First published online 14.12.

2009

The Red-Headed League

Students Worksheet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Teaser 1
All the words below can be used to describe hair colour. Put them in the correct categories.

fair auburn medium ginger strawberry dark black

chestnut grey deep red brown light pale blond white

modifiers colours

Which of the modifiers collocate with which of the colours?

Teaser 2
Check how much you remember from the story. Who are these people?
o Peter Jones
o Mr Jabez Wilson
o Mr Merryweather
o Duncan Ross
o Vincent Spaulding
o John Clay
o Ezekiah Hopkins

Macmillan Polska 2009 PHOTOCOPIABLE

 First published online 14.12.2009

The Red-Headed League

Students Worksheet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

The story
Put the events in chronological order by matching them to the appropriate numbers on the
timeline.

( ) Holmes and Watson listen to Mr Wilsons story

( ) Mr Wilson is employed by The Red-Headed League

( ) The Red-Headed League disappears suddenly

( ) John Clay puts an ad for a vacancy in the Red-Headed League

( ) Mr Wilson comes to ask Holmes for help

( ) John Clay starts working at Mr Wilsons shop as Vincent Spaulding

( ) Holmes and Watson investigate the area around the shop and see Clay

( ) John Clay and Duncan Ross plan to rob a bank using Mr Wilson and his shop

( ) John Clay and Duncan Ross are caught by Holmes, Watson and the police

( ) John Clay tells Mr Wilson about the Red-Headed League

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

The meaningful details

The story includes many meaningful details which help Sherlock Holmes solve the mystery. See
how many of these questions you can answer.
1. Why did John Clay tell Mr Wilson that he is interested in photography?
2. Why did Clay and Ross call their league The Red-Headed League?
3. Why did Holmes ask Mr Wilson about Vincent Spauldings ears?
4. Why did Holmes hit the pavement in front of the shop with his stick?
5. Why did Holmes knock on the shops door and ask Vincent Spaulding for directions?
6. Why did Holmes examine the stones on the floor of the banks cellar?

Macmillan Polska 2009 PHOTOCOPIABLE

 First published online 14.12.2009

The Red-Headed League

Students Worksheet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Vocabulary
1. The story includes a lot of words which describe body movements. Complete the phrases
with the words below.

bend grab grab hold knock nod point pull pull pull
push rub run turn

to ................... at someones coat

to ................... out your hands
to ................... through a crowd
to ................... your head
to ................... someone by the neck
to ................... someone up
to ................... someone into a room
to ................... forward
to ................... on the door
to ................... your hands
to ................... round
to ................... a gun out of your pocket
to ................... your finger down something
to ................... to something

2. Without looking at the first part of the task, complete the phrases with prepositions or put
(-) if no preposition is necessary.
to nod ................... your head
to pull someone ................... a room
to pull someone ...................
to pull a gun ................... ................... your pocket
to run your finger ................... something
to point ................... something
to rub ................... your hands
to push ................... a crowd
to bend ...................
to grab someone ................... the neck
to grab ................... someones coat
to knock ................... the door
to turn ...................
to hold ................... your hands

3. Work in pairs. Perform and guess the actions.

Macmillan Polska 2009 PHOTOCOPIABLE

 First published online 14.12.2009

The Red-Headed League

Students Worksheet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Grammar - Questions with whatever

1. Read the part of the story below. Why does Watson ask Whatever can it mean instead of
the standard question What can it mean?

I took the newspaper from Mr Wilson. It was The Morning Chronicle and was two
months old. I read the advertisement.
What a strange advertisement, I said. Whatever can it mean?
Holmes laughed.
Its very unusual, isnt it, he said.

2. Look at the following questions. Work in pairs and try to think of situations in which you
could say something like this.

Whatever Whatever
has happened to are you wearing?!
you?!

Whatever
have you done?! Whatever
is she thinking?!

Whatever Whatever
have you been trying made you say
to do? that?

Macmillan Polska 2009 PHOTOCOPIABLE

 First published online 14.12.2009

The Red-Headed League

Students Worksheet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Crossword
Check if you remember words from the story. Complete the crossword.

Across
1
3. Holmes was smoking a ..............................
2 while he was considering the case.

3
4. Mr Wilsons shop was situated in
Saxe-Coburg .............................. .
5. Vincent Spaulding said that he spent so
much time downstairs to ..............................
photographs.

4
Down
1. Holmes hit the pavement in front of the
5 6
shop with his .............................. .
2. Vincent Spaulding spent a lot of time in
the shops .............................. .
4. The ...................... for the work
offered by The Red-Headed League was
very high.
5. In fact, John Clay was ..............................
a tunnel from the shop to the bank.
6. The advertisement in the newspaper
was about a .............................. in
The Red-Headed League.

Work in pairs and test each other. One person should put the crossword face down, the other
should read out the clues, pausing for the gaps, letting the first person complete the sentences
with the correct words from memory. Then change roles.

Macmillan Polska 2009 PHOTOCOPIABLE