Past Perfect

Target Structure:

Past Perfect = had + past participle

Goal:

To describe an action that happened before another action or moment in the past.

1. Warm-Up (3 min)

🗣️ Questions:

1. What did you do before coming to class today?

2. Have you ever arrived somewhere and realised you had forgotten something?

3. What had you already done by 8 a.m. this morning?

💬 Sample answers:

I had eaten breakfast before I left home.
I had never seen snow before I travelled to Norway.

🎯 Focus: noticing how past perfect connects two moments in the past.

2. Presentation (8 min)

A. Form

✅ Past Perfect = had + past participle

SubjecthadPast ParticipleI / You / He / She / We / Theyhadeaten, seen, gone, studied, etc.

💬 Examples:

She had finished her homework before dinner.
When we arrived, they had already left.
I had never tried sushi before last weekend.

B. Use

✅ Use 1: To talk about the earlier of two past actions.

When I arrived, the film had already started.
(= The film started first, then I arrived.)

✅ Use 2: To show cause and effect in the past.

I was tired because I had worked all day.

✅ Use 3: With before, after, by the time, already, just, never

By the time we got there, the train had left.
I had just finished my meal when you called.

C. Comparison

TenseStructureExampleMeaningPast SimpleVerb + -ed / irregularI ate dinner at 8.A completed past action.Past Perfecthad + past participleI had eaten before 8.Happened before another past action.

💬 Tip: The past perfect is always used for the earlier event.

3. Controlled Practice (6 min)

Complete with the correct form of the verbs in brackets.

1. When we arrived, the film ______ (start).

2. She was nervous because she ______ never ______ (fly) before.

3. They ______ (already / eat) by the time we got there.

4. I ______ (not finish) my homework when the teacher collected it.

5. By 9 p.m., he ______ (leave) the office.

6. We were tired because we ______ (walk) for hours.

7. After they ______ (watch) the movie, they went to bed.

8. She didn’t recognise him because she ______ (not see) him for years.

✅ Answers + Explanations

1. had started → earlier past event before “we arrived.”

2. had never flown → experience before that moment in past.

3. had already eaten → completed before “we got there.”

4. hadn’t finished → unfinished before the teacher’s action.

5. had left → happened before 9 p.m.

6. had walked → cause of feeling tired in past.

7. had watched → earlier action before going to bed.

8. hadn’t seen → long gap before meeting again.

💬 Why others are wrong:
Don’t use have → that’s present perfect.
Use had for all subjects, not has/have.

4. Interactive Practice (5 min)

Complete the sentences with your own ideas.

1. By the time I got to school, I had already ______.

2. I was angry because someone had ______.

3. I felt happy because I had ______.

4. She didn’t go out because she had ______.

5. We were surprised because they had never ______ before.

💬 Example:

By the time I got to school, I had already eaten breakfast.
I was angry because someone had broken my phone.

🎯 Focus: apply structure in meaningful, personal contexts.

5. Engaging Discussion Questions (4 min)

🗣️ Discuss using past perfect naturally:

1. Had you ever travelled abroad before you were 18?

2. What had you learned before you started your current job or studies?

3. Had you ever met someone famous before?

4. What had you done before you moved to your current city?

5. Had you ever failed at something before you succeeded?

6. What had you done before your last big celebration?

7. Had you ever been really proud of yourself before that moment?

🎯 Encourage elaboration: “Because I had…” / “Before that, I had never…”

6. Extra Discussion (3–4 min)

🧠 Deeper prompts:

1. How do you think your life would be different if you had made a different choice before?

2. What had people achieved before the internet became popular?

3. What had changed in your life by the time you finished school?

4. What had your parents already done before you were born?

5. What had you never done before this year that you finally did?

💬 Encourage storytelling with time references (“before”, “by the time”, “already”).

7. Wrap-Up & Review (2 min)

🎯 Quick Recap:

ConceptStructureExamplePast Perfecthad + past participleI had eaten before I left.UseEarlier past actionOne thing happened before another.Keywordsbefore, after, already, just, never, by the time“By the time we arrived, they had left.”

💬 Mini Challenge:
Say two sentences using past perfect:

1. With “already”

2. With “before”

I had already finished dinner when my friend arrived.
I had never seen the sea before that trip.