Talking about the modal verb «can»

— Hello, boys and girls! My name is Kyle.

— Hello, everyone! My name is Sophia.

— Hello, friends! I’m Melanie.

— Hello! I’m Jackson.

— Welcome to our lesson!

— We are happy to see you!

Today in the lesson we will:

● learn the definition of the term “modal verb”;

● talk about the modal verb “can”;

● discuss how to form sentences with this verb;

And

● put the knowledge into practice.

Let’s start our lesson!

A modal verb is a verb that is used to express ability, necessity, obligation, duty, request, permission, advice, desire, probability, possibility and so on. It needs to be accompanied by another main verb.

Pay attention! Modal verbs always take base form of a verb with them.

For example:

Kate, I must talk to you about the new project.

Or

Lola, you have to try this cake. It’s so delicious!

(In these two sentences we used the modal verbs “must” and “have to”, which are accompanied by the main verbs “talk” and “try”).

Modal verbs are sometimes called defective verbs, because they don’t have all the functions of main verbs. They cannot be used without a main verb, cannot form gerunds or participles and don’t have any endings to show person, number or tense.

Now we will talk about the modal verb “can”.

It’s translated as:

Мочь, уметь

Now let’s answer the question:

When do we use the modal verb “can”?

This modal verb is used to talk about the ability to do something.

For example:

Stephanie can play the guitar very well.

We also use the modal verb “can” to ask for or give permission.

For instance:

Granny, can I have another piece of that delicious pie?

The modal verb “can” is used to make requests.

For example:

Mum, can you help me with my homework, please?

This modal verb is also used to make offers.

For instance:

Jessica, can I give you a lift?

We use “can” with the particle “not” to show that something is not allowed.

For example:

Excuse me, sir! You cannot park here. (or You can’t park here.)

Now let’s answer the question:

How do we form sentences with the verb “can”?

To form positive sentences we put the subject in the first place. Then we put the modal verb “can”. After that we need to use the main verb.

For example:

Molly can play the piano very well.

Or

Blake can swim under the water.

To form negative sentences we put the subject in the first place. Then we put the word “can” with the particle “not”, the short form is “can’t”. After that we need to use the main verb.

For instance:

Molly can’t play the piano very well.

Or

Blake can’t swim under the water.

To form questions we put the modal verb “can” in the first place. Then we put the subject. After that we use the main verb.

For example:

Can Molly play the piano very well?

Or

Can Blake swim under the water?

To give short answers to the questions we can use one of the following two constructions:

The first construction is…

In the first place we put the word “yes”. Then we use the personal pronoun. After that we need to put the modal verb “can”.

And the second construction is…

In the first place we put the word “no”. Then we use the personal pronoun. After that we need to put the word “can” with the particle “not”.

— Boys and girls, we’ve talked about the modal verb “can”.

— We’ve also discussed how to form sentences with this verb.

— Now we would like to check your knowledge.

Look at the table and answer the questions!

Can Grace and Toby play football?

Let’s check!

The right answer is:

No, they can’t.

Can Emily ride a bike?

Check yourselves!

The right answer is:

No, she can’t.

Can Grace and Mason drive a car?

Let’s check!

The right answer is:

Yes, they can.

Can Riley and Jenna play the trumpet?

Check yourselves!

The right answer is:

No, they can’t.

Can Emily ride a horse?

Let’s check!

The right answer is:

Yes, she can.

Can Toby play the drums?

Check yourselves!

The right answer is:

Yes, he can.

Can Mason and Riley ride a bike?

Let’s check!

The right answer is:

No, they can’t.

Well done, boys and girls!

Now…

Complete the sentences using “can” or “can’t”!

Emily and Toby … play the trumpet, but they … drive a car.

Let’s check!

The right answer is:

Emily and Toby can play the trumpet, but they can’t drive a car.

Mason and Riley … play football.

Check yourselves!

The right answer is:

Mason and Riley can play football.

Riley and Jenna … play the drums, but they … ride a horse.

Let’s check!

The right answer is:

Riley and Jenna can’t play the drums, but they can ride a horse.

Grace and Toby … ride a bike.

Check yourselves!

The right answer is:

Grace and Toby can ride a bike.

Mason … play the drums, but he … play the trumpet.

Let’s check!

The right answer is:

Mason can play the drums, but he can’t play the trumpet.

Jenna … drive a car, but she … ride a bike.

Check yourselves!

The right answer is:

Jenna can’t drive a car, but she can ride a bike.

Grace … play the drums and ride a horse.

Let’s check!

The right answer is:

Grace can’t play the drums and ride a horse.

— Well done, boys and girls!

— Now it’s time to say goodbye to everyone.

— Goodbye, friends!

— Goodbye, boys and girls!

— Goodbye!