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Modal verb CAN (ability and permission)
Affirmative, interrogative and negative forms

Presentation / Objective

In this section, you will learn how to use the modal verb Can, to express ability and informal permission. First, you will read a text about real people with superhuman abilities and answer some questions about it. Then, in the listening comprehension section, you will match signs with meaning using Can for permission. In the writing section, you will interview members of your family to write a text describing their abilities. Finally, in the speaking section, you will record the description of a superhero or superheroine you created. If you do a good job, you will be able to practice the modal verb Can in the oral and written texts. We hope you enjoy learning this topic.

Notice that on this section and through different activities we will check the following concepts:

esquema

Objective

By the end of this section you will:
Use the modal verb CAN in affirmative, negative and interrogative forms with action verbs to express abilities, ask, give or deny permissions in written and oral form.

Content

What do you think of when you see this card?

Superman

He has super human abilities.

Superman

Are superheroes the only ones who have super abilities?

Do you think it’s important to have abilities when you ask for a job?

Now look at the following image:

fumar

We may find this sign outside a school but never in a classroom!!

This sign says, “It’s ok if you smoke in this area,” “It is permitted to smoke here,” “You can smoke here.” This means you have permission to smoke there.

Finally, look at this sign:

 

What does it mean?
Maybe we can see this sign over the previous image.

If we put this sign next to the previous one. You will notice it means, “You are not permitted to smoke in this area,” “You do not have permission to smoke here,” “You can’t smoke in this room.”

fumar

Notice, the modal CAN is used to express two different things:

  1. Abilities
  2. Permissions in an informal way

In the next infography we will take a look at the basic characteristics of the modal verb CAN.

infografia_can

Let’s look at some examples to express permission:


Teacher in classes

Adapted from Escolaespai (2014). Teacher [photo]. Taken from https://goo.gl/LvwuH3

Notice the student asks for permission, and the teacher gives permission.

Traffic violation

Adapted from Contreras, L. (2012). Police [photo]. Taken from https://goo.gl/WfWf9x

Here, a person parks his car in a forbidden area. The police officer tells him he cannot park there. That is, the police officer denies the permission.

Let’s study some vocabulary. Look at the following GIFS. Click on the recording to listen to the pronunciation.

correr-imagen-animada-0008

He can run really fast.

cocinero-y-chef-imagen-animada-0036

He can cook really well.

bebe-imagen-animada-0032

The Baby can’t run.

musico-imagen-animada-0055

She can play the violin beautifully.

The animated images were taken from gifanimados.org on March 31st 2017 in https://www.gifsanimados.org/

Reading

Activity 1

The ability of echolocation

Do you know that there are people who have superhuman abilities?

Read about some of these real people. Based on the text, choose the correct person who can do this activity.

Human echolocation

Listening

Activity 2

Permission signs

When you go outside, you see many signs that express what you Can or Can’t do in specific places.

Listen first to the pronunciation of the affirmative and negative form of Can. Then look at the following signs and drag the number of audio that corresponds to each sign. You can play the recording as many times as necessary. You can even take notes, BUT you only have ONE opportunity to do the activity.




Writing

Activity 3

My family’s abilities

Do you know what your father, mother, sister or brother can do?

Sometimes we do not know all their secret abilities, or we have not had the opportunity to ask or watch them perform those abilities.

For this activity, download and save the Work file.You will find some questions that you will ask three members of your family.

Ask your family members the questions accordingly. If you have a sister and a brother interview both, if not, interview one of them. Ask your father, mother or both the questions. Do it in Spanish. Look for the meaning of the verbs in a dictionary (you can use WordReference.com, do not use a translator).

Put a tick (√) if they can do it or a cross (X) if they can’t do it. When you finish, write a paragraph per each interviewed member describing what they can, or they can’t do.

Make sure you use the correct structure (affirmative or negative), include the words but, and, also, too to connect your ideas.

To make sure your paragraph has all the requirements, check the rubrics before doing the activity.

My mother can bake cookies or cakes, and she can also cook.
She can't speak another language.
She can sew and knit.
My father can fix a car.
My sister can say tongue-twisters fast, but she can’t stand on two hands.
She can play more than one musical instrument but she can’t hold her breath for more than one minute.

Speaking

Activity 4

Creating a superhero or superheroine

Now is your turn to use your imagination to create a superhero with specific abilities. Is it a boy or a girl? What can she or he do? What can’t he or she do?

Think about the name, the abilities he or she has (what he can do and what he can’t do). You can create your superhero or supervillain anyway you want. Try to create a paragraph giving a complete description. Record and save it.

To create your character, check the “The Secret Book Of Superpeople.” There you will find a description of some of these famous characters. Consider the specific vocabulary that you need, this will help you choose the special abilities for your super-person. After that, go to the following web pages to check the pronunciation of the vocabulary. Repeat and practice your description before recording your final version:

Text to speech reader
Howjsay.com

Finally, make sure your description has all the rubric specifications. Have fun creating your superhero!

Listen to the description of Osmo Girl

Super women

Perian, J. (2016). Super women [ilustration]. Taken from https://goo.gl/SLVyW3




Self-assessment

Using CAN for ability and permission

Imagine you are asking a friend questions about his or her abilities. Use CAN to write interrogative sentences.

Self-assessment

Can you use CAN correctly?

This activity has the purpose of checking how well you can use CAN in English.

References

Basic

• Murphy, R. (1997). Essential grammar in use: A self-study reference and practice book for elementary students of English: with answers. Cambridge, U.K: Cambridge University Press.

• Oxenden, C. Latham-Koenig, C. (2013). American English File 1. Oxford, U.K. Oxford University Press.

Complementary

• Coe, N., Harrison, M. & Patrson, K. (2006). Oxford Practice Grammar. Oxford, U.K: Oxford University Press.

• English Media https://www.cuaed.unam.mx/english_media/