A selection of English ESL simple past story printables

These are 2 stories in which your students should insert a proper verb form in Simple Past, Present Simple or Present Continuous, do some exercises to practise their speaking skills.

Sally and George. Present Simple/Present Continuous and Past Simple

This worksheet contains some micro stories. Students must complete them with the past simple of the verbs given (there are both regular and irregular verbs). A2 level activity. The key is included.

Past simple - Fill in the gap exercise

A lady recounts her tale about wanting to visit Mount Vesuvius in Italy. They have to complete the true or false and then answer the questions. A full key is included. It's a true story, sadly:) 

past simple with 'eruption on vesuvius'.

This activity is for elementary or young adolescents. It's a camp song that is funny and it's a fun way to practice past simple affirmative and questions to answer as a group as well as some phrasal verbs. The real fun part is after learning the song and story to act it out with a ball by pretending it's a meatball.

On Top of Spaghetti Song - Past Simple

This worksheet was created with  intermediate+ learners in mind, perhaps a mixed-ability group (hence an extra task for fast finishers). It could be used as the first part of a task-based lesson on tenses and storytelling. I chose this text, short, yet rich in typical features of an anecdote, to become a springboard for a further discussion of spoken English grammar, reviewing present and past tenses (including past perfect) and introducing reported speech.

A funny tense review story (reading comprehension and speaking)

A section of the poem by Dr Seuss with gaps to fill using the given verbs in the past simple tense. Some verbs are irregular! Also a section to write a small description of the Grinch (using past or present tense) and a small section to write what presents the students have asked for. 

I used this video to accompany the worksheet so they understood the story: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pt2nLezH94g 



How the Grinch Stole Christmas - Past Simple Gap Fill

I first read the story and asked students to listen for place names, then for periods of time. 

Then they read it and answered the comprehension questions. 

Next they identified past simple verbs in the text, and came up with the present forms. 

They used these verbs to write about their own summer holidays.  Then we revised past simple questions, they asked each other about their summers, then reported back to the group. 

Summer holiday reading comp and past simple exercises

This gap filling activity allows for building up skills in using ten most commonly used irregular verbs through completing ten short question - answer exchanges. On completion, these short dialogues can be role-played by learners. Answer sheet is included.



The resource can be used on it's own or (advised) as a follow up for  "A Monkey Forest Day Out: irregular verbs / proofreading"   - another worksheet from my collection: http://en.islcollective.com/worksheets/worksheet_page?id=23849 



Hope this one will be well liked by you. 



You can also see similar worksheets based on the following topics: 



A sightseeing holiday in Paris: http://en.islcollective.com/worksheets/worksheet_page?id=24693 



My journey to Manchester: http://en.islcollective.com/worksheets/worksheet_page?id=24263 



We go in for sport every day: http://en.islcollective.com/worksheets/worksheet_page?id=24412  



Every comment is really welcome! :)

A Day Out At The Monkey Forest: Gap Fill Irregular Verbs

Practice using sixteen most commonly used irregular verbs through matching, reading and writing activities. The tasks are built around a short story about a family day out. Answer sheet is included.



This resource can be used on its own or followed up by a matching worksheet for further practice: A day out at the monkey forest / using irregular verbs / gapfilling - http://en.islcollective.com/worksheets/worksheet_page?id=23865



Hope you will like using this worksheet! 



You might be also interested in looking throug similar activities based on the following topics:



A sightseeing holiday in Paris: http://en.islcollective.com/worksheets/worksheet_page?id=23694



My journey to Manchester: http://en.islcollective.com/worksheets/worksheet_page?id=23755



We go in for sport every day: http://en.islcollective.com/worksheets/worksheet_page?id=23785



Every feedback and comment is welcome. :)

A Day Out At The Monkey Forest: Irregular Verbs - Proofreading

Using describing words for daily activities.

Can be used as vocabulary revision.  

A day in the life of a worker, shown in pictures.  Students will have to make sentences to describe the action shown in the picture.  It is good practice for past simple tense and usage of verbs in relation to actions.

It's a good thinking activity.



Routines

A 14 picture storyboard about a little monk and his friend who climb a tree, get an apple, befriend a dog and go for a swim. Suitable for beginner- elementary - pre-intermediate students. Students can be given the pictures cut up and make their own storybook. Students write captions under the pictures and can colour in the pictures. Hours of lessons in one storyboard.

Little monk storyboard

This belongs to my lesson plan based on the Hobbit story by J.R.R. Tolkien. This is advanced version for those who have learnt the past tense. Other materials belonging to this lesson plan can be found on my profile: https://en.islcollective.com/mypage/my-creations?id=1600581

Cut the sentences in where there are bigger gaps between the words and children have to put them in correct order.

Hobbit - dwarves’ messages 5

Culture, intercultural communication, cross-cultural communication

Adjectives to describe feelings, emotions

Adjectives to describe personality and character

Adjectives: Gradable / Non-gradable adjectives

Articles: Definite or indefinite article (a, an or the)

BE + infinitive structures (e.g. he was to become famous)

Clauses of contrast (e.g.  although, while)

Clauses of purpose (e.g. in order to, so that, so as to)

Clauses of reason (e.g. because, because of, due to, as, since)

Cleft sentences (e.g. It's Joey we're looking for)

Comparison: Comparative adjectives and structures

Comparison: Superlative adjectives and structures

Conditional 2 (second conditional) - would

Conditionals: Conditional phrases (e.g. unless, provided that, as long as)

Conjunctions (aka connectives, e.g. and, but, or, so, then)

Contractions (shortened forms, e.g. don't, aren't, etc.)

