To be: I am, you are, she is – verb to be exercises for names, ages and places
About this lesson
This A1 drill lesson gives verb to be exercises in the positive: am, is or are after each subject, short forms like I'm, and nouns with their pronouns.
- Grammar
- Am / is / are for a name, an age, a home town, a job, a feeling or a place, full and short forms, and age with be, not have.
- Topic
- Welcome day at Camp Birchwood, an invented summer camp in Maine: a counselor's post, her campfire talk, a postcard, a diary page and Mei's texts.
- Activities
- True or false, sorting, choices, gap-fills, matching, a pronoun table, drag-and-drop, quizzes, a memory game, word order, a chat and a final test.
What's inside
Chapter 1The rule
Chapter 2am, is or are?
- Match the two sentencesMatchTry it
- Choose am, is or are: people and thingsChoose the optionUnlock
- Fill in the gaps with be: people and thingsFill in the gapsUnlock
- Fill in the table: which pronoun?Fill in the tableUnlock
- Drag the pronouns into the gapsDrag and dropUnlock
- Choose the correct sentence: nouns and pronounsQuizUnlock
- Write the sentence with a pronounFill in the gapsUnlock
Chapter 3Short forms
- Find the matching pairs: full and short formsMemory gameUnlock
- Write the short formFill in the gapsTry it
- Write the full formFill in the gapsUnlock
- Choose the right spellingChoose the optionUnlock
- Sort the short forms: am, is or are?Sort into columnsUnlock
- Read the message from Iris and drag the short forms into the gapsDrag and dropUnlock
- Find the mistake and choose the right wordsQuizUnlock
Chapter 4Sentences about people
- Choose the right words: about peopleChoose the optionTry it
- Put the words in the right orderUnjumbleUnlock
- Match the sentences and the topicsMatchUnlock
- Find the mistake and choose the right sentenceQuizUnlock
- Fill in the gaps: subject + am / is / areFill in the gapsUnlock
- Read the letter from Tyler and fill in the gapsFill in the gapsUnlock
Chapter 5Real life: First day at camp
- Read the camp postReal-life documentUnlock
- Read the post again: true or false?True or falseUnlock
- Read the welcome talk and fill in the gapsFill in the gapsUnlock
- Read the postcard from Ava and drag the words into the gapsDrag and dropUnlock
- Read the diary page from Mei and choose the right wordsChoose the optionUnlock
- Choose the right replies: Mei texts youChatTry it
- Test yourself: choose the right answerQuizUnlock
Chapter 6Homework
- Choose am, is or are: family and friendsChoose the optionUnlock
- Fill in the gaps with be: at schoolFill in the gapsUnlock
- Write the short forms: a day at the beachFill in the gapsUnlock
- Put the words in the right order: sentencesUnjumbleUnlock
- Sort the sentences: correct or wrong?Sort into columnsUnlock
- Match the words and the pronounsMatchUnlock
- Drag the short forms into the gaps: people and placesDrag and dropUnlock
- Fill in the table: full and short formsFill in the tableUnlock
- Choose the correct sentence: mixed practiceQuizUnlock
- Decide: is the sentence correct? True or falseTrue or falseUnlock
- Choose the right short form: spellingChoose the optionUnlock
- Fill in the gaps: people, places and thingsFill in the gapsUnlock
- Read the email and fill in the gapsFill in the gapsUnlock
- Read the note on the fridge and drag the words into the gapsDrag and dropUnlock
- Read the ad and choose the right wordsChoose the optionUnlock
Grammar: the verb to be: am, is and are
In the present, be links a subject to what it is, how it is or where it is: a name, an age, a home town, a job, a feeling, a place or the weather. The verb never drops out: I'm from Texas, not I from Texas; She's a teacher, not She teacher.
To be: I am, you are, she is
Say your name, your age, where you are from, your job, how you feel and where you are: am / is / are.
Am, is, are and their short forms
I takes am; he, she and it take is; you, we and they take are. In a short form, the apostrophe stands for a letter: I'm, he's, it's, we're, they're.
subject + am / is / are
subjectam / is / arename · age · from … · job · feeling · place
I am Ava.
She is 12 years old.
They are from Texas.
Every person: full and short forms
| Who | Full form | Short form |
|---|---|---|
| I | I am happy. | I'm happy. |
| you | You are late. | You're late. |
| he | He is tall. | He's tall. |
| she | She is a nurse. | She's a nurse. |
| it | It is cold. | It's cold. |
| we | We are friends. | We're friends. |
| they | They are at home. | They're at home. |
Nouns and the pronouns that replace them
A man or a boy is he, a woman or a girl she, and a thing, an animal or the weather it. Two or more are they, Sam and I are we, and you and Ava stay you: The kids are hungry. They're in the kitchen.
| Noun | Pronoun | Example |
|---|---|---|
| a man or a boy: my dad, Mateo | he | My dad is a teacher. He's at school. |
| a woman or a girl: my mom, Ava | she | My mom is a doctor. She's at work. |
| a thing, an animal, the weather | it | The camp is big. It's beautiful. |
| two or more people or things: the kids, Ava and Mei | they | The kids are hungry. They're in the kitchen. |
| other people + I: Sam and I, Mom and I | we | Sam and I are 12. We're campers. |
| you + other people: you and Ava | you | You and Ava are in the Loon group. |
Name, age, job, feelings, place
The same verb covers each use: My name is Mateo. My dad is 40 years old. He's a cook. I'm tired. We're in Maine. Weather and time take it: It's sunny. It's late.
