A1. The polar bear

present simple

POLAR BEAR CUB: Mum, am I a real polar bear?
POLAR BEAR MOTHER: Yes, dear, of course you are.
POLAR BEAR CUB: Really?
POLAR BEAR MOTHER: Yes, son. I’m a polar bear. Your dad’s a polar bear. Your grandparents are polar bears. Your sisters are polar bears. Your brothers are polar bears.
POLAR BEAR CUB: I know that, mum. But am I a real polar bear?
POLAR BEAR MOTHER: Of course you are. Be quiet and eat your fish.
POLAR BEAR CUB: But I’m not a polar bear, I’m sure.
POLAR BEAR MOTHER: Listen to me. You are a real polar bear. Why do you ask the same question again and again?
POLAR BEAR CUB: Because I’m freezing!

Grammar: present simple

The verb to be is irregular. Look at the full forms and the contracted forms.

Positive	Contracted form	Negative	Contracted forms
I am	I'm	I am not	I'm not
You are	You're	You are not	You're not / You aren't
She is	She's	She is not	She isn't / She's not
He is	He's	He is not	He isn't / He's not
It is	It's	It is not	It isn't / It's not
We are	We're	We are not	We aren't / We're not
They are	They're	They are not	They aren't / They're not

For short positive answers, don't use the contracted form.

Incorrect:
Yes, I’m.

Correct:
Yes, I am.

Incorrect:
Yes, they’re.

Correct:
Yes, they are.

Choose the correct form of the verb to be to complete these sentences.

1.    He am / is / are cold.
2.    She am / is / are his mother.
3.    Why am / is / are your feet cold?
4.    It’s the right answer, I ’s / ’m / ’re sure.
5.    Jack and Leo am / is / are my brothers.
6.    You am / is / are very quiet.

Match the questions with the short answers.

7. Is she your sister?	A. Yes, they are.
8. Are your feet cold?	B. No, I’m not.
9. Are you and Sally teachers?	C. No, we aren’t.
10. Is this the same joke?	D. Yes, she is.
11. Am I in the right place?	E. No, it isn’t.
12. Are you American?	F. Yes, you are.

Vocabulary exercises

Choose a word to make the opposite of these expressions.

quiet

cold

real

same

1. a different question	the ________ question
2. warm feet	________ feet
3. a noisy child	a ________ child
4. a toy bear	a ________ bear

Choose the correct word to complete these sentences.

know

Listen

have

ask

5. Children ______ a lot of questions.
6. Sit down and ______ quiet!
7. I ______ got cold feet.
8. ______ to me!
9. Do you ______ the answer?

Are these words for men (M) or women (W)?

1. son	M/W	2. aunt	M/W	3. grandfather	M/W	4. brother	M/W	5. daughter	M/W
6. mother	M/W	7. father	M/W	8. sister	M/W	9. uncle	M/W	10. grandmother	M/W

ANSWERS