Step Four B2.1
S U M M A R Y- B A S E D
A C T I V I T I E S
Bram Stoker
Dracula
Summary-based Activities
by Kenneth Brodey
© 2009 Black Cat Publishing
S U M M A R Y- B A S E D
A C T I V I T I E S
Dracula Chapters 1-4
1 Scrambled word cloze
Read the summary of Chapters 1-4 below.
Choose one of the words from the box to write in each space. The first
one has been done as an example.
S U M M A R Y- B A S E D
A C T I V I T I E S
2 Scrambled word cloze with distractors (i)
Read the summary of Chapters 1-4 below.
Choose one of the words from the box to write in each space. There
are six words you do not need to use. The first one has been done as
an example.
actually what transfusions went mental got
like met pale so managed on but
on got actually transfusions like so managed but
as met knew truly mental went at mind could
pale what
went
A young solicitor named Jonathan Harker (0) …..............……..
to the
castle of Count Dracula. He left his hotel (1) …..............…….. the eve of
St George’s day to travel to Borgo Pass. There he (2) …..............…….. on
a coach sent by the Count. His journey was (3) …..............…….. a
nightmare. Once he arrived he (4) …..............…….. the Count who had
pointed ears and teeth. At first the count was very polite
(5) …..............…….. soon Jonathan realised that he was a prisoner and
that the Count was (6) …..............…….. a vampire. The Count wanted to
go to London (7) …..............…….. he could feed on the people and create
more demons. Jonathan (8) …..............…….. to escape, and the Count
arrived in England by ship. The Count began his invasion of England by
dominating a (9) …..............…….. patient and by feeding on Lucy
Westenra. Lucy became (10) …..............…….. and her fiancé sent for Dr
Seward. But Dr Seward could not understand (11) …..............…….. was
wrong so he sent for his teacher, Dr Van Helsing. Van Helsing tried to
save her with blood (12) …..............…….. , but her condition continued
to get worse.
went
A young solicitor named Jonathan Harker (0) …..............……..
to the
castle of Count Dracula. He left his hotel (1) …..............…….. the eve of
St George’s day to travel to Borgo Pass. There he (2) …..............…….. on
a coach sent by the Count. His journey was (3) …..............…….. a
nightmare. Once he arrived he (4) …..............…….. the Count who had
pointed ears and teeth. At first the count was very polite (5)
…..............…….. soon Jonathan realised that he was a prisoner and that
the Count was (6) …..............…….. a vampire. The Count wanted to go
to London (7) …..............…….. he could feed on the people and create
more demons. Jonathan (8) …..............…….. to escape, and the Count
arrived in England by ship. The Count began his invasion of England by
dominating a (9) …..............…….. patient and by feeding on Lucy
Westenra. Lucy became (10) …..............…….. and her fiancé sent for Dr
Seward. But Dr Seward could not understand (11) …..............…….. was
wrong so he sent for his teacher, Dr Van Helsing. Van Helsing tried to
save her with blood (12) …..............…….. , but her condition continued
to get worse.
© 2009 Black Cat Publishing
1
© 2009 Black Cat Publishing
2
S U M M A R Y- B A S E D
A C T I V I T I E S
3 Scrambled word cloze with distractors (ii)
Read the summary of Chapters 1-4 below.
Choose one of the words from the box to write in each space. There
are twelve words you do not need to use. The first one has been done
as an example.
on and went mind how knew as met but pale truly
like light got managed went transfusions so ctually at
could mental what presents and
went
A young solicitor named Jonathan Harker (0) …..............……..
to the
castle of Count Dracula. He left his hotel (1) …..............…….. the eve of
St George’s day to travel to Borgo Pass. There he (2) …..............…….. on
a coach sent by the Count. His journey was (3) …..............…….. a
nightmare. Once he arrived he (4) …..............…….. the Count who had
pointed ears and teeth. At first the count was very polite (5)
…..............…….. soon Jonathan realised that he was a prisoner and that
the Count was (6) …..............…….. a vampire. The Count wanted to go
to London (7) …..............…….. he could feed on the people and create
more demons. Jonathan (8) …..............…….. to escape, and the Count
arrived in England by ship. The Count began his invasion of England by
dominating a (9) …..............…….. patient and by feeding on Lucy
Westenra. Lucy became (10) …..............…….. and her fiancé sent for Dr
Seward. But Dr Seward could not understand (11) …..............…….. was
wrong so he sent for his teacher, Dr Van Helsing. Van Helsing tried to
save her with blood (12) …..............…….. , but her condition continued
to get worse.
