Six years to the golden spike: the past perfect continuous vs the past perfect

Q: How do you form the past perfect continuous?

Use had been + -ing, the same for every person : I had been working , she had been working , they had been working . The negative is hadn't been + -ing: Isaiah hadn't been sleeping well. Questions put had before the subject: How long had they been laying track? In speech, had often shortens to 'd . The scheme in Six years to the golden spike on edio.ai shows every person.

Q: What are some examples of the past perfect continuous?

Four from Six years to the golden spike on edio.ai: Harper had been driving since dawn when she saw the sign for the park. Crews had been cutting tunnels through solid granite when the winter storms came. Dewayne had been working at the park for twelve years. A road crew had been blasting rock all week. Each one stops at a moment that is already past , and most of them say how long.

Q: Is it “had been knowing” or “had known”?

It's had known . Know is a state verb, so it takes no -ing : Dewayne had known the story since fourth grade. The same goes for own , belong , be , seem and understand : The old station had belonged to the railroad for a century , not had been belonging . A column sort in Six years to the golden spike on edio.ai gives state verbs a column of their own.

Q: What is the golden spike?

It's the famous gold spike from the 1869 ceremony that joined the Central Pacific and the Union Pacific at Promontory Summit, Utah. It says May 8th, the planned date, though the ceremony took place two days later, on May 10. It didn't stay in the track: today it's at Stanford University's Cantor Arts Center. Harper's field story in Six years to the golden spike on edio.ai explains both surprises.

Q: When and where was the transcontinental railroad completed?

On Monday, May 10, 1869, at Promontory Summit, in what was then Utah Territory . There the Central Pacific, which had been building east from Sacramento since January 1863, met the Union Pacific, which had built west from the Missouri River. Promontory Point is a different place, about 35 miles away. At 12:47 p.m., the telegraph sent one word: “D-O-N-E.” Six years to the golden spike on edio.ai tells the story.

Q: How do I teach the past perfect continuous to B2 students?

Pick a long effort that ends in one big moment , so that how long and how much both matter. Draw the timeline, then sort the clues: for six years goes with had been + -ing, ten miles with had + participle. Six years to the golden spike on edio.ai moves from Harper's field story and her debate with a ranger to the scheme and five drills, from a gap-fill to a column sort.

Q: What's a good game for practicing the past perfect continuous?

Try “Why were they so tired?” : show a picture of someone dusty, red-eyed or out of breath, and teams race to explain it with had been + -ing: He had been staring at his screen all night. The best reason wins a point. For speaking, the boxes in Six years to the golden spike on edio.ai ask about a time students had been waiting or working for ages before something happened.

Q: What's good homework for the past perfect continuous?

Good homework makes students decide between how long and how many : gaps that pair had been painting since eight with had painted twelve benches , and a quiz that matches answers like Since dawn or Two hundred to the right question. All ten homework tasks in Six years to the golden spike on edio.ai check themselves, and the last one is Harper's answer to a reader from Utah.

This B2 ESL lesson plan teaches the past perfect continuous beside the past perfect simple, through the transcontinental railroad and the golden spike.

Grammar: Had been + -ing for how long (They had been building for more than six years.) against had + past participle for a result or a number (They had laid ten miles.), with state verbs and questions.
Topic: How two railroads built toward each other until they met in Utah, with Chinese workers, a ten-mile day and words such as spike, roadbed and break ground.
Activities: A field story to read, a debate and a reader's memo to hear, self-checking drills, a chat and boxes to open.

