Chapter 17: Exploring More Important Verb Structures 255
- Have students discuss similar situations in pairs.
Ask each other about other situations that result in people falling out
and refusing to put up with things. When was the last time you fell out
with someone and why?
If I Were You Conditional Structures
Sentences beginning with ‘if’ are conditional. They’re always in two clauses,
showing that one situation is dependent on another. Even though native
speakers mix conditionals up a lot in real life, you need to teach the students
gradually the four basic conditional structures I cover in the next sections.A clause always contains a subject word and a verb.With all these structures, teach the positive, negative and question forms and
don’t forget the contractions too. For example, this is a positive sentence; If
I’m unhappy, I eat more. By comparison a negative version of the question con-
tains not or its contraction (short form) n’t. So the negative version is; If I’m
unhappy, I don’t eat more. Notice that don’t (do not) is the negative part. The
question form is, If you’re unhappy, do you eat more?Being general: The zero conditional
You use zero conditional sentences to say that something is generally true.
The situation is not just about a particular instance but is more a rule of
thumb. In fact, you quite often use this structure to state a fact, principle or
truth. For example:If you cool water below 0 degrees, it freezes.
When you visit a place of worship, you dress appropriately.Pairing ‘if’ and ‘when’
The zero conditional is the easy one to remember. It comprises two distinct
clauses, both in the present simple, but one clause starts with ‘if’ or ‘when’. It
doesn’t matter which clause goes first.When I feel tired, I take a nap.If it’s sunny, I sit on the balcony.
When you really want something, you have to work hard.People usually visit the Louvre, when they go to France.