Grade 8 ESL Flashcards: Present Perfect — Experiences

About This Resource

8 pages of printable cut-out cards (experience cards; verb cards; grammar cards) for matching, sorting and word-wall display.

Overview

Students learn to talk about life experiences with the present perfect (have/has + past participle) — experiences at an unknown or unimportant time in their life up to now. They form positive, negative and question forms, use ever and never, learn common irregular past participles, understand the difference between been and gone, and — most importantly — learn WHY we switch to the past simple when we add a finished time ("I have been to Japan. I went there in 2022."). Speaking tasks such as "Find someone who…" and an experience survey give lots of real practice.

Resource Details

Subject: ESL
Topic: Present Perfect: Experiences
Category: Grammar
File Type: PDF
File Size: 366.6 KB
Published: 20 Oct 2026
Downloads: 0

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How to Present

Print on card if possible, cut along the dashed lines.
Use for matching, sorting, snap and memory games (see the Teacher Resources).
Display on the word wall during the unit.

Games & Speaking Activities

Two Truths and a Lie (12 minutes, Groups of 4): Each student writes 3 experience sentences (present perfect): two true, one false. They read them to the group.
Participle Race (8 minutes, Two teams): Call out a base verb (e.g. "write"). One player per team runs to the board and writes the past participle.
Experience Bingo (15 minutes, Whole class): Students walk around and ask "Have you ever…?" If the answer is "Yes, I have", they ask one follow-up and write the name.

Teacher Tips

Tell real stories about your own experiences — students love them and it models the tense naturally. Always draw the time line: experiences are dots somewhere on the line from birth to NOW.

Learning Objectives

Form the present perfect: have/has + past participle (positive, negative, questions, short answers).
Use the present perfect to talk about life experiences, with ever and never.
Use common irregular past participles correctly.
Explain the difference between been to and gone to.
Choose between the present perfect (no finished time) and the past simple (finished time) and use both in a conversation.

Differentiation

Support: Give a list of past participles to use during all tasks. Challenge: Use "How many times have you…?" and "the best … I have ever …". English language learners: Use the time line drawing every time you explain the tense.

Assessment

Exit tickets in each lesson. Teacher observation during "Find someone who…". Worksheet Parts A–E with the answer key. Quick Quiz (9 marks) after lesson 2. Unit Test (28 marks) at the end. Performance task (rubric): "Experience Interview" — interview a partner and write a short report.

What's Included

Experience cards: 8 cards
Verb cards: 4 cards
Grammar cards: 2 cards
Answer guide for matching and sorting

Additional Files

Grade 8 ESL Flashcards: Present Perfect — Experiences (DOCX)

Grade 8 ESL Worksheet: Present Perfect: Experiences — Past Participles, Have or Has?, Been or Gone?, Present Perfect or Past Simple?, Conversation

Present Perfect: Experiences

A 2-page worksheet with 29 questions in 5 parts — past participles, have or has?, been or ...

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