ADVANCED Unsolved Mysteries ESL Lesson Plan: Warm-up (Pair Work)
1) What genre of books and movies do you enjoy? Do you read mystery novels?
2) Do you know any unsolved mysteries from your town, city, or country?
Reading: 5 Unsolved Mysteries - Read and discuss these unsolved mysteries.
Voynich Manuscript – This 240-page book, known as “the world’s most mysterious manuscript,” is written in a strange language or script that has yet to be deciphered. Adding to the intrigue of the document, its pages contain odd diagrams and drawings of plants that do not match any species known on Earth. The manuscript’s author is unknown, and carbon dating indicates it was made between 1404 and 1438. Some theorize that the manuscript was a pharmacopoeia of medieval medicine. The pictures of herbs and plants also suggest the book may have been used for alchemy. Most theorists doubt it could be a hoax, given its detail.
Shroud of Turin – Most Catholics believe this shroud had been placed on the body of Jesus Christ at his burial site. Mysteriously, the linen cloth bears an image of a crucified man. Scientists have yet to explain or replicate how the image was imprinted. Radiocarbon tests place its creation in the middle ages, although defenders of the shroud reject this. Some academics believe it was also known as the Image of Edessa, a shroud reliably reported since the 4th century.
Allagash Alien Abductions – In 1976, four men were fishing at night together in Maine when they saw a bright object float towards them. What happened next is unknown; all men claimed to have no memory of the events that followed. They remember lighting a large fire on the lakeshore and then seeing it burnt out a few moments later. After the event, each man underwent regressive hypnosis and recounted a story of abduction and subjection to physical experiments. In the weeks that followed, each man claimed to have had dreams of an invasive and humiliating experience. To test the veracity of their story, all men underwent lie detector tests. They all passed and were deemed mentally stable by psychiatrists.
The Loch Ness Monster – Although the earliest observation of this large creature comes from 565 AD, modern interest in it was sparked by a 1933 sighting. A man and his wife apparently saw ‘a most extraordinary form of animal’ about 4 feet high and 25 feet long cross the road in front of their car. The animal lurched towards the nearby water, leaving a trail of broken undergrowth. This ‘monster’, which apparently dwells in a large lake in Great Britain called Loch Ness, has been photographed and even videotaped as recently as 2007. None of the footage however gives a clear view of the animal. Some people believe it is a dinosaur called the plesiosaur.
Rain of Seeds – A man in Southampton, England, was startled when hundreds of mustard and cress seeds coated in a jelly-like substance began falling onto his home and in his garden. A similar phenomenon occurred the following day, except with corn, pea, and bean seeds that seemed to have fallen from the heavens above. All in all, the man and his two neighbors endured a total of 25 barrages of similar items from the sky. A police investigation could not pinpoint the source of the objects.
[Sources: http://listverse.com/2007/07/20/top-10-unsolved-mysteries/, http://www.mnn.com/lifestyle/arts-culture/photos/10-of-the-worlds-biggest-unsolved-mysteries/go-figure]
Match the words with their meaning as used in the article.
1. intrigue (noun)2. pharmacopeia
3. hoax
4. shroud
5. abduction
6. veracity
7. deem (verb)
8. lurch (verb)
9. undergrowth
10. startle sb (verb)
11. barrage
12. pinpoint sth (verb) / a. a book containing a list of drugs and directions for their use
b. bombardment; volley
c. a humorous or malicious deception
d. frighten; alarm
e. a dense growth of shrubs and other plants, especially under trees
f. find or locate exactly
g. consider; regard as
h. a cloth in which a dead person is wrapped for a burial
i. truthfulness; accuracy
j. the action of forcibly taking someone away against his or her will
k. a mysterious and fascinating quality
l. make an abrupt, unsteady movement or series of movements; stagger
Idiom Focus: a shroud of ~ / shroud sth in sth
E.g: There’s a shroud of secrecy surrounding the report. / His family background is shrouded in mystery
Both phrases are used figuratively to say that something is covered (or wrapped) in something that makes it hard to see. The most common collocation is shroud of secrecy or that sth is shrouded in secrecy.
Master the language: Connect the below ideas to make a sentence. (good for homework)
government / crush / uprising / e.g. The government plans to crush the uprising.intrigue / abduction
pharmacopeia / hoax
shroud / secrecy
veracity / report
deem / sane
lurch / undergrowth
barrage / startle
pinpoint / location
Unsolved Mysteries ESL Lesson Plan: Discussion Questions
1) What other unsolved mysteries do you know of?
2) Have you ever witnessed or experienced inexplicable phenomenon?
3) What is déjà vu? Do you regularly experience it?
4) What do you think of Eastern medicine?
5) Do you believe in stories about out of body experiences?
6) What theory of creation do you support?
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Unsolved Mysteries ESL Lesson plan copyright Matthew Barton of Englishcurrent.com
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