Verb Conjugation in Present Tense

This language video lesson is designed for 6 to 12-year-old children to help them understand how to conjugate verbs in the present tense.

Verbs are an essential element of any language as they express actions, occurrences, or states of being. In order to convey different tenses, verb conjugation is necessary. The process involves changing a verb to agree with the person, number, and gender of the subject in a sentence. In this video, we will focus on the present tense of verb conjugation.

The present tense refers to an action or state that is currently happening or ongoing. To conjugate a verb in the present tense, we first need to identify the infinitive form of the verb. The infinitive is the base form of the verb and is often preceded by the word “to”. For instance, the infinitive form of the verb “to eat” is “eat”.

Prerequisite of Learning Verb Conjugation

To learn how to conjugate verbs in the present tense, a child must be familiar with

Parts of speech such as nouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs
Personal pronouns
Subject-verb agreement
Present tense
A good vocabulary of common verbs

It is important to note that verb conjugation in the present tense requires the addition of different endings to the infinitive form of the verb. The specific ending that we add depends on the subject of the sentence. Below are the present tense conjugations for the verb “to eat”:

I eat
You eat
He/She/It eats
We eat
You (plural) eat
They eat

To summarize, the English language has six different persons: first person singular (I), second person singular (you), third person singular (he/she/it/one), first person plural (we), second person plural (you), and third person plural (they).

Verb To be

As mentioned above, the endings of sentences change according to their subjects. A verb must be conjugated for each person. In addition, it is important to note that some verbs are conjugated irregularly in the present tense. For example, the verb to be.

For example, the verb “to be” has the following present tense conjugations:

First Person Singular	Second Person Singular	Third Person Singular
I am	you are	he/she/it is
First Person Plural	Second Person Plural	Third Person Plural
we are	you are	they are

This verb has an irregular present tense conjugation. Similarly, other verbs like “to have” and “to do” also have irregular present tense conjugations.

To summarize, verb conjugation in the present tense is an important aspect of grammar as it enables us to communicate actions or states that are currently happening or ongoing. By understanding how to conjugate verbs in the present tense, we can effectively communicate our thoughts and ideas in different situations. Furthermore, it is critical to note that verb conjugation is not limited to the present tense. Different tenses require different forms of verb conjugation, which we will discuss in detail in other video lessons.

Activities to Introduce Verb Conjugation in Present Tense

Here are some activities to promote the learning and practice of verb conjugation in the present tense:

Sentence building: Provide children with a list of vocabulary words and have them create sentences using the present tense. Encourage them to use a variety of subjects and verbs.
Verb charades: Write down different verbs on slips of paper and have children act them out. The rest of the class can guess the verb and then conjugate it in the present tense.
Conjugation race: Divide children into groups and give each group a list of verbs in the infinitive form. The first group that correctly conjugates all present-tense verbs wins.
Verb bingo: Create bingo cards with different verbs in the infinitive form. Call out the present tense conjugations of the verbs and have children mark the corresponding squares on their cards.
Verb bingo: Create bingo cards with different verbs in the infinitive form. Call out the present tense conjugations of the verbs and have children mark the corresponding squares on their cards.

By engaging in these activities, children can gain a better understanding of how to conjugate verbs in the present tense and improve their overall language skills.

Repeat this activity by asking the child to conjugate verbs using the present tense with the help of word cards, as shown in the video.

Verb Conjugation – Present Tense

Prerequisite of Learning Verb Conjugation