Simple Past Rules

Jon ITTT Read my articles 6 Questions About Teaching Abroad | ITTT | TEFL Blog Jon ITTT TEFL Information This ITTT TEFL article answers 6 questions about what is needed when you want to teach English as a foreign language abroad. 6 Important Steps to Getting a Teaching Job | ITTT | TEFL Blog Jon ITTT TEFL Information This ITTT TEFL article takes you through the 6 steps involved in completing a TEFL course and find a job a an English teacher abroad. 10 Exciting Activities for the Past Simple | ITTT | TEFL Blog Jon ITTT Teaching Ideas This ITTT TEFL article looks at 10 activities you can use in your classroom when teaching the past simple tense. Rules of Etiquette in 4 Latin American Countries | ITTT | TEFL Blog Jon ITTT Destinations This ITTT TEFL article looks at...  [Read more]

How can I pass a TEFL job interview? Many overseas TEFL employers complete their job interview process online via Skype or Zoom, etc. However, in some parts of the world it is still common for teaching jobs to be secured following a face-to-face interview at the actual school where the job is located. While it is true that every interview is a little different, there are a few common themes that you can prepare for in advance. What are the basic things to remember for a TEFL job interview? One huge thing to remember is the old saying that we form a first impression of someone within seven seconds of meeting them for the first time. If you want to get off to a good start and not ruin your chances before the interview has even really started, there are a few simple techniques you should...  [Read more]

Wed, 08 Jan 2020 Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas The Importance of Grammar and How We Teach it Teaching grammar is one of the most challenging things for a teacher of English. As a student, it is essential to learn grammar as this gives you accuracy both in writing and speaking. This applies to every language, not only to English. Table of Contents Grammar vs. Math Balanced Approach to Teaching Verb as a Core of Language Teaching Approaches to Teaching Grammar Past Perfect Past Tense Present Future Do you want to teach English abroad? Take a TEFL course! Related Articles: This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Adrian D. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Grammar vs. Math In many ways grammar can be...  [Read more]

Tue, 28 May 2019 Mark Crocker Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas Teaching Multiple Tenses: Should You Do It and If So Which Ones? Teaching multiple tenses might sound frightening as teaching a single tense can sometimes be a challenge on its own. However, while it might seem difficult the first time you try it, it isn't as daunting as you would think. When teaching more than one tense at a time there are two main factors to consider: which tenses to teach together and what language level you are teaching. Table of Contents Simple Rules to Consider When Teaching Tenses Future Tense Forms Perfect Continuous Tenses Other Tense Options Are you ready to teach English grammar abroad? Related Articles: Listen to this blog post This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate...  [Read more]

Sun, 03 Mar 2019 Linda Dunsmore Alumni Experiences A Summary of All English Tenses for ESL Teachers and Learners The tense system of English is probably one of the most daunting areas for many speakers of other languages. Multiple tenses should be taught through explaining strict grammar rules while allowing the students to practice proper structure, as well as evaluating themselves with quizzes and examples. Table of Contents Listen to this blog post: 1. The Past Tenses 1) Simple Past Tense 2) Past Continuous Tense 3) Past Perfect Tense 4) Past Perfect Continuous Tense 2. The Present Tenses 1) Simple Present Tense 2) Present Continuous Tense 3) Present Perfect Tense 4) Present Perfect Continuous Tense 3. The Future Tense 1) Simple Future Tense 2) Future Continuous Tense 3) Future...  [Read more]

Mon, 22 Apr 2019 Linda Dunsmore Alumni Experiences The Most Common Problems Portuguese Native Speaking Students When Learning English I have had the pleasure of living and teaching in Brazil over the past 2 years and in my time in this country I have learned a great amount about the difficulties that are seemingly unique to native Portuguese speakers trying to learn English as a second or even third language. There seems to be deeply ingrained assumptions within the way Portuguese speakers approach both the pronunciation of words based on their spelling, and their understanding of grammatical structures and the usage of said structures. Table of Contents English is highly analytical, whereas Portuguese is intrinsically inflective Are you ready to take a TEFL course? Related...  [Read more]

Thu, 30 May 2019 Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Peculiarities of The English Language I did not realize how difficult English is until I became fluent in Spanish. I am currently studying French and I am pretty good at French. I have a basic knowledge of Esperanto. Table of Contents English is difficult for several reasons English is not a phonetic language There are exceptions to every rule Some examples of other exceptions to English rules Pronunciation Are you ready to teach English all over the world? Related Articles: Listen to this blog post: This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Wayne K. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. English is difficult for several reasons I will just touch on each of...  [Read more]

