The Short Story Worksheets



Worksheet One

This worksheet accompanies slide 4 of The Short Story.ppt

How do you think short stories are different from novels? Brainstorm!

Worksheet Two

This worksheet accompanies slide 9 of The Short Story.ppt

Genre

A ‘blurb’ is the promotional text on the back cover of a novel. It tries to make the book sound as interesting as possible and usually tells the reader something about the story.

Read the blurb extracts below, and decide which genre the novels they promote belong to.

Choose from: horror; romance; thriller; historical; comedy; fantasy; adventure; and crime.

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|Blurb |Genre |

|Join ace explorer Ohio James in an exhilarating journey to uncover hidden | |

|Egyptian treasure. Will he overcome the heat, scorpions and evil henchmen to | |

|survive? | |

|A sleepy English village. A vicious killing. Can you solve the mystery of the| |

|Merton Murders? | |

|A fast-moving tale set in the glamorous world of international espionage. | |

|It’s 1066, and war threatens. This dramatic story of fighting and betrayal | |

|will keep you gripped. | |

|The moment their eyes met, their lives changed forever. Find out why in this | |

|enchanting account of love’s true power. | |

|When Harry’s parents leave him alone for the first time, hilarious | |

|consequences ensue. Read this side-splitting tale now – you’ll laugh out | |

|loud. | |

|When a young family moves to Midnight Falls, everything seems tranquil. But | |

|when they disturb a zombie burial ground, terror follows… | |

|Grubb is an orphan, living on his wits in the stews and alleyways of London. | |

|But when he finds an amulet of dragon teeth he is caught up in an ancient | |

|world of magic and adventure… | |

Worksheet Three

This worksheet accompanies slide 10 of The Short Story.ppt

Use this table to keep brief records of all the short stories you read.

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Worksheet Four

This worksheet accompanies slide 14 of The Short Story.ppt

Author biography

Which significant events in Arthur Conan Doyle’s life happened at these times?

1859: ___________________________________________________________________

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1876–81: ________________________________________________________________

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1882: ___________________________________________________________________

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1887: ___________________________________________________________________

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1890–93: ________________________________________________________________

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1894–1904: ______________________________________________________________

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1902: ___________________________________________________________________

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1906: ___________________________________________________________________

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1906–27: ________________________________________________________________

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1930: ___________________________________________________________________

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Worksheet Five

This worksheet accompanies slide 16 of The Short Story.ppt

Plot summary

Complete the summary by filling in the blanks with the words at the bottom of the page.

An agitated lady, Miss Helen __________ by name, arrives at Sherlock Holmes' __________. She tells Holmes and Watson that her __________ died two years ago in __________ circumstances shortly after telling their stepfather that she was engaged to be married. Now Miss Stoner is herself engaged. Certain strange events which __________ her sister's death are occurring again, and Miss Stoner __________ for her life.

Holmes __________ Miss Stoner and promises to do everything he can to help her. Shortly after she leaves, her __________, Dr __________ Roylott, arrives at Holmes' rooms and __________ him. Holmes laughs __________ his threats.

Later that day Holmes and Watson travel to __________ __________ home at Stoke Moran. Miss Stoner shows them the __________ of her sister's __________, and Holmes gathers several __________. That night the two men __________ and lie in __________. In the middle of the night Dr Roylott __________ a poisonous snake into Miss Stoner's room. He plans to murder her for her __________, just as he murdered her sister. Holmes attacks the viper with his __________. __________, it turns upon Dr Roylott, who dies in __________, killed by his own deadly __________.

fears introduces suspicious Stoner stepfather scene

off preceded wait Grimesby Roylott’s Enraged

pet agony money clues return

reassures cane threatens ancestral

sister death rooms

Worksheet Six

This worksheet accompanies slide 18 of The Short Story.ppt

Opening ‘The Speckled Band’

Here is the opening of ‘The Speckled Band’. Underline and comment on each technique the author uses to grab the reader’s attention.

Worksheet Seven

This worksheet accompanies slide 22 of The Short Story.ppt

First person narrative

Underline and comment on the effects created by Conan Doyle’s use of a first person narrative voice.

[pic]

Worksheet Eight

This worksheet accompanies slide 26 of The Short Story.ppt

Brainstorm everything you know about Sherlock Holmes.

[pic]

Worksheet Nine

This worksheet accompanies slide 26 of The Short Story.ppt

Brainstorm everything you know about Watson.

Worksheet Ten

This worksheet accompanies slide 27 of The Short Story.ppt

Brainstorm everything you know about Helen Stoner.

