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The tense system in english has three times (past, present, future) and four aspects (simple, continuous, perfect, and perfect continuous) which creates twelve different tenses. The points covered over the tenses and grammar are separated into form, usages, typical student errors, and activate stage learning. The form shows affirmative (positive), negative, and question examples of the tense. This is also where the grammatical construction will be covered. The usages are when the tenses are used conversationally. This is where the overlap between tenses is discovered along with multiple uses of one tense. The typical student errors are important to know as the teacher can create lesson plans to help the errors from happening. Present Simple The affirmative form is (subject + base form [+s/es]). I work You work He/She/It works We work You work They work The negative form is (subject + do not + base form). I don’t work You don’t work He/she/it doesn’t work We don’t work You don’t work They don’t work The question form is (do + subject + base form). Do I work? Do you work? Does he/she/it work? Do we work? Do you work? Do they work? Uses of the present simple tense are habitual actions, permanent situations and facts, commentaries, directions and instructions, newspaper headlines, present stories, and when stating historical sequences. Typical errors that students make while using the simple present tense system would be forgetting to add (s/es) to the verb; forgetting the auxiliary verb do; and making the verb plural when it is supposed to be singular. Present Continuous The present continuous form is also known as the present progressive form; it uses the auxiliary verb to be with the present participle of the main verb. The affirmative structure is (subject + be + verb [+ing]). The negative structure is (subject + be + not + verb[+ing]). The question structure is (be + subject + verb[+ing]) Regular form affirmative: I am learning You are learning He is learning We are learning They are learning Regular form negative: I am not learning You are not learning He is not learning We are not learning They are not learning Regular form question: I am learning? Are you learning? Is he learning? Are we learning? Are they learning? There is not contracted form for questions in the question form of present continuous tense. (“Am I learning?” has no contracted form) Non-progressive verbs are not normally used in the continuous forms; instead the simple form is used. Non-progressive verbs are roughly divided into the following groups:verbs of the senses (involuntary), verbs expressing feelings and emotions, verbs of mental activity, and verbs of possession. The main uses of the present continuous form are to talk about an action that is in progress at the time of speaking, to talk about a temporary action, to emphasize very frequent actions, background events in a present story, to describe developing situations, and to refer to a regular action around a point of time. Typical student errors are forgetting the auxiliary verbs, and using the aux verb do instead of to be. Present Perfect The affirmative form is (subject + have + past participle). I have written. The negative form is (subject + have + not + past participle). I haven’t written. The negative form is ( have + subject + past participle). Have I written? Usages are when talking about finished actions/states that happened at an indefinite time, when talking about completed past actions, when talking about something that started in the past and is still true now, and describing past actions with present results. Use for with periods of time: We’ve lived here for for 5 years. I haven’t slept for 48 hours. Use for with periods of time (a week/6 months) Use since for points of time (Monday, 1984) Gone or been (past participles) He’s been to Turkey. He’s gone to Turkey. Typical student errors are forgetting to use the past participle, forgetting to use for/since. Present Perfect Continuous Affirmative (subject + have + been + verb[+ing]) I have been dancing. Negative (subject + have +not + been + verb[+ing]) I haven’t been dancing. Question (have +subject + been + verb[+ing]) Have I been dancing? The uses are to communicate an incomplete and ongoing activity and to describe a recently finished, uninterrupted activity which has a present result. A common student error include using verbs that don’t take continuous form.