A Roadmap for Learning English Grammar from Scratch
A Roadmap for Learning English Grammar from Scratch
Starting to learn English from zero, or rebuilding your knowledge from A1 level, can feel intimidating. But with the right strategy and a clear order, the process turns out to be genuinely enjoyable and effective. To succeed on CEFR and National Certificate exams, you need to lay the grammar foundation correctly from the start.
In this guide, we'll walk you through which topics to learn, and in what order, starting from scratch. If you're not sure exactly what level you're at, first take the CEFR level-placement test.
Stage 1: A1 (Beginner) – Laying the foundation
At this stage, you'll get familiar with the most basic concepts. You'll learn the simplest rules for building sentences.
- The alphabet and pronunciation basics: Letters, sounds, and the fundamental rules.
- The verb "to be": The forms am, is, are and their affirmative, question, and negative forms.
- Pronouns: I, you, he, she, it, we, they and their possessive forms (my, your, his...).
- Nouns and the plural form: Regular nouns and adding the -s/-es ending.
- Demonstrative pronouns: This, that, these, those.
- Present Simple: Using the auxiliary verbs do/does to express daily habits.
Once you've mastered these topics thoroughly, build on your knowledge with our article on the best vocabulary and textbooks for A1 level.
Stage 2: A2 (Elementary) – Broadening your range
After covering the basics, we expand into more tenses and connectors.
- Past Simple and Future Simple: The past tense (-ed or irregular verbs) and the future tense (will).
- Present Continuous: The present tense for ongoing actions (the -ing ending).
- Degrees of adjectives: Positive, comparative, and superlative forms (big - bigger - the biggest).
- Modal verbs: Using can, must, should to express ability, obligation, and advice.
- Countable and uncountable nouns: Using words like much, many, a few, a little.
A2 level lets you communicate freely in simple everyday conversations. For more detail, see our page on the secrets of moving from A2 to B1.
Stage 3: B1 (Intermediate) – Toward CEFR and the National Certificate
B1 is precisely the most critical stage for both Uzbekistan's National Certificate and international exams. This is where more complex structures begin.
- Present Perfect and Past Continuous: Result-oriented tenses and ongoing processes in the past.
- Passive Voice: Situations where what happened matters more than who did it.
- Reported Speech: The rules for relaying what someone else said.
- Conditionals: The zero, first, and second conditional sentence types.
- Gerund and Infinitive: When a verb is followed by to or by -ing (want to go vs enjoy swimming).
Grammar at the B1 level is what secures a strong score on the Reading and Writing sections of these exams. To sharpen your preparation further, read our article on analyzing the B1 and B2 exam format.
Stage 4: B2 and above (Upper-Intermediate+)
To fully master the language and reach C1 level, you'll learn the finer points of grammar:
- Advanced Conditionals: The third conditional and Mixed Conditionals.
- Inversion: Restructuring a sentence for emphasis or formality.
- Relative Clauses: Defining clauses introduced by who, which, that, whose.
- Advanced Modal Verbs: Expressing probability about the past (could have done, must have been).
Practical advice and the next step
Don't just memorize grammar — put it into practice every day. After each topic, write at least 10 of your own sentences and read texts that use it.
Practical next step: Take the free placement test on our platform to find out your current level, or log into the official government services portal (my.gov.uz or my.dtm.uz) to check official exam dates and the registration procedure.