What's inside

Chapter 1Warm-up: all aboard!
- PictureUnlock
- Spin the wheel and answerSpin the wheelUnlock
- Study the words: building a railroadVocabularyTry it
- Look at the pictures and choose the wordChoose by pictureUnlock
Chapter 2Let's read: two railroads, one spike
- Look at the photo: a railroad in the Utah desertPictureUnlock
- Read Harper's field storyArticleUnlock
- Read and mark true or falseTrue or falseUnlock
- Read again and choose the correct answerQuizUnlock
- Match the pairs: paragraphs and headingsMatchUnlock
Chapter 3Let's listen: whose day was it?
- Listen to Harper and DewayneListeningTry it
- Transcript, for the teacherUnlock
- Listen and choose the correct answerQuizUnlock
- Listen to the Reader's Rebuttal: Winifred's voice memoListeningUnlock
- Transcript, for the teacherUnlock
- Listen and mark true or falseTrue or falseUnlock
Chapter 4Grammar: had been building, had laid
- Study the scheme: had been building or had laid?Grammar schemeTry it
- Choose the correct optionChoose the optionUnlock
- Fill in the gaps: how long? Use had been + -ingFill in the gapsTry it
- Fill in the table: how long, and how much?Fill in the tableUnlock
- Choose the correct answer: which sentence is correct?QuizUnlock
- Sort the words into the correct columns: how long, how many or a state?Sort into columnsUnlock
Chapter 5Let's talk: next stop, Promontory Summit
- Choose the right replies: plan a visit with MikeChatTry it
- Sort the words into the correct columns: phrases for a debateSort into columnsUnlock
- Open a box and answer: whose story is it?Open the boxUnlock
Chapter 6Homework
- Match the words and the meaningsMatchUnlock
- Unscramble the wordsAnagramUnlock
- Fill in the gaps with the lesson's wordsFill in the gapsUnlock
- Find the matching pairs: words and meaningsMemory gameUnlock
- Choose the correct option: new sentencesChoose the optionUnlock
- Fill in the gaps: how long (had been + -ing) or how much (had + past participle)?Fill in the gapsUnlock
- Choose the correct answer: which question fits the answer?QuizUnlock
- Put the words in the correct orderUnjumbleUnlock
- Choose the correct option: Isaiah's fact boxChoose the optionUnlock
- Drag the words into the gaps: Harper answers WinifredDrag and dropUnlock

Vocabulary

12 words and phrases from the lesson, each with a picture and audio in edio.

+9 more with pictures and audio in the lessonMore words

rail
locomotive
laborer
foreman
roadbed
telegraph
break ground
workforce
replica

Grammar: the past perfect continuous vs the past perfect simple

The past perfect continuous, had been + -ing, looks back from a past moment at an activity that went on up to it: By May 1869, the crews had been building for more than six years. The railroad story sets it beside the past perfect simple, so learners ask whether a sentence says how long or how much, build the form and keep state verbs out of it.

They had been building for more than six years. They had laid ten miles.

had been + -ing tells how long an activity went on up to a moment in the past. had + past participle tells what was finished: a result, how much, how many.

How long, or how much?

For, since, all day and all morning point to the activity: Harper had been driving since dawn. A number of things done points to the result: She had driven 300 miles. Finished actions and never take had + participle: Harper had never seen a steam locomotive.

Activity or result?

⏳ had been + -ing: the activity

How long? for…, since…, all day, all morning
The activity went on up to a moment in the past.
By May 1869, the crews had been building for more than six years.
Harper was tired: she had been driving since dawn.

✅ had + past participle: the result

How much? How many? A number of things done
The result was finished by a moment in the past.
By the end of April 28, 1869, the crews had laid ten miles of track.
By the time she arrived, Harper had driven 300 miles.

Look for the clue

Clue	Use	Example
How long? for, since, all day	had been + -ing	Dewayne had been working at the park for twelve years.
How much? How many? a number	had + past participle	Isaiah had made eleven charts by lunchtime.
a finished action, or never / ever, before another past moment	had + past participle	Workers had moved the last rail before the ceremony. Harper had never seen a steam locomotive.
state verbs: know, own, belong, be	had + past participle only	Dewayne had known the story since fourth grade.
questions	How long had … been + -ing? How many … had … + past participle?	How long had they been laying track? How many miles had they laid?

Had been + -ing for every person

Had been stays the same for every person: I had been working, it had been snowing. The negative puts not after had: Isaiah hadn't been sleeping well. Questions start with Had, or with How long had: How long had they been laying track?

