Present Continuous ESL Games, Worksheets & Activities
Action Match Mania
ESL Present Continuous Game - Grammar and Speaking: Matching, Forming Sentences - Pair Work
Here is a rewarding present continuous matching game to help students practice forming affirmative present continuous sentences to describe what is happening in pictures. The aim of the game...
Get the Picture
ESL Present Continuous Game - Grammar and Speaking: Asking and Answering Questions, Matching - Group Work
In this free present continuous game, students play a Go Fish-style card game where they ask and answer present continuous yes/no questions to collect pictures that match sentences on their game board...
Guess Who?
ESL Present Continuous Yes/No Questions Game - Grammar and Speaking: Guessing, Asking and Answering Questions, Controlled Practice - Pair Work
In this fun present continuous game, students ask and answer yes/no questions about what a person is doing and wearing to guess the person their partner is...
Illustrations
ESL Present Continuous Game - Grammar: Drawing, Guessing, Forming Sentences - Group Work
In this entertaining present continuous game, students race to guess present continuous sentences from drawings. One student from Team A comes up to the board and receives a present continuous...
Pair It Up!
ESL Present Continuous Game - Grammar and Reading: Sentence Completion, Matching - Pair Work
In this engaging present continuous game, students complete sentence starters with 'am', 'is' or 'are' and the -ing form of the verb, then match the starters with sentence endings to make full sentences...
Positives and Negatives
ESL Present Continuous Worksheet - Grammar and Vocabulary Exercises: Word Search, Gap-fill
In this free present continuous worksheet, students find 20 action verbs in a word search and then use them to complete affirmative and negative present continuous sentence pairs. First, students...
Present Continuous Practice
ESL Present Continuous Worksheet - Grammar and Writing Exercises: Gap-fill, Rewriting Sentences, Writing Sentences and Questions - Speaking Activity - Pair Work
Here is a useful present continuous worksheet to help students learn how to form affirmative and negative sentences, and question and answer forms in the present...
What are they doing?
ESL Present Continuous Activity - Grammar Exercises: Writing Sentences - Speaking Activity: Asking and Answering Questions, Freer Practice - Pair Work
In this productive present continuous activity, students ask and say what people are doing using the present continuous. First, students write 12 present continuous...
Guess what I'm doing
ESL Present Continuous Game - Grammar: Miming, Guessing, Forming Sentences - Group Work
This lively present continuous miming game can be used with pre-intermediate students. The aim of the game is for the students in the teams to guess present continuous sentences from mimes. All the...
In the City
ESL Present Continuous Activity - Grammar, Reading and Writing: Writing L1 and L2 Sentences, Matching
In this intriguing present continuous activity, students write present continuous sentences in English and their native language and then try to find matching translations that other students have written...
Let's Get Talking
ESL Present Continuous Activity - Grammar and Speaking: Forming, Asking and Answering Questions, Controlled and Freer Practice - Group and Pair Work
In this interesting present continuous speaking activity, students practice forming, asking and answering present continuous conversation questions...
Present Continuous Essentials
ESL Present Continuous Worksheet - Grammar Exercises: Gap-fill, Categorising, Matching, Writing Sentences
This comprehensive present continuous worksheet helps students learn how the present continuous tense is used to describe temporary situations, unfinished actions happening now and future...
Present Continuous Party
ESL Present Continuous Role-Play - Grammar and Speaking Activity: Role-Play, Gap-fill, Asking and Answering Questions, Table Completion - Group Work
In this enjoyable present continuous role-play activity, students assume the identity of someone at a party and talk about their current activities. Students...
Right or Wrong?
ESL Present Continuous Board Game - Grammar, Writing and Listening: Writing Sentences, Identifying Errors - Group Work
In this insightful present continuous board game, students try to recognize errors in present continuous affirmative and negative sentences. In groups of four, students write six present continuous...
Sketches
ESL Present Continuous Game - Grammar and Speaking: Drawing, Asking and Answering Questions, Guessing, Controlled and Freer - Group and Pair Work
Here is an entertaining present continuous drawing game to help students practice present continuous yes/no questions and short answers. In teams...
Summer School Fair
ESL Present Continuous Activity - Grammar and Speaking: Information Gap, Asking and Answering Questions - Pair Work
In this free present continuous speaking activity, students ask and answer questions about a partner's plans for next week to find their free times. ell the students that it's the start of the summer holidays...
What's happening in the classroom?
ESL Present Continuous Worksheet - Grammar and Reading Exercises: Gap-Fill, Writing Sentences, Error Correction, Answering Comprehension Questions
In this classroom-themed present continuous worksheet, students practice present continuous verb forms and sentences. First, students complete 12...
Where are we?
ESL Present Continuous Game - Grammar and Speaking: Completing and Reading Clues, Guessing - Group Work
In this creative present continuous game, students write clues to describe what is happening in a particular place. Their classmates then listen to the clues and try to guess where they are...