Mon, 16 Sep 2019 Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Teaching Multiple Tenses: The Past, Present, and Future Tenses In English, varying tense forms will change the structure of a sentence and verb conjugation. When studying English grammar, learning different tenses can present a great challenge to learners as well as teachers. English language learners may have to adjust to a greater number of tenses in English than in their native tongue. According to ITTT course materials, experts will state there are twelve tenses in the English language. The changes informing English verbs which mark past, present and future tenses are a key concept for learners to grasp to communicate effectively. Table of Contents Peculiarities of the English Language Present Tense Past Tense Future Tense Do you...  [Read more]

Providers TEFL Teaching Check out tefl tesol about Providers TEFL Teaching and apply today to be certified to teach English abroad. You could also be interested in: This is how our TEFL graduates feel they have gained from their course, and how they plan to put into action what they learned: Check out ITTT's Blog Posts G.K. - Russia said: Teaching GrammarGrammar is central to the teaching and learning of languages. It is also one of the more difficult aspects of language to teach well. We all know what words are, for example: met, she, yesterday her friend. These words tell us little but what we can do is combine all these words to make sentences, which can tell us a lot more: She met her friend yesterday. This is not as simple as it may seem ? we can?t simply put words together in a...  [Read more]

Wed, 09 Oct 2019 Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas How to Help Chinese Native Speakers to Follow English Grammar Rules in Speaking Grammar is the rules governing the composition of clauses, phrases, and words in a natural language. Simply put, grammar is the general rule of a language. Language is logical; grammar tells us in which order we say words. It's about how words become phrases; how words and phrases become sentences and how sentences become language. Table of Contents The Essence of Grammar Different languages have different grammar rules How to teach grammar (EFL: how to teach Chinese students English) Do you want to teach English abroad? Take a TEFL course! Related Articles: This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Yang S. Please note that this blog post...  [Read more]

Fri, 17 Jul 2020 Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Challenges and Principles of Teaching Tenses and Conditionals In the early lessons of the course, I was able to better understand the components of the sentence, and the knowledge about word types was expanded. It includes a definite article, adjective, noun, verb, preposition, adverb, conjunction, gerund, personal pronoun. Table of Contents Tenses Conditionals The five main conditionals are as follows: Do you want to teach English abroad? Take a TEFL course! Related Articles: This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Phuong P. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Tenses In unit 4, we have started talking about tenses in English. I looked at the four present...  [Read more]

The Best Teaching Ideas for TEFL Teachers Lesson Planning: Secret Strategies to Know Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas This blog post is about lesson planning. Our TEFL graduate explains why teachers need to plan, and how students can benefit from it. Why Stories Are Essential for Language Learning Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas This article was written by our TEFL student, who shares their thoughts on the importance of using stories in ESL teaching. Rules of Phonetics and Phonology in ESL Teaching Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Our TEFL trainee shares their thoughts on phonetics and phonology as an integral part of the English language learning. Consequences of Low Motivation Level in The Classroom Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas In this blog post, our...  [Read more]

Mon, 05 Aug 2019 Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences The English Language's Most Surprising Peculiarities The English language is a peculiar, fascinating beast to teach and to learn. It comes with a long legacy of Anglo-Saxon and Norman invaders, empire-building, and globalization of the 20th century. With multiple layers of rules and culture, it overflows with idiosyncrasies and peculiarities to confound native and learning speakers alike. Whether it's pronunciation, grammar, or even just the system of time, English is a welcoming lingua franca and an intimidating coil of strangeness at the same time. Table of Contents Cultural Historical Conceptual Orthoepical Grammatical Do you want to teach English abroad? Take a TEFL course today! Related Articles: This post was written by...  [Read more]

Fri, 21 Aug 2020 Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas British English vs. American English: Which Variation Is Better to Learn? English is one of the most dynamic languages on the planet, which develops every day. Therefore, there are a lot of variations of the English language. Which kind of English should we learn? Table of Contents English Variants There are many differences between American and British English. Moreover, American English was formed under the influence of immigrants' pronunciation from various countries. Now let's have a quick look at the differences in grammar. Why should we study British English instead of American? Do you want to teach English abroad or online? Take a TEFL course! Related Articles: Check out what our course grads say in our many video...  [Read more]

Wed, 06 Nov 2019 Linda Dunsmore Teaching Ideas 7 Activities for Teaching the Simple Past for the ESL Classroom The simple past is one of the most important tenses in the English language. As it describes past actions, it's quite an easy tense to teach using a variety of fun and interactive activities. Here are 7 activities for teaching the simple past for the ESL classroom. Table of Contents 1. Preparations 2. Good Days and Bad Days 3. Charades Series 4. Dear Diary 5. Get Out and About 6. Accurate Endings 7. Double Duty Review Listen to this blog post Are you ready to teach English abroad? Related Articles: For more activities check out: 10 Exciting Activities for the Past Simple 1. Preparations For this activity, the students think of significant accomplishments in their lives....  [Read more]