© 2009 Black Cat Publishing
3
S U M M A R Y- B A S E D
A C T I V I T I E S
4 Multiple choice cloze
Read the summary of Chapters 1-4 below.
Choose the best word (A, B, C or D) for each space. The first one has
been done as an example.
D
A young solicitor named Jonathan Harker (0) …..............……..
to the
castle of Count Dracula. He left his hotel (1) …..............…….. the eve of
St George’s day to travel to Borgo Pass. There he (2) …..............…….. on
a coach sent by the Count. His journey was (3) …..............…….. a
nightmare. Once he arrived he (4) …..............…….. the Count who had
pointed ears and teeth. At first the count was very polite (5)
…..............…….. soon Jonathan realised that he was a prisoner and that
the Count was (6) …..............…….. a vampire. The Count wanted to go
to London (7) …..............…….. he could feed on the people and create
more demons. Jonathan (8) …..............…….. to escape, and the Count
arrived in England by ship. The Count began his invasion of England by
dominating a (9) …..............…….. patient and by feeding on Lucy
Westenra. Lucy became (10) …..............…….. and her fiancé sent for Dr
Seward. But Dr Seward could not understand (11) …..............…….. was
wrong so he sent for his teacher, Dr Van Helsing. Van Helsing tried to
save her with blood (12) …..............…….. , but her condition continued
to get worse.
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
A arrived
A on
A went
A as
A knew
A however
A actually
A because
A could
A psychological
A pale
A which
A donations
B came
B at
B got
B same
B met
B though
B truly
B since
B was
B mental
B light
B how
B transportations
C got
C to
C put
C similar
C faced
C although
C much
C and
C able
C cerebral
C fair
C what
C transfusions
D went
D by
D caught
D like
D got to know
D but
D very
D so
D managed
D strange
D dull
D because
D presents
© 2009 Black Cat Publishing
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S U M M A R Y- B A S E D
A C T I V I T I E S
5 Open Cloze
Complete the summary of Chapters 1-4 below.
Write ONE word for each space. The first one has been done as an
example.
went
A young solicitor named Jonathan Harker (0) …..............……..
to the
castle of Count Dracula. He left his hotel (1) …..............…….. the eve of
St George’s day to travel to Borgo Pass. There he (2) …..............…….. on
a coach sent by the Count. His journey was (3) …..............…….. a
nightmare. Once he arrived he (4) …..............…….. the Count who had
pointed ears and teeth. At first the count was very polite
(5) …..............…….. soon Jonathan realized that he was a prisoner and
that the Count was (6) …..............…….. a vampire. The Count wanted to
go to London (7) …..............…….. he could feed on the people and create
more demons. Jonathan (8) …..............…….. to escape, and the Count
arrived in England by ship. The Count began his invasion of England by
dominating a (9) …..............…….. patient and by feeding on Lucy
Westenra. Lucy became (10) …..............…….. and her fiancé sent for Dr
Seward. But Dr Seward could not understand (11) …..............…….. was
wrong so he sent for his teacher, Dr Van Helsing. Van Helsing tried to
save her with blood (12) …..............…….. , but her condition continued
to get worse.
6 Put the sentences in order
The sentences A-L of the summary of Chapters 1-4 are in the wrong
order. Put them in the right order and number them 1-12.
A
The Count wanted to go to London so he could feed on the
people and create more demons.
B
Van Helsing tried to save her with blood transfusions, but her
condition continued to get worse.
C
His journey was like a nightmare.
D
The Count began his invasion of England by dominating a
mental patient and by feeding on Lucy Westenra.
E
Once he arrived he met the Count who had pointed ears and teeth.
© 2009 Black Cat Publishing
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A C T I V I T I E S
F
Lucy became pale and her fiancé sent for Dr Seward.
G
A young solicitor named Jonathan Harker went to the castle of
Count Dracula.
