Module 4: Mystery Messages

Summer Seekers

Mystery Messages

Codes and Codebreaking

start

Welcome Codebreakers

Invisible Ink

Idiom Insider

Write a message in invisible ink just like spies did during the First World War!

Guess what the phrases mean, and then play MEMORY to match the idioms to their meaning.

Morse Master

Learn about how Morse Code and the electrical telegraph changed the way people communicated.

GET STARTED!

Idioms

Did you know you speak in code every time you use an Idiom?

Idioms are phrases that don’t mean what the words actually say. ‘Down in the dumps’ means that you're feeling sad - but you have to know the code to understand the hidden meaning! We know the codes to idioms because we learn them as we grow up. But idioms change over time, and new ones form...

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Idiom Guessing GAme

Activity Instructions

Can you guess what these sayings from 150 years ago mean? Click through the game to see if you can guess the hidden meanings!

START!

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Idiom Guessing Game

Under the Rose

Having a crush on someone.

Keep this a secret!

Don't be fooled!

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CORRECT!

Under the Rose means...

Keep this a secret!

The rose was a symbol of silence because of a story from ancient Greece. Lots of dining-halls in the 1800s had roses carved into the cieling. The roses reminded people that the things said during dinner should stay a secret.

Next Idiom

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Idiom Guessing Game

Quite the Cheese

Something yellow.

Something good.

Something that smells funny.

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CORRECT!

Quite the Cheese means...

Something Good.

"Chiz" was a word used in India to mean "thing". People who only spoke English confused "chiz" with "cheese"! The saying started as "Quite the thing". Then, it changed to "quite the chiz". Eventually, people were saying "quite the cheese"!

Next Idiom

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Idiom Guessing Game

Fishy About the Gills

Someone who is too serious.

Someone who is being silly.

Someone who looks drunk.

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CORRECT!

Fishy About the Gillsmeans...

Someone who looks drunk.

Being drunk can pull down the corners of people's mouths, and make their cheeks look square. The square shape reminded people of the gill-shields on fish.

Next Idiom

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Idiom Guessing Game

Footless Stocking Without a Leg

Not important.

A bad idea.

Nothing.

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CORRECT!

Footless Stocking Without a Leg means...

Nothing.

When you have a stocking that has no foot, and also no leg, you're left with nothing at all!

FINISH

IDIOM MeMory GAME

Almost ready to collect your badge!Print off your to complete the activity.

INTERNATIONAL IDIOM MEMORY PAGE

and

HISTORICAL IDIOM MEMORY PAGE

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IDIOM MEMORY GAME

ACTIVITY INSTRUCTIONS

Video Instructions

Written Instructions

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MORSE CODE

Telegraphs

A Telegraph is a message that uses a code instead of words.Electrical telegraphs were machines that used a Morse Code to send messages over long distances.

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MORSE CODE

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During the First World War, many places had just gotten electricity. For the first time, they could use electrical telegraphs. They sent messages across the world using Morse Code.

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MORSE CODE

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Samuel Morse invented American Morse Code in 1836. It uses sounds or flashes of light. Every letter of the alphabet gets its own mix of short "dits" and long "dashes". Each dash is the same as three dits. Each word is seperated by the time of a dash. The timing has to be exact for the message to be decoded!

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Morse MAster

Activity Instructions

1. Print your MORSE CODE DECODING SHEET

2. Grab a pencil!

3. Using your AMERICAN MORSE CODE ALPHABET SHEET watch the video and decode the secret message!

Start!

MORSE MASTER!

Richmond Ontario, DECEMBER 1918

10 cents

vol. cxviii

MORSE CODE ALPHABET SHEET

MORSE CODE DECODING SHEET

To understand Morse Code, you have to have to pay very close attention to the sounds! Each word is seperated by the time of a dash. Every dash is the same as three dits. If the timing of the message is changed even a little bit, the message might not be able to be decoded!

American Morse Code was developed by a man named Samuel Morse. Another morse code system was called International Morse Code. It was developed in Germany. It was officially adopted around the world in 1912. Most of the telegraphs that were sent during the First World War were sent using International Morse Code.

Invisible Ink

During the First World War, people would write secret messages to eachother using lemon juice instead of ink. The lemon juice would dry clear. When the paper was heated up, the message would appear! The people who wrote these secret messages were called “Lemon Juice Spies”.

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SUPER SLEUTH

For this activity, you will need: - Lemon - Cutting Board - Knife - Paper - Q-tips - Small Bowl - Iron, Hairdryer, or Lightbulb

Written Instructions

Badges

Learn about how idioms are like secret codes, and match historical and international idioms to their meanings.

Decode a Morse Code message, exploring the way the electrical telegraph changed communication.

Write and reveal a message in invisible ink just like spies did during the First World War!

Click here to collect your badges!

Try again!

Try again!

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Idiom Guessnig Game

Commander of the Swiss Fleet

Someone who likes being in charge.

Someone who has a silly title they did not have to work for.

Someone who is bad at making choices.

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Idiom Guessnig Game

Commander of the Swiss Fleet

Someone who had a silly title that they did not have to work for. Switzerland is famous for its mountains far away from the sea. It is in the center of Europe, so it did not have a fleet of ships! It was impossible to be the commander of a fleet that did not exist.

Next Idiom

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Idiom Guessing Game

Above Your Hook

Something good is just about to happen.

Something beyond your understanding or reach.

A goal to reach for.

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Idiom Guessing Game

Above Your Hook

Something that is beyond your undertanding or reach. People used to wear hats everywhere. They had to hang up their hats on hooks when they came inside. These hooks were in rows on the wall. The higher hooks would be too high for a short person. When something was above your hook, it meant that you were small.

FINISH