A selection of English ESL past printables with discussion starters, speaking cards, speaking practice

Discussion starters, speaking cards

Past

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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how to accuse somebody of something in English

how to apologize, say sorry, forgive and express regret in English

how to ask for information and make inquiries in English

how to ask for something, make requests in English

how to blame somebody for something in English

how to defend yourself from criticism in English

how to deny or admit something in English

how to describe things or people in English

how to emphasize important things in English

how to encourage or discourage people in English

how to evaluate people or progress in English

how to express agreement /disagreement in English

how to express approval and disapproval  in English

how to express cause and effect in English

how to express interest in something in English

how to express likelihood, probability in English

how to express likes and dislikes in English

how to express sequence and chronology in English

how to express shock and disbelief in English

how to express sympathy and condolences in English

how to give permission, authorization in English

how to inform somebody about some news in English

how to interpret what was said in English

how to keep a conversation going in English

how to make guesses about something in English

how to make, accept and refuse offers in English

how to order or make a booking in English

how to persuade, convince people in English

how to praise people and express appreciation in English

how to reassure somebody of something in English

how to refuse and object to something in English

how to remind people of something in English

how to rephrase, paraphrase what was said in English

how to say thank you, express gratitude in English

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

"Used to" and "would" which mean a past happening that no long occurs- is a very confusing grammar point. 



There is a grammar guide  along with exercises to practice the different meanings. 



Key included.



NBA speaking cards: 



https://en.islcollective.com/resources/printables/worksheets_doc_docx/modal_verbs_practice_cards/can/78644

Used to & Would  Grammar Guide & Exercises + KEY 

A fun board game meant to get students to use the past tense by making sentences, answering and asking questions. You can use it with adults mostly. Explain the rules from the beginning to avoid confusion.

Past tense simple board game

A worksheet to practise asking and answering questions using the simple past, simple present and future. Example questions and answers are provided. Pictures with answer statements are provided. Students form the question in either the past, present or future according to the examples. This could be used for a teaching or review lesson.

Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow

A walk down memory lane which won't be too long or tedious. This activity can be a good warm-up if you revise Past Simple and Past Continuous and need some dynamic to kick-start or round off the lesson. Finding out that your students can't actually remember a lot from "not so ago" can also be fun and a nice stimulus to e.g. write a blog or a diary - in English, of course! :)

What can you remember? - past tenses - quick survey 

A shorter version of my original phrasal verb worksheet but this time with only twelve examples and no story. However, there is a Wonderwall online game available as well as my Kahoot game. There is also bingo included, as are the answers. Have fun! Play the Wonderwall game from the link below https://wordwall.net/resource/8087940 Play the Kahoot game from the link below https://create.kahoot.it/details/2e59053b-a135-430b-a39f-03f9b138324d Also published on live worksheets, click below to do the task- 

https://www.liveworksheets.com/ya1421981kx



Phrasal Verbs about the Past - shorter version

Practice forming questions and answers in the past tense. Have the students fill in the blanks within a certain amount of time. After that students read the part of the sentence they have completed and the other students form questions trying to guess which sentence was being completed. If a student guesses correctly and after any ensuing coinversation has been exhasted, the student who guessed correctly should read the part of their sentence they completed.  After the activity finishes check the students grammar for accuracy. Have fun. 

Past Tense Sentence Completion Guessing Game (speaking practice)

This worksheet is designed for B1-B2 learners, focusing on verbs often confused like argue/disagree, notice/realize, and teach/learn. Through an engaging article on why now is the best time to be alive, students will reflect on modern life versus past generations, while practicing these commonly confused verbs. The worksheet encourages discussion and speaking activities where students compare their lives to those of their parents or grandparents, prompting reflection and vocabulary building.


In addition to discussion, students will complete grammar exercises where they choose the correct verb for specific contexts, followed by a creative writing activity. For the writing task, students imagine they are living in the past, writing a letter to a friend about their day using the target verbs. This approach blends vocabulary, grammar, and speaking skills, providing practical language use in a creative context. The worksheet promotes student interaction, fostering real communication while focusing on grammar points relevant to their daily lives.

Why Now is the Best Time to Be Alive (speaking and commonly confused verbs)

Ask students to find those who have done these things. Ask them stand up and interview different students. Walk around the classroom and write down the names. They can't sit down until they make a line. Then check their sheet and ask some follow-up questions. i.e. Have you ever met a celebrity, Sarah? Since her name is on the sheet, she must have met a celebrity. Then you can ask which celebrity she's met...

8 Past, Discussion starters, speaking cards, Speaking Practice English ESL worksheets pdf & doc