Year 3 English Tense and paragraphs: check-up and practice test questions
Part of the Year 3 English tense and paragraphs chapter. Chapter overview · whole chapter on one page
Exercise 6Z Check-up
Method. Change only the verb to its past form.
- Find the verb. The verb in the present tense is walks.walks
- Change it to the past tense. This is a regular verb, so the past form adds -ed (or -d after an e).walked
- Keep the rest of the sentence the same. Only the verb changes. The subject and the other words stay.Ali walked to school with Mia.
- Write the answer. Ali walked to school with Mia.
Check. Read it aloud: Ali walked to school with Mia. ✓
Watch out. Do not add -ed to an irregular verb: write ate, not eated.
Method. Look at the time word, then choose the tense.
- Find the time word. The time word is this morning.this morning
- Choose the tense. A finished time, such as yesterday or last week, needs the simple past tense.past
- Write the verb form. The verb see in this tense is:saw
- Write the answer. saw
Check. Read the whole sentence aloud: Mia saw a rainbow over the hill this morning. ✓
Watch out. Check the time word first. A finished time needs the simple past, not have or has.
Method. Use have or has, then the past participle of the verb.
- Find the subject. The subject tells us who has done it.Sam
- Choose have or has. Use has with he, she, it and names. Use have with I, we, you and they.has
- Add the past participle. The past participle is different from the past form, so it has to be learned.drawn
- Write the answer. Sam has drawn a map of the island.
Check. Read it aloud: Sam has drawn a map of the island. ✓
Watch out. The past participle goes after have or has. Do not use the past form.
Method. Choose have or has to match the subject.
- Find the subject. The subject tells us which helper word to use.They
- Choose the helper word. Use has with he, she, it and names. Use have with I, we, you and they.have
- Check the participle. The past participle taken comes after the helper word.have taken
- Write the answer. have
Check. They have taken their coats home. ✓
Watch out. Names and he, she and it take has.
Method. Look at the time word, then choose the tense.
- Find the time word. The time word is at noon.at noon
- Choose the tense. A finished time, such as yesterday or last week, needs the simple past tense.past
- Write the verb form. The verb eat in this tense is:ate
- Write the answer. ate
Check. Read the whole sentence aloud: Ruby ate her lunch at noon. ✓
Watch out. Check the time word first. A finished time needs the simple past, not have or has.
Method. Use the past participle after have or has.
- Find the mistake. After have, the verb must be the past participle, not the past form.have wrote
- Replace the past form with the past participle. The past participle is different from the past form, so it has to be learned.have written
- Write the sentence. The rest of the sentence stays the same.We have written a letter to Grandma.
- Write the answer. We have written a letter to Grandma.
Check. Read it aloud: We have written a letter to Grandma. ✓
Watch out. Write written, not wrote, after have.
Method. Look at the time word, then choose the tense.
- Find the time word. The time word is already.already
- Choose the tense. Already, yet and so far show a result that is linked to now, so the present perfect is used.present perfect
- Write the verb form. The verb visit in this tense is:has visited
- Write the answer. has visited
Check. Read the whole sentence aloud: Ben has visited the library already. ✓
Watch out. Check the time word first. A finished time needs the simple past, not have or has.
Method. Change the verb to its Standard English form.
- Find the verb that is not Standard English. With they, use were, not was.was
- Replace it with the Standard English form. The Standard English form is were.were
- Write the sentence. Only the verb changes. The rest of the sentence stays the same.They were happy with their new bikes.
- Write the answer. They were happy with their new bikes.
Check. Read it aloud: They were happy with their new bikes. ✓
Watch out. In writing, use the Standard English form. A character in direct speech may speak differently.
(a) Gulls cried above the pier.
(b) The beach had soft, pale sand.
(c) My maths book is heavy.
(d) We found a shiny shell.
Method. Look for the sentence that does not share the idea of the others.
- Read each sentence. Three of the sentences are about the seaside.the seaside
- Find the sentence about something else. My maths book is heavy. is not about the seaside.(c)
- Write the answer. My maths book is heavy.
Check. The other three sentences all tell us about the seaside. ✓
Watch out. A paragraph keeps to one idea. An odd sentence starts a new idea, so it goes in another paragraph.
Method. Look at the time words and the verb forms.
- Look at the first sentence. Last week names a finished time, so the simple past is used.saw
- Look at the second sentence. No finished time is named, so the present perfect is used with have.have seen
- Write the answer. The first is the simple past: last week is a finished time. The second is the present perfect.
Check. Each form matches its time words. ✓
Watch out. Also accept any answer that says the first has a finished time and the second has no finished time.