Worksheet Eleven

This worksheet accompanies slide 28 of The Short Story.ppt

Helen Stoner

What can you infer about Helen Stoner from the description of her below? Underline and comment!

[pic]

Worksheet Twelve

This worksheet accompanies slide 29 of The Short Story.ppt

Brainstorm everything you know about Grimesby Roylott.

Worksheet Thirteen

This worksheet accompanies slide 30 of The Short Story.ppt

Dr Grimesby Roylott

Read Watson’s description of Dr Roylott’s appearance. Underline and comment on the details which contribute to the impression of a frightening, villainous character.

Worksheet Fourteen

This worksheet accompanies slide 31 of The Short Story.ppt

Interactions

We may also learn about the characters by observing how they interact with one another.

Remembering to give reasons for your answer, decide what we learn about Holmes from his interactions with…

…Watson? _______________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

…Miss Stoner? ___________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

…Roylott? ______________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

And what do we learn about Watson from his interactions with…

…Holmes? _______________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

…Miss Stoner? ___________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

…Roylott? _______________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Worksheet Fifteen

This worksheet accompanies slide 33 of The Short Story.ppt

Character types

In ‘The Speckled Band’, each character corresponds to a recognised type from the detective story genre. See if you can match the characters of ‘The Speckled Band’ with their types!

Miss Helen Stoner

Dr Grimesby Roylott

Worksheet Sixteen

This worksheet accompanies slide 35 of The Short Story.ppt

Setting

Read the description of Stoke Moran below. Underline and comment on those elements which help to create an atmosphere suitable for a house in which a murder has taken place.

Worksheet Seventeen

This worksheet accompanies slide 41 of The Short Story.ppt

Narrative structure

See if you can match the typical narrative stages of the detective story with the events which take place in ‘The Speckled Band’.

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On glancing over my notes of the seventy odd cases in which I have during the last eight years studied the methods of my friend Sherlock Holmes, I find many tragic, some comic, a large number merely strange, but none commonplace; for, working as he did rather for the love of his art than for the acquirement of wealth, he refused to associate himself with any investigation which did not tend towards the unusual, and even the fantastic. Of all these varied cases, however, I cannot recall any which presented more singular features than that which was associated with the well-known Surrey family of the Roylotts of Stoke Moran.

I had no keener pleasure than in following Holmes in his professional investigations, and in admiring the rapid deductions, as swift as intuitions, and yet always founded on a logical basis, with which he unravelled the problems which were submitted to him. I rapidly threw on my clothes and was ready in a few minutes to accompany my friend down to the sitting-room. A lady dressed in black and heavily veiled, who had been sitting in the window, rose as we entered.

‘It is fear, Mr Holmes. It is terror.’ She raised her veil as she spoke, and we could see that she was indeed in a pitiable state of agitation, her face all drawn and gray, with restless, frightened eyes, like those of some hunted animal. Her features and figure were those of a woman of thirty, but her hair was shot with premature gray, and her expression was weary and haggard.

So tall was he that his hat actually brushed the cross bar of the doorway, and his breadth seemed to span it from side to side. A large face, seared with a thousand wrinkles, burned yellow with the sun, and marked with every evil passion, was turned from one to the other of us, while his deep-set, bile-shot eyes, and his high, thin, fleshless nose, gave him somewhat the resemblance to a fierce old bird of prey.

The Detective

Usually combines logic and creativity. Often a colourful or eccentric figure.

The Sidekick

Normally a contrast or ‘foil’ to the detective.

The Villain

Often a cruel, ugly man.

The Victim

Often a young woman with a tragic past.

Dr John Watson

Mr Sherlock Holmes

The building was of gray, lichen-blotched stone, with a high central portion and two curving wings, like the claws of a crab, thrown out on each side. In one of these wings the windows were broken and blocked with wooden boards, while the roof was partly caved in, a picture of ruin. The central portion was in a little better repair, but the right-hand block was comparatively modern, and the blinds in the windows, with the blue smoke curling up from the chimneys, showed that this was where the family resided. Some scaffolding had been erected against the end wall, and the stone-work had been broken into, but there were no signs of any workmen at the moment of our visit.

The crime

The red herring

Forming a theory

Gathering clues

Adjusting the theory

The denouement

The recap / comment

Holmes hints that he now knows how the crime was committed.

Holmes suspects the gypsies had a hand in the crime.

The presence of gypsies on the estate.

Roylott dies by his own weapon, now revealed as a viper.

Holmes fills in the details and comments on Roylott’s end.

Holmes visits Doctors’ Commons and Stoke Moran.

Helen Stoner describes her sister’s mysterious death.

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