The simple past tense is one of the most important and most used tenses in English. We use it to talk about actions that started and finished in the past. For many learners, forming the simple past correctly — especially with irregular verbs — is a major challenge. As a teacher, understanding both how to form the simple past and why we use it will help you explain it clearly and correct errors with confidence.
Before you start — think honestly about your own teaching and experience.
Look at the examples. Answer each question before reading the explanation — this is how your students will learn too.
Every day, the teacher opens the classroom door.
On Monday, the teacher opened the classroom door.
Look at the verbs in bold. What has changed between the first sentence and the second in each pair? What letters were added?
Both 'walk' and 'open' are regular verbs. In the simple past, regular verbs take the suffix -ed. The spelling is straightforward here: walk → walked, open → opened. Teachers should notice that the ending sounds different in each case: 'walked' ends in a /t/ sound, while 'opened' ends in a /d/ sound. This is a pronunciation feature that often goes unnoticed but is worth being aware of.
Every morning, Samuel writes the date on the board.
This morning, Samuel wrote the date on the board.
These verbs also changed to show the past — but they did not get -ed. How are they different from 'walked' and 'opened'? Can you see any pattern?
'Go' and 'write' are irregular verbs. They do not follow the -ed rule. Instead, they change their form completely: go → went, write → wrote. There is no single rule that predicts how an irregular verb will change — each one must be learned individually. However, some groups share similar patterns (e.g. drive/drove, write/wrote, ride/rode), and pointing these out can help learners remember them.
Look at the question and the negative sentence. What do you notice about the verb 'finish'? Has it changed to its past form?
This is a very important point. In questions and negatives using 'did/did not', the main verb goes back to its base form. 'Did' carries the past meaning, so the main verb does not need to change. This is why 'Did he went?' is wrong — 'went' is already a past form, and you cannot have two past markers. The correct form is 'Did he go?' Teachers who understand this can explain the rule clearly rather than just correcting by instinct.
| Tense / Form | Use / Meaning | Example | Key time words |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Base form | Simple past | Example sentence |
| Regular | walk | walked | She walked to the staffroom. |
| Regular | open | opened | He opened the window. |
| Regular | finish | finished | They finished the exercise. |
| Irregular | go | went | The class went outside. |
| Irregular | write | wrote | She wrote the answer on the board. |
| Irregular | tell | told | He told the students to sit down. |
| Irregular | come | came | The head teacher came to our class. |
| Question | go | Did + base form | Did she go to the meeting? |
| Negative | go | didn't + base form | She didn't go to the meeting. |
TIME EXPRESSIONS THAT SIGNAL THE SIMPLE PAST
Certain time expressions nearly always appear with the simple past because they refer to a finished period of time. These include: yesterday, last week / last month / last year, in 2010 (or any finished year), ago (e.g. two days ago), this morning (when the morning is over). When learners see or use these expressions, they should use simple past — not present perfect, not base form. This is a useful classroom shortcut.
THE -ED PRONUNCIATION TRAP
The -ed ending of regular verbs is pronounced in three ways: /t/ after voiceless sounds (walked, stopped, asked), /d/ after voiced sounds (opened, listened, arrived), and /ɪd/ after -t or -d sounds (wanted, needed, decided). Learners often pronounce the /ɪd/ ending on all verbs (e.g. 'walk-id'), which sounds unnatural. While this does not usually cause a misunderstanding, it is worth drawing attention to at higher levels.
VERBS THAT DON'T CHANGE (ZERO-CHANGE IRREGULARS)
Some irregular verbs look the same in the base form and the past form: put, cut, let, set, hit, hurt, cost, read (though 'read' changes pronunciation: /riːd/ → /rɛd/). These are a source of errors because learners sometimes try to add -ed: 'She putted the book down.' Pointing out this small group specifically can prevent a common mistake.
HOW TO CHOOSE THE RIGHT FORM — A QUICK GUIDE • Is there a time expression like 'yesterday', 'last week', 'ago'? → Use simple past. • Is the verb regular? → Add -ed (check spelling rules). • Is the verb irregular? → Use the correct irregular form (learn the list). • Is it a question? → Did + subject + BASE FORM (not past form). • Is it a negative? → Subject + didn't + BASE FORM (not past form). • Still unsure if regular or irregular? → When in doubt, look it up — irregular verbs are a finite list.
Choose the correct form of the verb to complete each sentence.
Each sentence contains one error. Write the correct sentence and explain the mistake.
Use this sequence directly in class — guided discovery, no textbook needed. Tap each step to mark it done.
STEP 1 — RECALL (5 minutes): Ask learners to think about what they did yesterday morning — from waking up to arriving at school. Give them one minute to think silently, then ask three or four learners to share one sentence each. Write their sentences on the board without correcting anything yet. You will return to these sentences later.
STEP 2 — NOTICE (5 minutes): Point to the sentences on the board. Ask learners: 'Look at the verbs. Do they look the same as normal, or are they different?' Give learners a moment to look. Underline the past verb in each sentence. Ask: 'What did we add, or what changed?' Draw out the idea that some verbs got -ed and some changed completely.
STEP 3 — SORT (8 minutes): Say ten verbs aloud (mix of regular and irregular — e.g. walk, go, open, come, finish, write, talk, tell, close, give). Ask learners to listen and sort them into two groups: 'add -ed' and 'changes completely'. Learners can work in pairs and write the groups in their notebooks. Take feedback and discuss any verbs learners were unsure about.
STEP 4 — QUESTIONS AND NEGATIVES (7 minutes): Return to the sentences on the board. Choose one positive sentence (e.g. 'She walked to school'). Ask: 'How do we make this a question? How do we make it negative?' Guide learners to produce 'Did she walk to school?' and 'She didn't walk to school.' Repeat with one irregular verb sentence. Highlight that the main verb goes back to its base form after 'did' and 'didn't'.
STEP 5 — PRODUCE (5 minutes): Ask each learner to write three sentences about something that happened at school this week — one positive, one question, one negative. They can write about themselves, a classmate, or the class. Ask two or three learners to share. Give brief, positive feedback and gently correct any errors in verb form on the board.
Use directly in class — copy, adapt, or read aloud. No printing needed.
For each strategy, choose the option that best describes where you are now.
Your feedback helps other teachers and helps us improve TeachAnyClass.