H
At first the count was very polite but soon Jonathan realized
that he was a prisoner and that the Count was actually a
vampire.
I
But Dr Seward could not understand what was wrong so he
sent for his teacher, Dr Van Helsing.
J
He left his hotel on the eve of St. George’s day to travel to
Borgo Pass.
K
There he got on a coach sent by the Count.
L
Jonathan managed to escape, and the Count arrived in England
byship.
7 Correct the mistakes!
This is an oral activity, so do not give the students any photocopies.
Tell them you are going to read a summary, but with some mistakes.
When they hear a mistake they should correct it. In the summary
below there are 10 mistakes to read out, all written in italics. As a
quick reminder to you, the correct version is given in brackets.
A young doctor (solicitor) named Jonathan Harker went to the castle of
Count Dracula. He left his hotel on the eve of Christmas Day (St
George’s day) to travel to Borgo Pass. There he got on a horse (coach)
sent by the Count. His journey was like a holiday (nightmare). Once he
arrived he met the Count who had red (pointed) ears and teeth. At first
the count was very funny (polite) but soon Jonathan realized that he
was a guest (prisoner) and that the Count was actually a vampire. The
Count wanted to go to New York (London) so he could feed on the
people and create more demons. Jonathan managed to escape, and the
Count arrived in England by train (ship). The Count began his invasion
of Germany (England) by dominating a mental patient and by feeding
on Lucy Westenra. Lucy became pale and her uncle (fiancé) sent for Dr
Seward. But Dr Seward could not understand what was wrong so he
sent for his father (teacher), Dr Van Helsing. Van Helsing tried to save
© 2009 Black Cat Publishing
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S U M M A R Y- B A S E D
A C T I V I T I E S
her with blood transfusions, but her condition continued to get worse.
8 Rub out
On the board / the interactive whiteboard, copy a short paragraph
from the summary.
Gradually, rub out individual words and even two- and three-word
phrases. Begin by rubbing out some of the important content words.
After each time you rub out some words get the whole class to read
out the text, supplying the missing words from their memory.
Eventually, when all the words on the board have been rubbed out, the
class will – amazingly! – remember all the text.
9 Dictogloss
Sit the students in groups of two to five. Tell them that you are going
to read out a summary twice, and that they may note down key words
or short phrases. Read the text once at normal speed, pause for a
minute, then read it again.
Tell the students to work together in their groups and use their notes
to write a text which is grammatically and lexically correct but which
doesn’t have to be the same as the original: the aim of their writing is
to produce a correct text, not to show they have perfect memories!
Then students compare their written texts. Groups should try to point
out any errors in the texts of other groups.
S U M M A R Y- B A S E D
A C T I V I T I E S
Next, ask students to cut another 15 words of the summary, and
proceed as above.
11 Build it up
Put the students in groups of two to five. Make sure that each group
has a copy of the summary and a red pen or access to computer. Tell
them that they must add two details, which they must choose
themselves, to the summary. Tell them that the details they add can
be words, phrases or even sentences. Tell them they shouldn’t write
fewer than five words, and that there is no upper limit, but they
probably won’t need more than about 25 words.
When they have finished, they should compare their versions. They
should decide which are the most interesting added details, and why.
12 Rewrite it
Tell the students to rewrite the summary changing some of the
information. They should use their imagination to add details – which
can be words, phrases or sentences – and change some of the words
and phrases that are already there.
Finally, show or give the students the original text; ask them to
identify any differences with their own texts, and ask them if they
think the differences are important.
10 Cut it down
Put the students in groups of two to five. Make sure that each group
has a copy of the summary and a red pen/highlighter or access to
computer. Tell them that they must cut 15 words from the summary:
their shortened version must still be grammatically correct. They can
change punctuation, but they mustn’t add any words.
When they have finished, they should compare their shortened
versions. They should decide which are the best cuts, and why.
