WHAT HAS JUST HAPPENED?

A few days ago I came across a very short but hilarious video of an eagle performing what is call an epic facial expression. It inspired me to introduce it in the class to practice the use of JUST in PRESENT PERFECT sentences. I believe it may be fun to use the video in the class and let the student comment on it in a creative way. Here is the short activity that I came up with.

SPEAKING/VIDEO
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmizjAOH4b4
The teacher plays a short video. The students' task is to answer the question:
What has just happened to the eagle?

It's a good idea to encourage the students to be creative and invent some crazy answers to the question. Some examples of the answers may be as follows:

• It has just saw another eagle in its nest.
• It has just sat on a thorny tree branch.
• It has just saw a hunter pointing a rifle at it.
• It has just learnt that its wife pregnant.
• It has just learnt that he won a jackpot in a lottery. 
• It has just realized that he forgot to flush the toilet.

HAVE YOU EVER...?

PRESENT PERFECT is not the easiest tense for students to comprehend. The difficulties start with the understanding of the usage. And of course there's the past participle... However there are some nice exercises helping to practice the grammar principles in a fun way. Here are two ways to introduce and practise HAVE YOU EVER...? questions

GRAMMAR

Asking about life experience you may use HAVE YOU EVER...? questions.

Have you EVER eaten sushi?

Yes, I have.

No, I haven't.

No, I have NEVER eaten sushi.

Has she EVER had a boyfriend?

Yes, she has.

No, she hasn't.

No, she has NEVER had a boyfriend.

SPEAKING

Ask the students to write up to five different Have you ever...? questions that they will later ask to five different classmates. Encourage not to be shy to ask some crazy questions.

SPEAKING

Prepare two sets of cards. One saying TELL THE TRUTH, the other saying TELL A LIE. Put them on a table face down. 

Tell the Truth

Tell a Lie

Divide the class into two opposite teams. A person from team one then takes one card not showing it to anyone. The teacher then asks him/her a random Have you ever...? question. The student has to answer according to the instruction on the card he/she chose, i.e. if the card says to tell the truth the student must answer according to his true experience. but if it says to tell a lie, the student must lie.

The members of the opposite team then decide if the students told the truth or lied. If their answer is correct, they get one point.

EXAMPLES OF QUESTIONS YOU MAY ASK

• Have you ever cheated on an exam?
• Have you ever won some money in a lottery?
• Have you ever gossipped about your best friend?
• Have you ever worn glasses?
• Have you ever forgotten your mum's birthday?
• Have you ever slept on a beach?
• Have you ever seen a ghost?
• Have you ever worn a pink mini skirt?
• Have you ever fallen from stairs?
• Have you ever broken your arm?
• Have you ever been in a fist fight?
• Have you ever been on TV?
• Have you ever had a boyfriend/girlfriend from another country?
• Have you ever been in a car accident?
• Have you ever eaten insects?
• Have you ever gone skiing?
• Have you ever written a poem?
• Have you ever made brownies?
• Have you ever met anyone famous?
• Have you ever ridden  a camel?
• Have you ever climbed a mountain?
• Have you ever told a lie?
• Have you ever took part in a flash mob?
• Have you ever milked a cow?
• Have you ever sung in a shower?
• Have you ever fainted?
• Have you ever fired a gun?
• Have you ever travelled without paying for a ticket?