1. She’s meeting Fred at 3 o’clock.
a) Present Continuous
b) Subject + form of the verb TO BE + present participle
c) We use I’m doing ( present continuous) when we say what we have arranged to do – for example arranged to meet somebody, arranged to go somewhere.
d) Contractions: She is – She’s pronounced / / of the clock – o’clock pronounced / / weak forms: at – pronounced / / meeting - / /
Sentence stress: syllable of Fred
Intonation: falling at the end of the sentence.
e) Conceptual difficulties: confusion between the present continuous and the Future simple and the “going to” construction. Contraction ‘s may lead to a confusion with the Present Perfect auxiliary verb “has”, because it has the same contraction ‘s.
Structural: students may omit the auxiliary verb “be”, students may say She are meeting or she be meeting.
f) A visual of a diary of Mary with a written appointment with Fred at three o’clock. And Mary talking to her friend Jenny asking: What are you doing tomorrow? And Mary saying: I’m meeting Fred at three o’clock.
g) Is she with Fred now? no
Does she have any plans for tomorrow? Yes
Are these plans fixed or not? Fixed
Has she decided to meet Fred before talking to Jenny?
h) Timeline:
Past now future
2. It’s going to rain.
a) Be going to
b) Subject + form of the verb TO BE + going to + main verb
c) to inform or to make a prediction about the future events that are not under people’s control. When we say that something is going to happen in the future, it means that the situation now makes it clear. The clouds are already visible. The sky is cloudy and it is windy on the street so it is obvious that is going to rain.
d) Contractions: It is – It’s pronounced / /
Weak forms: to – pronounced / /
Sentence stress: the syllable of “ rain”.