Present Continuous Taboo
ESL Present Continuous Game - Grammar: Describing, Guessing, Forming Sentences - Group Work
In this free present continuous game, students describe present continuous sentences for others to guess, without saying the sentence or using certain words. A student from Team A comes to the front of the class...
Understanding the Present Continuous
The present continuous uses 'am/is/are' plus the -ing form of a verb to describe actions happening right now, temporary situations, and arrangements already made for the future. Students who treat it as interchangeable with the present simple end up saying things like 'I work on my essay right now' instead of 'I'm working on my essay right now,' which immediately signals a gap in their grammar control to any English speaker.
This page covers the present continuous across A1-A2, A2, and B1 levels, with 19 activities, games, and worksheets ranging from memory matching and miming games to role-plays and a board game, including four free downloads.
The table below shows the structure and an example for each form of the present continuous tense.
| Form | Structure | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Affirmative | subject + am/is/are + verb-ing | 'She is reading a report.' |
| Negative | subject + am/is/are + not + verb-ing | 'They are not listening to the presentation.' |
| Yes/No Question | Am/Is/Are + subject + verb-ing? | 'Is he working from home today?' |
| Short Answer (Yes) | Yes, + subject + am/is/are. | 'Yes, he is.' |
| Short Answer (No) | No, + subject + am/is/are + not. | 'No, he isn't.' |
| Wh- Question | Wh- word + am/is/are + subject + verb-ing? | 'What are they doing after the meeting?' |
When to Use the Present Continuous
Signaling a Temporary Situation: A speaker chooses the present continuous over the present simple when they want to make clear that a situation is temporary rather than a permanent state, as in 'I'm staying with my sister this month,' which signals a short-term arrangement in a way that 'I stay with my sister' never could.
Talking About Fixed Future Arrangements: A speaker uses the present continuous to describe a personal plan or arrangement that is already decided and confirmed, because it signals something more concrete and settled than 'will,' as in 'I'm meeting my manager tomorrow afternoon,' where the arrangement is already in place.
Expressing Annoyance About a Repeated Habit: The present continuous with 'always' lets a speaker signal frustration about something a person does repeatedly, which is a deliberate emotional choice rather than a neutral statement of fact, as in 'He's always leaving the kitchen in a mess.'
3-Step Framework for Teaching the Present Continuous
1. Start with Form at the Word Level: Before students can build sentences, they need the -ing forms and vocabulary in their heads. A word search that has students track down 20 action verbs and then put them straight to work completing affirmative and negative present continuous sentence pairs is a low-stakes, high-repetition way to lock in both vocabulary and sentence structure from the very first lesson. Working through pairs where the first sentence is negative and the second is positive also trains students to toggle between both forms from the start.
2. Get Students Speaking in Character: Once the form is secure, a role-play where students take on an identity at a party, answer questions about what they are doing and how they are feeling using the present continuous, and then report back to the class on the people they met gives them a genuine communicative reason to produce the tense. That final report-back step shifts students from first person to third person naturally, without turning it into a drill.
3. Push Accuracy Under Pressure: Round off with a team game where students must describe a present continuous sentence to their teammates without saying the sentence itself or using the three taboo words listed on the card. The two-minute time limit per turn creates just enough pressure to make accuracy matter, and any student who has not fully internalized the form will notice the gap when the clock is running.
Common Mistakes with the Present Continuous
Present Continuous with Stative Verbs: Students often apply the present continuous to stative verbs such as 'know,' 'like,' 'want,' and 'believe,' not realising these verbs describe states rather than actions and almost never take the -ing form. Wrong: 'I am knowing the answer.' Correct: 'I know the answer.'
Dropping the Auxiliary Verb: Students often write or say the -ing form of a verb without 'am,' 'is,' or 'are,' treating the -ing form alone as a complete present continuous sentence. Wrong: 'She working in the garden right now.' Correct: 'She is working in the garden right now.'
Common Questions About Teaching the Present Continuous
What is an engaging present continuous game for elementary students?
Get the Picture is a free Go Fish-style card game where students ask each other present continuous yes/no questions such as 'Is she watching TV?' to collect picture cards that match sentences on their game board. The first student to collect all the pictures for their board wins, giving students repeated practice with yes/no question forms at A1-A2 level.
How can I introduce the three uses of the present continuous in one lesson?
All three uses of the present continuous come together in one A2 worksheet called Present Continuous Essentials. Students work through gap-fill, categorising, and unscrambling tasks built around temporary situations, unfinished actions happening now, and future plans, then finish by writing true present continuous sentences about themselves to cover all three uses.
Which present continuous activity helps students practice making plans and arrangements?
Practicing future arrangements gets real context in Summer School Fair, a free A2 information gap activity. Students ask each other about plans for next week using questions like 'What are you doing on Wednesday afternoon?' and answer with responses like 'I'm working at the cafe.' The first student to find all four of their partner's free time slots wins.
Here's what our members are saying...