Green Apple Step 1

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Sherlock Holmes and the Red Circle Summary-based Activities by Kenneth Brodey

S U M M A R Y- B A S E D

A C T I V I T I E S

Sherlock Holmes and the Red Circle Chapters 1-2 1 Scrambled word cloze

Read the summary of Chapters 1-2 below. Choose one of the words from the box to write in each space. The first one has been done as an example. again for

too had never spoke no outside these left ever

had Mrs Warren (0) …..............…….. a strange young lodger with a beard. He (1) …..............…….. good English with an accent. He received (2) …..............…….. letters or friends. He left notes (3) …..............…….. his door. These notes contained only one word in capital letters. In one note he asked (4) …..............…….. the Daily Gazette, a newspaper. Neither Mrs Warren or the cleaning girl (5 )…..............…….. entered his room. Also, after their first meeting, the lodger (6) …..............…….. the room once and then returned late that night. He never left his room (7) …..............…….. Holmes examined the lodger’s cigarette stubs. They were (8) …..............…….. short for a man with a beard. With (9) …..............…….. facts Holmes deduced these things. The person in the room now was not the person (10) …..............…….. had rented it. The lodger received messages in the advertisements of the newspaper.

© 2009 Black Cat Publishing

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2 Scrambled word cloze with distractors (i)

Read the summary of Chapters 1-2 below. Choose one of the words from the box to write in each space. There are five words you do not need to use. The first one has been done as an example. no

for had too outside these again spoke more talked never those no left went ever

had Mrs Warren (0) …..............…….. a strange young lodger with a beard. He (1) …..............…….. good English with an accent. He received (2) …..............…….. letters or friends. He left notes (3) …..............…….. his door. These notes contained only one word in capital letters. In one note he asked (4) …..............…….. the Daily Gazette, a newspaper. Neither Mrs Warren or the cleaning girl (5) …..............…….. entered his room. Also, after their first meeting, the lodger (6) …..............…….. the room once and then returned late that night. He never left his room (7) …..............…….. Holmes examined the lodger’s cigarette stubs. They were (8) …..............…….. short for a man with a beard. With (9) …..............…….. facts Holmes deduced these things. The person in the room now was not the person (10 )…..............…….. had rented it. The lodger received messages in the advertisements of the newspaper.

© 2009 Black Cat Publishing

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3 Scrambled word cloze with distractors (ii)

Read the summary of Chapters 1-2 below. Choose one of the words from the box to write in each space. There are ten words you do not need to use. The first one has been done as an example. no not for to much from again those more too these never went had spoke talked outside no ever left none

had Mrs Warren (0) …..............…….. a strange young lodger with a beard. He (1) …..............…….. good English with an accent. He received (2) …..............…….. letters or friends. He left notes (3) …..............…….. his door. These notes contained only one word in capital letters. In one note he asked (4) …..............…….. the Daily Gazette, a newspaper. Neither Mrs Warren or the cleaning girl (5) …..............…….. entered his room. Also, after their first meeting, the lodger (6) …..............…….. the room once and then returned late that night. He never left his room (7) …..............…….. Holmes examined the lodger’s cigarette stubs. They were (8) …..............…….. short for a man with a beard. With (9) …..............…….. facts Holmes deduced these things. The person in the room now was not the person (10) …..............…….. had rented it. The lodger received messages in the advertisements of the newspaper.

© 2009 Black Cat Publishing

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4 Multiple choice cloze

Read the summary of Chapters 1-2 below. Choose the best word (A, B or C) for each space. The first one has been done as an example.

