I - Complete the sentences with the verbs in the PRESENT SIMPLE

or the PRESENT CONTINUOUS tense (see grammar notes on page 4 ):

1 In a well-used kitchen in west London, its 6:30 pm. and Anna

..... (cook) supper.
2 It.(be) a variation on a Jamie Oliver recipe: grilled fillets of fresh

pink fish.
3 Anna.. (constantly - read) cookbooks, her
boy friend .....(say)

4 Before he met her he thought his meals were healthy enough.
He(look)much healthier and ..(feel) much
better now.
5 Why ... (so many of us still - eat) so poorly these
days?
6 Partly, of course, it's about money: healthy food, in general, .(cost)
more than unhealthy food .
7 Researchers ..(think) it.(be) more often a
problem of dietary imbalance than under-nourishment.
8 Scientists found out after a special survey that even people who ..

.(do) well financially and socially (eat)
ever greater quantities of junk, fast and processed food too.
9 One of the reasons is that - whatever Jamie Oliver .. (say) - when
we're tired or it's late ready meals (be) easier and quicker.
10 Sugary, fatty and processed foods usually.... (taste) really
good.
11 Sheila, (always cook) a meal for herself and
her son, Tyrone.
12 It ..(shock) me that some parents . (not
take) the time to cook," she.(say). She .
(not work) full time and .. (get by) with her 13-
year-old son on 120 a week.
13 At the moment, she (prepare) a chicken curry, with
vegetable rice and salad, in her clean small kitchen. Generally, she.(buy)
the food she ..(need), spending maybe 50 a week.
14 On Fridays, when she (work) late, there might be a frozen
ready meal. However, she ..(tend) to cook big the night before.

Adapted from < http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2011/may/10/britains-food-habits-well-eat>



II Make questions with these words. Choose the correct tense of the verb: present simple or present

continuous? Then, answer the questions with short answers. Read the model.

MODEL: practical/ ready meals/ be/ but/ help / they people/ to eat/ healthily?
Ready Meals are practical, but do they help people to eat healthily?
No,
they dont.

1. still / cook book /that/ spare/ you/ in your/ time/ write?

...................................................................
.

2. the Spanish and Italians/ cook/ home-made meals/ the British/ more often/ than/?
............................................................
.................................................................

3. do/ an evening/still/ your mother/ in traditional / course/ British cooking?
......................................................
.

4. sometimes / cook/ your own / you / dinner?

...................................................................
..

5. believe / ready meals/ health experts/ our health /be / good/ for/?

..
.

6. fruit and vegetables /try /you and your friends/this week/ / to eat/ more?

.
..

7. your mother/ fresh food /buy/online?

8. how / eat out / you and your family/ often?

..

..

III Tick the correct sentence:

1. a Shes thinking about buying a new cooker.

b She thinks about buying a new cooker.

2. a Im hearing strange noises in the kitchen, arent you?

b I can hear strange noises in the kitchen, cant you?

3. a. This cake is tasting so good!

b. This cake tastes so good!

4. a. Why is she smelling the fish?

b. Why does she smell the fish?

5. a. Shes being too stubborn! She insists that she did nothing wrong.
b. Shes too stubborn! She insists that she did nothing wrong.

6. a. Speak up! Im not hearing you.

b. Speak up! I cant hear you.

7. a. Look at my new coat! Its feeling so soft and warm!

b. Look at my new coat! It feels so soft and warm!

8. a. Your daughter looks tired!

b. Your daughter is looking tired!

9. a. He knows what he has to do now.

b. Hes knowing what he has to do now.

10. a. I need help to finish my homework today.

b. Im needing help to finish my homework today.


Grammar Notes
Present Simple or Present Continuous?

THE PRESENT SIMPLE describes

Do you do your homework before dinner?
Habits / Routine

Permanent Truths Oil floats on water.

c. a changing situation

Digital cameras display images on a screen

Explanations immediately after they are recorded; they store
thousands of images on a single small memory device.

THE PRESENT CONTINUOUS describes

an action taking place at the moment of speaking Can you turn off the kettle, please?
The water is boiling.

How are you getting on in your new job?

a temporary action that is taking place around
Shes living with us until she finds a flat.
the time of speaking

a changing situation Your English is improving.

ACTION AND STATE VERBS

1 Action/Dynamic verbs express actions you can see. 2 Turn off the kettle! The water is boiling.
They can be conjugated both in simple and continuous Water boils at 100oC.
tenses.

4 thought/opinion: be, believe, think, feel, know,
3 State/Stative verbs show the way things are. You cant
understand, forget, remember,
see the action. They arent conjugated in continuous
recognise, agree, disagree
tenses. They are verbs of
emotion: like, love, hate, prefer, want, need, mind
possession: have, belong, own, possess

5 Other state verbs 6 seem, cost, weigh, contain, equal

8 Have as in : Shes having a bath at the moment.

Be as in: Youre being nave (youre behaving as if you were)
7 Verbs that can be both state or action verbs.
They change their form according to their meaning Verbs of senses: see, taste, smell, feel as in
This soup tastes good . (state)
. Mum is tasting the soup. (action)

Think (consider) as in: Im thinking about my next holiday.

9 Use CAN with verbs which describe the senses to talk about whats happening now:
I can smell something burning in the kitchen.
Can you hear a strange noise outside?

 Key

Task 1

1) is cooking 8. are doing eat

2) is 9. says are
3) is constantly reading-says 10. taste
4) looks is feeling 11. always cooks
5) are so many of us still eating 12. shocks dont take says
6) costs doesnt work gets
7) think-is by
13. is preparing-buys- needs
14. works tends

TASK II
1. Are you still writing that cook book in 6 Are you and your friends trying to eat more
your spare time? fruit and vegetables this week?
Yes, I am/No, Im not. Yes, we are./ No, we arent.

2. Do the Spanish and Italians cook home-

7 Does your mother buy fresh food and
made meals more often than the British?
groceries online?
Yes, they do. No, she doesnt./ Yes, she does.
3. Is your mother doing an evening course in
traditional British cooking at the moment? 9 How often do you and your family eat out?
Yes, she is./ No, she isnt. Once or twice a week/ a month.
4. Do you sometimes cook your own dinner?
Yes, I do
5. Do health experts believe ready meals
are good for your health?
No, they dont.

TASK III
III Tick the correct sentence: 6b Speak up! I cant hear you.
7b Look at my new coat! It feels so
1a Shes thinking about buying a soft and warm!
new cooker. 8a Your daughter looks tired!
2b I can hear strange noises in the 9a He knows what he has to do now.
backyard, cant you?
10a I need help to finish my
3b This cake tastes so good!
4a Why is she smelling the fish? homework today.
5a Shes being too stubborn! She insists
that she did nothing wrong