the helping verb that is always paired with the main verb

a tense that does not make use of an auxiliary verb in addition to the main verb in the present and past

Simple and progressive tense

English

In this unit, pupils are taught for the first time the three tense forms: simple, progressive and perfect. In 'Tense forms', pupils will deepen their understanding of how to apply to writing these different tense forms.

In 'Simple, compound and adverbial complex sentences', pupils deepened their understanding of three sentence types in a variety of tenses. In this unit, pupils will be taught the three tense forms: simple, progressive and perfect.

Tense forms: simple, progressive and perfect

What is the auxiliary verb in the following sentence? 'The penguins were diving into the water at speed.'

Which suffix does the main verb in a progressive tense always end with? 

action that has always completely finished 

What sort of action does a progressive tense sentence tell us about?

Which words tell you that the following sentence is written in the progressive tense? 'Alex and Jun were hoping for a pet rabbit.'

Which word in the following sentence tells you that it is written in the progressive past tense? 'We were treading carefully on the icy pond.'

I will be cleaning my boots after this muddy walk. 

Match each tense to the correct sentence.

When we work out the tense a sentence is written in, we should look for the ...

'I finished my homework.' What tense is this sentence written in?

Identify the verb in the following sentence: 'They quietly read their books.'

Identify the auxiliary verb in the following sentence: 'They are reading their books.'

Match each sentence to the correct tense. 

What should the main verb be in the following sentence? 'I was __________ out of the window and I saw a hot air balloon.'

This lesson will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.

Simple and progressive tense

Lesson outcome

This lesson will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.