C Mrs Warren (0) …..............…….. a strange young lodger with a beard. He (1) …..............…….. good English with an accent. He received (2) …..............…….. letters or friends. He left notes (3) …..............…….. his door. These notes contained only one word in capital letters. In one note he asked (4) …..............…….. the Daily Gazette, a newspaper. Neither Mrs Warren or the cleaning girl (5) …..............…….. entered his room. Also, after their first meeting, the lodger (6) …..............…….. the room once and then returned late that night. He never left his room (7) …..............…….. Holmes examined the lodger’s cigarette stubs. They were (8) …..............…….. short for a man with a beard. With (9) …..............…….. facts Holmes deduced these things. The person in the room now was not the person (10) …..............…….. had rented it. The lodger received messages in the advertisements of the newspaper. 0

A took

B got

C had

1

A spoke

B talked

C said

2

A none

B not

C no

3

A from

B out

C outside

4

A to

B at

C for

5

A never

B not

C no

6

A went

B left

C cut

7

A more

B again

C time

8

A too

B much

C very

9

A these

B those

C her

10

A that

B who

C what

© 2009 Black Cat Publishing

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5 Open cloze

Complete the summary of Chapters 1-2 below. Write ONE word for each space. The first one has been done as an example.

had Mrs Warren (0)…..............…….. a strange young lodger with a beard. He (1)…..............…….. good English with an accent. He received (2)…..............…….. letters or friends. He left notes (3)…..............…….. his door. These notes contained only one word in capital letters. In one note he asked (4)…..............…….. the Daily Gazette, a newspaper. Neither Mrs Warren or the cleaning girl (5)…..............…….. entered his room. Also, after their first meeting, the lodger (6)…..............…….. the room once and then returned late that night. He never left his room (7)…..............…….. Holmes examined the lodger’s cigarette stubs. They were (8)…..............…….. short for a man with a beard. With (9)…..............…….. facts Holmes deduced these things. The person in the room now was not the person (10)…..............…….. had rented it. The lodger received messages in the advertisements of the newspaper. 6 Put the sentences in order

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7 Correct the mistakes!

This is an oral activity, so do not give the students any photocopies. Tell them you are going to read a summary, but with some mistakes. When they hear a mistake they should correct it. In the summary below there are 10 mistakes to read out, all written in italics. As a quick reminder to you, the correct version is given in brackets. Mrs Warren had a strange young student (lodger) with a beard. He spoke good French (English) with an accent. He received no letters or friends. He left books (notes) outside his door. These notes contained one word in capital letters. In one note he asked for the Daily Gazette, a magazine (newspaper). Neither Dr Watson (Mrs Warren) or the cleaning girl ever entered his room. Also, after their first meeting, the lodger left London (the room) once and then returned late that night. He never left his room again. Holmes examined the lodger’s trousers (cigarette stubs). They were too short for a man with an accent (a beard). With these facts Mrs Warren (Holmes) deduced these things. The person in the kitchen (room) now was not the person who had rented it. The detective (lodger) received messages in the advertisements of the newspaper.

The sentences A-J of the summary of Chapters 1-3 are in the wrong order. Put them in the right order and number them 1-10. 8 Rub out

A

He never left his room and he received no letters or friends.

B

The lodger received messages in the advertisements of the newspaper.

C

With these facts Holmes deduced these things.

D

Mrs Warren had a strange young lodger with a beard.

E

They were too short for a man with a beard.

F

The person in the room now was not the person who had rented it.

G

In one note he asked for the Daily Gazette, a newspaper.

H

He left notes outside his door.

I

Holmes examined the lodger’s cigarette stubs.

J

These notes contained only one or two words in capital letters.

© 2009 Black Cat Publishing

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On the board / the interactive whiteboard, copy a short paragraph from the summary. Gradually, rub out individual words and even twoand three-word phrases. Begin by rubbing out some of the important content words. After each time you rub out some words get the whole class to read out the text, supplying the missing words from their memory. Eventually, when all the words on the board have been rubbed out, the class will – amazingly! – remember all the text.

9 Dictogloss

Sit the students in groups of two to five. Tell them that you are going to read out a summary of Chapters 1-2 of Sherlock Holmes and the Red Circle twice, and that they may note down key words or short phrases. © 2009 Black Cat Publishing

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Read the text once at normal speed, pause for a minute, then read it again. Tell the students to work together in their groups and use their notes to write a text which is grammatically and lexically correct but which doesn’t have to be the same as the original: the aim of their writing is to produce a correct text, not to show they have perfect memories!

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12 Rewrite it

Tell the students to rewrite the summary changing some of the information. They should use their imagination to add details – which can be words, phrases or sentences – and change some of the words and phrases that are already there.

