Ideas For Teaching The Present Perfect

Join a global community of over 200,000 TEFL teachers working throughout the world! Enrol me!

There are many different ways of teaching different grammatical structures, but usually there are certain methods or activities which lend themselves to teaching a particular structure.

The Present Perfect is one of those structures which you will find yourself teaching again and again, as students seem to struggle with it and need a lot of practice before it becomes more natural.  So let’s look at a few things you can do to make teaching and learning the present perfect more fun and more effective.

  • I Have Never. A popular drinking game in some parts of the world, this is a great game to practise the present perfect. (Obviously, though, the rules are slightly different as there is no drinking involved!). One student starts and makes a sentence which is true for them: “I have never ridden a motorbike”. If anyone has ridden a motorbike then they need to stand up. The next student makes another sentence – “I have never seen an elephant” – and if it’s true for them then they stay seated (or sit down) but if they have seen an elephant they stand up. This is a great game for the students to practise the structure and get to know each other at the same time.
  •  Around the World. Draw a world map on the board and mark out places where you have been and places you would like to go to, in two different colours. Let the students ask you questions about your destinations. They usually come up with questions such as “When did you go to Thailand?”, “Why do you want to go to India?”, though they may need some help on the correct question forms, depending on the level. When that is finished, give the students a handout of a world map or let them draw their own and they then do the same for themselves. In pairs or groups they compare maps and talk about where they’ve been and where they would like to go. This is a great way to consolidate one of the differences between the present perfect and the past simple.
  • The Superlative Game. As the name suggests, this involves students comparing something in order to decide whose situation is the most superlative. For example, “The most expensive thing I’ve ever bought is my handbag for £150”. “The hottest place I’ve ever been to is Saudi Arabia.” The students can come up with the situations themselves or you can provide them with prompts. This is a fun for students to compete with each other and try to “beat” their partners. It can first be done in partners and then as a group activity to find out the winners of the whole class. While the present perfect may be tricky to get right, there are many games and activities which can be used to help your students practice it.

Get Social

Follow us on social networks, join our newsletter - get the latest news and early discounts

Sign up to our newsletter

Follow us on social networks, sign up to our e-newsletters – get the latest news and early discounts

Accreditation Partners

The TEFL Academy was the world’s first TEFL course provider to receive official recognition from government regulated awarding bodies in both the USA and UK. This means when you graduate you’ll hold a globally recognised Level 3 (120hr) Certificate or Level 5 (168hr) Diploma, meaning you can find work anywhere and apply for jobs immediately.

Product added to your cart

You have added to your cart:

Request call back

    Please leave your details below and one of our TEFL experts will get back to you ASAP:

    captchaType characters on the left:

    Would you like us to update you on TEFL opportunities, jobs and related products & services?

    Yes, keep me updatedNo, but thanks anyway!

    Thank you! Your message has been sent!

    Download the TEFL World Factbook

      Please enter your details in order to download the latest TEFL World Factbook.

      Would you like us to update you on TEFL opportunities, jobs and related products & services?

      Yes, keep me updatedNo, but thanks anyway!

      Thank you for downloading the TEFL World Factbook!

      If the TEFL World Factbook did not download
      > Click Here To Download <

      Download the Online Teaching Guide

        Please enter your details in order to download our Online Teaching Guide.

        Would you like us to update you on TEFL opportunities, jobs and related products & services?

        Yes, keep me updatedNo, but thanks anyway!

        Thank you for downloading our Online Teaching Guide!

        If the Online Teaching Guide did not download
        > Click Here To Download <

        Download Prospectus

          Please enter your details in order to download our latest prospectus.

          Would you like us to update you on TEFL opportunities, jobs and related products & services?

          Yes, keep me updatedNo, but thanks anyway!

          Thank you for downloading our prospectus!

          We hope you enjoy reading our prospectus, we have tried to make it as useful as possible! Please get in touch if you have any questions.

          If the prospectus did not download automatically
          > Click Here To Download <

          $
          $