Primary

GRAMMAR AND STRUCTURES

WHAT ARE THEY USED FOR?

SOME EXAMPLES

VERBS

There is/ there are

Identifying something/someone

There is a book on the table. 
There are four girls in the kitchen.

Present simple

Talking about habits, routines, facts (such as where a person lives), the actions of everyday life

My uncle lives in a small house. 
She is thirteen years old. 
I always take the bus to school.

The present simple with the verb ‘like’ + ‘ing’ in the third person singular and plural

Describing what people or animals like doing

My cat likes sleeping in the garden. 
My brothers like playing football in the park.

Present continuous

Talking about present actions

My brothers are playing football in the park at the moment.

Interrogative forms of the above two tenses

Asking and answering questions about the above

Do they often go to the cinema? 
Do you have/ Have you got a computer? 
Are the children doing their homework? 
Is she eating her breakfast at the moment?

Negative forms of the above two tenses

Making the above negative

Sue doesn’t like dogs. 
John isn’t studying now, he is talking on the phone.

The modal ‘can’

Describing an ability or skill

He can play the guitar. 
They can cook.

PRONOUNS

All personal pronouns as subject or object – I, you, he, she, it, we, they, me, you, him, her, it, us, them

Describing and identifying people, animals and objects

Do you want my father? 
He is in the garden. 
John is with him.

Demonstrative pronouns – this, these, that, those

Asking for, and giving information

These are tables. 
That family is rich. 
Is this a kettle?

CONJUNCTIONS

because, and, or, but

Linking sentence parts and ideas

John and Mary are in the garden because it is sunny.

INTERROGATIVE WORDS 

What, Who, Where, When, Why, How many

Asking questions about people, animals and objects

What is this? 
Who is that girl? 
Where are Peter and Paul?

ADVERBS

Adverbs of time – today, now, at the moment 
Adverbs of frequency – always, never, sometimes, often, usually, every day, every week, every month

Describing when and how often someone does something or something happens.Discriminating between the present continuous and the present simple

I usually eat an egg for breakfast. 
At the moment, John is playing in the park.

PREPOSITIONS

In, on, at, to

Talking about time, place, position

The examination finishes at 4 pm. 
My brother is 10 years old in August. 
I am going to Disney World on 1st August.

TIME EXPRESSIONS

10.15 = ten fifteen or (a) quarter past ten

Telling the time

ten fifteen, twenty past one, half past ten, a quarter to two, eleven forty-five, etc.

NOUNS

Singular/plural 
simple nouns, including some common irregular ones 
Countable and uncountable nouns 
The names of common shapes

Talking about numbers of things 
Talking about amounts and quantities 
Describing the shape of something

e.g. book-books, box-boxes, man-men, woman-women, child-children, party-parties 
Can I have the butter? Can I have two sweets? 
This is a square. That is a circle.

SALUTATIONS (WRITING)

The formulaic salutations of informal writing in messages such as emails, postcards

Written communication

Dear 
love from

NOUNS:

SETS OF LEXICAL ITEMS

Clothes                   

dress, shirt, T-shirt, trousers, skirt, boots, socks, shoes, trainers, hat, watch                    
jeans, jacket, tie, coat

Food, meals and drink  

cake, ice-cream, biscuits, pizza, hamburger, hot-dog, omelette, steak, fish, salad, breakfast, lunch, dinner, party, milk, juice                   
bread, tea, coffee, water, lemonade, egg, chicken, sandwich, sugar, ketchup, chips, cheese, sweets, butter

Birds

penguin, parrot, duck                  
hen, chicken

Jobs

teacher, doctor, farmer, secretary, businessman/woman, policeman/woman, shop assistant, in the army, student

School                   

pen, pencil, rubber, ruler, book, desk, computer, blackboard, classroom, bag, friend                 
teacher, homework, work, test, exam, student, lesson

Transport                   

helicopter, boat, bus, bicycle, car, train, aeroplane                
taxi, bike, motor bicycle, motorbike, tractor, lorry (Brit), truck (Amer)

Animals

monkey, lion, bear, elephant, crocodile, cat, dog, snake, tiger, zebra, rabbit, mouse                 
fox, frog, spider, hippo, giraffe, horse, sheep, cow, pets

Household                   

television, video, chair, table, house, cassette-player, bed, bath, clock, picture, vase, photo, radio, door, mat, window, floor, cupboard                 
mirror, sofa, armchair, shower, wardrobe

Kitchen                   

glass, plate, bowl, cup, knife, fork                
spoon

Vegetables                   

potato, tomato, carrot                
cabbage

Fruit                   

pear, peach, apple, banana, orange, lemon                
cherry, strawberry, melon

Fish                   

dolphin, octopus, shark, whale, starfish, fish           
goldfish

Garden

flower, tree, grass

Days of the week

day, week, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday 
weekend

Months of the year

January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December

Sport

football, tennis, swimming, basketball, volleyball                    
baseball, fishing, football match, tennis racket, running

Places

park, garden, home, school, shop, house, kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, living room             
zoo, farm, supermarket, office, cinema, cafe, restaurant, car park, flat, swimming pool, town centre, beach, sea, mountains, town, city, village, fields, country (e.g. England etc.), countryside

Musical Instruments

guitar, piano, drum

Toys

ball, kite, castle, soldiers, paint, paintbrush, puppet, drum, gun

Weather

sun, rain, wind, snow, hot, cold

Parts of the body

hair, eyes, mouth, nose, face, arms, legs, foot/feet, head, hands

Letters

a-z

Cardinal numbers

one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, twenty 
twenty-one to sixty

Time expressions

four fifteen, [a] quarter past/to four, half past four, ten past four, four ten, ten to four, etc. 
morning, evening, today

Exams

letters, words, sentence, question, answer, story

Family members and people

mother, father, brother, sister, baby, girl, boy, child, children 
aunt, uncle, cousin, grandmother, grandfather, Mum, Dad, man, woman, friend

Shapes

square, circle, triangle, rectangle

Miscellaneous

film, newspaper, magazine, star, moon, thing

 2. Adjectives:

sets of lexical items

Size

tall, short, big, small, favourite, best, little

Feelings

happy, sad

Colors

black, blue, green, yellow, white, orange, red, grey, brown, pink, purple

Age

old, young, new

Other

clever, nice, good

Modifiers

Very

3. VERBS

watch, play, listen, cook, wear, go, read, write, eat, drink, sit, stand, have, has, is, are, am 
live, work, walk, run, sleep, ride, drive, make, do, understand, want, like, can, swim, look, have/has got, get up, start, talk, buy, tell, clean, wash

4. ARTICLES

a, an, the

5. PERSONAL PRONOUNS

I, you, he, she, it, we, they 
me, him, them, us

6. POSSESSIVE ADJECTIVES

my, your, his, her, our, their

7. PREPOSITIONS

in, under, behind, on, near, in front of, at 
to, (by, about, for – may appear in certain expressions; not tested)

8. QUESTION WORDS

What, When, Why, Where, Who, Whose

9. ADVERBS

today, now, at the moment, never, always, sometimes, often, usually, every day, every week

10. CONJUNCTIONS

because, and, or, then, next

11. DEMONSTRATIVE PRONOUNS

this, that, these, those