Then students compare their written texts with each others’. This can be done by reading aloud, but it is better if the texts. Groups should try to point out any errors in the texts of other groups. Finally, show or give the students the original text; ask them to identify any differences with their own texts, and ask them if they think the differences are important.

10 Cut it down

Put the students in groups of two to five. Make sure that each group has a copy of the summary and a red pen/highlighter or access to computer. Tell them that they must cut 15 words from the summary: their shortened version must still be grammatically correct. They can change punctuation, but they mustn’t add any words. When they have finished, they should compare their shortened versions. It is better if the texts are stuck on a wall or passed around (or compared in electronic form). They should decide which are the best cuts, and why.

11 Build it up

Put the students in groups of two to five. Make sure that each group has a copy of the summary and a red pen or access to computer. Tell them that they must add two details, which they must choose themselves, to the summary. Tell them that the details they add can be words, phrases or even sentences. Tell them they shouldn’t write fewer than five words, and that there is no upper limit, but they probably won’t need more than about 25 words. When they have finished, they should compare their versions. They should decide which are the most interesting added details, and why. © 2009 Black Cat Publishing

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SUMMARY

Mrs Warren had a strange young lodger with a beard. He spoke good English with an accent. He received no letters or friends. He left notes outside his door. These notes contained only one word in capital letters. In one note he asked for the Daily Gazette, a newspaper. Neither Mrs Warren or the cleaning girl ever entered his room. Also, after their first meeting, the lodger left the room once and then returned late that night. He never left his room again Holmes examined the lodger’s cigarette stubs. They were too short for a man with a beard. With these facts Holmes deduced these things. The person in the room now was not the person who had rented it. The lodger received messages in the advertisements of the newspaper. KEY 1, 2, 3, 5: 1 spoke; 2 no; 3 outside; 4 for; 5 ever; 6 left; 7 again; 8 too; 9 these; 10 who; 4: 1 A; 2 C; 3 C; 4 C; 5 A; 6 B; 7 B; 8 A; 9 A; 10 B 6: 1 D; 2 A; 3 H; 4 J; 5 G; 6 I; 7 E; 8 C; 9 F/B; 10 F/B

© 2009 Black Cat Publishing

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Sherlock Holmes and the Red Circle Chapters 3-4 1 Scrambled word cloze

Read the summary of Chapters 3-4 below. Choose one of the words from the box to write in each space. The first one has been done as an example. next about another really watch code a out mirror be front

next The (0) …..............…….. morning, Holmes saw a message in the newspaper (1) …..............…….. a red house. (2) …..............…….. message described a secret code. There was (3) …..............…….. red house in front of Mrs Warren’s house. They went to Mrs Warren’s house. She had terrible news. ‘This morning,’ she said, ‘two men pushed my husband into a cab, and then pushed him (4) …..............…….. later.’ Holmes said, ‘They (5) …..............…….. wanted your lodger.’ Later, with a (6) …..............…….., they discovered that the lodger was really a woman. Holmes and Watson returned in the evening to (7) …..............…….. the red house. They saw a candle. It sent a message in (8) …..............…….. . The message said ‘ (9) …..............…….. careful’ and ‘danger’ in Italian. Then it stopped. They ran to the house. In (10) …..............…….. of the house they saw Gregson of Scotland Yard.

© 2009 Black Cat Publishing

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2 Scrambled word cloze with distractors (i)

Read the summary of Chapters 3-4 below. Choose one of the words from the box to write in each space. There are five words you do not need to use. The first one has been done as an example. next

after about of another other really truth looked code a out mirror be front

watch

next The (0) …..............…….. morning, Holmes saw a message in the newspaper (1) …..............…….. a red house. (2) …..............…….. message described a secret code. There was (3) …..............…….. red house in front of Mrs Warren’s house. They went to Mrs Warren’s house. She had terrible news. ‘This morning,’ she said, ‘two men pushed my husband into a cab, and then pushed him (4) …..............…….. later.’ Holmes said, ‘They (5) …..............…….. wanted your lodger.’ Later, with a (6) …..............…….., they discovered that the lodger was really a woman. Holmes and Watson returned in the evening to (7) …..............…….. the red house. They saw a candle. It sent a message in (8) …..............…….. . The message said ‘ (9) …..............…….. careful’ and ‘danger’ in Italian. Then it stopped. They ran to the house. In (10) …..............…….. of the house they saw Gregson of Scotland Yard.

