Help Conserve Wildlife - Grammar Part 1

GRAMMAR

Help conserve wildlife

                                    Past Simple

a)      Read this example

George: Look! It´s raining again. Paula: Oh, no, not again. It rained all day yesterday too.   RAINED à is the past simple tense. We use it to talk about actions or situations in the past.

-                     I very much enjoyed the recycling party.

-                     Mr Edwards died one year ago in an arson fire.

-                     When I lived in Manchester, I worked in a recycle plant.

b)      Very often the past simple ends in –ed:

-                     We invited them to our recycling party but they decided not to come.

-                     The police stopped John on his way home last night for throwing a cigarette through the   window.

But many important verbs are irregular. This means that the past simple does not end in –ed. For example

leave à left                                      cost à cost

The past of the verb be (am/is/are) is was/were:   I/he/she/it à was                             we/you/they à were I was angry because George and Paula were late for the recycling party.

go à went                                        eat à ate

Click here for a  List of Irregular Verbs

c)       In past simple questions an negatives we use did/ didn´t + the infinitive (do/open/rain, etc):

                                    It rained           -                  did it rain?        -                 it didn´t rain

Jane: Did you go to the recycling party, Tom?

Tom: Yes, I went there. I enjoyed it a lot! Why didn´t you come?

Note: We use did/didn´t with have, but we do not use did with the verb be (was/were)

-                     Did you have a good time at the party?                  - Yes, I did.

-                     Why were you so angry?                                            - Because you weren´t at the party.

1.   READ THE TEXT and try to understand how important it is to look after the environment.

Help conserve wildlife

What you can do

Tips for how you can look after the environment by doing your bit in the garden, around the home and in your local community.

Here are some simple suggestions:

• Join your local community wildlife groups such as your Wildlife Trust or Conservation Volunteers.
• Take part in pond-clearance or other such work - it's fun and great exercise.
• Read our leaflet on invasive non-native plant species.
• Use peat alternatives for your garden.

Managing water and drought

• Use water sparingly - only what you need.
• Reduce your water consumption (e.g. put a hippo bag in the toilet cistern; buy a low water-use washing machine).
• Don't leave your tap running when washing your hands or cleaning your teeth.
• Buy a water butt if you have a garden.
• Report leaks to your water company.

Managing flood risk

• Look to see if your house is at risk of flooding on our floodline pages.
• Find out if we're objecting to applications for housing developments that increase flood risk in your area. This gives you chance to contact your local authority and voice your concerns.

Enjoy your pond

A garden pond, be it large or small, provides a small patch of tranquility in our gardens. In addition, it also acts as a home for many amphibious and aquatic creatures. It can also be a watering hole for passing birds and mammals.

2.       Select some verbs from the text and put them in the past.

For example: Help --> helped