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This lesson reviews the key language and skills tested in 2nde English exams and prepares you for the BAC.
🔹 Grammar checklist :
✓ Present tenses (simple, continuous, perfect)
✓ Past tenses (simple, continuous, perfect)
✓ Future forms (will, going to, present continuous)
✓ Modal verbs + past modals (should have, could have, must have)
✓ Conditional sentences (types 1, 2, 3, mixed)
✓ Passive voice (all tenses)
✓ Reported speech (statements, questions, commands)
🔹 Vocabulary topics :
✓ People and relationships
✓ Education
✓ Environment and climate change
✓ Health and lifestyle
✓ Technology and social media
🔹 Written skills :
✓ Formal letter / email
✓ Opinion essay
✓ Article
🔹 Reading skills :
✓ Skimming and scanning
✓ Inferential questions
✓ Vocabulary in context
🔹 Common exam mistakes to avoid :
• Forgetting tense backshift in reported speech
• Using question word order in reported questions
• Confusing 'mustn't' and 'don't have to'
• Using the wrong conditional tense
• Not agreeing subject and verb in passive constructions
📝 Grammar revision — spot and correct the errors :
1. ✗ 'She has visited Paris last year.'
✓ 'She visited Paris last year.' (specific time → past simple)
2. ✗ 'He asked where did she live?'
✓ 'He asked where she lived.' (no inversion in reported question)
3. ✗ 'If I would study, I would pass.'
✓ 'If I studied, I would pass.' (Type 2: if + past simple)
4. ✗ 'You mustn't wear a uniform — it's optional.'
✓ 'You don't have to wear a uniform.' (no obligation, not prohibition)
5. ✗ 'The results will announced tomorrow.'
✓ 'The results will be announced tomorrow.' (passive: will be + PP)
📝 Exam tips :
• Read every question carefully — underline key words
• Plan your written tasks before writing (3-5 minutes)
• Check your work for grammar, spelling and consistency
• In the oral exam, speak clearly, use linking words, and give examples
• Never leave a question blank — attempt every answer
What is the difference between 'could' and 'was able to' in the past?
Correction
'Could' is used for general ability in the past ('She could swim when she was five'). 'Was/were able to' is used for a specific success in a particular situation ('Despite the current, he was able to swim to shore'). After a negative, both can be used: 'She couldn't / wasn't able to finish in time.'
Transform to passive, all tenses: 'They announce the results. / They announced the results. / They will announce the results.'
Correction
Present: The results are announced. Past: The results were announced. Future: The results will be announced.
Write a conditional sentence (Type 3) expressing regret about an environmental problem.
Correction
If governments had invested in renewable energy earlier, we would not be facing such a severe climate crisis today. / If people had recycled more, less plastic would have ended up in the ocean.
What are the key differences between a formal letter and an informal letter?
Correction
Formal: no contractions, professional vocabulary, fixed structure (Dear Sir/Madam, Yours faithfully), one clear purpose per letter. Informal: contractions allowed, casual vocabulary, friendly tone (Hi/Dear [first name], Love/Best wishes), personal and varied topics.
Give five linkers for developing arguments in an essay.
Correction
Furthermore (adds information), However (introduces contrast), Nevertheless (concedes but maintains position), As a result (consequence), In addition (adds a further point). Others: Moreover, On the other hand, Therefore, Consequently, Although.