The following sentence pattern can be used to describe an action that occurs while another is taking place. The "while" action is usually written in ている form, and it always uses present tense, even if it's a situation in the past.
A ている 間に B
While A, B.
ご飯を料理してる間に、妻が帰ってきた。
While I was cooking dinner, my wife came home.
昨日働いてる間に、台風があったよ。
There was a typhoon while I was working yesterday.
日本に訪れてる間に、色々な人に会いたいよ。
I want to meet lots of people while I'm visiting Japan.
干菓子を焼いてる間に、スバル君はいつも呼ぶんだろう。
Subaru always calls me while I'm baking cookies, doesn't he?
Note that "A" in the sentence doesn't necessarily have to be a verb clause. It can also be a noun, and it would be followed by の. Here's Genki's example.
留守の間に友達が来ました。
A friend came while I was out.
Finally, it's important to note that the event B must be of shorter duration than A. That is, it must be "contained" within A and not exceed it. If B occurs throughout the entire duration of A, then 間 would be used in place of 間に.
姉は家を掃除してる間、庭で遊んでた。
While my sister was cleaning the house, I was playing in the garden.
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