Try this to perfect your past tense pronunciation practice
When I needed new material to work in past tense with my EFL, English as a Foreign Language, students in Barcelona, Spain, I chose to create a short story. This three-paragraph narration that I wrote using only the past tense of regular verbs served not only for reading, but also for practicing grammar, spelling, and pronunciation. For even more diversity and mileage, I then added comprehension questions and a verb table for additional practice activities.
It has worked quite well for me. To adjust for shorter practice time or other lesson planning limitations, use just one paragraph for your activities and practice. It was considerably more difficult than I had imagined writing such a structured and focused piece, but it continually serves to help students even in its “artificial” language form. Writing it also flexed my creative writing muscles. Here is the narrative text:
OUR ENCHANTED ANNIVERSARY NIGHT
It happened that it was our anniversary when we traveled to Barcelona, so my wife Doris and I planned a special evening. I bought a beautiful bouquet of red roses that smelled wonderfully and a black pearl necklace that sparkled in the moonlight. I smiled when I introduced them to Doris. He put a rose in the sequin lapel. Her brown hair gleamed with the tanned glow of the setting sun. I hailed a checkered taxi and we drove past many prominent places before reaching the front of the restaurant. The waiter seated us as soon as we entered the restaurant with neon signs. I noticed a table set aside. (22 verbs)
We stand near an open window and prepare to eat. My wife Doris looked at the selections on the menu and decided to have an appetizer. I chose the mushroom soup. A few minutes later the waiter returned. “What would you like to have?” He asked. Doris ordered steamed shrimp and grilled trout. I ordered a Caesar salad mixed with a grilled steak and a baked potato. While we ate dinner, we chatted and had a glass of white wine. Doris devoured her food, but I savored the food and chewed my steak slowly. When he finished, he had some pretzels. Soon she gobbled up all the pretzels in the small bowl placed on the table. Later, we nibbled on a decorated cheesecake slice as we talked. I wanted a coffee with my dessert. Doris preferred to drink iced tea. After the salty pretzels, Doris needed to drink some water. The waiter finally handed me the bill and I offered him a tip. We tipped him 15% of the total charges. He thanked us and smiled as we left the restaurant. (40 verbs)
Outside the now closed restaurant, we walked down the cobbled street, stopped and laughed when we saw a trained puppy jumping and playing with its owner. We then relaxed and watched the sun set from a padded park bench as the boats in the harbor swayed, bobbed and swayed in the water. Next, we saw a romantic movie in a new cinema that interested us. The elderly couple in the film argued and chased each other as they navigated a nameless river that tumbled and hurtled through rapids that boiled around jagged rocks. They were often trapped and scared. When the colorized movie ended, the two discovered that they really loved each other. Finally, at the disco, we dance, sway to the music, and hug each other often. Whenever he kissed Doris, she blushed and laughed. We both enjoyed our enchanted evening together. We hope you liked our story. (41 verbs)
Try using this narrative text, in the past tense of regular verbs, in whole or in part, to help your English as a Second Language, English as a Second Language, English as a Second Language (EFL or ESL) learners with this all-important grammatical context. You can bold or underline specific verb forms or remove them to create a “fill in the blanks. Add additional reading, writing, or pronunciation activities to make this narrative even more useful. Your results may be even.” better than mine.
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