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Lesson Plan January 5, 2024

Topic: Present Perfect Simple vs Present Perfect Continuous

In this lesson we will study and practise the differences between the present perfect simple and present perfect continuous.

When we talk about things that happen in a period of time from the past up to now, we often use the present perfect simple (have + past participle) and present perfect continuous (have + been + -ing).

Section A

We use the present perfect simple to talk about completed actions (but we do not say when they happened):

• I’ve never been to China.

• He has made several films since last year.

• I’ve found your phone!

When we use the present perfect simple, we focus on a completed activity or the result of the activity:

• She is ready. She has studied everything. (We are interested in the result: She is ready.)

• He’s smoked the whole pack!

• I‘ve cut my finger.

We use the present perfect simple to say how much or how many:

• I’ve met him 5 times.

• How many books has he written?

• How much money has he made since last year?

Section B

We use the present perfect continuous to talk about unfinished activities that started in the past and are still in progress in the present:

• I’ve been working in London since last year.

• I don’t know many people in this city.

• I haven’t been living here for very long.

We can use the present perfect continuous to focus on a recent activity. It is not important if the activity is finished or unfinished:

• She’ll be ready. She’s been studying very hard. (We are interested in the activity of studying.)

• His clothes smell. Has he been smoking?

• Have you been using that dull knife? I told you to sharpen it.

We often use the present perfect continuous to say how long:

• I’ve been writing for two hours.

• How long have you been standing there?

• I haven’t been watching television for very long.

Lesson Notes

• I had laryngitis, I could talk very little because my voice was hoarse.

• Winters can be so dry in Tokyo, I use hand cream a lot, and usually apply lip balm as well.

Vocabulary

• Hoarse; (adj) (of a person's voice) sounding rough and harsh

• For pets:

• People often use "he" or "she" for their pets when they know the gender. If the gender is unknown or not important, using "it" is okay and neutral.

• For wild animals:

• When talking about wild animals or animals in a general way where we don't know or don't care about the gender, using "it" is common and neutral. This is because it's not practical or important to use gender pronouns for animals in the wild.

Present Perfect Simple & Present Perfect Continuous

• "I've emailed Jack five times since last week. So far, he hasn't replied.”

• Use present perfect simple to say "how much" or "how many”

• "I've been emailing Jack since last week. So far, he hasn't replied.”

• If we remove “five times” we can then use present perfect continuous; the repeated action of “emailing” 

• "They've seen this movie before.”

• Here “see” means to watch with their eyes

• "I've seen a throat specialist."

• "I've been seeing a throat specialist.”

• In these two sentences "see" means to visit or consult

In general, verbs that describe states, beliefs, or non-continuous actions are less commonly used in the present perfect continuous tense.

- For example; like, need, know, realize, understand, believe, remember