While, the lexical meaning of the verb provides us with certain information, there is much more we can glean:

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1 Verbs The verb is a key element in an English clause or sentence, since it handles most of the grammatical workload in a sentence. Verbs can be varied to show tense and form. Although some simple tense verbs only consist of one word, many forms of the verb require more than one word the verb phrase. Variation and consistency in the use of verb forms increase as children s writing develops. The components of the verb phrase are the main (or lexical) verb and auxiliary verbs. Auxiliary verbs increase the information around the main verb, e.g. she has been singing, he does look cross, it will be built, they could have been stopped. Auxiliary verbs can be sub-divided into two sets: Primary auxiliaries, which can also occur alone as main verbs (be, have, do). Modal auxiliaries, which are used to build up verb phrases and contain an element of possibility, probability, intention, ability, obligation, etc. (will, may, can, must, ought (to), shall, might, could, would, should). We create future tenses in English using the modal verbs will and shall. While, the lexical meaning of the verb provides us with certain information, there is much more we can glean: The position gives us: Who the subject/agent is Who s being affected (object) The tense and form can give us: When the action takes place, or when state of existence or ownership takes place (He jumps the fence. She will be happy. He owned a car. The baby is crying.) An element of duration or frequency (present perfect She has always cycled to work; past perfect He had been Prime Minister.) The speaker/writer s feelings, including emphasis. (We ought to write to them. We must refuse. We could attend the meeting.) Negative action/existence (He can t go to the ball, She is not content.) Clues as to sentence type being used (statement, question, command) indicated by word order and form of verb, e.g. imperative (Eat it.), modal forms in questions (Did you know about it?) One difficulty we face as teachers is that most speech and authentic texts use a mixture of verb forms and sometimes tenses too. This enables us to convey subtle, yet complex, information in a natural way. When we are teaching verbs we need to consider which parts of the text we focus on, so that we don t confuse children with the differing forms. Being selective, we can provide opportunities to engage with the examples we are focusing on, experiment with them and help children to use them independently where appropriate. This doesn t mean we have to completely ignore other verb forms in a text, which contribute to the rich language choices appropriate to that style of writing: children can learn a pattern in the text that is not necessarily the focus of the purposeful sentence level work in a unit and they don t need the additional terminology if they are not ready for it.

2 Forms and tenses Simple form Present simple tense I look, he cooks, they sing (present simple indicates person in the third person by the addition of s or es suffixes: she sings, he does. Person is also indicated in irregular verbs be and have : I am, you are, it is, she has, we have. Use of the present simple often portrays habitual actions and general truths. Past simple tense I looked, he cooked, they sang (irregular past tenses do not use the ed suffix). Status of action is it is over and done with. Progressive form (indicates action is or was continuing and incorporates a form of the verb be as an auxiliary, in the present or past tense): Present progressive I am looking, he is cooking, they are singing. Past progressive I was looking, he was cooking, they were singing. The main verb in this ing form is called the present participle Perfect form (incorporates a form of the verb have as an auxiliary, in the present or past tense and indicates actions that have been completed, but the effects or consequences of these are still relevant at the time referred to): Present perfect I have looked, he has cooked, they have sung. (The time scale referred to is up to the present and the possibility exists that the action can be continued.) Past perfect I had looked, he had cooked, they had sung. The main verb in this ed or irregular past tense form is called the past participle. Modals These express: Ability (be able to or capable of) We can/could go to the ball. Permission (be allowed or permitted to) Can/may/might we go to the ball? Possibility (theoretical or factual) We can/could go to the ball. Intention (willingness) We shall/will/would go to the ball. Insistence We shall/will go to the ball. Obligation/compulsion We should/must/have to/ought to go to the ball. Prediction (specific, timeless, habitual) We will go to the ball. Probability We would go to the ball. Necessity We need to/have to/must go to the ball. Passive Most of the sentences we write are in the active voice. In this structure, the subject of the sentence is the person or thing which is doing the action and the object of the sentence is what is being affected by the action. For example:

3 The dog chased the cat. S V O Babcock LDP doing the (active form) affected by action the action The passive voice is formed by using a form of the verb be and the past participle of the main verb (see appendix for list of irregular past participles). In the passive, the person or thing being affected by the action becomes the subject of the sentence; the person or thing doing the action may or may not be provided. For example: The cat S was chased. V (past passive form) affected by action The cat was chased by the dog S V A (preposition + the agent) affected (past passive form) doing the action by action Below are examples of different tenses and verb forms in the passive, using the main verb constructed. The list isn t exhaustive, but provides the most common variations. It is constructed. Simple present passive It was constructed. Simple past passive It is being constructed. Present progressive passive It was being constructed. Past progressive passive It has been constructed. Present perfect passive It had been constructed. Past perfect passive It will be constructed. Simple future passive It is going to be constructed. Simple future passive (is going to) It could have been constructed. Conditional present perfect passive It will be important for children to understand that we use the passive to create more formality in writing and that it is often used to distance the writer from the content being presented. In some cases this enables the writer to hide responsibility. Of course, when writing, we may not know

