Category: DETERMINERS

When a noun is not preceded by a definite article (the) or indefinite article (a, an), we use zero article. 

THE USE OF NO ARTICLE
1) We use no article with proper names
EXAMPLES

• Sarah is my cousin.
• Where’s Grandpa Michael?

2) We use no article with uncountable nouns when we are referring in general
EXAMPLES

• Water is an important resource.
• Fiber is important for the health of the digestive system.
• I love democracy.
• I like listening to music.
• She’s a vegetarian. She doesn’t eat meat.

3) We use no article with plural countable nouns when we are referring in general
EXAMPLES

• ​Dogs are commonly referred to as “man's best friend”.
• Rich people think and behave differently.

4) We use no article with the names of language

EXAMPLES

• Chinese is not more difficult than other languages.
• I’d like to speak French.

5) We use no article with the names of meals
EXAMPLES

• What would you like for breakfast?
• Lunch is ready!
• I felt sleepy after dinner.

6) We use no article with the names of games or sport

EXAMPLE

• Baseball is the king of sports in the Dominican Republic.

7) We use no article with the names of days, months, seasons, holidays and parts of the day
EXAMPLES

• See you on Monday.
• Many Americans celebrate Halloween on October 31.
• I love summer.
• On St. Patrick’s Day everybody wears green.
• Are you coming over for Christmas?
• Mother’s Day celebration in Mexico takes place on May 10.
• The stars shine at night.
• The sun had set, and dusk settled over the ocean.

There are some exceptions with the parts of the day: in the morning / afternoon / evening.

8) We use no article with the names of continents, countries, cities, towns, streets, single lakes and single mountains

EXAMPLES

• Asia is Earth's largest and most populous continent.
• I live in Brazil.
• My address is 1520 Green Street.
• She lives near Lake Superior.
• I've climbed Mount Everest.  

There are some exceptions: The US (The United States), The UK (The United Kingdom), The Philippines, The Netherlands, The Czech Republic,  etc.

9) We use no article with routine places

 EXAMPLES

• I’m going to bed.
• They went to school yesterday.
• I'm at home right now.
• I go to work every day by train.

10) We use no article with means of transport (in expression with by)
EXAMPLE

• She usually goes to work by bus.

11) We use no article in exclamations with what + uncountable noun
EXAMPLE

• What beautiful weather!

12) We use no article with academic subjects

EXAMPLES

• He studied Law at university.
• I like English.

13) We use no article with names of companies
EXAMPLES

• Bill Gates founded Microsoft.
• Facebook is a popular free social networking website.

14) We use no article with names of universities
EXAMPLE

• Claire goes to Harvard.

15) We use no article with noun + number
EXAMPLE

• Charles is staying at the Plaza hotel in room 511.

16) We use no article with year

EXAMPLE

• 1998 was the best year in film history.

Worksheets

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Category: DETERMINERS

An article is a word used to modify a noun, basically, it’s an adjective. English has two types of articles: the (definite article) and a/an (indefinite articles). They’re used very often  and are very important for using English accurately.
​

Indefinite articles
A and an are indefinite articles used to refer to a singular countable noun. These articles are used to refer to any member of a group or class. The speaker doesn’t tell us exactly which one he or she is referring to.

Use a/an for naming a member of a group:
EXAMPLES

• Mrs. Doudtfire is a nanny / Oscar works as an engineer (Jobs).
• Diego Armando Maradona is an Argentine (Nationalities).
• Barbara is a Jewish (Religions).

THE USE OF THE INDEFINITE ARTICLE “A”
 1) “A” is used before a consonant (b, c, d, etc.)
EXAMPLES

• a car.
• a dog.
• a Friday.
• a tiny nose.
• a 15 year-old boy.
• a year / week (time).
• a kilo / mile (measurements). Also using “one” instead of “a” is correct.

2) “A” is used before a vowel but consonant sound 

EXAMPLES

• a university. [juː]
• a unit. [juː]
• a European. [jʊ]
• a one (1). [w]

3) “A” is used before a pronounced “h”

EXAMPLE

• a horse.

THE USE OF THE INDEFINITE ARTICLE “AN”
 1) “An” is used before a vowel (a, e, i, etc.)
EXAMPLES

• an orange.
• an eye.
• an alligator.

2) “An” is used before an unpronounced (mute) “h”
EXAMPLE

• an hour [a].
• an honest [ˈɑ] (N. Amer.) - [ˈɒ] (Brit.)
• an honor [ˈɑ] (N. Amer.) - [ˈɒ] (Brit.)
• an heir [ɛ] (N. Amer.) - [e] (Brit.)
• an herb  [ɜ] (N. Amer.)

3) “An” is used before a consonant but vowel sound
EXAMPLES

• an “F”. [ε]
• an MBA. [ε]

Definite article
The is a definite article used to refer to something specific (singular or plural nouns). The speaker talks about a particular (or known) member of a group.
EXAMPLES

• The book on the table is about horror stories.
• Could you pass me the sugar, please?
• The movie was great.

