Can you teach modal verbs? Will you be able to? Should you look for even better ways to teach them? The answers to all these modal questions are “Yes!” - and that’s why BusyTeacher.org offers 601 modal verb worksheets to bring some fresh, fun ideas to your ESL classroom.
Teaching modal verbs takes some strategy. A lot of other languages don’t have exact one-word equivalents for verbs like “should” and “would,” which means direct word-for-word translation probably isn’t an option. The next-best approach is to give examples - but it’s not always easy for students to guess the difference between, say, “can” and “could” from context alone. Some teachers start with the simplest modal verbs - “can” and “should” - and build up the list from there, using a variety of reading and speaking exercises.
However you plan to combine these approaches, BusyTeacher.org offers a wide variety of worksheets to help make sure your students can read, write, hear, and speak correctly when it comes to modal verbs. The sheer diversity of our worksheets means you’ll never find yourself repeating the same modal verb lesson twice - and the range of activities and exercises they provide will keep your students thinking about modal verbs in every kind of usage and context.
Whether you’re introducing some level-one students to modal verbs for the very first time, helping some level-two students review the modal verbs they’ve already learned, or introducing higher-level students to modal verbs in some new tenses, we’ve got worksheets tailored for your students’ ESL proficiency. With 601 modal verb worksheets to choose from, you’re sure to find some that are just right for your class.
Looking for simple fill-in-the-blank and multiple-choice worksheets to use for quizzes? We’ve got ‘em right here! Interested in active games that help students learn to use modal verbs in realistic conversations? Just take a look below! BusyTeacher.org even has modal verb worksheets designed around popular song lyrics, so your students can show off their newfound understanding of those songs to their friends.
All these worksheets have been created and shared by ESL teachers around the world - teachers just like you, who want to help each other improve the learning potential of their classrooms. They’ve been generous enough to make every worksheet on this site completely free to download, share, modify, and use as you like - you don’t even have to register on our site. All we ask is that, if you have a worksheet of your own that you’d like to share, you click the “Submit a worksheet” button at the bottom of this page to contribute it to our ever-growing community.
BusyTeacher.org’s convenient thumbnail view makes it easy to browse our 601 modal verb worksheets at a glance, without having to click and download each one just to see what it looks like. You can even save time by checking out the top ten most popular modal verb worksheets on BusyTeacher.org, or use the search function at the top of the page to pinpoint exactly the worksheets you’re looking for. We’re sure that, one way or another, you’ll find the worksheet you need. And we’re sure your class will love it!
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A set of cards designed for developing speaking skill at elementary level. Students will learn or reinforce the use of modal verb can/can't to express on's ability. The task is very simple: they ...
In this worksheet your little students (I recommend this worksheet for elementary students) should read short sentences and guess who says them (who can do this). The worksheet includes two varian ...
This worksheet can be used to teach primary students to check their comprehension on the use of modal verb can/can't to express one's ability. This worksheet will help the students to enrich ...
I made this worksheet to organize the use of the modals Should and Ought to in the Past and Present. It focuses more on the past aspect and also includes to questions that force the answer to be c ...
This is a board game to encourage conversation and to practise asking and answering the questions using "can" and talking about one's ability. A fun way to teach modal verbs to lower-level students!
The worksheet will be useful for those of you working with PEARSON Longman Success Upper-Intermediate. It is to go with the first lesson of Module 6 Secret Worlds. It is supposed to be used as the ...
This is a quick speed dating activity, it's a communicative approach to the model can. It's also got a lot of fun questions in which students are prompted to ask each other what they can and can' ...
A worksheet on Modal Verbs. Contains brief summary on their use with examples and six different exercises in which students answer the questions about the text, say if the statements are true or f ...
This is a very simple worksheet on Can / can't to express ability and inability including negative, interrogative and negative forms, Reading comprehension and writing activities.
It's basically pictures, drawings, of people with several kinds of aches and pains, such as headache, sore throat, bleeding. It can be used in many ways: oral evaluation, class presentation, writt ...
This worksheet will help your students to better use the modal verb must and its equivalent have to. Before doing the exercise don't forget to give your students the general idea of using the moda ...
It is the lyrics of the song. I practised it with adult students (because it is an older song) who learn "can, cant" for ability. Students will have several tasks in the worksheet. Firstly, they h ...
This is a PowerPoint that I created to check the students' knowledge on Modal verbs (Can- Can't/ may - may not / must- mustn't). Included into this small lesson there is a multiple choice game to ...
A worksheet to practice modal verbs and consolidate them in a quick and simple way with a multiple choice exercise. Each sentence provides a picture to help students understand the sentences.
An activity to practice the distinction between the use of these two modal verbs. Ten sentences, not so much as to get bored. May be used as homework. Keys are included.
This is very short and quite easy worksheet on modal verb "must". Students are given some signs and their task is to write possible sentences with MUST or MUSTN'T. They have to tell us what the si ...
The worksheet is based on the film Deep Impact. It aims at showing students the use of will, might, going to structures for predictions about the future. It also includes a task on practicing the ...
This is a filling in activity to train the use of Present Simple and Present Continuous. The infinitives of the verbs are given in a box in the upper part of the worksheet. The song contains diff ...
Reading comprehension for beginners aroud family members including grammar activities and a written expression where learners present their families after they have drawn their family trees.The fo ...
We are aware of the difficulty and problems that your students have with modal verbs and their functions: ability, obligation, possibility , certainty, for example. Here, you have four exercises ...
This worksheet (3 pages) is about Famine. Sts have to make a list with immediate needs and future needs, make up sentences by using must, can, will, should, might and could. On the last page sts h ...
This is a worksheet about various topics: Past Simple, may/might, Zero Conditional and First Conditional. Useful for exams and quizzes of all sorts. I hope you enjoy it!
Enjoy working on this worksheet song. Listening activities. Practice the use of some expressions, pronunciation and adjectives. You can also use it just to encourage your students to practice list ...
A simple grammar test (elementary/ pre-intermediate levels) that could also be used as a worksheet for grammar revision. Again it's fully editable so you can easily adjust it to your needs. In ex. ...
There is a brief explanation on how modal verbs work. Besides, I have added additional rephrasing exercises for intermediate students. There you can check your abilities rewriting without changin ...
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![Modal Verbs Worksheet (obligation, necessity, prohibition, permission, duty) [WITH VIDEO]](https://busyteacher.org/uploads/posts/2011-05/1306456979_gforce.jpg)
![Song Worksheet: Just Can't Smile Without You by Barry Manilow [WITH VIDEO]](https://busyteacher.org/uploads/posts/2011-04/1301854019_mani.jpg)
![Movie Worksheet: Predictions About the Future - Will, Might, Going to [Deep Impact]](https://busyteacher.org/uploads/posts/2011-01/1296149561_deep.jpg)
