💪
📕 A2: Grades 7-9 • HEROES & ROLE MODELS

Overcoming a Challenge: A Story in Past Simple

Learn to tell a story about overcoming a difficulty using the past simple tense. Practice vocabulary: challenge, overcome, struggle, succeed, achieve.

Overcoming a Challenge: A Story in Past Simple
💬 Warm-up
1 What is a challenge you faced recently?
2 How did you feel when you overcame it?
3 Who helped you succeed?

🎯 Objectives

  • Use past simple to narrate a sequence of events.
  • Describe a personal challenge and how you overcame it.
  • Use new vocabulary to talk about struggles and successes.
In this block:

📚 Vocabulary

1.
challenge
"Learning English was a big challenge for me."
something difficult that tests your ability
2.
overcome
"She worked hard to overcome her fear of public speaking."
to succeed in dealing with a problem or difficulty
3.
struggle
"I had a struggle with math last year."
a difficult effort or fight
4.
succeed
"If you never give up, you will succeed."
to achieve what you want
5.
achieve
"He wanted to achieve his dream of becoming a doctor."
to reach a goal or do something you planned
🗓️ Friday, 9th October 2026
challenge
something difficult that tests your ability
overcome
to succeed in dealing with a problem or difficulty
struggle
a difficult effort or fight
succeed
to achieve what you want
achieve
to reach a goal or do something you planned

✍️ Practice

Guess the missing word.
1. If you study hard, you will succeed in your exams.
2. She trained every day to achieve her goal of running a marathon.
3. The biggest challenge for me was learning to ride a bike.
4. With practice, I was able to overcome my fear of heights.
5. The team's struggle lasted for weeks before they finally won.
🗓️ Friday, 9th October 2026
1. If you study hard, you will succeed in your exams.
2. She trained every day to achieve her goal of running a marathon.
3. The biggest challenge for me was learning to ride a bike.
4. With practice, I was able to overcome my fear of heights.
5. The team's struggle lasted for weeks before they finally won.

📖 Reading

Maya's Big Race

Last year, Maya faced a big challenge. She wanted to run in the city marathon, but she had never run more than five kilometers before. The first few weeks were a real struggle. Her legs hurt, and she felt like giving up. But Maya did not stop. She made a plan and trained every morning before school.

Slowly, she started to get stronger. Her friends helped her by running with her on weekends. They encouraged her to keep going. The biggest challenge was the long runs on rainy days. It was hard, but Maya remembered her goal. She wanted to achieve something she never thought possible.

The day of the marathon finally came. Maya felt nervous but excited. She ran at her own pace and did not give up. In the end, she crossed the finish line and smiled. She overcame her fears and hard work. She did not win a medal, but she felt like a champion because she succeeded in finishing the race.

Comprehension Questions

1.
What challenge did Maya face?
She wanted to run a marathon but had never run more than five kilometers.
2.
How did Maya feel during the first few weeks?
She had a struggle; her legs hurt and she felt like giving up.
3.
Who helped Maya with her training?
Her friends ran with her on weekends and encouraged her.
4.
What did Maya achieve on the day of the marathon?
She crossed the finish line and finished the race.
5.
Why did Maya feel like a champion?
Because she overcame her fears and succeeded in finishing the marathon.

🎧 Listening Practice

Ethan's Story: Learning to Swim

0:00 / 0:00
Listening context

Comprehension Questions

1.
What challenge did Ethan take on last summer?
He took on the challenge of learning to swim.
2.
What was Ethan's fear?
He was afraid of water.
3.
What did Ethan's coach tell him?
His coach said, 'Keep trying, and you will succeed.'
4.
How long did it take Ethan to swim across the pool?
It took two months.
5.
What did Ethan learn from the experience?
He learned that if you work hard and don't give up, you can overcome any challenge.

🗣️ Pair Work

Goal Sharing: Talk About a Challenge

"With a partner, take turns talking about a challenge you faced. Use the past simple tense. Explain what the challenge was, how you struggled, and how you succeeded."

👉 Choose a challenge from your life (school, sports, relationships, etc.).

👉 Tell your partner: what was the challenge, what made it hard, and what did you do to overcome it?

👉 Use at least 3 vocabulary words from this lesson.

👉 Listen to your partner and ask one follow-up question.

🚀 EnglishDee Tasks

KEYWORDS: challenge overcome struggle succeed achieve
✍️ WRITING

Advice Letter

Write a short letter (80-100 words) to someone facing a challenge you once dealt with. Use past simple to describe your experience. Start with 'Dear [name],' and end with 'Best wishes, [your name]'. Describe the challenge, how you struggled, and what helped you succeed.

✅ Checklist:
  • Minimum 80 words, use at least 4 vocabulary words, use past simple tense, follow letter format (greeting, body, closing).
🎙️ SPEAKING

Survivor Story

Record a 45-second talk about a challenge you overcame. Start with the challenge, then explain your struggle, then say how you succeeded. Speak clearly at a natural pace.

✅ Checklist:
  • Recording length: 45 seconds.
  • Use at least 4 vocabulary words.
  • Focus on fluency and pronunciation.
  • Structure: beginning (challenge), middle (struggle), end (success).
Helpful Phrases
  • The biggest challenge I faced was...
  • At first, I struggled with...
  • I knew I had to overcome it because...
  • Finally, I succeeded when I...
  • I felt proud because I achieved...
  • What helped me was...