📝 Unit 9: Enigma
Irregular plurals · homophones · famous mysteries · 200-word mystery story
Task 1 — Irregular plurals (5 marks)
(5 marks)
Write the plural form.
(1) leaf → ...........
(2) child → ...........
(3) goose → ...........
(4) loaf → ...........
(5) shelf → ...........
(6) roof → ...........
(7) mouse → ...........
(8) sheep → ...........
(9) father-in-law → ...........
(10) phenomenon → ...........
(1) leaf → ...........
(2) child → ...........
(3) goose → ...........
(4) loaf → ...........
(5) shelf → ...........
(6) roof → ...........
(7) mouse → ...........
(8) sheep → ...........
(9) father-in-law → ...........
(10) phenomenon → ...........
(1) leaves
(2) children
(3) geese
(4) loaves
(5) shelves
(6) roofs
(7) mice
(8) sheep
(9) fathers-in-law
(10) phenomena
5 marks (½ × 10).
(2) children
(3) geese
(4) loaves
(5) shelves
(6) roofs
(7) mice
(8) sheep
(9) fathers-in-law
(10) phenomena
5 marks (½ × 10).
Task 2 — Homophones: choose the right word (5 marks)
(5 marks)
Underline the correct word in brackets.
(1) (Their / There / They're) coming to the temple tomorrow.
(2) Please tell me (weather / whether) the bus has left.
(3) The (principle / principal) of our school is Mr Perera.
(4) She bought new (stationery / stationary) for the new term.
(5) I love you (to / too / two)!
(1) (Their / There / They're) coming to the temple tomorrow.
(2) Please tell me (weather / whether) the bus has left.
(3) The (principle / principal) of our school is Mr Perera.
(4) She bought new (stationery / stationary) for the new term.
(5) I love you (to / too / two)!
(1) They're
(2) whether
(3) principal
(4) stationery
(5) too
5 marks.
(2) whether
(3) principal
(4) stationery
(5) too
5 marks.
Task 3 — Listening / data-sheet: missing flight (5 marks)
(5 marks)
Use the data sheet from page 106 of the textbook to complete the
report.
(1) Take-off time: ...........
(2) Date: ...........
(3) Location: ...........
(4) Flight leader: ...........
(5) Problem reported: ...........
report.
(1) Take-off time: ...........
(2) Date: ...........
(3) Location: ...........
(4) Flight leader: ...........
(5) Problem reported: ...........
(1) 2.10 p.m. (typical answer)
(2) 5 December 1945
(3) over the Atlantic Ocean / within the Bermuda Triangle
(4) Lieutenant Charles Taylor
(5) compasses had stopped working; the flight was lost; radio contact lost
5 marks — accept any details consistent with the famous Flight 19 incident.
(2) 5 December 1945
(3) over the Atlantic Ocean / within the Bermuda Triangle
(4) Lieutenant Charles Taylor
(5) compasses had stopped working; the flight was lost; radio contact lost
5 marks — accept any details consistent with the famous Flight 19 incident.
Task 4 — Spot the enigma: who is who? (5 marks)
(5 marks)
In the role-play of Activity 1 (above), each name is a homophone.
Write what the operator hears.
(1) Annie Wun → ...........
(2) Sam Wun → ...........
(3) Noe Wun → ...........
(4) Avery Wun → ...........
(5) Saw Ree → ...........
Write what the operator hears.
(1) Annie Wun → ...........
(2) Sam Wun → ...........
(3) Noe Wun → ...........
(4) Avery Wun → ...........
(5) Saw Ree → ...........
(1) anyone
(2) someone
(3) no one
(4) everyone
(5) sorry
5 marks.
(2) someone
(3) no one
(4) everyone
(5) sorry
5 marks.
Task 5 — Comprehension: the silent village (5 marks)
(5 marks)
Read the model story-opening (above) and answer the questions.
(1) At what time of day did they reach the village?
(2) Name THREE clues that the village had been deserted.
(3) Find a phrase that hints at very recent activity.
(4) What was hanging from the temple flagpole?
(5) Underline the correct answer. The story makes you feel ...........
(a) bored. (b) curious / uneasy. (c) happy.
(1) At what time of day did they reach the village?
(2) Name THREE clues that the village had been deserted.
(3) Find a phrase that hints at very recent activity.
(4) What was hanging from the temple flagpole?
(5) Underline the correct answer. The story makes you feel ...........
(a) bored. (b) curious / uneasy. (c) happy.
(1) Just before sunset.
(2) Boarded-up shops · full wells · no dogs · three goats in the middle of the road.
(3) "a kettle stood on the dead ashes of a fire, still warm to the touch."
(4) A single broken kite.
(5) (b) curious / uneasy.
5 marks.
(2) Boarded-up shops · full wells · no dogs · three goats in the middle of the road.
(3) "a kettle stood on the dead ashes of a fire, still warm to the touch."
(4) A single broken kite.
(5) (b) curious / uneasy.
5 marks.
Task 6 — Notice: a mystery-writing competition (40–50 words)
(5 marks)
Write a notice inviting students to enter a mystery-writing
competition organised by the English Literary Association. Use 40–50 words.
competition organised by the English Literary Association. Use 40–50 words.
ENGLISH LITERARY ASSOCIATION — MYSTERY-WRITING COMPETITION
Grade 9 to 11 students are invited to write a 500-word mystery story for
our annual competition. Stories must be hand-written and submitted to the
Class Teacher by Friday, 1st May 2027. The winning entry will be published
in the school magazine.
— Secretary.
47 words. 5 marks.