​
​THE USE OF THE DEFINITE ARTICLE “THE”
1) “The” is used before a noun which has already been previously mentioned

EXAMPLES

• I lost the wallet you gave me yesterday.
• They have a dog and two cats. The dog is Siberian husky.

2) “The” is used to indicate a noun that is unique or there is only one
EXAMPLES

• The President of United States lives in the White House.
• The Eiffel tower was built in 1889 to commemorate the French Revolution.
• The Nile is a river in Africa.
• Where is the bathroom?

​3) “The” is used before superlative adjectives
EXAMPLES

• It’s the largest river in the world.
• She is the most beautiful lady of all time.

4) “The” is used to talk about the whole population of a country or region
EXAMPLES

• The British drink too much tea.
• The Romans invaded Britain in AD 43.
• The Mayans were famous for their architecture and astronomical knowledge.

HOWEVER: When generalizing about nationalities or a group of people, “the” is not usually used: “Americans eat a lot of hamburgers”
5) “The” is used to indicate all the members of a family
EXAMPLE

• The Simpsons live in Springfield.

6) “The” is used to talk about musical instruments
 EXAMPLE

• She plays the piano every day.

7) “The” is used to talk about directions (cardinal points)​
EXAMPLES

• the north.
• the south-east.

Worksheets

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Category: VERB TENSES

THE FORMS OF SIMPLE PAST TENSE
Affirmative: SUBJECT + [VERB + ed] or IRREGULAR VERB
Examples:

• I played football yesterday. (regular verb)
• Leonardo da Vinci lived from 1452 to 1519. (regular verb)
• She bought some fruits last night. (irregular verb)
• They saw him in the park. (irregular verb)

Negative: SUBJECT + did not + [VERB]
Examples:

• I did not wash the dishes.
• You did not play the piano.
• She didn’t sleep well last night.
• Sharon didn’t put the book on the table.

Negative contraction:

• did not = didn’t

Interrogative: Did + SUBJECT + [VERB] 
Examples:

• Did you have your breakfast? Yes, I did / No I didn’t.
• Did she work yesterday? Yes, she did / No, she didn't.

 
You can add a question word (what, where, when, etc.) before did to ask for more information.
Examples:

• What did you do the last weekend? I studied Science.
• Where did she go? She went to the school.
• When did you play baseball? I played baseball last night.
• Why didn’t you tell me about the accident?
• How did you do that?

NOTE: The auxiliary did is used to form the negative and interrogative forms.
​​

Spelling rules for [VERB + ed]
Here are the spelling rules:

Worksheets

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Category: TEACHING

1. Word chains
First, T divides the class into boys and girls. Then, T writes a word on the board and asks Ss to take it in turns to add/say a word starting with the last letter of the previous word. Once a word has been given, it cannot be repeated. T asks Ss to stand up when they participate. Only the Ss who are seated can participate. If a S cannot give a word, the game stops and T counts the number of words given. The winners are who have more words in 3 rounds. 
​
Example:
sky - yellow - water - red - dinner – rain – night – take – egg – get – travel
​

2. Odd-one-out
T writes words in groups of four on the board. In each group, include an odd-one-out word which is different from the others. Then, T asks Ss to tell which one is the odd-one-out in each group and explain why.

Here are some groups of words:

1. father – sister – friend – grandmother
2. peach – potato – cherry – apple
3. banana – peach – apple – tomato
4. donkey – dragon -  cat – dog
5. rabbit – dog – fox – cat
6. tiger – wolf – cow - eagle
7. sugar – river – pencil – bottle
8. camera – fax-machine - computer – television
9. anger – fear – love – disappointment
10. table – chair – fridge – stool
11. bookshelf – table – mirror – chair
12. female – boy – woman – girl
13. shoe – boot – glove – sandal
14. pork – rice – chicken – beef
15. eye – star – level – radar
16. respiratory – intestine – digestive – nervous
17. rectangle – square – triangle – cuboid
18. whale – fish – snake – crocodile

Possible answers:

1. friend – not family member
2. potato – not a fruit
3. banana – shape
4. cat – beings c / dragon - mythological
5. fox – not a pet
6. cow – herbivore / eagle – has wings
7. sugar – uncountable noun
8. camera – doesn’t need electricity / television – 4 syllables
9. love – positive
10. fridge – the others have legs
11. mirror – the others are made of wood
12. boy – different gender
13. glove – worn on hands
14. rice – not a meat
15. star – not a palindrome (word that reads the same backward as forward)
16. intestine – not a body system
17. cuboid – 3-dimensional figure
18. whale – doesn’t lay eggs

3. All the words you know
T helps Ss to brainstorm a list of words about a topic. T writes on the board one by one of the words.
Next, T challenges Ss to remember all the words by erasing them one by one. Each time, T erases a word invites Ss to reconstruct the list of words together orally from the beginning to the end of it. Eight or ten words is quite enough for the game at the beginning. 
​

