A2 · Elementary · Family · 153 words · ~2 min read

🎓 A Parent–Teacher Meeting

Language focus: Present Perfect & comparatives · progress

Before you read

Reporting progress in English almost always needs two things at once: the present perfect for what has changed, and comparatives for how much. Watch the teacher move between them in nearly every sentence.

Mrs Adeyemi arrives at the school for a parent–teacher meeting about her daughter, Zoe. The teacher welcomes her warmly into the bright classroom.

“Zoe has made excellent progress this term,” the teacher says. “Her reading is much stronger than before, and she always hands in her homework on time.”

“She sometimes finds maths difficult,” the teacher adds, “but she is keeping up well with a little extra practice.” Mrs Adeyemi feels proud and relieved.

“How can I help at home?” she asks. “Read together every evening, and she will soon catch up in every subject,” the teacher advises.

Zoe has been reading a novel every week since September, and her spelling has improved a great deal. Her handwriting is neater than last term too.

Mrs Adeyemi is going to read with her every evening. If Zoe keeps working like this, she will be one of the strongest readers in the class by summer.

Key vocabulary (8 words)

progressnoun: The process of improving or moving forward.
termnoun: One of the parts the school year is divided into.
homeworknoun: School work that you do at home.
subjectnoun: An area of study, such as maths or history.
behaviournoun: The way a person acts.
confidentadjective: Sure of yourself and your abilities.
improvementnoun: A change that makes something better.
effortnoun: The energy and work you put into something.

Phrasal verbs in this story

keep up — To keep up means to stay at the same level as others.
hand in — To hand in means to give completed work to a teacher.
catch up — To catch up means to reach the same level as others.

The grammar in this story

Present perfect for progress

“Zoe has made excellent progress this term.” “her spelling has improved.” Progress is by definition a change that has led to the present, so the present perfect is the natural tense. Note this term — an unfinished period, which is exactly why the past simple would be wrong here.

Comparatives to measure the change

“Her reading is much stronger than before.” “Her handwriting is neater than last term.” The comparative plus than is how English quantifies improvement. Much and a great deal intensify it; remember that very cannot be used with a comparative.

Present perfect continuous for the effort behind it

“Zoe has been reading a novel every week since September.” This form emphasises the repeated, ongoing work rather than the result. Pair it with the plain present perfect and you can describe both the effort and the outcome in two sentences.

keep up, hand in, catch up

Keep up = stay at the required level. Hand in = submit work. Catch up = reach the level of others after falling behind. School English uses all three constantly. Hand in is separable — she handed it in — and catch up often takes with: catch up with the class.

Phrases you can reuse today

She has made excellent progress this term.: Present perfect for an unfinished period.
Her reading is much stronger than before.: Much plus comparative plus than.
She always hands in her homework on time.: Hand in = submit. On time, not in time.
How can I help at home?: The most useful question at any parents’ evening.

Comprehension quiz

Why is the meeting held?
- About Zoe’s progress
- About a holiday
- About lunch
Show answer
About Zoe’s progress
Zoe’s reading is ___ than before.
- weaker
- stronger
- the same
Show answer
stronger
She always ___ her homework on time.
- hands in
- throws away
- forgets
Show answer
hands in
Which subject does she find difficult?
- Maths
- Reading
- Art
Show answer
Maths
What does the teacher advise for home?
- Read together every evening
- Watch more TV
- Do no homework
Show answer
Read together every evening
“Catch up” means to…
- reach the same level
- fall behind
- give up
Show answer
reach the same level

Now use it yourself

Reading builds recognition; writing your own sentences is what turns it into something you can actually say. Three short tasks:

Write three present perfect sentences about something you have improved at.
Compare your English now with a year ago, using two comparatives.
What helped you most when you were falling behind at something?