Students often confuse the present perfect and present perfect continuous. This lesson employs an imaginary biography to get students asking questions and speaking about completed accomplishments (present perfect) and duration of activity (present perfect continuous).

Aim: Correct use of present perfect and present perfect continuous, contrasted with simple past

Activity: Use of an imaginary chart of life events to elicit questions and answers using both the present perfect and present perfect continuous, as well as the simple past

Level: Intermediate

Outline:

• Review the present perfect and present perfect continuous with the class. Focus on the difference between present perfect to express an amount finished up to the present moment (I've read three books by Hemingway), and the present perfect continuous to express the duration of the current activity (She's been reading for three hours).
• Ask students to take a look at the sentences in exercise 1 and decide if they are correct or incorrect.
• Make a point of discussing the use of BOTH the present perfect and present perfect continuous with common verbs such as live, work, play, drive, etc.
• Ask students to read the life chart of John Anderson.
• Have students pair up and use the question cues. Ask students to use the present perfect continuous when asking about the duration of an activity.
• To check if students are doing the activity correctly, ask the students to write out the questions once they have finished.

John Anderson: VIP

0
Born 1954

6
Started school

12
Started magazine delivery service

13
Started playing tennis

15
Hired four other boys for magazine delivery service

17
Sold magazine delivery service for $20,000

17
Went to Harvard Business School

18
Won New York State tennis championship

19
Started 'Supersoft' software company with roommate

20
Sold 'Supersoft' for $400,000

21
Graduated with honors from Harvard

22
Received Masters of International Business from Yale

23
Started work for Brown and Bran Inc. in New York City

25
Married first wife, Josine

26
First son born, Josh

26
Promoted to Vice President of International Sales

27
Won New York Business Club's International Businessman Award

28
Left Brown and Bran Inc.

28
Started New Media Associates Inc. in New York City

29
Divorced Josie

30
Won 'New Business Innovation' award

31
Met and married second wife, Angela

32
Second son, Philip, born

33
Won over-thiry tennis tournament of New York City

By Kenneth Beare, About.com Guide

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