© 2009 Black Cat Publishing

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3 Scrambled word cloze with distractors (ii)

Read the summary of Chapters 3-4 below. Choose one of the words from the box to write in each space. There are ten words you do not need to use. The first one has been done as an example. next after about of another other really truth watch looked code secret a this out from mirror reflect be face front

next The (0) …..............…….. morning, Holmes saw a message in the newspaper (1) …..............…….. a red house. (2) …..............…….. message described a secret code. There was (3) …..............…….. red house in front of Mrs Warren’s house. They went to Mrs Warren’s house. She had terrible news. ‘This morning,’ she said, ‘two men pushed my husband into a cab, and then pushed him (4) …..............…….. later.’ Holmes said, ‘They (5) …..............…….. wanted your lodger.’ Later, with a (6) …..............…….., they discovered that the lodger was really a woman. Holmes and Watson returned in the evening to (7) …..............…….. the red house. They saw a candle. It sent a message in (8) …..............…….. . The message said ‘ (9) …..............…….. careful’ and ‘danger’ in Italian. Then it stopped. They ran to the house. In (10) …..............…….. of the house they saw Gregson of Scotland Yard.

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4 Multiple choice cloze

Read the summary of Chapters 3-4 below. Choose the best word (A, B or C) for each space. The first one has been done as an example.

C The (0) …..............…….. morning, Holmes saw a message in the newspaper (1) …..............…….. a red house. (2) …..............…….. message described a secret code. There was (3) …..............…….. red house in front of Mrs Warren’s house. They went to Mrs Warren’s house. She had terrible news. ‘This morning,’ she said, ‘two men pushed my husband into a cab, and then pushed him (4) …..............…….. later.’ Holmes said, ‘They (5) …..............…….. wanted your lodger.’ Later, with a (6) …..............…….., they discovered that the lodger was really a woman. Holmes and Watson returned in the evening to (7) …..............…….. the red house. They saw a candle. It sent a message in (8) …..............…….. . The message said ‘ (9) …..............…….. careful’ and ‘danger’ in Italian. Then it stopped. They ran to the house. In (10) …..............…….. of the house they saw Gregson of Scotland Yard. 0

A after

B then

C next

1

A of

B around

C about

2

A other

B another

C more

3

A any

B this

Ca

4

A outside

B out

C from

5

A really

B truth

C very

6

A mirror

B reflect

C glass

7

A look

B watch

C saw

8

A sign

B system

C code

9

A Go

B Look

C Be

A face

B before

C front

10

© 2009 Black Cat Publishing

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A C T I V I T I E S

© 2009 Black Cat Publishing

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5 Open cloze

Complete the summary of Chapters 3-4 below. Write ONE word for each space. The first one has been done as an example.

next The (0) …..............…….. morning, Holmes saw a message in the newspaper (1) …..............…….. a red house. (2) …..............…….. message described a secret code. There was (3) …..............…….. red house in front of Mrs Warren’s house. They went to Mrs Warren’s house. She had terrible news. ‘This morning,’ she said, ‘two men pushed my husband into a cab, and then pushed him (4) …..............…….. later.’ Holmes said, ‘They (5) …..............…….. wanted your lodger.’ Later, with a (6) …..............…….., they discovered that the lodger was really a woman. Holmes and Watson returned in the evening to (7) …..............…….. the red house. They saw a candle. It sent a message in (8) …..............…….. . The message said ‘ (9) …..............…….. careful’ and ‘danger’ in Italian. Then it stopped. They ran to the house. In (10) …..............…….. of the house they saw Gregson of Scotland Yard. 6 Put the sentences in order

The sentences A-J of the summary of Chapters 3-4 are in the wrong order. Put them in the right order and number them 1-10. A

Holmes and Watson returned in the evening to watch the red house.

B

The next morning, Holmes saw a message in the newspaper about a red house.

C

The message said ‘Be careful’ and ‘danger’ in Italian. Then it stopped.

D

They went to Mrs Warren’s house.

