57

UNIT 8
Honey, you’re sleep-walking again…

SNAPSHOT

Look at the picture. Find the words that best explain the activities.

Universitas Negeri Padang

 58
!

READING

Déjà Vu

Last night, Nikita was reading ‘The Fault in Our Stars’ in her
bedroom. She was halfway through the book when she heard a knock on
the door. She ran downstairs to answer the door. And to her surprise, she
saw a little boy. He was dripping wet because it was raining heavily
outside.

He was wearing a navy blue sweater, sweatpants, and red boots.

He was crying. Nikita was asking him why he was crying but he gave no
response. She brought the boy inside. She told him to sit down.

Seeing the boy gave Nikita an idea. “Maybe he’s hungry or

thirsty”. So, she went to the kitchen to make a cup of tea. While she was
pouring the water, she heard the door closing. She went back only to find
the boy was gone. To her surprise, there was no trace of water on the
floor.

She rushed outside to check for the boy. Nothing. Nikita was
about to turn off the light to go upstairs, when somebody tapped her
shoulder. It was her mom. She said, “Honey, you were sleepwalking
again”. But Nikita was pretty sure what had just happened was real. The
boy was real, wasn’t he? She was making tea, wasn’t she? And she had
been reading a book, hadn’t she?

Universitas Negeri Padang

 59
!
Exercise 1
List the present participle (verb ending in –ing) words that you find in the text
above. Try to guess one possible meaning for each vocabulary item, and write
them in the following table.

No New Vocabulary Possible Meaning

1
2
3
4
5

Exercise 2
Read the following statements. Check if they are true or false.

Statements True False

Nikita was reading 'The Fault in Our Stars' in the bathroom.
The boy was wearing a navy blue sweater, sweatpants and
red boots.
The boy was crying.
Nikita thought that the boy was happy.
The floor was dry.

Universitas Negeri Padang

 60
!

GRAMMAR FOCUS

Past Continuous
is used to describe actions or events at a time before now. This
action began in the past and is still going on at the time of speaking.
Function
In other words, it expresses an unfinished or incomplete action in
the past.

Form S + was/were + V-ing + object/complement

Exam ple Nikita was reading ‘The Fault in Our Stars’.

Exercise 3

Write down 8 sentences from the reading text that use Past Continuous.

Universitas Negeri Padang

 61
!
The Structure of Sentences Using Past Continuous

Positive Sentences
Subject + Auxiliary Verb + Present Auxiliary Verbs: Were/Was
Participle + Object 'Was' is used in the first person
singular (I) and the third person
singular (he, she, it).
'Were' is used in the second person
singular and plural (you) and first and
third person plural (we, they).
Present Participle: (Verb + -ing)
Examples
He was waiting for you.
The dog was barking at them.
They were eating their food.
You were crossing the street.

Negative Sentences
Subject + Auxiliary Verb + not +
Present Participle + Object
Subject + was/were + not + (Verb + -
ing) + Object
Auxiliary Verbs: Were/Was
'Was' is used in the first person
singular (I) and the third person
singular (he, she, it).
'Were' is used in the second
person singular and plural (you)
and first and third person plural
(we, they).
Present Participle: (Verb + -ing)
He was not waiting for you.

or
Examples
He wasn't waiting for you.

The dog was not barking at them.

Universitas Negeri Padang
 62
!
They were not eating their food.

or

They weren't eating their food.

You were not crossing the street.

Interrogative Sentences
Auxiliary Verbs: Were/Was
Auxiliary Verb + Subject + Present 'Was' is used in the first person
Participle + Object? singular (I) and the third person
singular (he, she, it).
was/were + Subject + (Verb + -ing) + 'Were' is used in the second
Object person singular and plural (you)
and first and third person plural
(we, they).
Present Participle: (Verb + -ing)

Was he waiting for you?

Was the dog barking at them?

Examples
Were they eating their food?

Were you crossing the street?

Universitas Negeri Padang

 63
!
Exercise 4

Decide on the auxiliary verb for each subject.

1. She ______ dancing on the rain.

2. Carlos ______ taking his medication.

3. He and she ______ driving.

4. You and I ______ arguing.

5. They ______ attending a meeting.

6. Costa Rica ______ expanding its economy.

7. A priest ______ leading the service.

8. My brother ______ skipping class yesterday.

9. Many people ______ witnessing the Royal Wedding.

10. Everybody ______ changing.

11. Diego ______ going through some stuff.

12. Her hair ______ growing rapidly.

13. Mice ______ invading the kitchen.

14. The horses ______ kicking each other.

15. Louie ______ crying all night.

16. We ______ singing along to the music.

17. Wilson ______ hiking in Griffith Park.

18. April ______ posing for Harper Bazaar.

19. Jose and Maria ______ tying the knot in Alberta.

20. My teacher ______ explaining the lesson.

Universitas Negeri Padang

 64
!
Exercise 5

Complete these sentences using Past Continuous.

1. Margo and her parents _________________ (sleep).

2. The students _________________ (read) a book.

3. You _________________ (clap) your hands.

4. The boy _________________ (run) around the room.

5. The choir _________________ (sing) a hymn.

6. The dog _________________ (jump) up and down.

7. The teacher _________________ (draw) on the board.

WRITING
Describe the picture at the beginning of the unit using Past Continuous.

Universitas Negeri Padang