© 2009 Black Cat Publishing
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© 2009 Black Cat Publishing
8
S U M M A R Y- B A S E D
A C T I V I T I E S
S U M M A R Y- B A S E D
A C T I V I T I E S
SUMMARY
A young solicitor named Jonathan Harker went to the castle of Count
Dracula. He left his hotel on the eve of St George’s day to travel to
Borgo Pass. There he got on a coach sent by the Count. His journey
was like a nightmare. Once he arrived he met the Count who had
pointed ears and teeth. At first the count was very polite but soon
Jonathan realized that he was a prisoner and that the Count was
actually a vampire. The Count wanted to go to London so he could feed
on the people and create more demons. Jonathan managed to escape,
and the Count arrived in England by ship. The Count began his
invasion of England by dominating a mental patient and by feeding on
Lucy Westenra. Lucy became pale and her fiancé sent for Dr Seward.
But Dr Seward could not understand what was wrong so he sent for
his teacher, Dr Van Helsing. Van Helsing tried to save her with blood
transfusions, but her condition continued to get worse.
KEY
1, 2, 3, 5: 1 on; 2 got; 3 like; 4 met; 5 but; 6 actually; 7 so; 8 managed;
9 mental; 10 pale; 11 what; 12 transfusions
4: 1 A; 2 B; 3 D; 4 B; 5 D; 6 A; 7 D; 8 D; 9 B; 10 A; 11 C; 12 C
6: 1 G; 2 J; 3 K; 4 C; 5 E; 6 H; 7 A; 8 L; 9 D; 10 F; 11 I; 12 B
© 2009 Black Cat Publishing
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© 2009 Black Cat Publishing
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S U M M A R Y- B A S E D
A C T I V I T I E S
Dracula Chapters 5-8
1 Scrambled word cloze
Read the summary of Chapters 5-8 below.
Choose one of the words from the box to write in each space. The first
one has been done as an example.
S U M M A R Y- B A S E D
A C T I V I T I E S
2 Scrambled word cloze with distractors (i)
Read the summary of Chapters 5-8 below.
Choose one of the words from the box to write in each space. There
are six words you do not need to use. The first one has been done as
an example.
covered by had realised became sailing read
through drive met tricked carrying to
sailing tricked moving to push carrying read
through drive covered wrapped by on had
realised got met became to
became a vampire. Van Helsing convinced
After Lucy died she (0) …..............……..
Arthur that he had to (1) …..............…….. a stake through Lucy’s heart to
set her free. After that, the friends (2) …..............…….. to plan their fight.
One evening they heard Renfield scream. They found him (3)
…..............…….. with blood. He (4) …..............…….. fought the Count to
protect Mina. The men then went to Mina and found her drinking the
Count’s blood. Mina (5) …..............…….. that if Van Helsing hypnotised
her, he could (6) …..............…….. the Count’s mind. By doing this they
knew that the Count was on a ship (7) …..............…….. to Varna. But the
Count (8) …..............…….. them and went to the port of Galatz. The
Count, they discovered, was travelling (9) …..............…….. river to his
castle. They divided up in three groups. Mina and Van Helsing travelled
by train and then by carriage to the castle. That night the vampire
women came and called (10) …..............…….. Mina. The next morning Van
Helsing went into the castle and killed the three vampire women.
Then Mina called him because she saw the wagon (11) …..............…….. the
Count. Their friends were on horseback just behind it. The Count’s
men tried to protect him, but Jonathan threw the box to the ground.
Then, just before sunset, Jonathan cut the Count’s throat and Quincey
drove his knife (12) …..............…….. his heart. The Count was destroyed.
became a vampire. Van Helsing convinced
After Lucy died she (0) …..............……..
Arthur that he had to (1) …..............…….. a stake through Lucy’s heart to
set her free. After that, the friends (2) …..............…….. to plan their fight.
One evening they heard Renfield scream. They found him
(3) …..............…….. with blood. He (4) …..............…….. fought the Count to
protect Mina. The men then went to Mina and found her drinking the
Count’s blood. Mina (5) …..............…….. that if Van Helsing hypnotised
her, he could (6) …..............…….. the Count’s mind. By doing this they
knew that the Count was on a ship (7) …..............…….. to Varna. But the
Count (8) …..............…….. them and went to the port of Galatz. The
Count, they discovered, was travelling (9) …..............…….. river to his
castle. They divided up in three groups. Mina and Van Helsing travelled
by train and then by carriage to the castle. That night the vampire
women came and called (10) …..............…….. Mina. The next morning Van
Helsing went into the castle and killed the three vampire women.
