Used to

Document 1. Extract from a local history website, Sheffield.
« My grandmother Doris, 84, remembers the Sheffield of the 1950s. « This street used to be full of children, » she says. « We didn't use to have televisions, so we would play outside until dark: hopscotch, marbles, football with a tin can. There used to be a sweet shop on the corner, where a penny bought you a whole bag of toffees. My father used to work in the steelworks, like every man in the street; the sky used to be grey with smoke, and Mum would wash the sheets twice a week. » Today, the steelworks have closed and the street is quiet. Doris no longer knows her neighbours, but she doesn't complain: « We used to be poor, and now my grandchildren go to university. I've got used to the silence — and the air is cleaner than it has ever been. » »

1. Give three things children used to do in the street in the 1950s, and explain why they played outside so much.
2. What did the sweet shop, the steelworks and the sky have in common? What has changed today?
3. Copy one sentence with « would » and explain in French why the author uses « would » and not « used to » in this sentence.
4. Is Doris nostalgic? Justify with two elements from the last paragraph.

Document 2. How British teenagers spent their free time: 1995 vs 2025 (survey of 500 teenagers each year, percentage who did the activity at least once a week).

1. Which activity has decreased the most between 1995 and 2025, and by how many points? Which activity has hardly changed?
2. Write two sentences with « used to » about 1995, using the table (one affirmative, one negative with « didn't use to »).
3. Write two sentences contrasting 1995 and 2025 with « used to… but now… » and « no longer » or « any more ».
4. Explain in English why the figure for « chatting with friends online » was 0 % in 1995, with one sentence using « used to » or « didn't use to ».

1. Mets à la forme négative puis interrogative : « Your uncle used to drive a lorry. »
2. Choisis used to, would ou le prétérit et justifie en un mot (état / habitude / date) : « My aunt (be) ___ a nurse. » / « Every Friday, she (bring) ___ us sweets. » / « She (retire) ___ in 2020. »
3. Complète avec used to + BV, be used to + V-ing ou get used to + V-ing : « Sam (live) ___ in a village; when he moved to London, he couldn't (sleep) ___ with the noise, but now he (hear) ___ sirens all night. »
4. Corrige les quatre erreurs : « I use to play tennis, but I didn't used to win; now I am used to lose and I don't play no more. »

1. Traduis en anglais : « il y avait autrefois », « plus maintenant (fin de phrase) », « de nos jours », « s'habituer à ».
2. Réécris chaque phrase avec « no longer » : « She doesn't live here any more. » / « They don't sell bread any more. »
3. Explique en anglais la différence entre « I used to run » et « I'm used to running », avec un contexte pour chacune.
4. Traduis : « Quand j'étais petit, je croyais que la lune me suivait ; maintenant je sais que c'est impossible, mais j'aime encore la regarder. »

Write a short text (80 words minimum) entitled « My life has changed ». Compare your life at the age of seven with your life today. Follow the four steps.

1. Describe where you used to live or go to school and one habit you used to have (two sentences with « used to »).
2. Say two things you didn't use to do or like (« didn't use to » / « never used to »).
3. Describe your life now, with « now », « these days » or « nowadays », and one sentence with « any more » or « no longer ».
4. Conclude with a sentence about a habit that has stayed the same (« I still… ») and a sentence with « be used to » or « get used to ».