A2 English Lesson 2: Present Simple vs Present Continuous

Language Focus

We use Present Simple for things we do every day, or things that are always true.

We use Present Continuous for things happening now, at this moment.

Tense	Example
Present Simple: a habit or routine	I play football every Saturday.
Present Continuous: happening now	I am playing football now.
Present Continuous form: am/is/are + verb-ing	She is playing. They are playing.
Time words for Present Simple	every day, usually, always, often, sometimes, never
Time words for Present Continuous	now, right now, at the moment, Look!

Tip: look for a time word in the sentence. It tells you which tense to use.

Context: two cousins on a video call

Alex: Hi Mia! What are you doing at the moment?

Mia: I'm doing my homework. I never do homework on Saturdays, but I have a test on Monday.

Alex: I'm relaxing right now. I usually play video games on Saturdays.

Mia: Does your sister play with you?

Alex: No, she doesn't. She's reading a book. She always reads before bed.

Mia: My mom is baking a cake right now.

Alex: Does she often bake on weekends?

Mia: Yes, she does. She bakes every Saturday morning.

Now go to Exercise 1 and answer True or False.

Context: Alex and Mia (from the listening)

Listen again if you need to, then choose True or False.

Context: a busy morning

Look at the time word. Choose the correct verb form.

Context: daily habits

Match each time word to the sentence that uses it correctly.

Context: a busy café

Complete the paragraph with the correct form of the verb in brackets.

Context: daily life

Look at the time word. Choose the sentence with the correct tense.

Context: a rainy day

Click the words in the correct order to build each sentence.

Context: common tense mistakes

Is the sentence right or wrong? Choose your answer from the list.

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Total points across all exercises