Fun and engaging activities for EFL teachers who want to teach the Present Simple Tense

Teaching the Present Simple Tense in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) can be made engaging and effective through various activities. Here is a list of ten useful activities to teach the Present Simple Tense:

1. Daily Routine Interviews: Pair up students and have them interview each other about their daily routines using the Present Simple Tense. They can ask questions like, "What time do you wake up?" or "Do you have breakfast every day?" This activity encourages conversation and the use of present simple statements and questions.

2. Daily Routine Picture Cards: Provide students with a set of picture cards representing different daily activities. They can then use the cards to create sentences using the Present Simple Tense. For example, a student may say, "I brush my teeth in the morning."

3. True or False Statements: Present a list of statements to the class, some of which are true and others false. Students need to identify which statements are true and which are false using the Present Simple Tense. For instance, "Cats can fly" is false, while "Cats drink milk" is true.

4. Present Simple Board Game: Create a board game where each square has a prompt or question that requires a present simple response. Students roll the dice and move along the board, answering the prompts as they go. This activity reinforces the use of present simple tense in a fun and interactive way.

5. Sentence Scramble: Prepare sentence strips with jumbled words representing present simple sentences. Distribute the strips to the students and have them work in pairs or small groups to arrange the words into correct sentences. This activity helps students practice word order and sentence structure.

6. Verb Charades: Write a list of present simple verbs on small slips of paper. Students take turns picking a slip and acting out the verb without speaking. The rest of the class tries to guess the verb being portrayed. This activity reinforces vocabulary and the use of the Present Simple Tense.

7. Survey and Graph: Have students conduct a survey in the class, asking questions about preferences or habits. They can collect data using the Present Simple Tense and then create a graph to present their findings. This activity integrates speaking, listening, and data analysis skills.

8. Gap Fill Exercises: Provide students with sentences where the verb is missing. They must fill in the blanks with the appropriate present simple form of the verb. This activity helps reinforce verb conjugation and sentence construction.

9. Song Lyrics Analysis: Choose a song with clear present simple examples in its lyrics. Give students the lyrics and have them identify and discuss the sentences that use the present simple tense. This activity combines listening comprehension and grammar analysis.

10. Role Play Situations: Create various role play scenarios where students act out conversations using the Present Simple Tense. For example, they can simulate a customer and salesperson interaction at a store or a doctor and patient dialogue. Role plays promote fluency and application of the present simple in real-life contexts.

These activities provide a range of options to engage students and reinforce their understanding and usage of the Present Simple Tense in an EFL setting. Remember to adapt the difficulty level and complexity of the activities based on the students' proficiency and learning objectives.