Essential Questions: Who can we trust in life? How are mysteries solved? What makes a character memorable? 

Listen to a Podcast (5 minutes)

• Have students listen to The Sherlock Holmes Challenge podcast. (You may also want to share the transcript with them. Both are available in your Resources tab.) Then discuss how they did. Did they figure out the mystery? If so, how? 

Preview Vocabulary (10 minutes)

• Project the Google Slides version of Vocabulary: Definitions and Practice on your whiteboard. Review the definitions and complete the activity as a class. Highlighted words: bewilderment, deduction, disheveled, forensic, helm, inherit, inquiry. Audio pronunciations of the words and a read-aloud of the definitions are embedded on the slides. Optionally, print the PDF version or share the slideshow link directly to your LMS and have students preview the words and complete the activity independently before class.

• Invite a volunteer to read the As You Read box on page 14 or at the top of the digital story page.

• Assign parts and read the play aloud as a class.

• Divide students into groups to discuss the following Close-Reading and Critical-Thinking Questions, which are also located in the Resources tab.

Close-Reading Questions (25 minutes)

1. What is the purpose of Scene 1? (text structure) Dr. Watson provides the audience with background information about Sherlock Holmes and his detective work, which is helpful to those unfamiliar with Arthur Conan Doyle’s stories. Holmes makes it clear that the play’s mystery took place in the past; which allows audience members/readers to mentally prepare to jump around in time. Lastly, Holmes provides the audience with an important piece of information—that “there is one question about the case that remains unanswered.” Audience members will likely keep this in mind throughout the play, trying to figure out for themselves what might remain “unanswered.”
2. In Scene 2, Holmes correctly identifies Sara based solely on her appearance: “Your clothes are expensive and perfectly tailored. Your shoes are splashed with wet mud. It rained in the countryside but not in London, which tells me you traveled to London this morning. The necklace you’re wearing is old and valuable, and the pendant is the letter ‘M.’ The Musgraves are the nearest wealthy family with a country estate.” What can we infer about Holmes based on this passage? (inference) We can infer that Holmes is a brilliant and experienced detective. He instantly figures out who Sara is based solely on her physical appearance. He has incredible observational skills and uses them to make inferences about Sara’s identity. His knowledge of the weather, the value of jewelry and clothes, and the Musgrave family shows that he is well-informed on a variety of topics. 
3. What is the purpose of the flashbacks in Scene 3? (author’s craft) The flashbacks show us the mysterious circumstances under which Robert and Vera disappeared. Additionally, we learn several important details that will have significance later in the play, such as the fact that Robert read the secret family poem. 
4. In Scene 3, Sara describes Robert as “old-fashioned but loyal” and Vera as “smart and reliable.” Based on the play’s ending, how would you describe Robert and Vera? (character) Robert and Vera are conniving and deceitful. They try to take a treasure that does not belong to them, which is illegal. Their crime is especially reprehensible given that Robert has been with Sara’s family for decades. That said, it is Vera, not Robert, who is truly evil; her attempt to kill Robert reveals her villainous, wicked character. 
5. In Scene 4, Holmes says to Sara, “Robert asked you the same question.” How does Holmes reach this conclusion? (inference) Holmes realizes Robert understood that the poem was a treasure map. Robert was asking for the height of the elm because once he knew the height, he could calculate the length of the shadow and figure out where to find the treasure.
6. Based on the last line of Scene 7, what can we infer happened to Vera? (inference) You can infer that the person behind the screen name “Treasure4Me” is probably Vera—and that she is, as Treasure4Me suggests, doing just fine. She got away with her attempted crimes at the Musgrave estate and is still out there—perhaps committing other crimes.

“Meet a Real Crime Scientist” 

• Read the interview as a class. Optionally, have students listen to the interview being read aloud while they follow along. The audio read-aloud is located in the Resources tab in Teacher View and at the top of the story page in Student View.

• As a class, discuss the following Critical-Thinking Questions, some of which apply to the play and the interview.

Critical-Thinking Questions (10 minutes)

1. What skills does Holmes use to solve the case? Answers will vary. Students will likely say that Holmes has incredible observational and inference skills. For example, with one quick look, he can figure out a person’s identity, personality, and interests. He does this with Sara Musgrave. Students may also note that Holmes excels at solving riddles, which involves analyzing information, using deduction, and thinking logically. He realizes that the family poem is a riddle pointing the way to a treasure; he then quickly solves the riddle, aware that finding the treasure will likely lead him to Robert and Vera. 

2. Imagine Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was alive today and still writing Sherlock Holmes stories. How might Doyle incorporate modern-day forensic science into the stories? Answers will vary. Students might say that Doyle might have Holmes use fingerprints and DNA to solve his cases, or he might have Holmes work with forensic scientists.

• Have students complete the Featured Skill Activity: Character. This activity will prepare them to respond to the writing prompt on page 18 in the printed magazine and at the bottom of the digital story page:

Imagine you are one of the characters involved in the case of the Musgrave Ritual. Write a diary entry as that character, describing the events of the story and your thoughts and feelings.

• Alternatively, have students choose a task from the Choice Board, a menu of culminating tasks. Our Choice Board options include the writing prompt from the magazine, differentiated versions of the writing prompt, and additional creative ways for students to demonstrate their understanding of a story or article.