Step 16: My House
Home life — Rooms and furniture; there was / were
📖 Read — Our Old House
When I was small, we lived in an old house. There was a big kitchen and a small garden. There were three bedrooms. My bed was next to the window. There was a sofa in the living room, and there was a lamp on the table. I loved that house.
🧩 Grammar — There was / there were — the past of there is/are
In the past: one thing → There was; many things → There were. Use them for places in stories and memories.
- There was a big kitchen.
- There were three bedrooms.
- There was a lamp on the table.
- There were flowers in the garden.
🏗️ Key structures
- There was a + room + in the house — There was a big kitchen in the house.
- There were + number + rooms — There were three bedrooms.
- My + thing + was next to/on… — My bed was next to the window.
⭐ Idiom & natural phrases
Come in! Make yourself at home.
🔤 New words
the room where you sleep
There were three bedrooms.
the room where you wash
The bathroom is small.
the room where the family sits together
We watch TV in the living room.
a long, soft chair for 2-3 people
There was a sofa.
the furniture you sleep in
My bed was near the window.
a thing that gives light
A lamp on the table.
a cold box for food
The fridge is in the kitchen.
flat furniture with four legs
Books are on the table.
🎧 Say it with me
There was a big kitchen in our old house, and there were three bedrooms.
🎤 Your turn to speak
Describe a house from your childhood (or your house now in the past style): 5 sentences with there was/were.
Say it out loud three times. Even better: record it on your phone and listen — your ear is your best teacher.
✍️ Your turn to write
Write 5 sentences about your house (present or past).
See a model answer
There was a small garden in our old house. There were two bedrooms. My bed was next to the window. There was a sofa in the living room. I loved that house.
Self-check: capital letters? Full stops? Did you use the grammar of this step?
📝 Quick check
Go deeper
This step is a doorway — the full lesson goes much further:
🎉 Saved in your progress!