What's on this page
The worksheets fix the form, and the lesson plans give students something real to describe. Some of the materials you will find here:
- Present Continuous: a live bear camera in Alaska shows what is happening right now. Students learn the form, the spelling rules and short answers, then describe a picture of their own surroundings
- Present Simple vs Present Continuous: every day or right now, and how to tell which one you need
- London Street Style: describing what people are wearing in the street
- Breaking News and Life As A Googler: what is happening now against what usually happens
- Summer Is Here! and Struggles in Life: plans, changes and temporary situations
Spelling the -ing form
Adults rarely get the meaning wrong. They get the spelling wrong. These are the present continuous spelling rules that the worksheet drills, and they are the same rules your students will need for gerunds later.
| Rule | Example |
| Most verbs: add -ing | eat → eating, fish → fishing |
| Verb ends in -e: drop the e | make → making, dance → dancing |
| Short verb, one vowel and one consonant: double it | sit → sitting, swim → swimming, run → running |
| Verb ends in -ie: change ie to y | lie → lying, die → dying |
Present continuous worksheets for adults usually skip spelling, but it is where written mistakes start. Learn the four rules once and students can write any -ing form they meet later, from planning to lying.
Present continuous or present simple?
Students who know both tenses separately still mix them when they speak: I am liking this song, she is going to school every day. Both sentences are well formed and both are wrong, which is why more drilling of one tense never fixes them. Put the two side by side. The Present Simple vs Present Continuous worksheet does exactly that, and the present simple page has more material for the routine side.
A good test is the time expression. Every day, usually and never point to the present simple. Now, right now, at the moment and Look! point to the present continuous. Students who check the time expression first make far fewer mistakes, and the comparison worksheet trains exactly that habit.
Present continuous for future plans
B1 learners meet a second use: fixed arrangements with a time or a place. I'm meeting Ana at six. We're flying on Friday. It feels strange to students who think of this tense as right now, so teach it once the first use is secure. The future tenses page puts it next to will and going to.
Diaries and calendars are the easiest way in. Ask students to read out their plans for the coming week as arrangements: on Tuesday I'm seeing the dentist, on Friday we're having dinner with friends.
Present continuous FAQ
What level are these materials for?
Most are A1 to B1. The Present Continuous worksheet is A1-A2, and the lesson plans go up to B1-B2 for the future arrangements use.
Is there a present continuous worksheet with answers?
Yes. Every worksheet has a Teacher's Version with all the answers, so it works for homework and self-study as well as in class.
Can I use the worksheets online?
Yes. Share your screen and work through the exercises together, or send the PDF before class. Present continuous speaking activities, such as describing what is happening around you, work just as well on a video call.
All present continuous worksheets and lesson plans come with a teacher subscription.