How long had…? Past Perfect trivia quiz
A LESSON PLAN FOR ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHERS
Students make up false answers to trivia questions with Past Perfect to fool each other with, test each other on their general knowledge, give hints, and analyse the grammar that they just used.
Lesson Plan Content:
How long had…? Past Perfect trivia quiz
Student A
Work in groups with one Student A worksheet and one Student B worksheet. Ask one of your questions and:
- give the true answer on your worksheet and two false answers (mixed up) and see if your partner can guess the true answer. All three answers and your partner’s answer must be in full sentences like those below.
OR
- listen to your partner’s first guess, then give hints like “It’s a lot longer”, “It’s quite a lot shorter” and “It’s slightly longer” until they get exactly the right length of time. All your partner’s guesses must be in full sentences.
- How long had Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden been hiding when he was killed by American Navy SEALs? He had been hiding for 5 years.
- How long had the Maoris been in New Zealand when the British arrived? They had been there for around 450 years.
- How long had the Aborigines been in Australia when the British arrived? They had been there for around 50,000 years.
- How long had Hitler been Chancellor of Germany when WWII started? He had been Chancellor for 6 years.
- How long had Australian Gabriel Nagy been missing when he was found and regained his memories? He had been missing for 23 years.
- How long had American Debra McKenna’s ring been lost when it was found buried in a wood in Finland? It has been lost for 47 years.
- How long had British Queen Elizabeth II been alive when Marilyn Monroe was born? She had been alive for about 5 weeks.
- How long had Charles Darwin had the idea of theory of evolution by natural selection when he published his ideas? He had had that idea for 20 years.
- How long had humans been flying in planes when the first bomb was dropped from one? They had been flying for 8 years.
- How long had two-wheeled bicycles existed when pedals were added? They had existed for 41 years.
- How long had gasoline driven cars been driving on roads when the first car crash happened? They had been driving on roads for five years.
- How long had Winton Dahlin worked for Forsberg Inc when he retired in 2012? He had worked for them for 60 years.
- How long had Les Wexner been CEO of his company when he switched to chairman in 2020? He had been CEO for 57 years.
Past Perfect grammar presentation
What are the two tenses in the questions above? What are their differences in meaning?
Put the right tenses into this question “When ______________ (Hanif Mohammed lose) his wicket with 337 individual runs, how long ______________________ (he bat)?”
Student B
Work in groups with one Student A worksheet and one Student B worksheet. Ask one of your questions and:
- give the true answer on your worksheet and two false answers (mixed up) and see if your partner can guess the true answer. All three answers and your partner’s answer must be in full sentences like those below.
OR
- listen to your partner’s first guess, then give hints like “It’s a lot longer”, “It’s quite a lot shorter” and “It’s slightly longer” until they get exactly the right length of time. All your partner’s guesses must be in full sentences.
- How long had airships been flying across the Atlantic when the Hindenburg airship disaster happened? They had been flying across the Atlantic for 9 years.
- How long had there been slavery in the USA when Lincoln proclaimed all slaves to be free? There had been slavery for 244 years.
- How long had the Aztecs had an empire when the Spanish arrived? They had had one for about 100 years.
- How long had Winston Churchill been a member of parliament when he became British prime minister during the Second World War? He had been an MP for 40 years.
- How long had the Second World War been over when Japanese soldier Hiroo Onoda surrendered? It had been over for 29 years.
- How long had Robin Alex’s cat Charles been missing when he was found 1,300 miles away in Chicago? He had been missing for eight months.
- How long had Rembrandt’s stolen painting “Child with a Soap Bubble” been missing before it was found? It had been missing for 15 years.
- How long had New Zealand women had the right to vote when Swiss women achieved the same thing? They had had that right for 78 years.
- How long had William Henry Harrison been President of the United States when he died? He had been president for 31 days.
- How long had Fermat’s Last Theorem been known when it was proved by the mathematician Andrew Wiles in 1995? It had been known for 358 years.
- How long had the Ottoman Empire existed when it ended in 1920? It had existed for 469 years.
- How long had bicycles with pedals existed when inflatable tyres were added? They had existed for 30 years.
- How long had John Dingle been a US Senator when he retired in 2015? He had been one for 59 years.
- How long had John Isner been playing against Nicolas Mahut when he won their 2010 Wimbledon tennis match? He had been playing for 11 hours and five minutes.
Past Perfect grammar presentation
What are the two tenses in the questions above? What are their differences in meaning?
Put the right tenses into this question “When ______________ (Hanif Mohammed lose) his wicket with 337 individual runs, how long ______________________ (he bat)?”
Terms of Use
Lesson plans & worksheets can be used by teachers without any fee in the classroom; however, please ensure you keep all copyright information and references to UsingEnglish.com in place.
You will need Adobe Reader to view these files.