E

Another day a message described a secret code. There was a red house in front of Mrs Warren’s house.

F

They ran to the house. In front of the house they saw Gregson of Scotland Yard.

G

She had terrible news. ‘This morning,’ she said, ‘two men pushed my husband into a cab, and then pushed him out later.’

© 2009 Black Cat Publishing

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H

They saw a candle. It sent a message in code.

I

Holmes said, ‘They really wanted your lodger.’

J

Later, with a mirror, they discovered that the lodger was really a woman.

7 Correct the mistakes!

This is an oral activity, so do not give the students any photocopies. Tell them you are going to read a summary, but with some mistakes. When they hear a mistake they should correct it. In the summary below there are 10 mistakes to read out, all written in italics. As a quick reminder to you, the correct version is given in brackets. The next morning, Holmes saw a message in the newspaper about a red horse (house). Another message described a secret door (code). There was a red house in front of Holmes’s (Mrs Warren’s) house. They went to Mrs Warren’s house. She had terrible news. ‘This morning,’ she said, ‘two girls (men) pushed my husband into a cab, and then pushed him out later.’ Holmes said, ‘They really wanted your cleaning girl (lodger).’ Later, with a telescope (mirror), they discovered that the lodger was really a woman. Mrs Warren (Holmes) and Watson returned in the evening to watch the red house. They saw a mirror (candle). It sent a message in code. The message said ‘Be careful’ and ‘danger’ in Chinese (Italian). Then it stopped. They ran to the house. In front of the house they saw Gregson of the United States Army (Scotland Yard).

8 Rub out

On the board / the interactive whiteboard, copy a short paragraph from the summary. Gradually, rub out individual words and even twoand three-word phrases. Begin by rubbing out some of the important content words. After each time you rub out some words get the whole class to read out the text, supplying the missing words from their memory. Eventually, when all the words on the board have been rubbed out, the class will – amazingly! – remember all the text. © 2009 Black Cat Publishing

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9 Dictogloss

Sit the students in groups of two to five. Tell them that you are going to read out a summary of Chapters 3-4 of Sherlock Holmes and the Red Circle twice, and that they may note down key words or short phrases. Read the text once at normal speed, pause for a minute, then read it again. Tell the students to work together in their groups and use their notes to write a text which is grammatically and lexically correct but which doesn’t have to be the same as the original: the aim of their writing is to produce a correct text, not to show they have perfect memories! Then students compare their written texts. Groups should try to point out any errors in the texts of other groups.

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probably won’t need more than about 25 words. When they have finished, they should compare their versions. It is better if the texts are stuck on a wall or passed around (or compared in electronic form). They should decide which are the most interesting added details, and why.

12 Rewrite it

Tell the students to rewrite the summary changing some of the information. They should use their imagination to add details – which can be words, phrases or sentences – and change some of the words and phrases that are already there.

Finally, show or give the students the original text; ask them to identify any differences with their own texts, and ask them if they think the differences are important.

10 Cut it down

Put the students in groups of two to five. Make sure that each group has a copy of the summary and a red pen/highlighter or access to computer. Tell them that they must cut 15 words from the summary: their shortened version must still be grammatically correct. They can change punctuation, but they mustn’t add any words. When they have finished, they should compare their shortened versions. It is better if the texts are stuck on a wall or passed around (or compared in electronic form). They should decide which are the best cuts, and why.

SUMMARY

The next morning, Holmes saw a message in the newspaper about a red house. Another message described a secret code. There was a red house in front of Mrs Warren’s house. They went to Mrs Warren’s house. She had terrible news. ‘This morning,’ she said, ‘two men pushed my husband into a cab, and then pushed him out later.’ Holmes said, ‘They really wanted your lodger.’ Later, with a mirror, they discovered that the lodger was really a woman. Holmes and Watson returned in the evening to watch the red house. They saw a candle. It sent a message in code. The message said ‘Be careful’ and ‘danger’ in Italian. Then it stopped. They ran to the house. In front of the house they saw Gregson of Scotland Yard.

