Role-Play With a partner, act out a news interview with Moctezuma or Cortés. Ask questions as a reporter for your partner to answer. Compare each man’s life before and after the conquistadors arrived. Use past tense verbs. Trade roles.
Moctezuma, is it true that you have a lot of gold?
No, I don’t have much gold now, but I had a lot before Cortés arrived!
Study the Models When you write about events that happened in the past, you need to be consistent about when the events took place. Be sure to choose words that tell about the past.
Add Sentences Think of two sentences to add to the OK model above. Be consistent when you write about the past.
WRITE ON YOUR OWN Think about an event that happened in your town. Write about how the event changed the town or people’s lives. Tell what life was like before and after the event. Use past tense words.
| Forms of be | Forms of have | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Present Tense | I am | he, she, it is | we, you, they are | I, you, we, they have | he, she, or it has |
| Past Tense | I was | he, she, it was | we, you, they were | I, you, we, they had | he, she, or it had |
• If a verb ends in silent e, drop the e, then add -ed. save + -ed = saved
• If a one-syllable verb ends in one vowel and one consonant, double the consonant. Then add -ed. step + p + -ed = stepped
• If a verb ends in a consonant plus y, change the y to i. Then add -ed. try + -ed = tried