The First Time/Last Time Past Tenses- Extended Speaking

The First Time/Last Time Past Tenses- Extended Speaking & Review
Student A – The person speaking
Talk about the first or last time you did something, e.g. one of the things below, for as long
as you can. You can choose with any topic you like, including first time/ last time topics
which are not below. Your partner will listen and ask you for more details when you have
finished speaking. Then switch roles and do the same thing again, continuing until your
teacher stops the activity.

Possible topics for monologues about the past
The

first

last

time I

ate…
attended…
bet…
borrowed…
bought…
broke…
changed…
cooked…
drank…
drove…
flew…
gave…
got…
heard about…
hurt…
injured…
listened to…
lost…
made…
met…
moved…
phoned…
read…
received…
rode…
saw…
spoke…
studied…
tried (to)…
visited…
used…
went to…
won…
wore…

When your teacher stops the activity, ask about any topics or questions above which you
don’t understand, couldn’t use or couldn’t talk about.

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2016

Student B – The person listening

Listen to your partner speaking about their topic without interrupting. When they have
finished speaking, ask them for more details using questions like those below. Other
questions are also fine.

Possible questions for the person listening to ask about past experiences
Past tense wh- questions



How did you feel about… (after it finished)?



What did you do then/ next/ after that?



How did he/ she/ they/ you react (to…)?



When did it start/ finish?



How long did it take?/ How long did you…?



How many times had you been there before?



What was happening (around you) at that time?



What was happening when you…?



What was he/ she doing while you were …ing (…)?



Why hadn’t you… before/ for such a long time?



When had you last… (before that)?



Was it fun/ interesting/ expensive/…?



What was the best/ worst thing about…?



What were you doing when…?



What…?



When…?



How many times…?



How many…?



How much…?



How long…?



How…?



Where…?



Who…?

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2016



Whose…?



How far…?



Which…?

Past tense Yes/ No questions



Had you already met that person when…?



Had you already… when…?



Had you ever heard of that before?



Had you ever… before?



Did you agree with…?



Had you planned to…?



Had you done something similar before?



Had any of your friends/ family done the same thing before?



Was it raining/ snowing/ cloudy/ hot/ sunny/… (at that time)?



Was/ Were…?



Did…?



Had…?

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2016

Past Tenses Presentation

Regular and irregular Past Simple forms presentation

Without looking above, put each of the verbs below into their Past Simple form (“needed”

etc). Some are irregular, including some which are the same in the present and in the

past.

eat

attend

bet on

borrow

buy

break

change

cook

drink

drive

fly

give

get

hear about

hurt

injure

listen to

lose

make

meet

move

phone

read

receive

ride

see

speak

study

try

visit

use

go to

win

wear

Hint: The verbs above are arranged in alphabetical order by Past Simple form

Check your answers with the previous page.

Past Simple, Past Continuous and Past Perfect meaning presentation

Without looking above, write past questions using the subject and verb given in brackets

below. Usually only one past tense is correct for each. There are three different past forms

in total. All of the forms have more than one question each below.

Past tense wh- questions



How __________________________________ (you feel) about… after it finished?



What ______________________________________ (you do) then/ next/ after that?



When ______________________________________________________ (it finish)?



How many times ___________________________________ (you be) there before?



What ___________________________________ (happen) around you at that time?



Why _____________________________ (you do that) before/ for such a long time?

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2016

Past tense Yes/ No questions



______________________________ (you already meet) that person before when…?



___________________________________________ (you ever hear) of that before?



___________________________________________________ (it rain) at that time?

What three different forms can go in this sentence and how are their meanings different?



What ________________________________________________ (you do) when…?

What does “when” mean with each of the three different forms?

With which past tense form does “when” have each of these meanings?

-

before

-

after

-

while/ during

What are the names of the different past tenses above? How are their meanings/ uses

different from each other?

Check your answers as a class or with the next page.

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2016

Suggested answers



What did you do when…? – Past Simple – “when” means “after” – tense means past

actions in order



What were you doing when…? – Past Continuous – “when” means “while/ during” –

tense means something in progress (= started before and might continue) at a particu-

lar point in time/ when another action happened



What had you done when…? – Past Perfect – “when” means “before” – tense means

the past before the past

Written by Alex Case for UsingEnglish.com © 2016