Person	Positive	Negative	Question
I	I had been working (I'd been working)	I hadn't been working	Had I been working?
you	you had been working	you hadn't been working	Had you been working?
he	he had been working	he hadn't been working	Had he been working?
she	she had been working	she hadn't been working	Had she been working?
it	it had been snowing	it hadn't been snowing	Had it been snowing?
we	we had been working	we hadn't been working	Had we been working?
they	they had been working	they hadn't been working	Had they been working?

For and since: often both forms work

With for or since and an action verb, both forms are often fine: Dewayne had worked or had been working at the park for years. The -ing form keeps the activity in focus. With a number of things done, only the simple form is right: they had laid ten miles.

for + a time: often both

With for or since and an action verb, both forms are often right: Dewayne had worked / had been working at the park for years. had been + -ing puts the focus on the activity going on. But with a number of things done, use only had + past participle: they had laid ten miles (not: had been laying ten miles).

State verbs: no -ing

Know, own, belong, be, seem and understand describe states, not activities, so they stay in the past perfect simple: The old station had belonged to the railroad for a century, not had been belonging.

State verbs: no -ing

Verbs for states, not actions, don't take had been + -ing: know, own, belong, be, seem, understand. Dewayne had known the story for years (not: had been knowing). The old station had belonged to the railroad for a century (not: had been belonging).

Lay, laid, laid and other traps

Lay goes lay, laid, laid, never layed. The crews had been laid ten miles slips into the passive: say the crews had laid ten miles. Never drop been: They had been laying track all day, not had laying.

lay → laid → laid

lay (put down) goes lay, laid, laid: they had laid the track, they had been laying track (not: layed). had been laid is the passive: the track had been laid by the crews. With the crews as the subject, say: the crews had laid it.

Common mistakes

The crews had been laid ten miles of track.
The crews had laid ten miles of track.
had been laid is the passive
Dewayne had been knowing the story for years.
Dewayne had known the story for years.
know is a state verb: no -ing
They had laying track all day.
They had been laying track all day.
had + been + -ing
By noon, Isaiah had been making eleven charts.
By noon, Isaiah had made eleven charts.
a number of things done: had + past participle

At Promontory Summit

By May 1869, the Central Pacific's crews had been building for more than six years.
Twelve days before the ceremony, they had laid ten miles of track in one day.
Crews had been cutting tunnels through solid granite when the winter storms came.
Before they agreed to meet, the two companies had graded roadbeds side by side.
Harper was dusty: she had been walking along the old roadbeds all morning.
When Harper arrived, Dewayne had known the story for years.

More lessons on this grammar: Past perfect lessons and exercises

Try the past perfect continuous exercises

Try them yourself: these are the same exercises your students do in edio.

What's in the lesson

20 auto-checked exercises
5 games
1 article
1 grammar scheme
1 set of word cards
2 audio clips
2 pictures
2 transcripts

The main objectives of this lesson are to:

say how long an activity had gone on before a past moment: By May 1869, the crews had been building for more than six years.
use had + past participle for a result or a number: They had laid ten miles of track, not had been laying ten miles
keep state verbs in the simple form: Dewayne had known the story since fourth grade, not had been knowing
ask how long and how many: How long had they been laying track? How many miles had they laid?
argue whose story a history video should tell, with phrases such as I see your point, but…

Lesson 9 opens Moving people, unit 3 of English B2.1 · How the World Works. It builds on the past perfect of B1.2 lessons 18 and 19, the present perfect continuous of B1.1 lessons 6 and 7 and the narrative tenses of lesson 1. Lesson 10 moves on to the passive infinitive. Crews who had been building for more than six years, then laid ten miles in a day, show both forms at once.

Students spin a wheel of questions about trains, long trips and big projects, then learn twelve words, from lay and blast to roadbed and replica, with pictures and audio. Harper's field story for The Why Desk asks what took so long, with true-or-false statements, a quiz and headings to match. Harper then argues with Dewayne, a park ranger, about whose day it was, and Winifred from Utah wants the Chinese workers' story first; both are AI-voiced. The grammar chapter has the scheme and five self-checking drills, among them a table that pairs how long with how much. In the speaking chapter, students answer Mike's messages about a visit, sort phrases for a debate and open boxes about whose story it is.

