Phrasal verbs: investigating (crimes and mysteries)

With this ESL worksheet, students will learn phrasal verbs used when talking about investigating something (crimes or mysteries). They will learn and practise 14 phrasal verbs and will discuss crime series, cases that have gained a lot of attention in the media, unsolved cases, and conspiracy theories. You might also like the worksheet “Phrasal verbs: crime”.
The first 8 phrasal verbs (e.g. (alibi) checks out, narrow down, turn up, piece together, look into) are introduced through a dialogue between 2 detectives discussing a case. Students match the phrasal verbs to their definitions. To practise, they paraphrase 5 sentences, using a suitable phrasal verb.
Next, the rest of the phrasal verbs (e.g., track down, dig into, cover up, close in on) are introduced through 6 short dialogues.
Then, students read about 3 famous unsolved cases (Jack the Ripper, the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, and the Black Dhalia murder), and complete the texts with phrasal verbs from this lesson. Then, they discuss their theories about these cases, as well as discussion questions related to crime series.
Next, students are asked to think of a case they have followed closely (either because it received a lot of media attention, or because they watched a documentary about it), and to discuss things related to the case, using phrasal verbs from this lesson. Finally, students are asked to share their theories about 3 conspiracy theories.
For more speaking practice, and to review these phrasal verbs related to investigating crimes and mysteries, you can use the conversation cards.