always, sometimes, never

How often? The five words that turn bare habits into honest ones — I always brush my teeth… well, usually.

From age 8Cambridge level: A1 Movers

Age: Ages 8–11
Level: A1
Skill: Grammar
Format: Teacher guide

The pattern

Saying it: I always get up at 7.
Saying no: I never eat soup.
Asking: Do you ever…? / How often…?
Short answer: Sometimes. / Every day.

Printable worksheet Presentation (PPT)

Sentences a child can say

Tap any sentence to hear it. Every one uses words from a topic pack you already have.

Mini exercise: choose the right word

Five sentences from this page, each with a word missing. A child taps the word that fits and, once it is right, hears the whole sentence.

I always blank my teeth.
She usually blank to school.
We often blank football.
I blank drink coffee.
It always blank in winter.

What you will actually hear

The mistakes that come up in every class, and what is behind each one, with a tag on those a first language makes typical.

I go always to school.I always go to school.

Frequency words live BEFORE the main verb (but after am/is/are). One address, easy to remember: home is before the verb.

I don't never eat fish.I never eat fish.

Never is already negative — it needs no don't. English allows one no per sentence; never spends it.

How to teach it

1
Draw the frequency ladder on the board — never at the bottom, always at the top — and let children pin habit cards to rungs. The picture is the grammar.
2
Play truth-or-tweak: a child states a habit ('I never sleep!') and the class votes true or false. Lying with adverbs is legal and hilarious.
3
Attach it to daily-routine vocabulary the same week — get up, brush, eat, sleep. Frequency words are hungry; routines are their food.

Topic packs that pair with this

Same structure, words your class already knows — no new vocabulary needed.

Daily routines Food School Sports Weather & sky

Questions teachers ask

All five adverbs at once?

Start with the poles — always and never — because opposites teach each other. Sometimes joins a week later; usually and often last, since even adults blur them.

Why does the position flip with am/is/are?

Don't explain it — model it. 'I am always happy' in your speech, often, until it sounds right. The rule ('after be, before others') is for you, not for eight-year-olds.