In this section, you are going to read about Sophie’s birthday. Then, you are going to listen to Sophie and her cousin Candice talk about Sophie’s birthday and the activities she did on that day. Then, you are going to write questions and answers about Sophie. Finally, she is going to ask you some questions, and you are going to answer them.
By the end of this section, you will use sentences to give and ask for information about people, places and events in the past.
To know someone better, it is a good idea to break the ice by asking some questions. If you want to know something about your friends, family members, colleagues, relatives or other people’s information about their past, this section can help you to get that information.
Look at the following questions:
All the previous questions have to do with past and with the history of your superhero. However,… did you notice how an open question in simple past is formed?
First of all, we need a wh – question word. (Click on the wh-word to listen to its pronunciation)
Then, we need to add the past tense of the verb to be. (Click on the wh-word to listen to its pronunciation)
Remember that the form “was” is used for I, he, she and it. Also, the form “were” is used for you, we and they.
After that, we need a subject, a complement, and finally, the question mark.
Look at these examples.
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After a question, we answer using the following pattern:
Check the possible answers to the previous questions.
Who was your best teacher in secondary school?
My best teacher at secondary school was Mr. Benitez. It wasn’t Mr.Gordon.
When was Julia’s birthday?
Her birthday was last Friday. It wasn’t last Thursday.
What was Marilyn Monroe’s real name?
Her real name was Norma Jean Baker. It wasn’t Hellena Parker.
Where were my keys?
Your keys were on the table. They weren’t in my purse.
How was the soccer match you went?
It was boring. It wasn’t exciting.
What were you like when you were 10?
I was very friendly, skinny and tall.
Who were you with when you were a baby?
I was with my parents and my little brother.
Now that you have checked the previous information let’s start the exercises of this topic.
Activity 1
Do you like birthdays? Read the text about Sophie’s birthday. In this exercise, you are going to apply your reading comprehension abilities using wh -questions by matching each question to the right answer.
Profivideos. (2015). Cumpleaños, Pastel, Velas. [Fotografía] Recuperado de https://pixabay.com/es/cumplea%C3%B1os-pastel-velas-947438/
Activity 2
Sophie is talking on the phone to her cousin, Candice. This time Candice wants to know how was Sophie’s birthday.
Click on the ▶️ button to listen to Sophie talk to her cousin Candice about her birthday. Drag the words to complete the conversation between them, use the information given to the wh-questions. .
Unsplash.(2016). Niña, Persona, Mujeres. [Fotografía]. Recuperado de https://pixabay.com/es/ni%C3%B1a-persona-mujeres-joven-1245713/
Activity 3
Goodman, L. (2014).Niño, Por escrito, escritor, Diario de papel, [Fotografía]. Recuperado de https://pixabay.com/es/ni%C3%B1o-por-escrito-escritor-diario-360791/
Now, it is time to know more about Sophie! Read her biography. Then, right the questions to each of the answers about the text.
Use the grammar examples to complete this task.
Once you finish, evaluate yourself using the table below.
Activity 4
When you were a child, you used to play a game where you were asked questions. Now Sophie wants to play with you. She is a police officer, and you are the thief. She wants to ask you some questions. Answer and record them. Then use the rubrics given to evaluate them.
Where were you at 6:00 a.m. yesterday?
Were you in school at 10:00 o’clock yesterday?
Were you at the library yesterday afternoon?
Was your friend at your house after school yesterday?
What day was your birthday last year?
Click here to listen to an example of this activity.
Example
Elanusa. (2016). La moda, Prendas de vestir, Mujeres. [Fotografía]. Recuperado de https://pixabay.com/es/la-moda-mujer-prendas-de-vestir-1623092/
Record your answers in your computer or in your cell phone. Save your answers, and once you finish evaluate your performance using the following rubric.
It is time to see if you have a good memory. So, let’s try it!
Look at the following image for 30 seconds. Pay careful attention to all the details. Once the 30 seconds are over, the image will disappear. Then you will answer some True or False questions about this image. Use the information from the wh- questions that you have been exploring.
Do you like music? Do you know David Bowie? Do you know some of his songs? Let’s learn more about him by reading this text. Link the sentences with the correct information. Remember that the information that you need to complete this activity appears at the beginning of the topic.
Do you like competitions? Well, this is a competition where your enemy is the ignorance. Please! Don’t let the ignorance win. You need to show how much have you learned from the wh- questions. In this exercise, you are going to organise the words to make sentences.
Drag the different options to the correct space to complete the sentences. You have two attempts to complete this exercise. Once you have finished, you can know your score.
Use capital letters where necessary.
Thornbury, S. (2004). Natural Grammar. United Kingdom: Oxford.
Azar, B. and Hagen, S. (2009). Understanding and Using English Grammar. United Kingdom: Pearson Longman.
English Media. Disponible en: www.cuaed.unam.mx/english_media
English Grammar Online. Disponible en: www.ego4u.com