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The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes: read and explore

Twelve cases from Baker Street.

About this reading

Author
Arthur Conan Doyle
Form
novel
Catalog year
1892

Choose this reading by interest and comfort with the language. This catalog does not assign a school grade. Preview the text before reading with a child; classic works can contain unfamiliar language and historical attitudes.

Read The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

Preview the language: A SCANDAL IN BOHEMIA

I. To Sherlock Holmes she is always _the_ woman. I have seldom heard him mention her under any other name. In his eyes she eclipses and predominates the whole of her sex. It was not that he felt any emotion akin to love for Irene Adler. All emotions, and that one particularly, were abhorrent to his cold, precise but admirably balanced mind. He was, I take it, the most perfect reasoning and observing machine that the world has seen, but …

Choose a phrase from this opening. What does it suggest, and which words support your interpretation? Read on to test your first impression.

A reading activity for The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

  1. Before opening the text, read the title and this catalog description: “Twelve cases from Baker Street.” Write one question you hope the reading will answer.
  2. Read a short passage. Choose one sentence that helps you understand what is happening and explain which words support your interpretation.
  3. Choose one unfamiliar word. Guess its meaning from the surrounding words, then check a dictionary or discuss it with a reading partner.
  4. Return to your original question. Explain what the passage answered and what you still need to read to find out.

These are suggested discussion tasks, not a scored assessment or a claim that finishing the text establishes mastery.

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Source edition: Project Gutenberg record for The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. This link identifies the catalog source; it does not imply endorsement.

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Educators and independent learners

Learning goal: Read The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle, then support an interpretation with words from the text.

Before you begin: Preview the language and historical context. Select a passage appropriate for your learners.

Check understanding: Ask for one observation, the evidence that supports it, and a question to investigate next.

Catalog inclusion does not assign a school grade. Preview historical language and themes before using a work with children.

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The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes — Read and Explore | Lesson Worlds