Lesson Ideas for Teaching Imperfect Vs. Preterite

HIGH DRAMA IN THE CLASSROOM!

I would like to share with you some scenarios that you can use to set up your introduction of the imperfect vs. the preterite tense in the Spanish or other foreign language class. They are guaranteed to add a little drama to class and capture your students' attention for the day! A follow-up interview activity will give them the incentive to actually use this grammar in real communication.

What really makes the drama work is if only one or two fellow actors (a few trustworthy students or a teacher friend) know that this is just an act. The rest of the students, believing it's all real, will be riveted to your every action and, later, will easily be able distinguish between the background - what was happening when... and the event - when suddenly...

Students always seem to enjoy this most when you make a bit "scary" or "exciting" in some way. I don't get angry often so when I do, it grabs their attention! Use these or similar examples in the target language of your class, not English! I would reserve English examples for after-school tutoring sessions for those kids who really didn't understand the concept and may not even understand the differentiation in English.

Scenario 1: The teacher was writing on the board, when Joe came in really late.
Scenario 2: Joe was sleeping with his head on his desk when the teacher tapped him on the shoulder and yelled in his ear!
Scenario 3: When the teacher came in, Joe was eating a sandwich and Maria was flying a paper airplane.
Scenario 4: The teacher came in the room, slammed the door, and looked at us in silence!
Scenario 5: The students were reading when someone knocked on the door. The teacher opened the door. Another teacher gave her a big black box. She put it on her desk. (Fill it with a little candy for an extra treat!)

After the students realize it's all a joke, make two big columns on your board. Label them EVENTS and CIRCUMSTANCES. I usually prepare cards with the different sections of the sentence ready to be taped on the board. For example, I would make a card (in my target language) with "the teacher was writing on the board" and another that said "Joe came in really late". I would make a third card with the word "when". Have your students come up and place the cards in the correct columns. Stress that what shocked them is the "big event" of the story - Joe came in really late. The circumstances are the "same old-same old" part that sets up the story. Show how these two ideas form a little story and that the word "when" connects the circumstances with the big event. Other such "connector" words might be "suddenly", "all of a sudden", "just then", "out of the blue"... Brainstorm some fairytale lines - The three little pigs were building their houses when a wolf appeared!

WHERE WERE YOU WHEN...?

When students have mastered the formation of these tenses, make up an interesting interview sheet and have your students interview a parent or grandparent about what they were doing when big world events happened. I really like to do things that incorporate the families. Parents need to know what is going on in class and to take an interest in their child's learning. And, besides, sharing important life experiences is something we don't always have time to do these days!

IMPORTANT: Always provide an "out" for the child that might not have a good home environment or who has parents that will not do this sort of thing. Allow them to choose a neighbor, friend, or other relative in that case.

Some questions may be inappropriate for your particular students or school. These are a few ideas. You can keep your questions lighthearted or get into some deep discussion during this activity. Some questions might be:

What were you doing when JFK died?
Where were you when you met...(Dad, Granddad, ...)
What were you doing when the attacks of September 11 occurred?
How old were you when you first decided to become a ....?
Where were you living when you started school?

Good luck teaching the imperfect and preterite and remember to keep it real. Get your students talking about their childhoods, about lifechanging experiences, about family history, about famous people from the past that they admire. Remember - the goal is authentic communication!