VERB TENSES

PRESENT PROGRESSIVE

The present progressive is used to talk about things that are
happening "at" the time of speaking and things that are happening
"around" the time of speaking.

situation: example:
John is in his car on his way to work. He IS DRIVING to work.
Mary is in her bathtub. She IS TAKING a bath.
You are in the middle of an English course,
so it is correct to say: I AM LEARNING English.


SIMPLE PRESENT

The simple present is used to talk about habits, things that happen
repeatedly and things that are generally true. Look at the examples:

DOES John VISIT his mother on Sundays? Fred LIKES ice cream.
Ed PLAYS tennis; he DOESN'T PLAY golf. Harry WORKS at Berlitz.
I often DRINK wine, I DON'T DRINK beer. Ann and Ted LIVE in Mainz.

SIMPLE PAST

The simple past is used to talk about actions completed at a certain time
in the past:

Last year, Paul WENT to Spain. (Last year is finished.)
I DRANK two cups of coffee yesterday. (Yesterday is now finished.)
DID Janet GO to the party? (The party is over.)
Jerry WORKED while he ATTENDED school.
(He doesn't do either anymore)


PAST PROGRESSIVE

The past progressive is used to talk about things that were happening
at a particular time in the past or to describe an action that was
going on when it was interrupted by another action. Here are some
examples:

At 11:00, Jack WAS READING. Jack WAS READING when I called him.
We WERE SLEEPING at 7:00AM. We WERE SLEEPING when the alarm rang.
It WASN'T RAINING this morning. It WASN'T RAINING when I left.