Unit 3: Tell me about your day! Daily routine and telling the time

I get up at seven. I go to school at eight. Use the present simple to describe a regular day, then add times and words such as before, after and then. In English 1AC Unit 3, Tell me about your day!, you will ask about routines, tell the time and invite a friend to an activity after school.

English Spotlight 1, Part 1 · Moroccan 1AC · Updated 19 September 2026

By the end of this lesson, you can

Describe daily routines in the present simple
Use do and does in questions and negatives
Read numbers to 100 and tell the time
Order activities with before, after and then
Make and answer a simple invitation

Before you startNumbers 0–20 and the days of the week · Subject pronouns, have/has and school activities

How do you describe your daily routine in English?

Activity	Example
wake up	I wake up at seven.
get up	I get up at seven.
brush my teeth	I brush my teeth in the morning.
take a shower	I take a shower.
get dressed	I get dressed before breakfast.
have breakfast	I have breakfast at half past seven.
go to school	I go to school at eight.
have lunch	I have lunch at one.
go home	I go home after school.
do my homework	I do my homework at five.
have dinner	I have dinner in the evening.
go to bed	I go to bed at half past nine.

Six scenes show a student getting up, eating breakfast, going to school, doing homework, reading and going to bed. — Describe a routine in the present simple: I get up at seven. I do my homework at five.

Read the picture from left to right, then continue on the second row. It shows an imaginary day: getting up at 07:00, breakfast at 07:30, school at 08:00, homework at 17:00, reading at 20:00 and bed at 21:30. Your routine may be different. Practise expressing your own times.

Wake up means stop sleeping. Get up means leave your bed. You can wake up before you get up! Learn go home without to, but go to school and go to bed with to.

How do you form the present simple?

Definition

Present simple : Use the present simple for habits and regular actions. With I, you, we and they, use the base verb. With he, she and it, usually add s in a positive statement.

Base verb	With I	With she	Spelling note
get up	I get up.	She gets up.	Add s
play	I play.	She plays.	Keep y after a vowel
watch	I watch.	She watches.	Add es after ch
brush	I brush my teeth.	She brushes her teeth.	Add es after sh
study	I study.	She studies.	Consonant + y changes to ies
go	I go.	She goes.	Learn goes
have	I have breakfast.	She has breakfast.	Learn has

When changing I to she, check possessives too: I do my homework becomes She does her homework. Do not add s with they: They play football. Compare He plays football.

How do you use do and does in questions and negatives?

A student walks to school; statements, a negative, a question and a short answer highlight walks, does and walk. — She walks, but Does she walk? After does or does not, use the base verb. The calendar shows an example school-week routine.

Subject	Negative	Question	Short answer
I / you / we / they	I don’t watch TV.	Do you read?	Yes, I do. / No, I don’t.
he / she / it	She doesn’t watch TV.	Does she read?	Yes, she does. / No, she doesn’t.

Remember

After does or doesn’t, use the base verb: Does she walk? She doesn’t walk. Do not write Does she walks? Be has its own pattern: She isn’t tired, not She doesn’t be tired.

Questions about an activity, time or place

Question	Example answer
What do you do after school?	I do my homework.
What time do you get up?	I get up at seven.
When does he read?	He reads in the evening.
Where do they play?	They play in the playground.

Ask about a starting time

She starts school at eight.

Use does with she in the question.
Change starts back to the base form start.
Ask What time does she start school? Answer She starts school at eight.

How do you write numbers from 20 to 100?

Number	Word	Another example
20	twenty	21: twenty-one
30	thirty	32: thirty-two
40	forty	43: forty-three
50	fifty	54: fifty-four
60	sixty	65: sixty-five
70	seventy	76: seventy-six
80	eighty	87: eighty-seven
90	ninety	98: ninety-eight
100	one hundred	A hundred is also possible

Use a hyphen in numbers such as twenty-five and forty-eight. There is no u in forty. Practise the pairs thirteen/thirty and fifteen/fifty with your teacher. When counting separately, the main stress is usually on teen in thirteen and on the first syllable in thirty.

How do you tell the time in English?

Ask What time is it? Start the answer with It’s. You can read the hour and minutes directly: It’s seven thirty. You can also use past and to. A quarter is fifteen minutes; half an hour is thirty minutes.