​
Here are some word lists:
Colors: white, black, blue, yellow, red, green, brown, purple, gray, orange, pink, cherry, fuchsia, cyan, beige, magenta, turquoise, violet, silver, gold, bronze, navy, olive, aquamarine, coral, khaki, mint, etc.
Adjectives: good, new, first, last, long, great, high, little, old, big, small, large, next, young, false, important, bad, easy, weak, early, expensive, cheap, full, empty, hard, late, low, other, strong, true, whole, best, right, free, special, clear, single, wrong, private, public, hot, cold, dead, happy, etc.
Feelings and emotions: happy, angry, sad, surprised, excited, interested, curious, anxious, upset, depressed, bored, confused, furious, bad, afraid, scared, worried, quiet, love, brave, confident, nervous, disgusting, shy, unhappy, frustrated,  reliable, sympathetic, interested, kind, great, lucky, overjoyed, thankful, glad, miserable, optimistic, calm, pleased, inspired,  enthusiastic, annoyed, aggressive, disappointed, guilty, fatigued, dull, anxious, frightened, cowardly, rejected, etc.
Body parts: head, back, shoulder, waist, chest, abdomen, hip, foot, face, eye, eyebrow, eyelid, eyelash, nose, mouth, chin, cheek, hair, ear, lips, teeth, tooth, tongue, throat, neck, hand, finger, nail, thumb, wrist, arm, forearm, palm, upper arm, elbow, armpit, leg, knee, thigh, shin, calf, ankle, heel, toe, etc.
Clothing: shirt, polo shirt, blouse, turtleneck, pants, jeans, skirt, dress, shorts, sweater, overalls, uniform, jacket, coat, blazer, suit, vest, tie, gown, pajamas, bathrobe, bra, underwear, socks, etc.

4. Word finder
T writes on the board a list of letters and T invites Ss to form as many words as possible in 2 minutes.

For example, using these words: T-I-S-O-V-E-L-T
7 Letters: violets & toilets.
6 Letters: olives, soviet, violet, titles & toilet.
5 Letters: loves, olive, solve, stove, volts, votes, stole & title.
4 Letters: evil, live, love, vest, vets, vile, volt, vote, isle, lets, lies, list, lite, lose, lost, lots, oils, site, slot, soil, sole, test, ties & tile.
3 Letters: vet, its, let, lie, lit, lot, oil, set, sit, tie, tit & toe.
2 Letters: is, it, so & to.
​

You can use this word finder: ​https://word.tips/

5. Unscramble the letters
T writes a sentence on the board and asks Ss to unscramble the letters of each word to figure out the sentence.

For example:

1. hse si ym steb dfneri
2. hewre rea oyu romf?
3. uyo velo gineta clahoteco
4. ni seca fo frei seu satris
5. tawh idd yuo od tals nedkewe?
6. cone puno a mite, rethe reew rethe tlelit gisp

Answers:

1. She is my best friend
2. Where are you from?
3. You love eating chocolate
4. In case of fire use stairs
5. What did you do last weekend?
6. Once upon a time, there were three little pigs

6. Big strips of paper
T chooses a complex sentence and writes each word on strips of papers, big enough to see the words from a distance. T randomly picks Ss and gives them one strip of paper per S. Then, T invites Ss to take it in turns to come to the front of the class and stand facing the class showing their word card. T encourages Ss to make up a sentence. Ss can move further along or further back in the sentence.

Here some sentences:

1. I like spaghetti for dinner.
2. The black cat is jumping on the table.
3. If you want to speak to me, then learn English.
4. We visited the zoo before it closed.
5. I wash my hands before I ate breakfast.
6. When she was younger, she believed in fairy tales.
7. Polar bears are in danger of becoming extinct.
8. When people tell you what to do, it is annoying.
9. The football match was cancelled, because it was raining.
10. Trixie wanted to go for walk even though it was getting dark.

7. Anagrams
T writes a word or words and asks Ss to rearrange the letters to make other words.

1. Change there into a number = three
2. Change tea into a verb = eat
3. Change melon into another fruit = lemon
4. Change god into an animal = dog
5. Change cheater into a job = teacher
6. Change are into a body part = ear
7. Change flow into an animal = wolf
8. Change raptor into a talkative animal = parrot
9. Change break into a job = baker
10. Change danger into a place where you grow flowers = garden

Leave your comments and let me know what warm-up activities you use in your class. I look forward to reading your ideas. 

Category: TEACHING

Inclusion is a term that refers to involving children or teenagers with disabilities and their families in all activities that are typical for them of that age. One way to adapt materials is to rewrite reading texts and grade the language accordingly for different levels. 

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Full collection:

1. Community service
2. Classic tales
3. Bilingual dictionary
4. Silent films
5. Forecasts
6. Human body
7. Likes and dislikes
8. Comic strips
9. Oral presentation
10. Travel