Total 18 marks. Allow about 18 minutes.
Exercise 6X Practice test questions
Method. The form has a name that begins with present.
- Look at the form. Have or has is used with the past participle, to link the past to now.have / has + past participle
- Name the form. This form is called the present perfect.present perfect
- Write the answer. present perfect
Check. Present perfect: have or has with the past participle. ✓
Watch out. Simple past and present perfect are different forms.
Method. Change only the verb to its past form.
- Find the verb. The verb in the present tense is builds.builds
- Change it to the past tense. This is an irregular verb, so the past form does not add -ed. It has to be learned.built
- Keep the rest of the sentence the same. Only the verb changes. The subject and the other words stay.Leo built a tower of blocks.
- Write the answer. Leo built a tower of blocks.
Check. Read it aloud: Leo built a tower of blocks. ✓
Watch out. Do not add -ed to an irregular verb: write ate, not eated.
Method. Choose have or has to match the subject.
- Find the subject. The subject tells us which helper word to use.Ali
- Choose the helper word. Use has with he, she, it and names. Use have with I, we, you and they.has
- Check the participle. The past participle given comes after the helper word.has given
- Write the answer. has
Check. Ali has given his old bike to a friend. ✓
Watch out. Names and he, she and it take has.
Method. The past participle is the form used after have or has.
- Find the past form. The past form of break is broke.broke
- Check the past participle. The past participle is different from the past form, so it has to be learned.broken
- Write the answer. broken
Check. Say it with have: I have broken. ✓
Watch out. Do not use the past form after have or has.
Method. Look at the time word, then choose the tense.
- Find the time word. The time word is on Sunday.on Sunday
- Choose the tense. A finished time, such as yesterday or last week, needs the simple past tense.past
- Write the verb form. The verb visit in this tense is:visited
- Write the answer. visited
Check. Read the whole sentence aloud: Ruby visited her gran on Sunday. ✓
Watch out. Check the time word first. A finished time needs the simple past, not have or has.
Method. Change the verb to its Standard English form.
- Find the verb that is not Standard English. Seen needs have or has. Without them, the past form is saw.seen
- Replace it with the Standard English form. The Standard English form is saw.saw
- Write the sentence. Only the verb changes. The rest of the sentence stays the same.I saw a fox in the park.
- Write the answer. I saw a fox in the park.
Check. Read it aloud: I saw a fox in the park. ✓
Watch out. In writing, use the Standard English form. A character in direct speech may speak differently.
1 We mixed the flour and eggs in a big bowl.
2 The rain tapped on the window all afternoon.
3 Then we put the cake in the oven.
4 Drops ran down the glass like tiny rivers.[2 marks]
Method. Sort the sentences by their idea, then pick out the ones about the topic.
- Read each sentence and decide its idea. Each sentence is about one of the topics in the text.1: baking, 2: the rain, 3: baking, 4: the rain
- Choose the sentences about the topic. These sentences are about baking.1, 3
- Write the answer. 1, 3
Check. There are 2 sentences about baking. ✓
Watch out. A sentence can be about the topic even if it does not use the topic word.
Method. A heading names the whole idea of the paragraph.
- Find the idea. All three sentences are about making a sandwich with tomatoes and cheese.a tomato sandwich
- Write a short heading. A heading is a short phrase, with no full stop.Making a tomato sandwich
- Write the answer. Making a tomato sandwich
Check. The heading covers all three sentences. ✓
Watch out. Also accept: Making a sandwich.
Method. Check each verb: the Standard English form, and the simple past for a finished time.
- Change the first verb. With we, the Standard English form is were.we were
- Change the second verb. Yesterday is a finished time, so the simple past bought is used, with no have.I bought
- Explain the changes. Both changes make the verbs match the subject and the time.two changes
- Write the answer. We were at the shop yesterday, and I bought a bun.
Check. Read it aloud: We were at the shop yesterday, and I bought a bun. ✓
Watch out. Also accept any explanation that names both changes.
Method. Use the simple past with a finished time, then the present perfect with already.
- First sentence. Last weekend names a finished time, so the simple past is used.Last weekend, we built a sandcastle.
- Second sentence. Already with have and no finished time shows the present perfect.We have already seen the sea.
- Explain the difference. A finished time needs the simple past; no finished time needs the present perfect.simple past or present perfect
- Write the answer. Any correct pair, for example: Last weekend, we built a sandcastle. We have already seen the sea.
Check. Each sentence uses the right form for its time words. ✓
Watch out. Also accept any pair that follows the same rule.