Understanding tenses is one of the most important steps in learning English grammar. For Class 3 students, tenses help them talk about the past, present, and future correctly. Whether it’s writing a story, talking about their day, or planning something exciting they need tenses to form proper sentences.
In this blog, we’ll break down the three main types of tenses in English grammar for Class 3 students, give simple examples, and share tips for mastering them. Plus, find out how PlanetSpark’s English grammar courses make learning fun and effective for young learners.
What are Tenses?
There are three tenses, that describes the time of action are present tense, past tense, and future tense. Present Tense depicts the verb in current time as to what is happening presently. The Past Tense expresses the events that have already happened, while the Future Tense is used for the events that are supposed to happen. There are rules and types in each type of tense that will be explained thoroughly in the article below. This article is a one-stop guide for the Class 3 English Grammar Tenses For Kids, with rules and a few practice examples.
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The Present Tense
There are 4 types of present tenses, and these are as follows;
- Simple Present Tense – While writing a sentence in the simple present tense, the student must keep in mind the general rule: subject + first form of the verb (v1) + s/es + …. A few examples of Simple Present Tense For Class 3 are:
1. My mother wishes to hire a cook (verb - wish)
2. Jason studies French (Verb - study)
3. The child plays in the park. (Verb – play)
4. My birthday falls on September 8. (Verb – fall)
- Present Continuous Tense – The rule for writing a sentence in present continuous tense is, subject + is/am/are + verb (ing) +…. It is used to describe an action that continues to happen in the present. The examples are as follows:
1. My father is playing the piano (Verb – play)
2. We are not coming for tea in the evening. (Verb – come)
3. My grandparents are living in a house two blocks away from us. (Verb – live)
4. We are going to the wedding. (Verb – go)
- Present Perfect Tense is written as subject + has/have + verb (ed) +…. This tense is used to describe actions that have happened in the past, but also has a present expression. For example:
1. Smith has lived in Denmark for a long time. (Verb – live)
2. My sisters have worked on the report from long ago. (Verb – work)
3. My friend has done her graduation from London. (Verb – do)
4. I have not received the invitation to Sara's wedding. (Verb – receive)
- Present Perfect Continuous Tense – This type can be written as subject + has been/have been + verb (ing) + …… For example:
1. Sara has been completing her drawing since morning. (Verb – complete)
2. My uncle has been working overtime recently. (Verb – work)
3. I have been complaining about work a lot. (Verb – complain)
The Past Tense
The past tense describes an action in the past and has 4 types. These are:
- Simple Past Tense – While writing a sentence in the simple past tense, the student must keep in mind the general rule: subject + verb (v1) + ed + …. A few examples are:
1. Deepika worked a lot yesterday (Verb - work)
2. My teacher called my parents to school yesterday. (Verb - call)
3. My mother baked the cake for us. (Verb – bake)
4. We turned off the engine of the car. (Verb – turn)
- Past Continuous Tense – The rule for writing a sentence in past continuous tense is subject + was/were + verb (ing) +…. It is used to describe an action that continues to happen in the present but occurred in the past. The examples are as follows:
1. My son was doing his homework during the afternoon. (Verb – do)
2. We were watching at night. (Verb – watch)
3. Dane was arriving by cab this morning. (Verb – arrive)
4. Mother was knitting the clothes for her baby. (Verb – knit)
- Past Perfect Tense is written as subject + had + verb (ed) +…. This tense is used to describe actions that have happened in the past. For example:
1. Ria had finished her exam. (Verb – finish)
2. I had paid my tuition fee last month. (Verb – pay)
3. My mother had worked in a corporate firm before. (Verb – work)
4. Varun had cried during his surgery. (Verb – cry)
- Past Perfect Continuous Tense – This type of tense can be written as subject + had been + verb (ing) + …… For example:
1. My daughter had been waiting for two hours. (Verb – wait)
2. The kids had not been studying very hard. (Verb – study)
3. Sam has been doing a lot of work recently. (Verb – do)
4. My daughter had been working hard for a long time. (Verb – work)
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The Future Tense
The future tense is used to describe an action in the future and has 4 types. These are:
- Simple Future Tense – This type of tense is used to describe an action that is supposed to happen in the future. While writing a sentence in the simple future tense, the student must keep in mind the general rule, that is, subject + will/shall + verb (v1) + …. A few examples are:
