Guided Discovery Worksheet: Narrative Tenses (With Concept Checking
Questions)
Instructions: Read the following sentences carefully. Then, answer the questions
below each section to help you understand the meaning and form of the different past
tenses.
Part 1: Past Simple
1. She arrived at the station at 8:00 AM.
2. The train left on time.
3. We visited the museum last weekend.
○ What kind of actions do these sentences describe? (e.g., finished actions,
ongoing actions)
○ Do these actions have a specific duration mentioned?
○ What is the basic form of the verb in these sentences? (Think about regular
and irregular verbs)
Concept Checking Questions:
○ Did she arrive at the station?
○ Is she still at the station?
○ Is the action of arriving finished?
○ Did the train leave?
○ Is the train still leaving?
○ Is the action of the train leaving finished?
○ Did we visit the museum?
○ Are we still visiting the museum?
○ Is the action of visiting finished?
Part 2: Past Continuous
1. He was reading a book when the phone rang.
2. They were playing football in the park all afternoon.
3. It was raining heavily when we left the house.
○ What was the person doing when another action happened in sentence 1?
○ What does sentence 2 tell us about the duration of the action?
○ What kind of action does sentence 3 describe at a specific time in the past?
○ What is the form of the verb in these sentences? (What two parts make up the
verb?)
Concept Checking Questions:
○ Was he reading the book?
○ Did he finish the book?
○ Was the phone ringing?
○ Did they play football?
○ Did they play football for a short time?
○ Was it raining?
○ Did it rain for a short time?
Part 3: Past Perfect
1. They had already eaten dinner when we arrived.
2. She had lived in London before she moved to Paris.
3. He realized he had forgotten his keys.
○ In sentence 1, which action happened first – eating dinner or arriving?
○ What does the past perfect tense show about the relationship between the
two past actions?
○ What is the form of the verb in these sentences? (What two parts make up the
verb?)
Concept Checking Questions:
○ Did they eat dinner?
○ Did we arrive?
○ Which action happened first?
○ Did she live in London?
○ Did she move to Paris?
○ Which action happened first?
○ Did he forget his keys?
○ Did he realize something?
○ Which action happened first?
Part 4: Putting it Together
Read the following short paragraph:
● I woke up early that morning. The sun was shining brightly. I had planned a picnic,
so I quickly got dressed and made some sandwiches. By the time I left the house,
my friends were already waiting for me at the park.
○ Underline all the verbs in the past simple. Why do you think these actions are
in the past simple?
○ Circle the verb in the past continuous. What does this tense describe in this
paragraph?
○ Put a box around the verb in the past perfect. Why did the writer use the past
perfect here?
Past Simple Exercises:
● I ___________ (not/drink) any beer last night.
● She ___________ (get on) the bus in the center of the city.
● What time ___________ (he/get up) yesterday?
● Where ___________ (you/get off) the train?
● I ___________ (not/change) trains at Victoria.
Past Continuous Exercises:
● The children ___________ (play) hide and seek in the park.
● They ___________ (go) to the movies.
● I ___________ (read) the book you gave me on my birthday.
● Winnie ___________ (stitch) her new dress.
● The dogs ___________ (bark) all night.1
Past Perfect Exercises:
● Paul ___________ (forget) his wallet so he couldn't pay the bill.
● Yesterday I met a friend that I ___________ (not/see) for ages.
● I was surprised that they ___________ (find) the answer so quickly.
● The coach ___________ (not/prepare) for such a difficult game.
● Jean was upset because no one ___________ (notice) her new haircut.
FCE Writing Part 2: Story
You have seen this notice in an English language magazine:
Have you ever experienced a day that changed your life forever?
We are looking for stories about a single day that had a significant impact on you. Tell
us what happened, where you were, who you were with, and explain why this day was
so life-changing.
The best stories will be published in our next issue.
Write your story in 140-190 words.