Then Mina called him because she saw the wagon (11) …..............…….. the
Count. Their friends were on horseback just behind it. The Count’s
men tried to protect him, but Jonathan threw the box to the ground.
Then, just before sunset, Jonathan cut the Count’s throat and Quincey
drove his knife (12) …..............…….. his heart. The Count was destroyed.
© 2009 Black Cat Publishing
11
© 2009 Black Cat Publishing
12
S U M M A R Y- B A S E D
A C T I V I T I E S
3 Scrambled word cloze with distractors (ii)
Read the summary of Chapters 5-8 below.
Choose one of the words from the box to write in each space. There
are twelve words you do not need to use. The first one has been done
as an example.
moving understand to drive realised carrying got
through holding to push wrapped by on covered
did became met collect tricked sailing
trapped read at had
became a vampire. Van Helsing convinced
After Lucy died she (0) …..............……..
Arthur that he had to (1) …..............…….. a stake through Lucy’s heart to
set her free. After that, the friends (2) …..............…….. to plan their fight.
One evening they heard Renfield scream. They found him
(3) …..............…….. with blood. He (4) …..............…….. fought the Count to
protect Mina. The men then went to Mina and found her drinking the
Count’s blood. Mina (5) …..............…….. that if Van Helsing hypnotised
her, he could (6) …..............…….. the Count’s mind. By doing this they
knew that the Count was on a ship (7)…..............…….. to Varna. But the
Count (8) …..............…….. them and went to the port of Galatz. The
Count, they discovered, was travelling (9) …..............…….. river to his
castle. They divided up in three groups. Mina and Van Helsing travelled
by train and then by carriage to the castle. That night the vampire
women came and called (10) …..............…….. Mina. The next morning Van
Helsing went into the castle and killed the three vampire women.
Then Mina called him because she saw the wagon (11) …..............…….. the
Count. Their friends were on horseback just behind it. The Count’s
men tried to protect him, but Jonathan threw the box to the ground.
Then, just before sunset, Jonathan cut the Count’s throat and Quincey
drove his knife (12) …..............…….. his heart. The Count was destroyed.
© 2009 Black Cat Publishing
13
S U M M A R Y- B A S E D
A C T I V I T I E S
4 Multiple choice cloze
Read the summary of Chapters 5-8 below. Choose the best word (A, B,
C or D) for each space. The first one has been done as an example.
C a vampire. Van Helsing convinced
After Lucy died she (0) …..............
Arthur that he had to (1) ….............. a stake through Lucy’s heart to set
her free. After that, the friends (2) ….............. to plan their fight. One
evening they heard Renfield scream. They found him (3) ….............. with
blood. He had fought the Count to protect Mina. The men then went to
Mina and found her drinking the Count’s blood. Mina (4) ….............. that
if Van Helsing hypnotised her, he could
(5) ….............. the Count’s mind. By doing this they knew that the Count
was on a ship sailing to Varna. But the Count (6) ….............. them and
went to the port of Galatz. The Count, they discovered, was travelling
(7) ….............. river to his castle. They divided up in three groups. Mina
and Van Helsing travelled by train and then by carriage to the castle.
That night the vampire women came and called
(8) ….............. Mina. The next morning Van Helsing went into the castle
and killed the three vampire women. Then Mina called him because
she saw the wagon (9) ….............. the Count. Their friends were on
horseback just behind it. The Count’s men tried to protect him, but
Jonathan threw the box to the ground. Then Jonathan cut the Count’s
throat and Quincey drove his knife (10) ….............. his heart. The Count
was destroyed.
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
A went
A push
A met
A wrapped
A took
A look
A tricked
A on
A at
A carrying
A to
B turned
B place
B collected
B clothed
B realised
B see
B trapped
B by
B for
B holding
B at
C became
C hit
C pulled
C dressed
C recognised
C read
C mistook
C at
C to
C taking
C on
D grew
D drive
D arrived
D covered
D informed
D understand
D confused
D through
D in
D bringing
D through
© 2009 Black Cat Publishing
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5 Open cloze
Complete the summary of Chapters 5-8 below.
