10-Year Composition

You will be writing a 10-year composition which will require you to look at your life 10 years ago, where it currently is, and where you imagine it will be in 10 years.  

For this unit, we will:

• listen to a song by Five for Fighting called "100 Years"
• read and write a memory poem
• review past, present, and future verb tenses
• plan future goals
• and, write a 3-paragraph essay.

Below are some past, present, and future verbs which 

will be useful for your essay.

Describing Past Action

There are many was to describe past action in English.
1.  The simple past tense is used to describe an action, state, or event that was completed at some time in the past.

• I ate an apple yesterday.
• He arrived at midnight.

3.  The past progressive tense is used to describe action that was happening before a particular point in the past and was still in progress.  It may or may not have continued.

• I was still living in China 10 years ago.
• At the time I was teaching in California.

4.  The past perfect progressive tense is used to describe action that started in the past and continued up until another time in the past.

• I had already been teaching for 10 years at that time.
• In 2010, I had only been studying English for two years and I had no idea I would eventually move to Ohio.

5.  Used To and Would can be used to describe past tense.

• I used to live in Albania.
• In my 20s, I would often go to bars on the weekends.

Describing Present Action

The simple present tense in English is used to describe an action that is regular, true or normal.

We use the present tense:

1. For repeated or regular actions in the present time period.

• I take the train to the office.
• The train to Berlin leaves every hour.
• John sleeps eight hours every night during the week.

2. For facts.

• The President of The USA lives in The White House.
• A dog has four legs.
• We come from Switzerland.

3. For habits.

• I get up early every day.
• Carol brushes her teeth twice a day.
• They travel to their country house every weekend.

4. For things that are always / generally true.

• It rains a lot in winter.
• The Queen of England lives in Buckingham Palace.
• They speak English at work.

5.  The present perfect is used to talk about completed events and actions which occurred during a time in the past which is not finished.

• I have had four cups of coffee today.
• I have live in the U.S.A for 10 years.

Describing Future Action

1.  The future progressive is used to describe action that be be happening at some point in the future.

• Ten years from now I will be retired and living in Hawaii.
• Ten years from now I will probably still be living and working in Ohio.

• By 2027, I will have been retired for five years and likely be traveling the country in an RV.
• I expect I will be a grandmother by 2027 and will be spending my free time with my grandchildren.
• I hope to be working as a professor when I'm 50 years old.

Expressing Future Hopes and Intentions Worksheet