- name: I'm Mateo. · My name is Mateo.
- age: I'm 13. · My dad is 40 years old.
- where from: We're from Ohio.
- job: He's a cook. · They're doctors.
- feelings: I'm tired. · They're hungry.
- describing: The lake is blue. · My bag is new.
- place: Dad is at home. · We're in Maine.
- weather and time: It's sunny. · It's late.
Common mistakes
Look out for I have 8 years, They is happy, Is cold today and My brother he is a cook. Age and feelings take be: I'm 8. Sam is hungry. English needs a subject, even for the weather, and one subject is enough.
Common mistakes
I from Texas.
I'm from Texas.
don't forget am / is / are
I have 8 years.
I'm 8. · I'm 8 years old.
age: be, not have
They is happy.
They are happy.
I am · he, she, it is · you, we, they are
Is cold today.
It's cold today.
English needs a subject: it
Short forms and one subject
Short forms: the apostrophe (') takes the place of a letter: I'm (not Im, I'am), you're (not your), it's (not its), they're (not theyre). One subject only: My brother is a cook. (Not: My brother he is a cook.) Feelings: be, not have: Sam is hungry. (Not: Sam has hungry.)
Examples
- Hi! I'm Leah, and I'm 11.name and age
- My parents are from Brazil.where from
- Jenna is a camp counselor.job: a / an + job
- Brr! It's cold, and we're hungry.weather and feelings
- The kids are at the lake.place
- Mateo and I are friends.Mateo and I = we
More lessons on this grammar: Verb to be lessons and exercises
Try the verb to be exercises
Try them yourself: these are the same exercises your students do in edio.
What's in the lesson
- 42 auto-checked exercises
- 3 games
- 1 real-life document
- 1 grammar scheme
- 1 picture
The main objectives of this lesson are to:
- give a name, an age and a home town with be: Hi! I'm Zack. She is 14 years old. We are from Kenya.
- choose the pronoun for a noun and keep one subject: My grandma is 75. She's very kind, not My grandma she is 90
- spell the short forms with an apostrophe: I'm, you're, it's, they're, not Im, your or its
- say your age and how you feel with be: I'm 12 years old, not I have 12 years; My friends are hungry, not have hungry
- Grammar:
- to be · am / is / are · short forms · nouns and pronouns
- Topic:
- grammar practice · introductions · summer camp · people
Teaching tips
- Introduce a partner: students tell each other their name, age and home town, then present the partner to the class with he or she: This is Ana. She's 14. She's from Peru.
- Turn nouns into pronouns at speed: call out my dad, the kids, Mom and I or the weather, and the class answers with the pronoun and its verb: he is, they are, we are, it is.
- Cross out the missing letter: write I am, you are and it is on the board, strike the letter that goes, and put the apostrophe in its place, so Im and theyre look wrong at once.
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The whole course: English Grammar Practice · A1
English Grammar Practice · A1 has 24 drill lessons for adult beginners, one grammar point each, from the verb to be and the present simple to can, was and were and telling the time. Each has the rule as a scheme, 43 to 47 exercises that check themselves, 15 of them for homework, and no new words, so it works next to any course.See the course
- 1To be: I am, you are, she is
- 2To be negatives and questions: is it your bag?
- 3Subject pronouns and possessive adjectives: I, my, she, her
- 4This, that, these, those: what's this?
- 5Plural nouns: one box, two boxes
- 6A, an, the: a new apartment
- 7There is, there are: what's in the hotel?
- 8Have and has: she has a dog
- 9Present simple: she works, they work
- 10Present simple: don't, doesn't, do you…?
- 11Adverbs of frequency: always, usually, never
- 12In, on, at: times, days and months
- 13Prepositions of place: in, on, under, next to
- 14Can and can't: I can swim
- 15Imperatives: open, don't run, let's go
- 16Object pronouns: me, him, her, them
- 17Possessive 's: whose bag is this?
- 18Present continuous: what's happening now?
- 19Present simple or present continuous: every day or now?
- 20Like, love, hate + -ing: I love dancing
- 21Wh- questions: what, where, when, why?
- 22Countable and uncountable nouns: some, any, how much?
- 23Was and were: where were you yesterday?
- 24Telling the time and dates: what time is it?