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Grammar 1, Marker sentence:

When I arrived at the cinema, the film had started. (intermediate)

Meaning

The past perfect refers to a time earlier than before now. It is used to make it clear that one event
happened before another in the past. It does not matter which event is mentioned first - the tense
makes it clear which one happened first.

Past Present Future

1 2

The film I arrived

had started

Past perfect tense is used when we should describe two things happened in the past and one thing
was before another.

1. Is it happening now? (n)

2. Did it happen in the past? (y)
3. How many events have happened in the past? (two)
4. Did I arrive at the cinema late or on time? (late)
5. Did the film start fist or I arrived fist? (the film started first)

Context:

My friend invited me to watch a brand new film at the cinema on Friday night. Unfortunately, I was
stuck in traffic and I arrived at the cinema late. When I arrived to the cinema, the film had started.
Anticipated problems with meaning
1. Students might not use past perfect tense to describe two actions in the past, e.g. do not use
‘had’.
2. Students may start using past perfect constantly, once they learnt it. They may use it instead of
past simple tense and misunderstand its meaning.
Solutions to anticipated problems with meaning
1. Use time line examples to illustrate the difference.
2. The usage of past perfect tense should be clarified by the teacher. Students have to bear in mind
that past perfect tense is used when we have two events that have happened in the past.

Form

When I arrived at the cinema, the film had started. (intermediate)

[ Subject + verb in past simple from + subject + had + past participle]

Anticipated problems with form
1. Students may not be accustomed to using past perfect form tense (had + past participle).
2. Students might not be aware of irregular verbs forms (past participle) needed for past simple
tense. Thus it could be challenging for them to use this tense correctly.
Solutions to anticipated problems with form
1. To tackle the avoidance of past perfect tense, it is better to ask students to make at least one
sentence per lesson, describing two events which happened in the past. By the end of the
lesson, a teacher should monitor whether each student fulfilled their task. Such practice will
make them more conscious and confident users of past perfect tense.
2. Revision of most widespread past participle forms will solve this problem, as well as drilling
them and pronouncing CIC.
Pronunciation

o o o
When I arrived at the cinema, the film had started.

/ aiˈj.əraivd/, / fɪlm ədstɑːtid/

Anticipated problems with pronunciation

1. The pronunciation of -ed can cause problems for the students, because it can be pronounced in
three different ways: as / id , /t / or /d /. In the sentence, there are two verbs with -ed ending, namely
arrived and started.
2. Students can read silent ‘h’ in a word ‘when’
Solutions to problems with pronunciation
1. The solution will be showing ‘a guided discovery’ session, conveying the pronunciation rule. Ask
students to pronounce both verbs arrived and started. Then provide them with a visual support,
for example, a poster with two types of words showing the rule sequences. Ask CCQs for
further clarification.

The /id/ sound The /d/ sound

 wanted  played
 waited  closed
 needed  opened
 folded  lived

2. To cross silent letter ‘h’ on the board. Highlight and practice pronunciation.

Reference:
Title, author, page number:

1. Concept Questions and Time Lines. Workman, G.,p.7. (2008), (London: Gem Publishing);
p.OHT22
2. Cambridge Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2018
3. Teaching English Grammar. Jim Scriviner. p. 179-181. (2007) Macmillian Books for teachers.

Grammar 2, Marker sentence:

My grandfather would always have candy for us.

Meaning

This phrase means that my father always gave me a candy in the past and he always did it
usually did it with amusement.