Four digital clocks show 07:00, 07:15, 07:30 and 07:45 with their English time expressions. — 07:15 is a quarter past seven, 07:30 is half past seven and 07:45 is a quarter to eight.

Time	Direct reading	With past or to
07:00	seven o’clock	seven o’clock
07:15	seven fifteen	a quarter past seven
07:30	seven thirty	half past seven
07:45	seven forty-five	a quarter to eight
08:10	eight ten	ten past eight
08:50	eight fifty	ten to nine

Past counts minutes after the hour. To counts minutes before the next hour. At 07:45, fifteen minutes remain before eight: a quarter to eight. Use o’clock only for an exact hour, such as seven o’clock.

Step by step

Read a time accurately

Identify the hour and the minutes.
At :15 use a quarter past; at :30 use half past.
At :45 use a quarter to and name the next hour.
If unsure, read the hour and minutes directly: seven forty-five.
For an activity, add at: I leave at a quarter to eight.

Make the part of the day clear: seven in the morning is 07:00; seven in the evening is 19:00. AM covers the hours from midnight to before noon; PM covers noon to before midnight. For 12:00, noon means midday and midnight means the middle of the night.

How do before, after and then organise a routine?

Word or phrase	Meaning in the example	Example
before	Earlier than	I have breakfast before school.
after	Later than	I go home after school.
first	The starting activity	First, I get up.
then	The next activity	Then, I get dressed.
in the morning	The first part of the day	I study in the morning.
in the evening	The later part of the day	I read in the evening.
at night	During the night	I sleep at night.

Before and after show order, not an exact time. I read after dinner tells us that reading follows dinner. Add a time if needed: I read after dinner, at eight. Remember at seven but in the morning.

How do you invite a friend to an activity?

Purpose	Useful expression
Suggest an activity	Let’s play football.
Ask about interest	Do you want to read with me?
Ask if someone can come	Can you come to the park?
Accept	Sure! / Sounds great!
Decline politely	Sorry, I can’t.
Give a time	At five, after school.

Use a base verb after Let’s and can: Let’s play. Can you come? Use to before the verb after want: Do you want to read? Practise a short invitation with a clear activity and time.

Reading: two different routines

My name is Yasmine. On school days, I get up at seven. I have breakfast at half past seven. My brother gets up at a quarter past seven. We go to school at eight. After school, I do my homework. My brother reads a book. In the evening, we have dinner together. I don’t watch TV before school.

Who gets up first? Yasmine, at seven; her brother gets up at 07:15. What does he do after school? He reads a book. What time do they have dinner? The text does not say. Use the information given instead of inventing an answer.

Mini-project: my day and my partner’s day

Step by step

Build a six-sentence routine

Choose six activities and a time for each.
Write sentences with I and the present simple.
Use before, after or then to show the order.
Ask a partner two questions about their routine.
Report one of their habits with he or she. Check the verb ending.
For listening practice, let your partner read three sentences while you note the activities and times.

Frequently asked questions

What does English 1AC Unit 3 cover?

Tell me about your day! covers daily routines, the present simple, do/does, numbers to 100, telling the time, sequencing words and invitations.

How do I write about my daily routine in English?

Choose regular activities and add times: I get up at seven. I have breakfast at half past seven. I go to school at eight. Use before, after or then to connect activities.

What is the difference between do and does?

Use do with I, you, we and they. Use does with he, she and it. In questions and negatives, the next verb stays in its base form: Does she read?

How do I say 7:45 in English?

Say seven forty-five or a quarter to eight. To counts the minutes before the next hour, so the hour in this expression is eight.

Is half past seven 7:30 or 6:30?

Half past seven means 7:30. Past counts minutes after the named hour; half an hour is thirty minutes.

Quiz: 20 questions

20 questions are randomly selected from this lesson’s 24-question bank. Choose one answer for each question and get an immediate explanation.

Q1Which tense describes a regular routine here?

Correct answer: Present simple

The present simple describes habits and regular actions.

Q2Complete: She … up at seven.

Correct answer: gets

Add s to get in a positive statement with she.

Q3Complete: He … English.

Correct answer: studies

Consonant plus y changes to ies: study becomes studies.

