When it is used
In oral or written speech when you talk about something finished, something that only happened once, something limited and precise
English equivalent - Past Simple and Present Perfect
Tense determiners: hier, autrefois, auparavant, il y a, etc.
How it is formed
The construction of the past tense is the following
avoir/être + verb in past participle
Group 1 - er becomes é
j'ai parlé
tu as parlé
il a parlé
nous avons parlé
vous avez parlé
ils ont parlé