All ten homework tasks check themselves: a word match, an anagram, word gaps and a memory game, then forms to choose, gaps for how long or how much, questions to match with answers, sentences to order, Isaiah's fact box and Harper's answer to Winifred.

Grammar:: past perfect continuous · past perfect simple vs continuous · had been + -ing · state verbs
Topic:: the first transcontinental railroad · Promontory Summit · the golden spike · Golden Spike National Historical Park · Chinese railroad workers · Utah · transportation history · The Why Desk

Teaching tips

Draw two columns on the board, “How long?” and “How much?”, then read out clues from the story: since 1863, ten miles, all winter, three tunnels. Students place each one and say the full sentence.
Ask what makes a railroad hard to build before the reading: mountains, snow, desert, too few workers? Students then read to find what slowed the Central Pacific down.
Play the ranger dialogue twice: first for which moment each speaker wants in the video, then for every had been + -ing and had + participle. Students sort what they hear into the two columns.
Turn tiredness into evidence: show someone dusty, red-eyed or out of breath and ask why. Students explain with the continuous: She had been walking along the old roadbeds all morning.

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The whole course: English B2.1 · How the World Works

32 lessons for adults at B2 in American English, each answering one question about how the world works. The team of The Why Desk, a small online magazine in Pittsburgh, takes on one question a week, from the day a computer beat the world chess champion to eight people sealed inside Biosphere 2. Learners tell stories with narrative tenses, speculate about the past and the future, and report what experts claim. The practice exercises check themselves.See the course

Unit 1 AI and the future of work
narrative tenses, by and until, be bound to and be likely to, the future perfect
Unit 2 Health breakthroughs
the third conditional, the past perfect and past continuous passive, have something done, the passive with two objects
Unit 3 Moving people
the past perfect continuous, the passive infinitive and -ing form, it's worth and there's no point, the future in the past
1. Lesson 9 · you're hereSix years to the golden spikeThe past perfect continuous vs the past perfect simple
2. Lesson 10Riding a pod with no driverThe passive infinitive and the passive -ing form
3. Lesson 11The town that painted bike lanes firstIt's worth, there's no point and it's no use + -ing
4. Lesson 12The highways that were supposed to take 13 yearsThe future in the past
Unit 4 Wildlife comebacks
reporting verbs with a that clause, with an object and infinitive and with -ing, verbs of perception
Unit 5 Pop culture goes global
comment adverbs, wish and if only for the present and the past, have someone do and get someone to do
Unit 6 Money and smart choices
-ever words and no matter, should have and could have, prepositions for numbers and change, it's time and would rather
Unit 7 Language and communication
must have, might have and can't have, verb prefixes and suffixes, past modals in continuous and passive forms, agreement with quantities
Unit 8 Exploring the extremes
dimension nouns, the future continuous and future perfect continuous, compound adjectives, only, even and just

Questions about this lesson

What is the past perfect continuous?

The past perfect continuous, also called the past perfect progressive, is had been + the -ing form of the verb. It tells how long an activity had been going on before a moment in the past: By May 1869, the crews had been building for more than six years. The B2 lesson Six years to the golden spike on edio.ai teaches it with the first transcontinental railroad.

How do you form the past perfect continuous?

Use had been + -ing, the same for every person: I had been working, she had been working, they had been working. The negative is hadn't been + -ing: Isaiah hadn't been sleeping well. Questions put had before the subject: How long had they been laying track? In speech, had often shortens to 'd. The scheme in Six years to the golden spike on edio.ai shows every person.

What are some examples of the past perfect continuous?

Four from Six years to the golden spike on edio.ai: Harper had been driving since dawn when she saw the sign for the park. Crews had been cutting tunnels through solid granite when the winter storms came. Dewayne had been working at the park for twelve years. A road crew had been blasting rock all week. Each one stops at a moment that is already past, and most of them say how long.