Write ONE word for each space. The first one, has been done as an
example.
After Lucy died she (0) …..............…….. a vampire. Van Helsing convinced
Arthur that he had to (1) …..............…….. a stake through Lucy’s heart to
set her free. After that, the friends (2) …..............…….. to plan their fight.
One evening they heard Renfield scream. They found him
(3) …..............…….. with blood. He (4) …..............…….. fought the Count to
protect Mina. The men then went to Mina and found her drinking the
Count’s blood. Mina (5) …..............…….. that if Van Helsing hypnotised
her, he could (6) …..............…….. the Count’s mind. By doing this they
knew that the Count was on a ship (7)…..............…….. to Varna. But the
Count (8) …..............…….. them and went to the port of Galatz. The
Count, they discovered, was travelling (9) …..............…….. river to his
castle. They divided up in three groups. Mina and Van Helsing travelled
by train and then by carriage to the castle. That night the vampire
women came and called (10) …..............…….. Mina. The next morning Van
Helsing went into the castle and killed the three vampire women.
Then Mina called him because she saw the wagon (11) …..............…….. the
Count. Their friends were on horseback just behind it. The Count’s
men tried to protect him, but Jonathan threw the box to the ground.
Then, just before sunset, Jonathan cut the Count’s throat and Quincey
drove his knife (12) …..............…….. his heart. The Count was destroyed.
© 2009 Black Cat Publishing
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6 Put the sentences in order
The sentences A-O of the summary of Chapters 5-8 are in the wrong
order. Put them in the right order and number them 1-12
A
The men found Mina drinking the Count’s blood.
B
The next morning Van Helsing went into the castle and killed
the three vampire women.
C
They found him covered with blood. He had fought the Count
to protect Mina.
D
Then Mina called him because she saw the wagon carrying the
Count. Their friends were on horseback just behind it.
E
Mina and Van Helsing travelled by train and by carriage to the
castle. That night the vampire women came and called to Mina.
F
After that, the friends met to plan their fight. One evening they
heard Renfield scream.
G
The Count’s men tried to protect him, but Jonathan threw the
box to the ground.
H
The Count, they discovered, was travelling by river to his
castle. They divided up in three groups.
I
After Lucy died she became a vampire. Van Helsing convinced
Arthur that he had to drive a stake through Lucy’s heart to set
her free.
J
Mina realized that if Van Helsing hypnotised her, he could read
the Count’s mind.
K
Then Jonathan cut the Count’s throat and Quincey drove his
knife through his heart. The Count was destroyed.
L
By doing this they knew that the Count was on a ship sailing to
Varna. But the Count tricked them and went to the port of
Galatz.
© 2009 Black Cat Publishing
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7 Correct the mistakes!
This is an oral activity, so do not give the students any photocopies.
Tell them you are going to read a summary, but with some mistakes.
When they hear a mistake they should correct it. In the summary
below there are 10 mistakes to read out, all written in italics. As a
quick reminder to you, the correct version is given in brackets.
After Mina (Lucy) died she became a vampire. Van Helsing convinced
Arthur that he had to drive a stake through Lucy’s foot (heart) to set her
free. After that, the friends met to plan their fight. One evening they
heard Renfield sing (scream). They found him covered with blood. He
had fought the rats (Count) to protect Mina. The men then went to Mina
and found her drinking the Count’s blood. Mina realized that if Van
Helsing hypnotised her, he could read the Count’s letters (mind). By
doing this they knew that Renfield (the Count) was on a ship sailing to
Varna. But the Count tricked them and went to the port of Galatz. The
Count, they discovered, was travelling by river to his castle. They divided
up in three groups. Mina and Jonathan (Van Helsing) travelled by train
and then by carriage to the castle. That night the vampire doctors
(women) came and called to Mina. The next morning Van Helsing went
into the castle and killed the three flies (vampire women). Then Mina
called him because she saw the train (wagon) carrying the Count. Their
friends were on horseback just behind it. The Count’s men tried to
protect him, but Jonathan threw the box to the ground. Then, just
before sunrise (sunset), Jonathan cut the Count’s jacket (throat) and
Quincey drove his knife through his heart. The Count was destroyed.