Q4Complete: She … breakfast at seven.

Correct answer: has

Have changes to has with he, she or it.

Q5Choose the correct negative.

Correct answer: She doesn’t walk.

Use doesn’t plus the base verb walk.

Q6Choose the correct question.

Correct answer: Does he read?

Does matches he, and read stays in its base form.

Q7Do you walk to school? Yes, …

Correct answer: I do.

A do question takes do in the short answer.

Q8What time do you get up?

Correct answer: At seven.

What time asks for a time, so At seven fits.

Q9Choose the spelling of 40.

Correct answer: Forty

Forty is written without a u.

Q10Which number is fifty?

Correct answer: 50

Fifty is 50; fifteen is 15.

Q1107:15 is…

Correct answer: a quarter past seven.

Fifteen minutes after seven is a quarter past seven.

Q1207:30 is…

Correct answer: half past seven.

Half an hour after seven is half past seven.

Q1307:45 is…

Correct answer: a quarter to eight.

At 07:45, fifteen minutes remain before eight.

Q1408:50 is…

Correct answer: ten to nine.

08:50 is ten minutes before nine.

Q15Complete: I leave … eight o’clock.

Correct answer: at

Use at with a clock time.

Q16Complete: I read … the evening.

Correct answer: in

The phrase is in the evening.

Q17Before school means…

Correct answer: earlier than school.

Before shows that one activity comes earlier.

Q18Choose the correct phrase.

Correct answer: go home

Go home does not take to.

Q19Complete: Let’s … football.

Correct answer: play

Let’s is followed by a base verb.

Q20Choose a polite refusal.

Correct answer: Sorry, I can’t.

Sorry, I can’t politely declines an invitation.

Q21Complete: Do you want … read?

Correct answer: to

Use want to plus the base verb read.

Q22Which word means the next activity?

Correct answer: Then

Then helps show the next step in a sequence.

Q23Seven in the evening is…

Correct answer: 19:00.

19:00 is seven on a 12-hour clock in the evening.

Q24Choose the correct sentence.

Correct answer: They play football.

Use the base verb with they in the present simple.

Your score

0/20

Start with the worked examples

Read the lesson in small sections. Write your own example for each rule and try the Easy exercises before returning to the quiz.

Review: 20 missed questions

Which tense describes a regular routine here?
Correct answerPresent simple
The present simple describes habits and regular actions.
Complete: She … up at seven.
Correct answergets
Add s to get in a positive statement with she.
Complete: He … English.
Correct answerstudies
Consonant plus y changes to ies: study becomes studies.
Complete: She … breakfast at seven.
Correct answerhas
Have changes to has with he, she or it.
Choose the correct negative.
Correct answerShe doesn’t walk.
Use doesn’t plus the base verb walk.
Choose the correct question.
Correct answerDoes he read?
Does matches he, and read stays in its base form.
Do you walk to school? Yes, …
Correct answerI do.
A do question takes do in the short answer.
What time do you get up?
Correct answerAt seven.
What time asks for a time, so At seven fits.
Choose the spelling of 40.
Correct answerForty
Forty is written without a u.
Which number is fifty?
Correct answer50
Fifty is 50; fifteen is 15.
07:15 is…
Correct answera quarter past seven.
Fifteen minutes after seven is a quarter past seven.
07:30 is…
Correct answerhalf past seven.
Half an hour after seven is half past seven.
07:45 is…
Correct answera quarter to eight.
At 07:45, fifteen minutes remain before eight.
08:50 is…
Correct answerten to nine.
08:50 is ten minutes before nine.
Complete: I leave … eight o’clock.
Correct answerat
Use at with a clock time.
Complete: I read … the evening.
Correct answerin
The phrase is in the evening.
Before school means…
Correct answerearlier than school.
Before shows that one activity comes earlier.
Choose the correct phrase.
Correct answergo home
Go home does not take to.
Complete: Let’s … football.
Correct answerplay
Let’s is followed by a base verb.
Choose a polite refusal.
Correct answerSorry, I can’t.
Sorry, I can’t politely declines an invitation.

Answer and explanation

She gets up at seven. She doesn’t watch TV. She goes to school at eight. What time does she start school? Positive she forms take an ending; the verb after does or doesn’t does not.