What's the difference between the past perfect continuous and the past perfect?

The continuous measures the activity; the simple counts the result. They had been laying track all day says how long; they had laid ten miles says how much got done. With for or since and an action verb, both are often fine: he had worked or had been working there for years. With a number of things done, only the simple works. Six years to the golden spike on edio.ai drills this choice.

Is it “had been knowing” or “had known”?

It's had known. Know is a state verb, so it takes no -ing: Dewayne had known the story since fourth grade. The same goes for own, belong, be, seem and understand: The old station had belonged to the railroad for a century, not had been belonging. A column sort in Six years to the golden spike on edio.ai gives state verbs a column of their own.

What is the golden spike?

It's the famous gold spike from the 1869 ceremony that joined the Central Pacific and the Union Pacific at Promontory Summit, Utah. It says May 8th, the planned date, though the ceremony took place two days later, on May 10. It didn't stay in the track: today it's at Stanford University's Cantor Arts Center. Harper's field story in Six years to the golden spike on edio.ai explains both surprises.

When and where was the transcontinental railroad completed?

On Monday, May 10, 1869, at Promontory Summit, in what was then Utah Territory. There the Central Pacific, which had been building east from Sacramento since January 1863, met the Union Pacific, which had built west from the Missouri River. Promontory Point is a different place, about 35 miles away. At 12:47 p.m., the telegraph sent one word: “D-O-N-E.” Six years to the golden spike on edio.ai tells the story.

How do I teach the past perfect continuous to B2 students?

Pick a long effort that ends in one big moment, so that how long and how much both matter. Draw the timeline, then sort the clues: for six years goes with had been + -ing, ten miles with had + participle. Six years to the golden spike on edio.ai moves from Harper's field story and her debate with a ranger to the scheme and five drills, from a gap-fill to a column sort.

What's a good game for practicing the past perfect continuous?

Try “Why were they so tired?”: show a picture of someone dusty, red-eyed or out of breath, and teams race to explain it with had been + -ing: He had been staring at his screen all night. The best reason wins a point. For speaking, the boxes in Six years to the golden spike on edio.ai ask about a time students had been waiting or working for ages before something happened.

What's good homework for the past perfect continuous?

Good homework makes students decide between how long and how many: gaps that pair had been painting since eight with had painted twelve benches, and a quiz that matches answers like Since dawn or Two hundred to the right question. All ten homework tasks in Six years to the golden spike on edio.ai check themselves, and the last one is Harper's answer to a reader from Utah.

How do you practice the past perfect continuous one-to-one?

Swap stories about long waits: the student describes a moment when something finally happened, and the teacher asks How long had you been waiting? and How much had you done by then? Then switch roles. The chat in Six years to the golden spike on edio.ai works without a partner: Mike plans a drive to the park, and the student picks replies like We had been driving for nine hours when we finally got home.

Are there interactive exercises for the past perfect continuous?

Yes. This page plays three parts of Six years to the golden spike, a B2 lesson on edio.ai, with no account: Harper's debate with Dewayne the ranger, a gap-fill on how long with had been + -ing and Mike's chat about a visit to the park. An account opens everything else.

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About this lesson

What's inside

Vocabulary

Grammar: the past perfect continuous vs the past perfect simple

How long, or how much?

Activity or result?

Look for the clue

Had been + -ing for every person

For and since: often both forms work

State verbs: no -ing

Lay, laid, laid and other traps

Common mistakes

At Promontory Summit

Try the past perfect continuous exercises

What's in the lesson

The main objectives of this lesson are to:

Teaching tips

Teach the whole lesson in edio

Start a free trial

Open the lesson

Teach it live or as homework

The whole course: English B2.1 · How the World Works

Unit 1 AI and the future of work

Unit 2 Health breakthroughs

Unit 3 Moving people

Unit 4 Wildlife comebacks

Unit 5 Pop culture goes global

Unit 6 Money and smart choices

Unit 7 Language and communication

Unit 8 Exploring the extremes

Questions about this lesson

Teach this lesson with your students