11 Build it up

Put the students in groups of two to five. Make sure that each group has a copy of the summary and a red pen or access to computer. Tell them that they must add two details, which they must choose themselves, to the summary. Tell them that the details they add can be words, phrases or even sentences. Tell them they shouldn’t write fewer than five words, and that there is no upper limit, but they © 2009 Black Cat Publishing

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KEY 1, 2, 3, 5: 1 about; 2 another; 3 a; 4 out; 5 really; 6 mirror; 7 watch; 8 code; 9 be; 10 front 4: 1 C; 2 B; 3 C; 4 B; 5 A; 6 A; 7 B; 8 C; 9 C; 10 C 6: 1 B; 2 E; 3 D; 4 G; 5 I 6 J; 7 A; 8 H; 9 C; 10 F © 2009 Black Cat Publishing

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Sherlock Holmes and the Red Circle Chapters 5-7 1 Scrambled word cloze

Read the summary of Chapters 5-7 below. Choose one of the words from the box to write in each space. The first one has been done as an example. outside for building told met member rest and at to then

outside An American detective was also (0) …..............…….. the house. He was looking (1) …..............…….. a killer named Gorgiano of the Red Circle, a criminal organisation. ‘Three men left this (2) …..............…….. ,’ said Gregson, ‘but not Gorgiano.’ They went into the house (3) …..............…….. found Gorgiano’s body. Holmes made a signal (4) …..............…….. the window with the candle, and Emilia Lucca – Mrs Warren’s lodger – arrived. She (5) …..............…….. them her story: ‘My husband and I (6) …..............…….. in Italy, but we moved to New York City. My husband worked for a man named Mr Castalotte. One day Gorgiano came to our house. My husband too was a (7) …..............…….. of the Red Circle. Later, Giorgiano told my husband to kill Mr Castalotte. We told Mr Castalotte, and came to London. Gennaro found a place for me (8) …..............…….. hide. (9) …..............…….. one day I saw Gorgiano with another man in front of the house. You know the (10) …..............…….. of the story.’

© 2009 Black Cat Publishing

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2 Scrambled word cloze with distractors (i)

Read the summary of Chapters 5-7 below. Choose one of the words from the box to write in each space. There are five words you do not need to use. The first one has been done as an example. later

to then and outside explained for building met when member at told knew piece

rest

outside An American detective was also (0) …..............…….. the house. He was looking (1) …..............…….. a killer named Gorgiano of the Red Circle, a criminal organisation. ‘Three men left this (2) …..............…….. ,’ said Gregson, ‘but not Gorgiano.’ They went into the house (3) …..............…….. found Gorgiano’s body. Holmes made a signal (4) …..............…….. the window with the candle, and Emilia Lucca – Mrs Warren’s lodger – arrived. She (5) …..............…….. them her story: ‘My husband and I (6) …..............…….. in Italy, but we moved to New York City. My husband worked for a man named Mr Castalotte. One day Gorgiano came to our house. My husband too was a (7) …..............…….. of the Red Circle. Later, Giorgiano told my husband to kill Mr Castalotte. We told Mr Castalotte, and came to London. Gennaro found a place for me (8) …..............…….. hide. (9) …..............…….. one day I saw Gorgiano with another man in front of the house. You know the (10) …..............…….. of the story.’

© 2009 Black Cat Publishing

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3 Scrambled word cloze with distractors (ii)

Read the summary of Chapters 5-7 below. Choose one of the words from the box to write in each space. There are ten words you do not need to use. The first one has been done as an example. met told for explained on knew later piece rest to and then building when at outside structure member other to for

outside An American detective was also (0)…..............…….. the house. He was looking (1) …..............…….. a killer named Gorgiano of the Red Circle, a criminal organisation. ‘Three men left this (2) …..............…….. ,’ said Gregson, ‘but not Gorgiano.’ They went into the house (3) …..............…….. found Gorgiano’s body. Holmes made a signal (4) …..............…….. the window with the candle, and Emilia Lucca – Mrs Warren’s lodger – arrived. She (5) …..............…….. them her story: ‘My husband and I (6) …..............…….. in Italy, but we moved to New York City. My husband worked for a man named Mr Castalotte. One day Gorgiano came to our house. My husband too was a (7) …..............…….. of the Red Circle. Later, Giorgiano told my husband to kill Mr Castalotte. We told Mr Castalotte, and came to London. Gennaro found a place for me (8) …..............…….. hide. (9) …..............…….. one day I saw Gorgiano with another man in front of the house. You know the (10) …..............…….. of the story.’