Determiners (words that can come before nouns)

Formal and informal English (politeness or colloquial language)

Future perfect continuous (progressive) tense

Future perfect simple and continuous (progressive) tense

Future phrases (e.g. be about to, bound to, likely to, due to, set to + INF)

Homonyms (two words with the same pronunciation - homophones and homographs)

It as preparatory subject (e.g. it's raining, it's nice of you to)

Linking verbs (aka copulas, e.g. I am a student)

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Nouns: Collective nouns (team, class, family, committee)

Nouns: Proper nouns (names of people, cities, companies)

Oxymorons (phrases with words of contradictory meaning, e.g. living dead)

Participles: Past participle (e.g. HAVING DONE)

Participles: Present participle (e.g. DOING)

Parts of Speech (aka word classes, e.g. nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs)

Past perfect continuous (progressive) tense

Phonetics (pronunciation, IPA, phonetic symbols)

Plural nouns: regular plurals with S ending

Prefixes (e.g. A, UN, IM, DIS, MIS, EN, etc. )

Prepositions vs adverbs (e.g. before me, saw him before.)

Prepositions: Double prepositions (e.g. out of)

Prepositions: Participle prepositions (e.g. pending, concerning)

Prepositions: Phrase prepositions (e.g. by means of)

Present perfect continuous (progressive) tense

Present perfect simple or present continuous tense

Present simple tense: S for third person singular verbs

Present simple vs continuous (progressive) tense

Pronouns: EACH OTHER, ONE ANOTHER (reciprocal pronouns)

Pronouns: Possessive pronouns (e.g. my, mine)

Pronouns: Reflexive pronouns (e.g. myself, yourself))

Pronouns: SOMEBODY, ANYBODY, EVERYBODY, NO ONE, NOTHING, etc.

Pronouns: THIS, THAT, THESE, THOSE (demonstratives)

Pronouns: YOU and THEY to talk about people in general

Quantifiers (e.g. some, many, much, any, few, little)

Questions: WH questions (open-ended questions)

Reported speech: reported questions (indirect questions)

There is / there are / there was / there were / there will be, etc.

Verbs: Transitive or intransitive verbs (words that can or cannot stand with objects)

Working with Paragraphs: ordering, titling

Role play, miming, drama activity or improv game

Pictionary (picture dictionary) or picture matching

Writing an opinion essay (persuasive essay)

Learners who are Pre-A1 have just begun learning English and will first learn how to:<ul><li>Say the letters in the alphabet and numbers</li><li>Say hello, talk about names and age</li><li>Name the colors and dates, express likes and dislikes</li></ul>

Absolute beginners who have begun to learn the letters and numbers

Learners taking the A1 Elementary exam should be able to:<ul><li>Introduce themselves and ask and answer questions about personal details such as where he/she lives, things he/she has, people he/she knows.</li><li>Communicate using very basic phrases as long as the other person talks slowly and clearly and is prepared to help.</li><li>Main grammar points to know: common adjectives & adverbs of frequency, going to, how much/how many, imperatives, I'd like, 's – possessive, common prepositions of place and time, present simple & continuous, there is/are</li></ul>

A very basic tourist level, which is enough for buying food and a bus ticket

Learners taking the A2 Pre-intermediate exam should be able to:<ul><li>Understand sentences and frequently used expressions (e.g. very basic personal and family information, shopping, local geography, employment).</li><li>Complete tasks that are routine and exchange information about familiar matters.</li><li>Describe matters of immediate need in simple terms.</li><li>Main grammar points to know: countable/uncountable nouns, adverbs of frequency, future will/going to, much/many, present perfect, past simple, past continuous, common phrasal verbs, common modals: can/should</li></ul>

A tourist who can do basic conversations about the past, present and future

Learners taking the B1 Intermediate exam should be able to:<ul><li>Understand points regarding family, work, school or leisure-related topics.</li><li>Deal with most travel situations in areas where the language is spoken.</li><li>Create simple texts on topics of personal interest.</li><li>Describe experiences, events, dreams, and ambitions, as well as opinions or plans in brief.</li><li>Main grammar points to know: question tags, intensifiers: too/enough, future tenses, past tenses, modals, conditionals, wh-questions in the past</li></ul>

Learners who can deal with both familiar and routine situations, in friendly and work contexts

Learners taking the B2 Upper-intermediate exam should be able to:<ul><li>Understand the main ideas of complex text on both concrete and abstract topics, including technical discussions in his/her field of specialization.</li><li>Interact with fluency and spontaneity that makes regular interaction with native speakers quite possible without difficulty for either party.</li><li>Produce clear, detailed text on a wide range of subjects and explain an opinion on a topical issue giving the advantages and disadvantages of various options.</li><li>Main grammar points to know: perfect tenses, mixed conditionals, modals in the present, phrasal verbs, reported speech, wish, relative clauses</li></ul>

The level where you can be a tour guide for your foreign friends and talk about a lot of topics, even abstract ones, with ease and fluency

Learners taking the C1 Advanced exam should be able to: Express ideas fluently and spontaneously without much obvious searching for expressions. Use language flexibly and effectively for social, academic and professional purposes. Understand a wide range of demanding, longer texts. Produce clear, well-structured, detailed text on complex subjects, using linking phrases (=words that connect ideas between sentences). Main grammar points to know: inversion, mixed conditionals, modals in the past, all passive forms, phrasal verbs (all patterns), wish/if only for regrets

Learners who can smoothly communicate in every walk of life, read long texts and write well

Learners taking the C2 Proficient exam should be able to:<ul><li>Understand almost everything read or heard with ease.</li><li>Summarize information from a variety of sources into a coherent presentation.</li><li>Express themselves using precise meaning in complex scenarios.</li><li>Can express him/herself spontaneously, very fluently and precisely, differentiating finer shades of meaning even in the most complex situations</li></ul>

Get here and you are ready to study in English at university

139 Simple past story English ESL worksheets pdf & doc