight then guess the

location as in a car, on a #us, in a train, or on a plane.

6. 6

Review Present Continuous

Any acti%ity you ha%e done $or this topic can #e used as a re%iew acti%ity at the

end o$ the lesson. /ou ay also want to get students o%ing i$ they ha%e #een

sitting down $or the entire class period, especially a$ter a writing exercise, so

you can ha%e students $or a circle. tudents should take turns aking present

continuous sentences and then calling on students to ake the next sentence.

/ou can continue this acti%ity until e%eryone has ade a sentence or until the

#ell rings. I$ you want to ensure that e%eryone akes at least one sentence, you

can ha%e students start sitting down a$ter their turns. This is not recoended

$or large classes #ecause then lots o$ students will #e sitting down with nothing

to do towards the end o$ the acti%ity.

Present continuous is a more complex tense that students ma initiall havedifficult understanding when to use but the more practice the have using it! the

better off the will be"

#ee all Present Continuous wor$sheets and lesson activities"

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Present Continuous - Dialogues