If you teach English as a langauge, you’ve probably seen this pattern with the simple past & present perfect:
I went to the store.
I have gone to the store.
But ask students to expand on their experiences outside of the lesson, and suddenly you hear I have went.
So what went wrong here? I think one reason students struggle with this is that we often teach simple past and present perfect as two separate grammar units, and then stop there. This is a disservice to our students because English speakers rarely use these tenses in an isolated way.
That’s why teaching these tenses together, inside a meaningful context, is a great way to boost fluency. Here are the ways I like to teach them in each language domain.
📘Reading: Show How the Tenses Change Meaning
I always start with input, and a short reading text allows students to compare the simple past & present perfect tenses naturally.
➡️ How I teach it: I use the text below about a student explaining how she felt about giving presentations, and how that has changed over time. In a natural way, students understand that the…
- Simple past highlights specific feelings or actions.
- Present perfect shows how actions that started in the past affect Meena now.
Instead of telling students which tense to use, the reading shows them. This approach reinforces understanding and gives English learners repeated exposure to both tenses.
✏️ Writing: Describe Experiences Naturally
This is where many students finally start to get the difference between the simple past & present perfect tenses.
Questions that begin with “Have you ever…?” focus on life experience, not time:
- Have you ever given a presentation?
Once the answer is yes, English naturally shifts to the simple past for details:
- How did you feel?
- What did you present?
This pattern is powerful because it mirrors real conversation. Students are choosing the correct tense because the question and context demands it.
➡️ How I teach it: I ask students to read a short text exchange between friends, and then write about themselves. This 1) gives them an example of a natural language exchange 2) allows them to describe their lives with more fluency and 3) gives them the language they’ll need when it’s time to speak.
👂Listening: Blended Tenses within a Script
For English language learners at the pre-intermediate level, I prefer students listen to scripts were the grammar naturally occurs without being overly focused. This kind of realistic listening builds confidence and prepares students for both academic settings and real-world situations.
➡️ How I teach it: I then move into two listening activities where the simple past & present perfect are less focused or forced, and more naturally occurring in conversation. Blended listening activities help students practice:
- Understanding tense choice in real-time
- Tracking time references
Noticing when speakers move from experience to detail
🗣 Speaking: The Forgotten Fluency
How many of us feel like we can understand another language but not speak it? So many boxed curricula overemphasize reading and writing and gloss over speaking. To me, true fluency only comes when our students can speak the language in a way that clearly communicates their message.
➡️ How I teach it: Speaking Strips and a Find Someone Who activities give students a structured and supported place to practice a simple past & present perfect conversation. Similarly to the writing activity, it is natural to ask students, “Have you ever…?” and then follow up with detailed questions in the simple past tense.
This structure supports students who need practice in expanding conversation.
Blending Tenses Creates True Fluency
When the the simple past & present perfect are taught together, students stop seeing them as separate tenses and start seeing them as needed tools to communicate their experiences.
They learn that:
- Simple past can explain how things were, and the present perfect can explain how things have changed.
- The present perfect can explain an experience, and the simple past can allow us to give more details.
This approach respects how language actually works and helps English language learners develop confidence across all domains: reading, writing, listening, and speaking.
If you’re looking for a resource that blends these tenses naturally while keeping instruction clear and supportive for students, this unit was designed with exactly that goal in mind. Whether you need more practice opportunities for your students, or you need a complete week’s worth of practice, I’ve got you covered.
Remember, language learning doesn’t stop at the present perfect tense or any one grammar skill. It’s an ongoing process, and we owe it to our students to give them as much practice as possible in meaningful and natural ways.
Need more grammar strategies? Check out easy-to-implement ideas here.
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