Would always

xxx
Past Present Future

1. Does my grandfather give us a candy now? (no)

2. Did he do it in the past? (y)
3. Did he often or seldom give us a candy? (often)
4. Did my grandfather enjoy giving us a candy? (y)
5. Did he give us too much a candy? (y)

Context:

Every summer holidays my sister and I went to see my grandfather, who lived at the country side. He
was very kind to us. My grandfather would always have candy for us. Our parents were worried that
we usually had too many sweats, when we were at my granpa’s place.
Anticipated problems with meaning

1. Students might compare ‘would always’ and ‘used to’. Main difference is that ‘would always’
expresses a habit in the past, which is an action. After ‘used to’ we use either a state or an
action.
2. Students might not understand that a habit was extreme (annoying or with amusement).
Solutions to anticipated problems with meaning

1. To elicit meaning from the context comparing ‘would always’ and ‘used to’.
My grandfather would always have a candy for us. (past habit)
My grandfather used to have a candy for us. (past action)
2. Give context and ask CCQ 4.

Form

[ would+ adverb of frequency]

My grandfather would always have candy for us.

My grandfather would never have candy for us

Would my grandfather always have candy for us?

Anticipated problems with form
1. Students may use ‘would always’ in the same way as used to. But ‘would always’ can express a
 past repeated action, but not a state.
2. Students might put infinitive ‘to’ with would, as it is a common mistake with modal verbs and
‘would’ is a model verb.

Solutions to anticipated problems with form

1. It is better to show an example, eliciting that ‘would always’ expresses a past action, while ‘used to’
both a past action and a state.
Examples:
 My grandfather used to have a candy for us. (= a state) - Correct
 My grandfather would always have a candy for us. (= an action) – Correct
 My grandfather would always be kind to us and have a candy for us. (= a state) - Not Correct

2. Highlight this mistake on the board.

My grandfather would always to have a candy for us
Pronunciation

o o o O
My grandfather / wʊd ˈɔːlweɪz əv/ a candy for us.

Anticipated problems with pronunciation

1. Students may not know that when ‘would always’ is stressed, it expresses an annoying habit.
2. Students may have difficulty with pronunciation of ‘would ’, as it has silent letters, namely o,d.
Solutions to problems with pronunciation
1. Use eliciting the meaning from the context, as well as visuals for better understanding:
O O
 My grandfather would always have a candy for us.. – We were not happy about it.
2. Possible approaches to solving a problem:
 Model pronunciation
 Drill CIC
 Board the word would /wʊd/
 Elicit and highlight stress
 Elicit and highlight part of the speech (POS) – modal verb
Reference:
Title, author, page number References:1.
 
 Macmillan English Dictionary for advanced Learners.(2002). Oxford: MacmillanPublishers Ltd.2.
 Swan Michael. (2009). Practical English Usage. p.629

Vocabulary 1, Marker sentence:

He looked up the word in a dictionary. (pre-intermediate)

Meaning
To look up something means to look for information and clarification either meaning or form in a
dictionary or reference book, or by using a computer.

CCQs:
1. Did he just look above? (n)
2. Did he look for clarification into the dictionary? (y)
3. Did he need to check the meaning of the word? (y)
4. Would he understand the meaning of the word without checking in a dictionary? (n)

Context:
My friend had a university lecture last week. The professor of Foreign languages department gave him
a reading task to complete. It was an article about China’s influence on the globalization processes.
The reading task contained many difficult words. So, he looked it up in a dictionary.

Anticipated problems with meaning

1. Ss might think that this phrase means just to look above.

2. Ss might think that it means to find the word in the dictionary literally.
Solutions to anticipated problems with meaning
1. Ask CCQ 1.
2.Use an example of a word and ask students to find its definition in a realia (dictionary). Then ask
CCQ 2.

Form

[ subject+ phrasal verb (verb particle) +object]

He looked up the word in a dictionary.

It is a seperable and transitive phrasal verb.

Affirmative - He looked up the word in a dictionary.

Negative - He didn’t look up the word in a dictionary.

Question - Did he look up the word in a dictionary?

Anticipated problems with form

1. Students might omit the particle ‘up’ in the phrasal verb.
2. Students might change the form by missing the object ‘word’.
Solutions to anticipated problems with form
 1. To highlight the omitted particle on the board.
2. Write sentences on the board. Clarify that the object must come at the end of the phrasal verb
and they must stay together. Color code the correct form.
Pronunciation
Write the marker sentence below and indicate relevant aspects of phonology. Write the TL in IPA and
indicate linked sounds, sentence stress and schwas.

o o O
He looked up the word in a dictionary.