Grade 9 to 11 students are invited to write a 500-word mystery story for
our annual competition. Stories must be hand-written and submitted to the
Class Teacher by Friday, 1st May 2027. The winning entry will be published
in the school magazine.
— Secretary.
47 words. 5 marks.
Task 7 — Short paragraph (50–60 words)
(5 marks)
Write a paragraph on ONE of the following. Use about 50–60 words.
(a) A strange thing that happened to me
(b) The mystery I want solved
(c) My favourite enigma story
(a) A strange thing that happened to me
(b) The mystery I want solved
(c) My favourite enigma story
MODEL — The mystery I want solved (60 words)
The mystery I most want solved is what really happened to Flight 19 in
1945. Five US Navy bombers vanished over the Bermuda Triangle on a clear
December afternoon. Their radios kept working for two hours and then went
silent — and not one wing was ever found. Until someone proves otherwise,
I will keep wondering.
5 marks.
The mystery I most want solved is what really happened to Flight 19 in
1945. Five US Navy bombers vanished over the Bermuda Triangle on a clear
December afternoon. Their radios kept working for two hours and then went
silent — and not one wing was ever found. Until someone proves otherwise,
I will keep wondering.
5 marks.
Task 8 — Mystery letter / data description (~100 words, 10 marks)
(10 marks)
Answer (a) OR (b). Use about 100 words.
(a) Write a letter to a friend describing a strange or unexplained
incident you witnessed.
(b) Write a 100-word description of the Bermuda Triangle.
(a) Write a letter to a friend describing a strange or unexplained
incident you witnessed.
(b) Write a 100-word description of the Bermuda Triangle.
(b) MODEL — The Bermuda Triangle (108 words)
The Bermuda Triangle is a roughly triangular stretch of the Atlantic Ocean
bordered by the islands of Bermuda, Puerto Rico and the southern tip of
Florida — an area of around half a million square miles. Over the past
century, several aeroplanes and ships have disappeared inside its
boundaries, the most famous being the 1945 disappearance of Flight 19.
Scientists offer explanations ranging from magnetic anomalies to methane
gas eruptions, but no single theory has been proven. Recent statistics
show the area is no more dangerous than any other busy shipping route.
Still, it remains one of the world's favourite enigmas.
10 marks.
The Bermuda Triangle is a roughly triangular stretch of the Atlantic Ocean
bordered by the islands of Bermuda, Puerto Rico and the southern tip of
Florida — an area of around half a million square miles. Over the past
century, several aeroplanes and ships have disappeared inside its
boundaries, the most famous being the 1945 disappearance of Flight 19.
Scientists offer explanations ranging from magnetic anomalies to methane
gas eruptions, but no single theory has been proven. Recent statistics
show the area is no more dangerous than any other busy shipping route.
Still, it remains one of the world's favourite enigmas.
10 marks.
Task 9 — Story / article (~200 words, 15 marks)
(15 marks)
Write on ONE of the following. Use about 200 words.
(a) Write a story that begins: 'As I approached the deserted house at the
end of the road I saw...'
(b) An article: 'The greatest unsolved mystery in the world'.
(c) A speech on 'Why we love a good mystery'.
(a) Write a story that begins: 'As I approached the deserted house at the
end of the road I saw...'
(b) An article: 'The greatest unsolved mystery in the world'.
(c) A speech on 'Why we love a good mystery'.
(a) MODEL — Story (218 words)
As I approached the deserted house at the end of the road I saw a curtain
move on the upstairs window. There was no wind that night. I told myself
it was a stray cat, and I almost believed me.
The gate hung open. Tall, wet grass slapped my legs as I walked up the
path. The brass knocker was still warm under my fingertips, as though
someone had recently used it. I knocked. Nobody answered. I knocked again,
harder. The door swung inwards by itself.
A hall ran the length of the house, and at the far end a single oil lamp
stood on a dust-free table. Beside the lamp lay a child's drawing — a
family of stick figures under a kite, signed at the bottom in a careful
adult hand: 'For my son, on his sixth birthday, 13.04.1965.' Today's date.
The sixtieth anniversary, to the day.
I looked up. The curtain on the upstairs window was moving again, and now
I could hear something — soft, distant, unmistakably a child laughing.
I took a step back. I would tell my friends in the morning what I had
seen. But I knew, even then, that nobody who has heard that laugh ever
tells.
15 marks — strong hook, sensory detail, fresh clue (drawing dated to the
day), classic mystery close that hands the puzzle to the reader.
As I approached the deserted house at the end of the road I saw a curtain
move on the upstairs window. There was no wind that night. I told myself
it was a stray cat, and I almost believed me.
The gate hung open. Tall, wet grass slapped my legs as I walked up the
path. The brass knocker was still warm under my fingertips, as though
someone had recently used it. I knocked. Nobody answered. I knocked again,
harder. The door swung inwards by itself.
A hall ran the length of the house, and at the far end a single oil lamp
stood on a dust-free table. Beside the lamp lay a child's drawing — a
family of stick figures under a kite, signed at the bottom in a careful
adult hand: 'For my son, on his sixth birthday, 13.04.1965.' Today's date.
The sixtieth anniversary, to the day.
I looked up. The curtain on the upstairs window was moving again, and now
I could hear something — soft, distant, unmistakably a child laughing.
I took a step back. I would tell my friends in the morning what I had
seen. But I knew, even then, that nobody who has heard that laugh ever
tells.
15 marks — strong hook, sensory detail, fresh clue (drawing dated to the
day), classic mystery close that hands the puzzle to the reader.