Forming the Past Tense by Adding -ed

Khan Academy

This educational video provides a clear and humorous introduction to the past tense, specifically focusing on regular verbs. The narrator explains the basic concept of the past tense as "stuff that has already happened" and demonstrates the primary rule for forming it in English: adding the suffix "-ed" to the base verb. Through handwritten visual examples on a blackboard style background, the video breaks down the transformation of present tense verbs into their past tense forms. Key themes include the timeline of events (now versus earlier), verb conjugation, and spelling patterns for regular verbs. The video uses the example "walk" extensively to show the difference between "I walk to the moon" (present) and "I walked to the moon" (past). It also briefly touches upon spelling variations, noting that words already ending in "e" (like "sneeze") only require the addition of a "d" rather than the full "-ed." This video is highly valuable for early elementary classrooms introducing grammar concepts. Its visual approach helps concrete learners see the structural changes in words, while the narrator's entertaining examples keep students engaged. Teachers can use this resource to introduce the concept of verb tenses, reinforce spelling rules for suffixes, or as a review tool for students struggling with consistent verb tense usage in their writing.