Thursday, October 21, 2010

Historical Present

You'll never believe what's just happened to me! So I create this new blog, right? I write the first post and everything, and my intention is to share activities based on Friends episodes with my fellow teachers, but the truth is I don't have any activities to share, and even if I did, I have no idea how to share them! Then I speak to a friend (Daniel), and he tells me sharing activities on the Internet is easy peasy, and suggests I try this site called Media Fire. I do, find it really pathetically easy, create my first activity and... presto!... here it is published for you!

The million-dollar question then is why, if I'm telling a story which happened in the past (even if very recently!), I decided to use all the verbs in the present. Why? Well, the explanation is really easy: If Chandler can, so can I!

You can download the Friends in the Classroom's very first activity clicking here. This activity, fittingly using the very first episode of Friends ever, shows students how common it is to tell stories in English (and jokes as well) using all the verbs in the present, what is called historical present. Enjoy!

PS: I also take the opportunity to share with you this link to Grammar Girl's podcast explaining the difference between historical and historic. It's brilliant!

See you soon!


PS: Marcelo, thank you for the correction, mate! Cheers.

1 comment:

  1. Hi Higor!

    I'm Marcelo (just in case it appears anonymous again) and in the passage you wrote:"if I'm telling a story which happened in the past (even if very recently!), I decided to use all the verbs in the past." the last "the past" shouldn't be "the present"?

    thanks

    ps:.I am about to use it...hehehe...

    mg

    ReplyDelete

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