The Mystery of the Missing Christmas Presents PowerPoint

Learning more about Litterature

by Mrs Quéré - Ac Bordeaux

THE MYSTERY OF THE MISSING PRESENTS

It’s Christmas time at Hawcross High School, and the staff and students have decided to celebrate in style with a fabulous festive party. They have decorated the school hall with lots of streamers and an enormous Christmas tree, with heaps of colourful presents underneath. To make this a truly special occasion, they have decided to invite some villains from famous books and plays, to be their guests of honour! But disaster strikes just as the school bell rings for 3pm. Suddenly, the lights go out. There are screams and confusion; when the lights come on again, the Christmas presents have all disappeared! Who has snatched the festive gifts? Can you solve the mystery and find the villain in our rogues’ gallery? See your teacher for clues and, as you eliminate characters, cross them off your list. Good luck!

The Mystery of the Missing Christmas Presents

Rogues’ Gallery

To find out the missing word, complete the puzzle on the next slide.

‘I was keeping my eyes on those villains – you can’t be too careful! Just before the time of the theft, one of them sneaked off towards the school kitchens, and I followed them. It turned out to be a red herring though, as they were only after a slice of the staff Christmas cake! But whoever your thief is, it can’t be this villain – because I was watching them while the crime was being committed. I don’t know their name, exactly, but they were not wearing __________.’

Your first witness is the school caretaker, Mr Black.

Clue One

Letters of the alphabet which are not consonants.

A word that sounds like the thing it is describing.

The words and speech patterns associated with a particular region.

The first sound of a word repeated either in sequence or throughout a sentence

A technique used to describe something by saying it is something else..

A speech delivered by one character, as if to themselves.

Clue One

That’s a great help! Can you work out which characters were invented by female writers, and then eliminate them from your enquiry?

‘I’m afraid I wasn’t in the school hall at the time the presents were stolen. I had just visited the villains and split them into two groups: those who had been invented by male writers, and those who had been invented by female writers. I took all the characters who had been invented by female writers up to the library – I wanted to interview them for an essay I was writing. So none of them can be your culprit, can they?’

Your second witness is the school librarian, Miss Crimson.

Clue Two

OK, there’s your challenge! Spot the false statements to identify the next suspects to be eliminated from your enquiry.

‘I know that some of the suspects are innocent, because I could see them from my classroom window while the theft was being committed. But I’m not just going to tell you the answer – you have to work it out! Which of these statements are true, and which are false? The false statements all apply to the suspects I saw – so you’ll be able to cross them off your list.’

Your third witness is Mr Mauve, the maths teacher.

Clue Three

Henry Hobson owns a boot shop and is the father of three daughters.

Iago is the best friend of Othello, and ends up marrying his protégé, Desdemona.

Roger is one of a group of boys, marooned on an island after a plane crash.

Jennet Humfrye is a woman who returns as a malevolent ghost after her son is killed in a tragedy.

Curley is a kind man who helps the characters Lennie and George settle down on his farm.

Blanche Ingram is a beautiful, unkind woman who wants to marry Mr Rochester.

Mr Hyde is the evil alter ego whom Dr Jekyll tries to hide with the use of a potion.

Miss Havisham is an old spinster who has never recovered from being left at the altar.

Bob Ewell is the head of a poor, racist family in Maycomb.

Lady Macbeth is married to a Scottish lord who commits murders to ensure he becomes King.

Clue Three

A great idea! Can you find out which characters are killers? Those who are can be eliminated from your enquiry.

‘Unfortunately, I didn’t see anything that can help you, because I was busy in my lab at the time of the crime. But maybe my knowledge of human personalities can help you. I am pretty sure that this is not a crime committed by anyone with murderous tendencies. So you could cross any of the villains who are murderers off your list.’

Your fourth witness is Dr Orange, the biology teacher.

Clue Four

Aha! So our villain is not from a 19th-century book! Can you identify which characters are from 19th-century works and cross them off your list?

‘I was marking books in my room at the time the crime was committed. But I’ll tell you something: this is not a crime committed by anyone who was created in the 19th century. I can just tell – it’s not their style at all! Now let me get on with my marking – I’ve a huge pile to finish before the holidays start!’

Your fifth witness is Mrs Puce, the history teacher.

Clue Five

These persons are not guilty

This is a breakthrough! Have a go at cracking the code!

‘I was just coming to find you! Look what I found by the gym: it’s a coded note. I suspect the code is a simple one to solve – it looks like you just move each letter two back in the alphabet, so C = A, D = B, and so on. I hope it helps.’

Your sixth witness is Mr Primrose, the PE teacher.

Clue Six

You are a Christmas champion! Have a Sweet and Merry Christmas

GO TELL YOUR TEACHER AND CHECK YOU GOT ALL THE CLUES RIGHT!

You’ve cracked the crime! The villain who stole the presents is…???

The Solution

THE END