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4 Multiple choice cloze

Read the summary of Chapters 5-7 below. Choose the best word (A, B or C) for each space. The first one has been done as an example.

A An American detective was also (0) …..............…….. the house. He was looking (1) …..............…….. a killer named Gorgiano of the Red Circle, a criminal organisation. ‘Three men left this (2) …..............…….. ,’ said Gregson, ‘but not Gorgiano.’ They went into the house (3) …..............…….. found Gorgiano’s body. Holmes made a signal (4) …..............…….. the window with the candle, and Emilia Lucca – Mrs Warren’s lodger – arrived. She (5) …..............…….. them her story: ‘My husband and I (6) …..............…….. in Italy, but we moved to New York City. My husband worked for a man named Mr Castalotte. One day Gorgiano came to our house. My husband too was a (7) …..............…….. of the Red Circle. Later, Giorgiano told my husband to kill Mr Castalotte. We told Mr Castalotte, and came to London. Gennaro found a place for me (8) …..............…….. hide. (9) …..............…….. one day I saw Gorgiano with another man in front of the house. You know the (10) …..............…….. of the story.’ 0

A outside

B front

C out

1

A for

B to

C about

2

A construction B structure

C building

3

A when

B then

C and

4

A at

B on

C through

5

A said

B explained

C told

6

A knew

B came

C met

7

A piece

B member

C element

8

A for

B by

C to

9

A Later

B After

C Then

10

A rest

B other

C left

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5 Open cloze

Complete the summary of Chapters 5-7 below. Write ONE word for each space. The first one has been done as an example.

outside An American detective was also (0) …..............…….. the house. He was looking (1) …..............…….. a killer named Gorgiano of the Red Circle, a criminal organisation. ‘Three men left this (2) …..............…….. ,’ said Gregson, ‘but not Gorgiano.’ They went into the house (3) …..............…….. found Gorgiano’s body. Holmes made a signal (4) …..............…….. the window with the candle, and Emilia Lucca – Mrs Warren’s lodger – arrived. She (5) …..............…….. them her story: ‘My husband and I (6) …..............…….. in Italy, but we moved to New York City. My husband worked for a man named Mr Castalotte. One day Gorgiano came to our house. My husband too was a (7) …..............…….. of the Red Circle. Later, Giorgiano told my husband to kill Mr Castalotte. We told Mr Castalotte, and came to London. Gennaro found a place for me (8) …..............…….. hide. (9) …..............…….. one day I saw Gorgiano with another man in front of the house. You know the (10) …..............…….. of the story.’ 6 Put the sentences in order

The sentences A-J of the summary of Chapters 5-7 are in the wrong order. Put them in the right order and number them 1-10. A

He was looking for a killer named Gorgiano of the Red Circle, a criminal organisation.

B

They went into the house and found Gorgiano’s body.

C

Holmes made a signal at the window with the candle, and Emilia Lucca – Mrs Warren’s lodger – arrived.

D

‘Three men left this building,’ said Gregson, ‘but not Gorgiano.’

E

She told them her story: ‘My husband and I met in Italy, but we moved to New York City. My husband worked for a man named Mr Castalotte.

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F

One day Gorgiano came to our house because my husband was also a member of the Red Circle.

G

We told Mr Castalotte, and came to London.

H

Gennaro found a place for me to hide.’

I

An American detective was also outside the house.

