Forming questions in English can be tricky for language learners. They need to be aware of subject-verb inversion and the difference between Yes/No and Wh- Questions. They must also become familiar with the different auxiliaries used for different tenses. Even in the simple present tense, there are differences in question formation patterns and auxiliary use between the Be verb and otherverbs.
Is there an easy way to show these auxiliary differences clearly? I’ve found that showing charts with the various subjects in the different tenses, often side by side, is a great way for students to remember which auxiliaries to use in questionformation.
When is the best time to present each chart below? It depends when you’ve introduced the various tenses in class. Here is a suggestedguideline:
- For beginner‑level learners, start with chartsA and C (simplepresent).
- For low‑intermediate students, present chartsA through D (simple present/simplepast).
- Once your intermediate‑level learners have studied the present perfect, reviewcharts A through D with them and present charts EandF.
- For higher‑level students, present chart G and any others if you feel they’ll benefit from a quickreview.
A. Questions with Be: SimplePresent
| Subject | Example |
|---|---|
| I | Am I late? |
| You | Are you fromBrazil? |
| He | Is he a goodstudent? |
| She | Is she tiredtoday? |
| We | Are we ontime? |
| They | Are theyhungry? |
| Singular Noun | Is that yourdog? |
| Plural Noun | Are the childrentired? |
B. Questions with Be: SimplePast
| Subject | Example |
|---|---|
| I | Was I late? |
| You | Were you in Brazil lastmonth? |
| He | Was he a goodstudent? |
| She | Was she tiredyesterday? |
| We | Were we ontime? |
| They | Were theyhungry? |
| Singular Noun | Was that yourdog? |
| Plural Noun | Were the childrentired? |
C. Questions with Do: SimplePresent
| Subject | Example |
|---|---|
| I | Do I have something stuck in myteeth? |
| You | Do you need anyhelp? |
| He | Does he likevegetables? |
| She | Does she have adog? |
| We | Do we know the roomnumber? |
| They | Do they playbasketball? |
| Singular Noun | Does your daughter watchcartoons? |
| Plural Noun | Do your friends go out onweeknights? |
D. Questions with Do: SimplePast
| Subject | Example |
|---|---|
| I | Did I have something stuck in my teeth lastnight? |
| You | Did you need anyhelp? |
| He | Did he like vegetables when he wasyoung? |
| She | Did she have a dog lastyear? |
| We | Did we know the roomnumber? |
| They | Did they play basketball in highschool? |
| Singular Noun | Did your daughter watch cartoons lastweekend? |
| Plural Noun | Did your friends go out lastnight? |
E. Questions with Have: PresentPerfect
| Subject | Example |
|---|---|
| I | Have I forgottensomething? |
| You | Have you traveled toEurope? |
| He | Has he eatendinner? |
| She | Has she done herhomework? |
| We | Have we come herebefore? |
| They | Have they lived herelong? |
| Singular Noun | Has your friend studied English for a longtime? |
| Plural Noun | Have your coworkers gone to the meetingyet? |
F. Questions with Have: Present Perfect Progressive
| Subject | Example |
|---|---|
| I | Have I been forgetting thingsagain? |
| You | Have you been traveling inEurope? |
| He | Has he been eating dinner for the pasthour? |
| She | Has she been doing her homework since 5:00pm? |
| We | Have we been coming here for two years orthree? |
| They | Have they been living herelong? |
| Singular Noun | Has your friend been studying English for a longtime? |
| Plural Noun | Have your coworkers been going to the monthlymeetings? |
G. Questions with Other Tenses &Modals
| Tense | Example |
|---|---|
| Present Progressive | Am I going withyou? |
| Simple Future with "will" | Will you finish your homework ontime? |
| Simple Future with "be going to" | Is he going to take next Fridayoff? |
| Past Perfect Progressive | Had she been studying English for a while before she got thejob? |
| Modal of Advice | Should we clean the apartment before wego? |
| Modal of Ability | Can they speakJapanese? |
| Modal of Possibility | Could that be her newboyfriend? |
| Present Passive | Are my friends invited to yourparty? |
Before presenting the charts in class, you may want to try eliciting the patterns for question formation for each subject in the tense(s) you’re covering (note: Aux = auxiliary verb ormodal):
- Be (simple present and simple past): Be + S +O
- Do (simple present and simple past): Do + S + V +O
- Have (present perfect): Have + S + V +O
- Have (present perfect progressive): Have + S + V + V +O
- Other tenses and modals: Aux + S + V (+ V) +O
For further practice, try some of the followingactivities:
- Interviews: Have students interview each other. Assign a particular tense or let them ask anything they want. Have lower levels use a mix of questions with be, do, and can. Have higher levels use a mix of questions with be, do, have, and variousmodals.
- Role‑Play: Have students do a role‑play using one type of question (e.g., two friends discussing likes and dislikes for practice with do questions, or two coworkers talking about places they’ve been for practice with havequestions).
- Examples: Have students come up with their own examples for the tenses in chart G.
- Find Someone Who: Have students come up with 10 items to include in a Find Someone Who chart. Then have them walk around the class asking their classmates their questions. Make sure you tell them what types of questions (which auxiliaries and which tenses) you want them to include. Use this blank FSW template or make yourown.
