In this issue, Coach Ipul tells Adhi a story about Jono, who joined a local gang and learned a painful lesson.

Activity 1: To help your English, it's important to think about a story as you read it. In this activity, try to predict what is going to happen next. The answers are not important but it is important that you think about the story.

In this episode, Coach Ipul tells a story in the past. To tell a story in the past we often use the past simple to describe actions and the past continuous to describe what is happening in the background or longer actions. For example:

"Adhi helped the other gang members." Actions in the past = past simple

 "The gang was shouting at a shopkeeper." Longer actions = past continuous

Activity 2: To tell a story you often use the past continuous. Do you know how to create the past continuous?

During the story, Coach Ipul describes one action that was happening when another action happened. We often use the past simple to describe the short action that interrupts a longer action, which is where we use the past continuous. For example:

"The gang was beating up Jono when Geni told them to stop."  A long action (past continuous) is interrupted by a short action (past simple).

Activity 3: In this activity, think about how we use the past continuous and the past simple.

Quiz

What do you think?

Do you think Jono made the right decision to leave the gang? Why/why not?
Why do you think young people sometimes join gangs?
Are there lots of things to do in your neighbourhood? How can sport help young people in your community?
Tell us your answers in the comments section below.