J

Later, Giorgiano told my husband to kill Mr Castalotte

7 Correct the mistakes!

This is an oral activity, so do not give the students any photocopies. Tell them you are going to read a summary, but with some mistakes. When they hear a mistake they should correct it. In the summary below there are 10 mistakes to read out, all written in italics. As a quick reminder to you, the correct version is given in brackets. An American musician (detective) was also outside the house. He was looking for a scientist (killer) named Gorgiano of the Red Circle, a criminal organisation. ‘Three cats (men) left this building,’ said Gregson, ‘but not Gorgiano.’ They went into the house and found Gorgiano’s glasses (body). Holmes made a signal at the window with the candle, and Emilia Lucca – Mrs Warren’s sister (lodger) – arrived. She told them her story: ‘My husband and I met in Germany (Italy), but we moved to New York City. My husband worked for a man named Mr Castalotte. One day Gorgiano came to our school (house). My husband too was a member of the orchestra (Red Circle). Later, Giorgiano told my husband to kill Mr Casitalotte. We told Mr Castalotte, and came to Paris (London). Gennaro found a place for me to hide. Then one day I saw Holmes (Gorgiano) with another man in front of the house. You know the rest of the story.’

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8 Rub out

On the board / the interactive whiteboard, copy a short paragraph from the summary. Gradually, rub out individual words and even twoand three-word phrases. Begin by rubbing out some of the important content words. After each time you rub out some words get the whole class to read out the text, supplying the missing words from their memory. Eventually, when all the words on the board have been rubbed out, the class will – amazingly! – remember all the text. The text used for the rub out activity need not taken from the summary. You could use a dramatic part of the story, for example.

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A C T I V I T I E S

10 Cut it down

Put the students in groups of two to five. Make sure that each group has a copy of the summary and a red pen/highlighter or access to computer. Tell them that they must cut 15 words from the summary: their shortened version must still be grammatically correct. They can change punctuation, but they mustn’t add any words. When they have finished, they should compare their shortened versions. They should decide which are the best cuts, and why.

11 Build it up

Sit the students in groups of two to five. Tell them that you are going to read out a summary of Chapters 5-7 of Sherlock Holmes and the Red Circle twice, and that they may note down key words or short phrases. Read the text once at normal speed, pause for a minute, then read it again.

Put the students in groups of two to five. Make sure that each group has a copy of the summary and a red pen or access to computer. Tell them that they must add two details, which they must choose themselves, to the summary. Tell them that the details they add can be words, phrases or even sentences. Tell them they shouldn’t write fewer than five words, and that there is no upper limit, but they probably won’t need more than about 25 words.

Tell the students to work together in their groups and use their notes to write a text which is grammatically and lexically correct but which doesn’t have to be the same as the original: the aim of their writing is to produce a correct text, not to show they have perfect memories!

When they have finished, they should compare their versions. It is better if the texts are stuck on a wall or passed around (or compared in electronic form). They should decide which are the most interesting added details, and why.

9 Dictogloss

Then students compare their written texts. Groups should try to point out any errors in the texts of other groups. Finally, show or give the students the original text; ask them to identify any differences with their own texts, and ask them if they think the differences are important.

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12 Rewrite it

Tell the students to rewrite the summary changing some of the information. They should use their imagination to add details – which can be words, phrases or sentences – and change some of the words and phrases that are already there.

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SUMMARY

An American detective was also outside the house. He was looking for a killer named Gorgiano of the Red Circle, a criminal organisation. ‘Three men left this building,’ said Gregson, ‘but not Gorgiano.’ They went into the house and found Gorgiano’s body. Holmes made a signal at the window with the candle, and Emilia Lucca – Mrs Warren’s lodger – arrived. She told them her story: ‘My husband and I met in Italy, but we moved to New York City. My husband worked for a man named Mr Castalotte. One day Gorgiano came to our house. My husband too was a member of the Red Circle. Later, Giorgiano told my husband to kill Mr Castalotte. We told Mr Castalotte, and came to London. Gennaro found a place for me to hide. Then one day I saw Gorgiano with another man in front of the house. You know the rest of the story.’ KEY 1, 2, 3, 5: 1 for; 2 building; 3 and; 4 at; 5 told; 6 met; 7 member; 8 to 9 then; 10 rest 4: 1 A; 2 C; 3 C; 4 A; 5 C; 6 C; 7 B; 8 C; 9 C; 10 A 6: 1 I; 2 A; 3 D; 4 B; 5 C; 6 E; 7 F; 8 J; 9 G; 10 H

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Editors: Michela Bruzzo, Victoria Bradshaw © 2009 Black Cat Publishing, an imprint of Cideb Editrice, Genoa, Canterbury

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