Les, my older brother, long time deceased, built his own house like our father did. He put up the ceiling plasterboard all by himself with the help of a 'deadman' or two. Tack a horizontal 2x4 an inch below where it should be, lean the plasterboard against the 2x4, then use the deadman to shove the other end up to the joists.
The deadman, for those who haven't seen one, is just a T; the top of the tee about 4 feet long, and the upright being slightly longer than ceiling height so you can wedge it into postion. Then nail 'er in place!
Learned a lot from Dad and the older brothers.
Art