the first thing I did
fixed phr..fixed phr.. you use this to talk about the very first action you took in a sequence of events.
fixed phr.. a conventionalized noun phrase used as a temporal marker to establish the initial action in a narrative sequence; often functions as the subject of a sentence followed by a 'was' clause.
The first thing I did was call my mother.
When I arrived at the hotel, the first thing I did was take a long shower.
The first thing I did upon discovering the error was notify the department head to ensure we could mitigate any potential legal risks.
usually followed by the verb 'to be' and then an infinitive or a gerund.
use this to teach sequencing in storytelling; it is more natural and emphatic in spoken English than simply saying 'First, I...'.
The first thing I did it was sleep.The first thing I did was sleep.do not add an extra pronoun like 'it' after the subject phrase; the phrase itself is the subject.