Year 3 English: The simple past or the present perfect?
Part of the Year 3 English tense and paragraphs chapter. Chapter overview · whole chapter on one page
The simple past or the present perfect?
Both forms talk about the past, but they are used in different ways.
The simple past tells us when something happened, because that time is finished: Ruby visited the farm last Saturday.
The present perfect is used when no finished time is named, or when the result still matters now: Ruby has visited the farm many times.
| Words to look for | Form to use | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| a finished time: yesterday, last week, on Monday, at noon | simple past | Ali lost his bag yesterday. |
| words that link to now: already, yet, just, ever, never, so far | present perfect | Ali has lost his bag already. |
Key ideas
- The simple past is used with a finished time: Ali lost his bag yesterday.
- The present perfect is used with no finished time: Ali has lost his bag.
- Clue words for the simple past: yesterday, last week, on Monday, at noon.
- Clue words for the present perfect: already, yet, just, ever, never, so far.
- Do not use a finished time with the present perfect. Write I saw the film yesterday.
Method. Look at the time word, then choose the tense.
- Find the time word. The time word is yesterday.yesterday
- Choose the tense. A finished time, such as yesterday or last week, needs the simple past tense.past
- Write the verb form. The verb lose in this tense is:lost
- Write the answer. lost
Check. Read the whole sentence aloud: Ali lost his bag yesterday. ✓
Watch out. Check the time word first. A finished time needs the simple past, not have or has.
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 write in this tense is:has written
- Write the answer. has written
Check. Read the whole sentence aloud: Mia has written her story already. ✓
Watch out. Check the time word first. A finished time needs the simple past, not have or has.
Method. Look at the time word, then choose the tense.
- Find the time word. The time word is at twelve o'clock.at twelve o'clock
- 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: Sam ate his lunch at twelve o'clock. ✓
Watch out. Check the time word first. A finished time needs the simple past, not have or has.
Watch out
Watch out: yesterday and have do not go together. I have seen the film yesterday is wrong. Write I saw the film yesterday, because yesterday is a finished time.
Exam tip
Grown-up tip. Ask your child: when did it happen? If the answer is a time that has finished, use the simple past. If no time is named, and the thing still matters now, try the present perfect.
Exercise 6C Practice: simple past or present perfect
Method. Look at the time word, then choose the tense.
- Find the time word. The time word is last summer.last summer
- 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 the castle last summer. ✓
Watch out. Check the time word first. A finished time needs the simple past, not have or has.
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:have visited
- Write the answer. have visited
Check. Read the whole sentence aloud: We have visited the castle already. ✓
Watch out. Check the time word first. A finished time needs the simple past, not have or has.
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 finish in this tense is:has finished
- Write the answer. has finished
Check. Read the whole sentence aloud: Leo has finished his homework already. ✓
Watch out. Check the time word first. A finished time needs the simple past, not have or has.
Method. Look at the time word, then choose the tense.
- Find the time word. The time word is last Tuesday.last Tuesday
- Choose the tense. A finished time, such as yesterday or last week, needs the simple past tense.past
- Write the verb form. The verb write in this tense is:wrote
- Write the answer. wrote
Check. Read the whole sentence aloud: Priya wrote her story last Tuesday. ✓
Watch out. Check the time word first. A finished time needs the simple past, not have or has.
Method. Look at the time word, then choose the tense.
- Find the time word. The time word is on Monday.on Monday
- Choose the tense. A finished time, such as yesterday or last week, needs the simple past tense.past
- Write the verb form. The verb help in this tense is:helped
- Write the answer. helped
Check. Read the whole sentence aloud: They helped the teacher on Monday. ✓
Watch out. Check the time word first. A finished time needs the simple past, not have or has.
Method. Look at the time word, then choose the tense.
- Find the time word. The time word is on Saturday.on Saturday
- Choose the tense. A finished time, such as yesterday or last week, needs the simple past tense.past
- Write the verb form. The verb win in this tense is:won
- Write the answer. won
Check. Read the whole sentence aloud: Ben won the race on Saturday. ✓
Watch out. Check the time word first. A finished time needs the simple past, not have or has.
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 open in this tense is:opened
- Write the answer. opened
Check. Read the whole sentence aloud: Mia opened her present this morning. ✓
Watch out. Check the time word first. A finished time needs the simple past, not have or has.
Method. Look at the time word, then choose the tense.
- Find the time word. The time word is so far.so far
- 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 lose in this tense is:has lost
- Write the answer. has lost
Check. Read the whole sentence aloud: Sam has lost his key so far. ✓
Watch out. Check the time word first. A finished time needs the simple past, not have or has.
Method. Yesterday is a finished time, so the simple past is needed.
- Find the time word. Yesterday names a finished time.yesterday
- Choose the form. The simple past is used with a finished time, so option (b) is correct.(b)
- Write the answer. I saw the film yesterday.
Check. Saw is the simple past of see. ✓
Watch out. The present perfect is not used with yesterday.
Method. A finished time needs the simple past.
- Find the finished time. Yesterday names a time that has finished.yesterday
- Change the verb. Lost is the simple past of lose. Have is not needed.lost
- Write the answer. I lost my hat yesterday.
Check. Read it aloud: I lost my hat yesterday. ✓
Watch out. Also accept: have is wrong with yesterday, so write lost.
Method. Look at the time word and the past form.
- Find the time word. Last week is a finished time, so it needs the simple past.last week
- Check the form. Broke is the simple past, and it does not need has.broke
- Write the answer. No. Sam broke the vase last week.
Check. Read it aloud: Sam broke the vase last week. ✓
Watch out. Also accept: No, because last week names a finished time, so write broke.