• Supposing the Internet hadn’t been invented, to what extent would this affect the way you work/study/use your free time?

2. What profession would you have chosen, if you hadn’t gone in for teaching?

Teaching ProblemsCelce-Murcia and Larsen-Freeman (1999) cite a survey conducted by Covitt whose results show that conditionals are one of the most difficult topics to teach. The main difficulties lie in the following aspects:

•Form •Meaning •Oversimplified explanations •Time-tense relationship 

Form 

The structure of conditionals is different from other structures in English because it has two clauses, a main clause and a subordinate clause. The syntactical complexity of this type of sentences is likely to confuse EFL/ESL students.

Meaning  The combinations of the clauses

mentioned are many and the meanings they convey have subtle differences that sometimes are tricky even for native speakers of English. It is necessary to refer to the context of the expressions in order to understand if we are dealing with a possibility, a regret, a wish or an action that the speaker is willing to do.

Oversimplified Explanations 

Maybe because of the array of meanings conditionals present and the difficulty of clarifying them, textbooks seem to have simplified or grouped different forms, giving as a result simplistic explanations, which are not always the best. A common feature in textbook is the classification of conditionals in three groups with the following structures:

• Present + Will: We will go on a picnic if it gets warmer.

• Past + Would: We would go on a picnic if it got warmer.

• Past Participle + Would have: We would have gone on a picnic if it had gotten warmer.

Time-Tense Relationship Usually, students are told that sentences in present

tense are used to talk about events taking place now, that the past tense refers to actions that ended at some point before now and so on. Then, teachers face the challenge of telling students not to take into account that background when studying conditionals. The relationship between tense and time is not direct and students have to understand now that we use present and past to talk about the future, even more, we talk about a possibility in the future. Again, the use of context here can help ease the transitions from literal meaning to real meaning. Some of the problems teachers may face when teaching conditionals have been identified. Now, let us move on to the forms of conditionals and their characteristics.

What is the discovery technique?

Grammar can either be taught explicitly or implicitly. When we talk about an explicit approach to grammar we are talking about stating directly, usually at the beginning of a particular activity, what the grammar is. For example, “Today we are looking at the third conditional.” On the other hand an implicit approach to grammar is one where the students are ‘led’ to the grammar through a series of steps – this is what is meant by the ‘discovery technique’. In other words, the ‘discovery technique’ aims to lead students towards a generalized grammar rule or pattern.

Why use the discovery technique?

One reason is that students often surprise us with what they already know or half-know. By using the ‘discovery technique’ we learn more about their knowledge and abilities eliciting information from them rather than telling things to them.

Also, as Scrivener writes: Giving students chances to be exposed

to, or to attempt to use, language ‘above’ their apparent level of knowledge of grammar is extremely useful and greatly aids future work on grammar. This approach celebrates what students can do – and clarifies precisely what still needs to be worked on. (Learning Teaching p115).

• This is John • Does he look

happy? • Why do you think

he’s unhappy?• Well, John was

going to meet his girl-friend

What do you think happened?

John didn’t wake up until 11, because he had forgotten to set up his alarm clock.

Because he woke up late he missed…

• John tried to phone Jane but his mobile phone didn’t work.

• Jane waited for… and then she left.

• Where do you think she went?

In the club Jane met …….

• Jane and _____

fell in love and….

got married

Looking at the meaning

Now you can ask questions based on the story to try to elicit the structure (you will be surprised how many students already know the structural form of a grammatical item but are not necessarily aware of its use). Start by asking questions that focus on the events, e.g.:

• Did John meet Jane? No.• Why not? Because he slept until 11.• Why did he overslept? Because he did

not set his alarm clock.• Imagine John had set the clock. (try

to elicit the sentence: If John had set the alarm clock, he would not have slept until 11).

• Did John catch the bus? No.• Did he miss the bus? Yes.• Did he meet Jane? No.• Why? Because he missed the bus.

• You can focus on each event in the story by asking a similar set of questions, e.g.:

• Did John try to phone Jane? Yes.• Did he manage to call her? No.• Why not? Because his mobile phone

wasn’t working.• Why? Because he had forgotten to

charge it. (Try to elicit the sentence: If John had charged his phone, he would have been able to call Jane.) etc.

Third conditional sentences

• If john had set the alarm clock, he wouldn’t have slept until 11.

• If John had caught the bus, he would have met Jane .

• If John had charged his phone, he would have been able to call Jane

Mixed conditional

• He would not be unhappy, if had managed to meet Jane.

• If she really loved him, she would not have gone to the night club.

• John and Jane would be together now, if John……..

Looking back

• Write down three things you have done in your life which you regret.

• Write down three things you are glad you have done.

• Imagine what it might have meant to you if these things had not occurred.

• Write down sentences using conditional III.

Ian If one of us had______ at home,

we________ have met.

Mrs. FletcherIf the doctors___________ been on

the plane, I would ______ died.

Ian 1. If one of us had stayed at home, we would

have met.Mrs. Fletcher2. If the doctors hadn’t been on the plane, I

would have died.1. Did Ian and Amy stay at home? Did they

meet?2. Were the doctors on the plane? Did Mrs.

Fletcher die?3. Do sentences 1 and 2 refer to something that

happened or something that didn’t happen?

Match the halves of the conditional sentences

1. If I’d had my mobile,

2. If I wasn't a journalist,3. If I called my mothermore on landline ,4. If I had known exactlywhere my friend lived,5. If I lost my phone,6. If I were asked to

repeat the experiment

A. I wouldn’t know what to do.

B. I’d enjoy this conversation more.

C. I wouldn’t do it.D. I’d have sent her a

text.E. I wouldn’t have got lost.F. I would have done the

experiment.

1. If I’d had my mobile, I’d have sent her a text.

2. If I wasn't a journalist, I would have done the experiment.

3. If I called my mother more on landline , I’d enjoy this conversation more.

4. If I had known exactly where my friend lived, I wouldn’t have got lost.

5. If I lost my phone, I wouldn’t know what to do.

6. If I were asked to repeat the experiment, I wouldn’t do it.

Give each student a a slip of paper with a funny excuse for not handing in homework (my dog ate it, I was abducted by aliens, my dad forgot to do it, it flew out of the bus window, etc). Students are supposed to write a short note for the teacher using the third conditional, explaining why they did not bring their homework (If my dog hadn't eaten it... ) Next, students are encouraged to write another note with their own stupid excuses for missing a class. 

Use inventions. Ask the students what technology they use at home. Then ask them what would life be without these inventions. For example: We wouldn't have been able to watch the situation in Iraq if the television had not been invented. or a mixed conditional... If the refrigerator had not been invented, we would not have been able to store ice cream at home.

Play the game "deal or no deal" (where they choose the boxes with money behind them) and at the end of the game imagine they are at home explaining what would have happened if they had chosen another box or continued to the end of the game, and ask what they would have won if they hadn't accepted or chosen the offer or another box, respectively.

I tell my students about the lost opportunities I had in my life. For example, when I was six, I attended a ballet school. But then my parents moved to another place, and I dropped my studies. If I had continued attending the ballet school, I would have become a ballerina. If I had become a ballerina, I might have worked at a theater. If I had worked at a theater, I wouldn't have become a teacher. After that I ask my students to tell each other about their lost opportunities.