Murder Mystery: Murder on the Seas of Nogo (ESL Activity)

Foreword: This is a new (July 2024) murder mystery that I have written. Ultimately this will be a paid product. I am currently testing it out and would love your feedback. If you'd like to download it, I would greatly appreciate some feedback in return. Please let me know how it went and what can be improved! Thank you.

- Matthew Barton

Download link (free for now): nogo-island-murder-mystery-v4.docx

Basic Storyline

A tourism industry mogul is murdered by a radical gang member who wishes to prevent the construction of a large tourist resort on their island. In addition to being an engaging speaking activity, this lesson touches on themes of globalization, specifically its effects on traditional cultures.

Note on Class Size: With only six roles, the activity takes about 1 hour. For every additional role you add, the activity takes an additional 15 minutes of class time. If you have a larger group and want to avoid the activity running overlength, consider assigning two students the same role. If you do this, the roles of Lestari and Captain Widodo are suitable. Do not assign two students to be the killer.

Note for Educators: The story’s theme is unconventional, featuring a radical local (indigenous) person as the aggressor and a wealthy outsider as the victim. This diverges from typical Hollywood narratives (e.g. Avatar). The storyline was not devised to convey a political message but to foster critical thinking, avoid tropes, and engage students. The lesson concludes with a discussion section so students can reflect upon the effects of globalization on local cultures. Note that this story and its setting are fictional.

Material Preview (from the above file)

Setting & Plot

Character Cards (more in the downloadable document)

Student Worksheet

Activity Overview

Each student is assigned a character. The first part of the activity has students interview each other in order to get background character information and learn where they were at the time of the murder. The second part asks students to analyze a mysterious note found on board. In the third part, with the aid of camera footage, students learn the actual location of each suspect at the time of the murder. They then try to decide who the prime suspect is and why.

If you don’t have enough students (6) for each essential role, you can play one of the roles yourself or tape the information for one role to the wall and have students read it and record it.

Preparation (30 mins)

1. Print one “Murder on the Seas of Nogo” sheet for each student (pg. 5). You could also project this.
2. Print and cut one Part 1 Character Card for each student (pgs. 6-8).
3. Print and cut one “Mysterious Note” for each student. (pg. 9).
4. Print one “Basri Announcement” to give to Ana Basri (pg. 9).
5. Print one “Security Camera Footage Announcement” to give to Ana Basri (pg 10.)
6. Print one “Raden’s Admission” for epilogue (pg. 10).
7. Print one Interview Worksheet (pg. 11-12) for each student. If you have only six roles, you only need one sheet (pg. 11).

Selecting Roles

• There are six essential roles and three optional roles.
• Ana Basri will read two announcements. Pick a student who can read clearly.
• Raden is the murderer. This should be a stronger student. This student will also read a short admission of guilt at the end of the activity.

Mystery Instructions & Execution

• Distribute the “Murder on the Seas of Nogo” sheet. Read the information together with the class.
• Announce: “You are all passengers aboard the ship. Please read your role cards.” Distribute one character card to each student. Do not let students read others’ cards. Help students understand their role cards as needed. Try to encourage them to memorize the key ideas so they can speak without reading.
• Begin Part 1 (30-40 mins): Direct students towards the interviewing worksheet (pg. 13). Tell them they will interview each other to get background information and figure out what they were doing at around 9 p.m. While interviewing, they should write their notes in the interviewing In the interviews, it’s important that the following information is relayed:
  1. Basri: the information about Serpents of Nogo (S.O.N.)
  2. Brody: that Raden told him that tourists are destroying Nogo island. This is a key point in exposing Raden’s true feelings.
• When finished, begin Part 2 (8-15 mins) by providing Part 2 Basri Announcement note to Detective Basri and have her read it aloud to the group. Next, distribute a copy of the Mysterious Note (pg. 9) to each character. Give them some time to find the clue. (The note’s hidden message can be understood by looking at the capital letters, which read “GETRIDOFKNIGHT”, and is signed “S.O.N.”, alluding to the Serpents of Nogo.)

Once the above clue is understood, students should limit the suspects to Nogo locals (Raden & Widodo). The outburst by Raden to Brody should make Raden the prime suspect. If someone has an accusation to make, encourage them not only to identify the killer, but explain their reasons for suspecting him/her. What is their motive? Also, why are the other passengers less suspicious than the murderer they’ve chosen? Do not confirm their theories until after Part 3 (next).

• Begin Part 3: (5-10 minutes) Have Basri read out the Security Camera Footage Announcement. This should clearly identify Raden as the prime suspect since his alibi is contradicted. (Note that Brody’s alibi is not confirmed by security footage, but he has no motive.) Give students time to reflect, discuss, and make their accusations.
• Once the killer has been identified and the murder explained (see Solution below for full details), have Raden read the Raden’s Admission (of guilt) (pg. 10) announcement. This kickstarts a discussion on the themes of the story. If time permits, have students discuss the questions or pick one to write on for homework.

The Solution

Raden Pratama is the murderer. Raden is a member of the Serpents of Nogo (S.o.N.). The gang opposes tourism on the island. The gang instructs Raden (via the note) to murder Knight, likely because of his plans to build a large tourist resort. Clues suggesting Raden’s guilt:

• Raden’s anti-tourist views expressed to Brody conflict with his employment for Mr. Knight. Why would he work for a tourist company bringing more tourism to Nogo if he thought tourists were destroying the island?
• Raden’s alibi is contradicted by the security camera footage that places him in the kitchen, a place where knives are available
• Raden is from Nogo, the home of the S.o.N.
• Raden has only been with Knight for a week.

Explanations of Other Items

• The sapphires are red herrings. They only serve to add mystique and create a dialogue that exposes Raden’s anti-tourist views.
• The list of passenger names found in Knight’s pockets is a list of potential investors for his tourism resort. Basri has an ‘X’ because she was not interested; Yao has a ‘?’ because she was unsure.

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I hope your students enjoy this activity. It’s brand new (written in July 2024), so if you have any suggestions for improvements, please leave a comment below.

All the best,

Matthew Barton | Creator of EnglishCurrent.com

- Murder on the Seas of Nogo is copyright Matthew Barton. This material may be copied and edited for classroom purposes. Permission is not given to rebrand the activity, redistribute it on another platform, or sell it commercially.