Sun, 15 Oct 2023 Federico Riva TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas The Challenge of Teaching English Grammar One of the most intimidating requirements for many English teachers is teaching English grammar. This is due to the many components of English grammar, including, but not limited to, parts of speech, as well as past, present, and perfect tenses. Conditionals, direct and reported speech, modals, and phrasal verbs all fall under the English grammar umbrella. Table of Contents Understanding the Components of Grammar Navigating Tenses and Verb Forms Exploring Voices and Modals Mastering English Grammar Are you ready to teach English as a foreign language? Related Articles: Check out what our course grads say in our many video testimonials! Disclaimer: The views...  [Read more]

Wed, 31 Jul 2019 Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas The English Language and its Peculiarities The English Language is universally derided for its difficulty and the absurd number of exceptions to every rule. To teach English effectively in an EFL setting, it is important to make note of these difficulties and teach students both the rules and the plentiful exceptions. My personal experience as a teacher and the knowledge I've gleaned from this course illustrate the importance of incorporating games and group practice so that students feel motivated. I want my students to find learning English fun rather than frustrating. It is key, especially when teaching young learners, to pick one's battles: a pedantic mindset will only breed frustration and lead to a classroom full of anxious...  [Read more]

Tue, 11 Jul 2023 Federico Riva Destinations TEFL Information Alumni Experiences What is Grammar in English - Everything EFL Teachers Need to Know English language grammar has a whole lot of definitions that focus on sound rules, words, sentences, and the combination and interpretation of other elements to make complete sense. To achieve this, the International TEFL and TESOL Training Lessons outline several aspects of the English language, such as parts of speech, present tense, past tense, future tense, phrasal verbs, and passive voice. Table of Contents PARTS OF SPEECH Nouns Pronouns Verbs Adjectives Adverbs Prepositions Conjunctions Gerunds Articles TENSES IN SENTENCES The Present Tenses Past Tenses Future Tenses MODAL AUXILIARY VERBS METHODOLOGIES Conclusion Are you ready to...  [Read more]

Thu, 07 Mar 2019 Jon ITTT Alumni Experiences Awesome Insights into Teaching Italian Beginner Students When starting a career in teaching, regardless of age,gender and nationality, a prospective teacher should always bear in mind one fundamental skill:patience. This particular talent is what I personally believe distinguishes a competent teacher from the incompetent one, and is crucial in establishing the overall success of each and every student. So, how patient should teachers be and, particularly, how patient should the teachers at beginner levels be? Table of Contents The influence of the student's first language Problems with possessives, prepositions and plurals Knowing when to correct Patience is key Related Articles: Listen to this blog post This post was written by our TEFL...  [Read more]

Overview of All English Tenses - Present Tenses Overview - Present Continuous   Our second example sentence 'I am playing football at the moment.' is the present continuous tense. This has a different structure as the subject 'I', the verb 'to be' in the present tense 'am', 'is' or 'are' plus the verb with an '?ing' on the end. So here: 'I am playing football at the moment.' Whereas the present simple tense is used to talk about habits routines and facts, the present continuous tense is used to talk about actions in progress at the time of speaking or around the time of speaking. Our third example sentence is the present perfect: 'I have played football twice this week.' Here, the structure is the subject 'I', auxiliary verb 'have' or 'has' plus the past participle. The past...  [Read more]

Company Fulltime TEFL Check out tefl tesol about Company Fulltime TEFL and apply today to be certified to teach English abroad. You could also be interested in: This is how our TEFL graduates feel they have gained from their course, and how they plan to put into action what they learned: Check out ITTT's Blog Posts B.B. - Sweden said: Accents British accent tends to be rhotic, meaning the letter ?R? is pronounced hard, whereas American accent tends to be non-rhotic. However, within both Great Britain and the USA there are several accents so in essence it is incorrect to speak about the British or the American accents. Loosely speaking, spoken British English (?B.E.?) sounds more ?proper? and ?sophisticated? than American English (?A.E.?). Tenses In A.E. recent actions that have an...  [Read more]

Sun, 05 May 2019 Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Why I Decided To Take A TEFL Course Over the last month and a half, I have been completing a TEFL course. I am currently working as an assistant language teacher at a Japanese high school. Overall, I have found the experience to be very useful. The following reasons are why a TEFL course should be completed. Firstly, you gain a better understanding of how English grammar works. Secondly, from my perspective, it has reinforced and improved my current teaching strategies and practices. Thirdly, it gives teachers a structural theoretical framework to create lessons. Finally, completing a TEFL course gives you lesson ideas and activities. For these reasons, it is important to complete a TEFL course. Table of Contents English Grammar...  [Read more]

