The present progressive, also called the present continuous, is a very common verb tense in English. It is natural in speaking since a lot of conversations start with “What are you doing?” It’s also useful when talking about sports and actions. Since the Lesson of the Week this week is our coloring activity about Baseball, I thought it would be a good time to review this grammar tense. The method below is one I’ve often used with my students for presenting the present progressive. Next week, I’ll blog about comparing the simple present and the present progressive. Being able to use each one in the correct context is the ultimate test of your students’ understanding.
1. Form
BE + -ING Verb
Remind students that the BE verb must be conjugated according to the subject (I am, you are, he/she/it/third person singular count nouns/non-count nouns is, we are, you (pl.) are, they/third person plural count nouns are).
2. Use
The present progressive is used for a continuing action that is happening now. This action is not finished at the present time.
3. Time Markers
Time markers are words about time that indicate which verb tense is needed. The time markers for the present progressive include:
- now
- right now
- currently
- nowadays
- these days
- at the moment
- at this time
- presently
4. Examples
Give your students some examples using the present progressive. Make sure you use different subjects to remind them how the BE verb will be conjugated. Don’t forget to include contractions in some of your examples—contractions are very common!
- The children are playing hide-and-seek now.
- I’m taking a shower at the moment, so I can’t answer the phone.
- Nowadays, he is living in Vancouver, Canada.
5. Fun Activities
A) Action Charades – Use cards with pictures of actions on them, such as running, swimming, dancing, fishing, etc. Put students in small groups or do it as a class. Have one student choose a card and act out the action. The first student to call out the action correctly using the present progressive gets a point. (E.g., She is swimming!) You can make your own cards or find premade flashcards in Sprout English’s Present Progressive lesson, found in the Basic Grammar Structures section of the Grammar School.
B) Picture Perfect – Put students into pairs. Find a picture with many people doing various things and have students write 5–10 sentences using present progressive verbs to describe what people are doing in the picture. Alternatively, get students to bring in pictures from home, or have them find pictures on the Internet to describe.
6. Practice
Use Sprout English’s Present Progressive lesson in the Basic Grammar Structures section of the Grammar School. This beginner/low-intermediate lesson has nine pages of exercises, including practice with writing the BE verb in contracted form. This lesson also includes flashcards that you can use in many ways, such as in the Action Charades activity described above.
We also have an eight-page lesson called A Storm to Remember in the Grammar Stories section of the Grammar School.
Also, there are 14 stories that use the present progressive in Sprout English’s Library, Present Progressive Stories section. Each story has a print and digital reading, comprehension questions, and fun activities to practice using this verb structure in context.
7. Special Notes
A) Future Use: Tell your higher-level learners that the present progressive can also be used to indicate a future time. This use is a little more casual than will + base verb, and it’s very common in speaking and informal writing. For information on presenting the three future forms, check out my blog post Simple Future: Teaching the Three Forms on our sister site, ESL-Library.
Examples:
- My mom is cooking a big family dinner next Friday night.
- Are you going to the party next weekend?
- I’m sleeping over at my friend’s house tomorrow.
B) Non-Action Verbs: Remind your students that non-action verbs will almost never take an -ing form. 
Non-action verbs include be, have, feelings, thinking verbs, and the five senses.
Examples:
- She is hungry. (correct) / She is being hungry. (incorrect)
- My friend believes in ghosts. (correct) / My friend is believing in ghosts. (incorrect)
Note that there are exceptions where the non-action verb is used in two ways, such as I think that summer is the best month (opinion) vs. I’m thinking of buying a new video game (deciding).
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