Unit 2

Theme: Talking about oneself and friends

A. Grammar Focus: Simple Present tense

The simple present tense often refers to actions or situations that do not change frequently. It is
used to describe habits or routines, to express opinion, or to make general statements of fact that
generally true (or based on nature law). The time expressions indicated this tenses are: always,
often, sometimes, every, usually, seldom and rarely.
Here are some examples:
1. I usually wake up at 5 a.m.
2. I am From Malang.
3. I live in Jogjakarta.
4. My father is a bank manager.
5. I am 17 years old.
6. I go to campus on foot.
How to write present tense?
a. Positive sentence
One thing to be considered in writing the present tense is the subject. The table below shows you
about it:
Subject Sentences
I I wake up at 5 a.m.
you You always come late in Monday morning.
We We live in a house in Karanganyar.
They They usually start their day by doing morning prayer.
He He wakes up at 6 a.m. every day!
She She always comes on time on Monday morning.
It The cat is hungry. It eats the fish quickly.
From the table we can identify that when the subject are I, you, we and they we needn’t to put
suffix -s or -es (come, live, start ) but, when the subjects are he, she and it we need to put suffix –
s or –es in the end of the verb (wakes, comes, eats)
b. Negative sentences
Somehow we also need to use negative sentence. As we know we use not to mark negative
sentence. Take a look on the table below:
Subject Sentences
I I do not wake up at 5 a.m.
you You do not always come late in Monday morning.
We We do not live in a house in Karanganyar.
They They do not usually start their day by doing morning prayer.
He He does not wake up at 6 a.m. every day!
She She does not always come on time on Monday morning.
It The cat is hungry. It does not eat the fish quickly.
We remain to consider about the subject when we will write negative sentences. Based on the
examples above, we can identify that there are two auxiliary; do and does used together with not
followed by V1. Do is applied when the subjects are I, you, we and they. Meanwhile, does is
applied when the subjects are he, she, and it. You have to notice that, when do or does is applied,
it must be followed by V1 without suffix –s or –es. Do and does are also applied to produce
questions. Here are some examples:
Subject Sentences
I Do I forget to close the door?
you Do you always come late?
We Do we pass this bridge every year?
They What do they do to start the day?
He Does he wake up at 6 every single day?
She Does she always come on time in Monday morning?
It What does the cat eat?
The following note is about to be. In this chapter we talk about present tense so, we use to be
present. To be present consist of am, is, and are. Again, we have to consider about the subjects to
decide which to be will be used. Study the table below:
Subject Sentences
I I am a college student.
You You are a busy student.
 We We are from the different cities.
They They are very friendly.
He He is handsome.
She She is in the library.
It It is the location of the new laboratory.

B. Conversation Focus 1: Meeting someone in the boarding house

Olivia : Hi, can I give you a hand?
Greta : Oh, thanks. I can manage it myself.
Olivia : By the way, my name is Olivia. Please call me Olive.
I am in Primary Room number 1, next to the TV room.
Greta : I am new here. My room is in Primary Room too, number 3. My name is Greta.
Olivia : Nice to meet you Greta.
Greta : Good to meet you too, Olive.
Olivia : Where are you from Greta?
Greta : I am from Malang, East Java. What about you?
Olivia : I am from Jogjakarta. Malang must be a very nice town.
Greta : It is. I think Jogjakarta is the same.
Olivia : Do you go to college here?
Greta : Yes, I do. I am in the fourth semester now. Do you go to college too?
Olivia : Yes, I do. I am in the second semester, in Setia Budi University, I study pharmacy.
Greta : What a coincidence! I study in Setia Budi University too.
I study in Health Science Faculty.
Olivia : It is good news for me because most of the student living here are Sebelas Maret
University Students.
Based on the short dialogue above, write down 5 informations about Olivia and Greta. You are
also asked to write about you yourself.
Olivia Greta You A friend next to you
1. She lives in 1. She lives in 1. I live in 1. She lives in
Primary Room
Primary room. Pinang Gimin
number 1.
2. She is from 2. She is from boarding boarding
 Jogjakarta. Malang. house. house.
3. She is a fourth 3. She is a second 2. I am from 2. She is from
semester student. semester student. Banyuwangi. Probolingg
4. She is a 4. She is a 3. I am a third o.
pharmacy pharmacy semester 3. She is a
student. student. student. third
5. She is a student 5. She is a student 4. I am a semester
at Setia Budi at Setia Budi pharmacy student.
Universty. Universty. student. 4. She is a
5. I am a pharmacy
student at student
Setia Budi 5. She is a
Universty. student at
Setia Budi
Universty.

Grammar exercise:
Study some sentences below, identify whether the sentences correct or incorrect.
1. My best friend always helpful with problems. (correct)
2. My mother accidentally drop the glass on the floor. (incorrect)
3. The customer pay the clerk for the clothes. (incorrect)
4. My brother practice the piano for four hours each day. (incorrect)
5. The basketball players toss the ball into the hoop. (correct)
6. The new student in the class very talkative and friendly. (correct)
7. My grandfather walk with the children to school every day. (incorrect)