S U M M A R Y- B A S E D
A C T I V I T I E S
9 Dictogloss
Sit the students in groups of two to five. Tell them that you are going
to read out a summary twice, and that they may note down key words
or short phrases. Read the text once at normal speed, pause for a
minute, then read it again.
Tell the students to work together in their groups and use their notes
to write a text which is grammatically and lexically correct but which
doesn’t have to be the same as the original: the aim of their writing is
to produce a correct text, not to show they have perfect memories!
Then students compare their written texts. Groups should try to point
out any errors in the texts of other groups.
Finally, show or give the students the original text; ask them to
identify any differences with their own texts, and ask them if they
think the differences are important.
10 Cut it down
Put the students in groups of two to five. Make sure that each group
has a copy of the summary and a red pen/highlighter or access to
computer. Tell them that they must cut 15 words from the summary:
their shortened version must still be grammatically correct. They can
change punctuation, but they mustn’t add any words.
When they have finished, they should compare their shortened
versions. They should decide which are the best cuts, and why.
Next, ask students to cut another 15 words of the summary, and
proceed as above.
8 Rub out
On the board / the interactive whiteboard, copy a short paragraph
from the summary.
Gradually, rub out individual words and even two- and three-word
phrases. Begin by rubbing out some of the important content words.
After each time you rub out some words get the whole class to read
out the text, supplying the missing words from their memory.
Eventually, when all the words on the board have been rubbed out, the
class will – amazingly! – remember all the text.
© 2009 Black Cat Publishing
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© 2009 Black Cat Publishing
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S U M M A R Y- B A S E D
A C T I V I T I E S
11 Build it up
Put the students in groups of two to five. Make sure that each group
has a copy of the summary and a red pen or access to computer. Tell
them that they must add two details, which they must choose
themselves, to the summary. Tell them that the details they add can
be words, phrases or even sentences. Tell them they shouldn’t write
fewer than five words, and that there is no upper limit, but they
probably won’t need more than about 25 words.
When they have finished, they should compare their versions. They
should decide which are the most interesting added details, and why.
12 Rewrite it
Tell the students to rewrite the summary changing some of the
information. They should use their imagination to add details – which
can be words, phrases or sentences – and change some of the words
and phrases that are already there.
S U M M A R Y- B A S E D
A C T I V I T I E S
SUMMARY
After Lucy died she became a vampire. Van Helsing convinced Arthur
that he had to drive a stake through Lucy’s heart to set her free. After
that, the friends met to plan their fight. One evening they heard
Renfield scream. They found him covered with blood. He had fought
the Count to protect Mina. The men then went to Mina and found her
drinking the Count’s blood. Mina realised that if Van Helsing hypnotised
her, he could read the Count’s mind. By doing this they knew that the
Count was on a ship sailing to Varna. But the Count tricked them and
went to the port of Galatz. The Count, they discovered, was travelling
by river to his castle. They divided up in three groups. Mina and Van
Helsing travelled by train and then by carriage to the castle. That night
the vampire women came and called to Mina. The next morning Van
Helsing went into the castle and killed the three vampire women. Then
Mina called him because she saw the wagon carrying the Count. Their
friends were on horseback just behind it. The Count’s men tried to
protect him, but Jonathan threw the box to the ground. Then, just
before sunset, Jonathan cut the Count’s throat and Quincey drove his
knife through his heart. The Count was destroyed.
KEY
1, 2, 3, 5: 1 drive; 2 met; 3 covered; 4 had; 5 realised; 6 read; 7 sailing; 8 tricked;
9 by; 10 to; 11 carrying; 12 through
4: 1 D; 2 A; 3 D; 4 B; 5 C; 6 A; 7 B; 8 C; 9 A; 10 D
6: 1 I; 2 F; 3 C; 4 A; 5 J; 6 L; 7 H; 8 E; 9 B; 10 D; 11 G; 12 K
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standards for the activities of ‘Design, production,
distribution and sale of publishing products.’
(certificate no. 04.953)
Editors: Michela Bruzzo, Victoria Bradshaw
© 2009 Black Cat Publishing, an imprint of Cideb Editrice, Genoa,
Canterbury
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