/hiː lʊktʌp ðə wɜːld ɪn ədɪkʃənəri /

Anticipated problems with pronunciation
1. Students might pause after each word in a phrasal verb.
2. Students pronounce -ed ending as /id/.
Solutions to anticipated problems with pronunciation
1. Practice pronunciation: model, pronounce chorally and individually.
2.Give students a task where they should divide words into three groups. They work in pairs. Elicit
answers and write on the board. Check if they understood the rules. If the last consonant of the word is
voiceless, then the -ed is pronounced as a -t. If the last letter of the word is spelled with -d or -t, the -ed
is pronounced as a separate syllable with an /id/ sound.

Reference:
Title, author, page number
1. Cambridge Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2018
2. Swan Michael. (2009). Practical English Usage. p.629

Vocabulary 2

She can’t make ends meet with 3 children and so many bills to pay. (advanced)
Meaning

To make ends meet means to be able to earn enough money to pay for everyday living. To have
enough money to raise children and pay for life necessities.

ССQs:
1. Can she make ends meet now? (n)
2. Has she got a lot of bills to pay? (y)
3. Does she have 3 children? (y)
4. Why is it difficult to pay the bills? (she has three children)

Context:

My friend is raising three children alone. Things have not been great financially since her husband left
her. She has to work two jobs just to make ends meet. Still she is considering herself lucky that her
mother is helping her with the baby. But she can’t make ends meet with 3 children and so many bills to
pay.

Past Present Future

(Things aren’t great financially)
Anticipated problems with meaning
1. Students might not know this idiom. Most commonly that they will express the same idea
using non-idiomatic phrase.
2. Students may understand this idiom literally and it doesn’t make sense.
Solutions to anticipated problems with meaning
1. Listen to the students carefully and rephrase their ideas into an idiom.
2. Give students a context and elicit answers and then check the meaning. Use a visual if
necessary.

Form

[Subject+ model verb+ idiom]

She can’t make ends meet with 3 children and so many bills to pay.

Transitive and inseparable idiomatic verb.

She can make ends meet with 3 children and so many bills to pay.
She can’t make ends meet with 3 children and so many bills to pay.
Can make ends meet with 3 children and so many bills to pay.

Anticipated problems with form

1. As ‘can’t’ is a model verb students may put infinitive ‘to’ after, e.g. ‘She can’t to make’.
2. Students may run into trouble when they put words between parts of an idiomatic verb.
Solutions to anticipated problems with form
1. Highlight sentence on the board and cross ‘to’.
2. Write two sentences on the board, illustrating the difference.
 She can’t make ends meet with 3 children and so many bills to pay.(Correct)
 She can’t meet ends make with 3 children and so many bills to pay.(Incorrect as it is an
inseparable idiomatic verb)
Pronunciation
o o o o O
/ ʃiː kɑ:nt meɪk endz miːt / with 3 children and so many bills to pay.

Anticipated problems with pronunciation

1. Students may put incorrect stress in the sentence. It is a negative sentence and ‘can’t’ is under
stress.
2. Students may pronounce this idiom with a pause after each word.
Solutions to anticipated problems with pronunciation
1. Write the sentence on the board. Put stress and practice pronunciation, use CIC drilling.
2. Highlight linking sounds on the board. Model and CIC drilling.

Reference:
1. Cambridge Dictionary. Cambridge University Press 2018
2. Swan Michael. (2009). Practical English Usage. p.657
3. Google resource. Visual.
4. “Constructions” and grammar: Evidence from idioms. Julia Horvath. Tel Aviv University

Cambridge Assessment Criteria

 Analyzing language correctly for teaching purposes

 Correctly using terminology when analyzing language
 Referencing information that you have learned about language to an appropriate source.
 Using written language that is clear, accurate and appropriate to the task.