The Verb To Be in the Simple Past Tense: Was / Were

The past forms of the verb to be are was and were, and the conjugation of the verb is as follows:

I / he / she / it	was
You / we / they	were

The forms was and were are used to describe a situation or situations in the past that no longer exist, e.g.

There were two men on that corner, but they are gone now. Terry was thin when he was young. The concert last night was fabulous!

practice

practice 5

Desarrollo 

1. Phil Stanley was making a phone call    when somebody stole his belt     

2. Janet smith finally got a letter from her aunt   after 16 YEARS!

3. Michel j. was driving home   when he realized the car wasn`t his                       
4. Mary R. bought a pencil sketch for $ 2.50   and later found it was worth $ 10.000

5. Frank needed medical attention    when his Venezuelan colleague ARRIVED EARLY             

6. A Georgia woman gave up after trying to cross the Atlantic in a canoe

7. At sunrise, Florida, a man was arrested for falling through his neighbor`s roof

8. Police were shocked when they stopped Jill R her passenger was a boa constrictor

practice

practice 4

Change the following sentences to past tense. Use there was / there were as corresponds. Use capital letters to start your sentences. 

Model:

There is an increase in sales this semester There was an increase in sales last semeste

practice

practice 3

Change the following sentences using there is / there are as corresponds. Use capital letters to start your sentences.

Model:

An increase in sales is happening this semester There is an increase in sales this semester

practice

practice 2

desarrollo

1. Crime news 

2. Art new 

3. Spots news

4. Arts news

5. Sports news

Practice

desarrollo
1. she`s on a “cruhs” diet  she wants to get thinner by compressing  her stomach

             
2. by the way   these are some really idiotic  things

3. on to some  lighter  news let`s tall about less serous  events

4. her tummy muscles  the muscles on her stomach

5. what a lot of nonsense!   now, talking  about other  things…  

                   

                         

      

                                 

Short Reading about the topic

(Peter and Gina are in their living room after dinner)
PETER: What s on the news?
GINA: Nothing good, you can be sure.
PETER: Well, let's see what the bad news is, then. (Turns on the TV)

ANNOUNCER:
Policethe police said the individual was about 5 feet 10 inches tall and wore a mask.
There were reports he was seen driving away in a blue Monza.
Now on to some lighter news. In Medellin, Colombia, have schoolchildren squeezed into Renault 4 car and broke into Guinness Record.
In Rainham, England a bank robber was arrested after trying to escape ON A BICYCLE. I guess I was not in a hurry.
In Motown Kentucky a 25-year old woman wants to strengthen her tummy muscles. She drinks only fruit juices and lies down with two cinder blocks on her tummy for five hours every day. I think she s on a  crush  diet.
And there's a man in Wellington, New Zealand who is completing 25 continuous days at the top of a 40-foot pole. You might say that's one way of getting away from it all.
On to weather. Tomorrow should be fine with about 75 degrees  .

(Gina switches off the TV)
GINA: Man, people sure do stupid things to get into the Guinness Records Book.
PETER: And to get their name in the news, too, apparently. What a lot of nonsense! By the way, I got a letter from Aunt Agatha today and she says 

OBJECTIVE, BRIEF READING ABOUT THE TOPIC WHAT`S ON THE NEWS?

OBTETIVE

Use there is/there are to show that objects/people/events exist in the present.

Use there was/there were to show that objects/people/events existed in the past.

Use vocabulary and idiomatic expressions related to the new and to uneventful everyday activities