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©
2005 Peter Burkhart
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“The
Adventure of the Final Problem”
Lesson:
Unit/Theme:
Sherlock Holmes Level: Honors
Subject:
Seventh Grade English
NYS
Standards/ Benchmarks: E2b: The student produces a response to literature
that advances a judgment that is interpretive, analytic, evaluative,
or reflective. The student demonstrates an understanding of a literary
work. E1b: Evaluate writing strategies and elements of an author’s
craft. E3b: Participates in group meetings in which the student gives
reasons in support of opinions expressed. Volunteers contributions
and responds when directly solicited by the teacher or discussion
leader. E5a examines the reasons for a character’s actions, taking
into account the situation and basic motivation of the character.
OBJECTIVES/OUTCOMES:
- Students
will be provided time for silent reading.
- Students
will understand that Arthur Conan Doyle wrote this story to end the
series so he could move on to other things.
- Students
will understand the format of a business letter and write a letter
that attempts to persuade.
- Students
will use prior knowledge to gather information they will use in a
future assignment. In addition students will understand what the "morgue"
at a newspaper is used for.
RESOURCES
QUOTABLE
QUOTES
"It
is with a heavy heart that I take up my pen to write these the last
words in which I shall ever record the singular gifts by which my
friend, Mr. Sherlock Holmes was distinguished."
-Watson.
Pg. 435.
"He
is the Napoleon of crime, Watson. He is the organizer of half that
is evil and of nearly all that is undetected in this great city. He
is a genius, a philosopher, an abstract thinker. He has a brain of
the first order. He sits motionless, like a spider in the center of
its web, but that web has a thousand radiations, and he knows well
every quiver of each of them."
-Sherlock
Holmes. pg 437.
PRIOR
KNOWLEDGE
- Students
will have read "The Final Problem."
ACTIVITIES
- Students
will be provided time to silently read their Sherlock Holmes text
or a book of their choice.
- Students
will compose a professional letter to Arthur Conan Doyle after reading
"The Final Problem" requesting that he return the character
to life.
- Students,
in small groups, will begin gathering details to write an obituary
for Sherlock Holmes. (SEE SHERLOCK HOLMES
OBITUARY LESSON.) This assignment should be presented as a journalistic
assignment. They will understand that some of the information they
would have used to write would come from a newspaper morgue.
- Small
groups will create a sequence of events that will indicate the introduction,
rising action, climax, falling action and resolution. As a whole class
they will complete a story chart showing each story aspect.
- Discussion:
As a whole class, students will indicate their reactions to Doyle’s
handling of Holmes’ death. Was it how you expected? Did Holmes
accomplish what he intended to do?
INTEGRATION OF OTHER SUBJECTS
Journalism:
Morgues are collections of reference clippings files maintained for
the news sources' researchers and reporters. Morgue files do not include
entire issues or intact front pages. Articles from various information
sources concerning newsworthy individuals and topics were clipped
and gathered together by subject headings, not dates. Clippings morgues
provide an excellent resource for research, since actual copies of
all the articles desired on one topic are contained in one place,
and not scattered throughout microfilmed, chronological reels of entire
publications.
ASSESSMENT
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