- My brother will visit Germany next month. (Verb – visit)
- Saran shall play football in the evening. (Verb – play)
- We will go to the church tomorrow. (Verb – go)
- I shall purchase a new computer next year. (Verb – purchase)
- Future Continuous Tense – The rule for writing a sentence in future continuous tense is subject + will be + verb (ing) +…. It is used to describe an action that will continue to happen in the future. The examples are as follows:
1. My friend will be dancing all day today. (Verb – dance)
2. We will be taking a train at night. (Verb – take)
3. Greg will be watching sports all afternoon. (Verb – Watch)
4. My children will be enjoying themselves at the party tonight. (Verb – enjoy)
- Future Perfect Tense – It is written as subject + will have + verb (ed) +…. For example:
1. Ryan will have finished his work before going out of town next month. (Verb – finish)
2. The guests will have arrived at the wedding venue by now. (Verb – arrive)
3. We will play badminton while going to the picnic tomorrow. (Verb – play)
4. My maid will cook us dinner. (Verb – cook)
- Future Perfect Continuous Tense – This type of tense can be written as subject + have been + verb (ing) + …… For example:
1. She will not have been travelling to Poland in the next three years. (Verb – travel)
2. Jake will have been teaching at the school for more than a year by the time he leaves for Europe. (Verb – Teach)
3. Daniel will have been arriving in Delhi by the third of next month. (Verb – arrive)
4. In July, I will have been working in the company for eight years. (Verb – work)
Practice Exercise on Tenses for Class 3 Students
Let your child try these sentences and then check the answers with explanations below. These examples help reinforce the correct usage of Present, Past, and Future Tenses.
Fill in the blanks with the correct form of the verb in brackets:
-
I ___ (play) football every evening.
-
She ___ (eat) a sandwich yesterday.
-
We ___ (go) to the zoo tomorrow.
Correct Answers and Explanations:
1. I play football every evening.
Tense: Simple Present Tense
Explanation: The sentence talks about a regular action—something that happens every evening. In the simple present tense, we use the base verb without any endings for "I", "you", "we", and "they".
Ans: "I play" is correct.
2. She ate a sandwich yesterday.
Tense: Simple Past Tense
Explanation: The word “yesterday” tells us the action happened in the past. The past tense of “eat” is ate. This is an irregular verb, which changes form completely in the past tense (not just by adding -ed).
Ans: "She ate" is the correct answer.
3. We will go to the zoo tomorrow.
Tense: Simple Future Tense
Explanation: The word “tomorrow” indicates a future action. To form the future tense, we use will + base verb.
Ans: "We will go" is the correct construction.
Check here for more grammar worksheet to practice
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Conclusion
Upon reading the article, the student shall be able to understand the use of tenses and their importance in English grammar. The three types of tenses are present, past, and future. Each variety of these tenses is further divided into 4 types that are the perfect tense, continuous tense, simple tense, and the perfect continuous tense. The articles explain rules for Cbse Class 3 English Tenses, with a few examples. The tenses are an integral part of grammar, and thus its practice is essential to improve English writing as well as speaking skills.
FAQs: English Grammar Tense for Class 3 Students
Q. What are the 3 main types of tenses in English grammar for Class 3?
A. The three main types of tenses are Present Tense, Past Tense, and Future Tense. These help us understand when an action happens; now, before, or later.
Q. How can I help my Class 3 child learn tenses at home?
A. Use everyday situations to practice tenses talk about what they did yesterday (past), what they’re doing now (present), and what they will do tomorrow (future). Encourage storytelling and sentence games for fun practice.
Q. Why is it important for Class 3 students to learn tenses?
A. Tenses are essential for forming correct sentences, improving reading and writing skills, and building a strong foundation in English grammar from an early age.
Q. What is the easiest way to teach past tense to a 3rd grader?
A. Begin with regular verbs ending in -ed (e.g., jumped, walked), then slowly introduce common irregular verbs (e.g., ate, went). Use pictures, stories, or everyday experiences to reinforce the concept.
Q. How much grammar should a Class 3 student know?
A. By Class 3, students should have a basic understanding of nouns, verbs, adjectives, and the use of tenses. They should be able to construct simple sentences and recognize whether actions are happening now, in the past, or in the future.