In-Class 1 Materials

Simple Past & Past Continuous

*B2.1 Unit 1A-B*

1
 Activity 02.01: Time Stands Still
Directions: What does the phase “Time Stands Still” mean? Have you ever felt that sensation?
Watch the video Time Stands Still (02:37)
With your classmate(s) answer the following questions:
· What was happening before time stopped? How about when time sped up? Recall as many

specific details as possible.

· What do you think the man was feeling as he walked towards the girl? What about when time

sped up?

Activity 02.02: Past Tense Review

Simple versus Continuous

Simple Past Past Continuous

Completed events that began and ended in the past,
generally at a known or implied time.
Can also refer to a state of being in the past
(with stative verbs).*
An event that occurred over a period
of time in the past
Usually interrupted or stopped by
another event
Action verbs only (no stative verbs!)*

Examples: Examples:
I was at work when they announced the merger. Jan was giving a presentation when**
her mother called.
While** I was driving, I almost hit a
dog!

2
*Useful trick: If a verb happens in your head or your heart, it might not be a true action and
therefore cannot be used in a continuous tense. Ex: Remember, love, etc.
**Note: In a sentence with both tenses where one action interrupts another, we can use when with
the simple past and while with the continuous.

Activity 02.03: Act It Out

Directions: Screenshare the information below with your partner.
Use the simple past or the past continuous to complete the sentences with your partner.

A Golden Find: While divers _______________

were working (work) off the coast of Florida, they _______________
discovered

(discover) a shipwreck containing gold worth $2 million. The divers _________________

were filming (film) a show
found
about the coral reef when they _________________ (find) the gold.

Four-Legged Customers: One windy day, a woman ________________ (walk) her poodle down the
street. A hairstylist _______________ (see) the dog through a window and _______________ (notice) its
crazy hair! Later, while the stylist ________________ (create) a new line of hair care products for cats
and dogs, he _________________ (come up with) a new slogan: “Even animals have bad hair days!”

Rescue...The Ambulance!: An ambulance driver _________________ (have) breakfast in a coffee shop

when a woman ________________ (hop) into his ambulance and ___________________ (drive) away.
The driver ___________________ (grab) his cell phone and ____________________ (alert) the police. The
carjacker ___________________ (go) over 90 miles an hour when the highway patrol finally
________________ (catch up with) her.

3
 (Extension Activity) What Were You Doing?
Directions: Choose a question below and answer the question telling a 2-minute story about what
you were doing during the event. When you and partner finish answering the first question, continue
to answer the others
1. What were you doing when Costa Rica lost to the Netherlands in the World Cup of 2014?
2. What were you doing when the earthquake of Cinchona happened?
3. Tell about what you remember about the social networking boom of the 2010s. What
changed, what didn’t? How was the world changing?
4. What were you doing when you heard Michael Jackson died?
5. What were you doing on September 11?
6. Tell us what you did for your 18 birthday.
th

Activity 03:01: Influential Experiences

Directions:
(Part 1) Each person in you group has 2- 4 minutes to respond to the following questions:

What made you who you are? What experiences have shaped you to be the person
you are today.
(Share specific stories about specific events from your life!)

(Part 2) You have 6 minutes to discuss the following questions for EACH picture below.

● What made the person who they are?

● What experiences have shaped him/ her to be the person he/ she is today.
(Work together as a group to create the person’s experiences and history)

4
 Activity 03.02: Vocab Gab
Directions: Read the sentences out loud and try to guess the meaning of the word in BOLD based on
the context of the sentences.

1. There are a lot of people that I have conversations with at the office, but it’s usually
just small talk.
2. Hey! How was your weekend? It was ok. Same old, same old.
3. I saw an accident on the road that really threw me for a loop the other day.
4. Back in the day, we used to play soccer in the street.
5. That was a really good movie! By the way, I hear they are asking for extras for the
sequel.

5
Directions: Discuss the following questions with your classmates:

● What are your thoughts on small talk? Do you like it? Hate it? Is it necessary?

● What topics do you think are considered small talk? What topics are deeper or more
involved?

● Tell your partners about an experience that threw you for a loop. Why was it so
remarkable/startling?

● What did you do back in the day that you don’t do anymore? Why did you stop?