Fri, 02 Aug 2019 Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas 5 Simple Ideas on Teaching Grammar I think of myself as having been fortunate enough to have had the opportunity to learn other languages at a young age. I was taught French in primary school and at home, I learned or acquired Spanish. At school, I remember my language teacher being very textbook-oriented and she focused and followed the book to the "T". I picked up easily on the grammar because I had already learned Spanish at home and I was also very keen to learn foreign languages, especially French. The grammar didn't seem difficult or boring to me at all because I had already been exposed to the language at a very early age. However, many students didn't feel the same way I did and had difficulty with the subject and therefore,...  [Read more]

Register now & get certified to teach english abroad! Telling Time in English Telling the time in English is one of the most important skills for any English learner. There are a lot of expressions and phrases used when it comes to telling the time in English and teachers need to be able to teach it in a way that makes sense to the students. Below are five simple steps for telling the time in English.   Choose which clock to use  There are two ways how you can tell the time in English: the 12-hour clock and the 24-hour clock. For the 24-hour system, you use the numbers from 0 – 23 to indicate the hours, whereas the 12-hour system useses only 1 - 12. To indicate morning or afternoon time, you use ‘am’ after the time in the morning and ‘pm’...  [Read more]

Tue, 26 Apr 2022 Federico Riva Alumni Experiences What is Reported Speech? We can quote people through what's called direct speech. In written form it would look like "Corey said we're moving house next week". We've used quotes and we've quoted Corey directly, i.e. used the exact words that he used. There is however another way we can quote people, and this is through reported speech. We don't quote their exact words, but we simply let people know what has been said. Table of Contents Watch the video about this topic Are you ready to teach English as a foreign language? Related Articles: Check out what our course grads say in our many video testimonials! Watch the video about this topic In English we often have a need to quote people. We can do so through what's called direct...  [Read more]

Wed, 14 Jul 2021 Shirin Sophy TEFL Information Teaching Ideas An Overview of Stephen Krashen's Theories of Second Language Acquisition Second or foreign language learning, which appears to be an ever-present hurdle for many, has constantly been a topical issue with numerous Hypotheses centered around it, including language acquisition theory or monitor model with its sweeping effects on language learning in classrooms around the world. This well-known theory, first presented by Stephen Krashen in the 1970s, is initially based on six Hypotheses ( The Acquisition-Learning Hypothesis, the Natural Order Hypothesis, the Monitor Hypothesis, the Input Hypothesis, the Affective Filter Hypothesis, and the Reading Hypothesis) that will be discussed in this article. Table of Contents The...  [Read more]

Tue, 25 Aug 2020 Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Problems for Learners in France and How to Overcome Them Being an American living in France has given me firsthand experience as to what it is like to struggle with learning a new language. I studied Spanish for six years, in Junior High and High school. Language acquisition was easier then. I can attest to the fact that younger learners learn more quickly. For me, the two major problems with learning French are the tenses and not being able to understand what people are saying. I get stuck in the present tense, often forgetting to change tenses in conversation. I also need to hone up on my listening skills. Table of Contents What problems do native French speakers have with the English language? The other big problem that people...  [Read more]

Tue, 30 Apr 2019 Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences How can an instructor effectively use games with adult EFL students? When I first made the transition from primary school to university, I knew that my lesson plans were clearly going to have to change. As I began to come up with ideas for my new job, I was disappointed that most of the content I previously used had no place in the university. Games, such as Hangman and Pictionary, worked excellently in capturing the interests of my young students, but I didn't think these childish games had any place in a university classroom. I found out weeks later how wrong I was when I used Pictionary at the beginning of one of my courses to 'preview' the vocabulary we would be covering in class that day. I discovered that day that games can...  [Read more]

Wed, 05 Feb 2020 Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Simple Techniques to Maintain Discipline in Your Class Nowadays, the role of teachers is changing differently from the past. Teachers in these days are required to be kind and patient, be lively and entertaining, have a good rapport with students, and so on, it seems like the teachers are likely to be friends of students. It is good to have these qualities, however, teachers could become easygoing or too forgiving to omit the students' mistakes when they do something wrong. It is worse when teachers becoming targets and even victims of students' aggression. Therefore, it is quite difficult to teach students the boundaries between what they could and could not do. In this writing, there are two questions will be discussed. The first...  [Read more]

Tue, 21 May 2019 Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Foreign Language Experience in The Teaching Practice Although many ESL teachers do have foreign language experience, many are not aware of how much this experience benefits them. Sure, if they are teaching English in Japan, having Japanese language experience is helpful for daily life situations, but how could it bleed into the classroom as well? And the language experience doesn't necessarily have to involve the first language of the students, either. Having foreign language experiences allows the teacher to understand just how hard learning a language is, can understand where certain errors may come from, see English from a different perspective, and gives them a stronger grasp on English grammar. Table of Contents Having...  [Read more]