4 who the agent is and cannot include this information in our sentence. For example, in journalistic writing, the perpetrator of a crime may not be known: The statue was damaged last night, at around ten. Another reason for using the passive is that the agent is irrelevant to the text or that we want to focus on the person or thing being affected: Stonehenge was built thousands of years ago. Subjunctive Verbs in the subjunctive mood are used to show expression of a hypothetical situation or one where something is demanded, recommended, wished or expected. It is only used for formal writing. There are different ways of forming the subjunctive mood and more detailed information is included in the appendix. It is likely that teaching at Year 6 will focus on using subordinate clauses introduced by if, which express a hypothetical situation: If were In these structures, the first and third person singular past form was is changed to were. (If he were a better swimmer, he would have won the race. If I were to leave, I would miss the final speech.) Grammar feature National curriculum content: Verbs Y1 Y2 Y3/4 Y5/6 Suffixes that can be added to verbs where no change is needed in the spelling of root words (e.g. helping, helped, helper) How the prefix un changes the meaning of verbs and adjectives [negation, for example, unkind, or undoing: untie the boat] Correct choice and consistent use of present tense and past tense throughout writing Use of the progressive form of verbs in the present and past tense to mark actions in progress [for example, she is drumming, he was shouting] Verb Tense (past, present) Apostrophes to mark where letters are missing in Use of the present perfect form of verbs instead of the simple past [for example, He has gone out to play contrasted with He went out to play] Standard English forms for verb inflections, instead of local spoken forms (for example we were instead of we was, or I did instead of I done). Indicating degrees of possibility using modal verbs [for example, might, should, will, must] Use of the passive to affect the presentation of information in a sentence [for example, I broke the window in the greenhouse versus The window in the greenhouse was broken (by me)]. Converting nouns or adjectives into verbs using suffixes [for example, ate; ise; ify] Verb prefixes [for example, dis, de, mis, over and re ] Modal verb

5 spelling Apostrophe Active Passive The difference between vocabulary typical of informal speech and vocabulary appropriate for formal speech and writing [for example, find out discover; ask for request; go in enter] Linking ideas across paragraphs using tense choices [for example, he had seen her before] Preparation or consolidation As part of the suffix teaching, children should start to understand when to use present and past tenses. Create oral Consolidate doing/being/having verbs Encourage correct use of subjectverb agreement and Standard English forms for verb inflections. Consolidate and develop the range of irregular verbs they know. Encourage correct use of subject-verb agreement, particularly where these conflict in some dialects. Although teaching of modal verbs does not come until Year 5, children will be using these in their speech and writing. In The difference between structures typical of informal speech and structures appropriate for formal speech and writing [for example, the use of subjunctive forms such as If I were or Were they to come in some very formal writing and speech] Consolidate understanding around all the studied verb forms and when it is most appropriate to use them. Take opportunities to notice and discuss these in texts being studied. (Link teaching of modal verbs to using apostrophes for contractions where applicable.)

6 sentences in past and present. Recognise and use past tense for stories preparation, they should be encouraged to think about and discuss the differences in meaning when they use different modal verbs. Tricky bits Encourage correct use of subject-verb agreement. Understanding which part of the sentence is the verb. Lots of talk will be needed to establish this. Using the Toolkit hammer with an action will help children identify the patterns in a sentence. Using suffix ing requires children to understand the auxiliaries of the verb be. Using suffix ed, children will sometimes try to regularise irregular verbs. These need to be Teachers need: to be able to identify texts which have good examples of the present and past simple and present and past progressive. Many good texts, even for younger children, will have a sophisticated mix of verb forms and tenses, so examples need to be chosen carefully. to understand that the term progressive is the same as continuous, which is terminology used in some grammar texts (including the Sentence Toolkit). Children need to be able to use and understand how the verb be alters as auxiliary in both the present and past tenses. Using the correct Standard English forms of past participle where these conflict with local dialect/home use. Children need to be able to use and understand how the verb have alters as auxiliary in the present tense. Understanding past participles of the irregular verbs (see resources appendix for list). Understanding how the present perfect differs in meaning other past tense forms of the verb. This will require modelling and discussion around the meanings. Children may have difficulty understanding use of the subjunctive, particularly if they are already struggling with subject verb agreement (was/were). Although the following terms are not included as terminology for pupils in the curriculum, they may be required for the grammar and punctuation test: Present progressive Past progressive Present perfect Past perfect Subjunctive (Do we include this list?)

7 corrected and explained as tricky. Going beyond Not referring to verbs as doing words. Being and having too. Look at how the verb have is formed in the present tense, with a different spelling for third person singular. Once children understand the present perfect, develop use of the past perfect, particularly where there are examples in texts being used. More able writes could investigate different forms of the passive voice and subjunctive mood. (See appendix 1 for subject knowledge around these items.)