Curated OER
Case of the Missing Cookies
Students imagine they are a detective who has been asked to solve the theft of cookies from a jar in the student cafeteria. Students practice using the steps of the scientific method to solve the crime. Finally, students write a detailed...
Curated OER
Math Maven's Mysteries: Time for a Crime
In these math word problem worksheets, students help solve the mystery 'Time for a Crime.' Students read the story and use the ferry schedule to help track down the thief. Students circle the name of the guilty suspect.
Kenan Fellows
Unit 2: DNA Analysis
Ever wonder how they solve those mysterious murders in TV crime dramas? The second of four units in a Biotechnology series introduces scholars to the many methods of DNA analysis. Pupils create and run their own gel electrophoresis...
EngageNY
Newton’s Law of Cooling, Revisited
Does Newton's Law of Cooling have anything to do with apples? Scholars apply Newton's Law of Cooling to solve problems in the 29th installment of a 35-part module. Now that they have knowledge of logarithms, they can determine the decay...
Curated OER
Problem Based Learning
Students increase problem solving skills. They research computer-related crimes, classifying them into the types of crimes. Students create a crime report. They present a presentation to the class.
Curated OER
Life Science: DNA Whodunit?
Young scholars role play an honorary detective to assist in solving a crime committed. They investigate by a bank robbery and interview eyewitnesses using their Crime Investigation Notebook and clues from an eyewitness account from the...
Curated OER
DNA Fingerprinting
Students discuss DNA Fingerprinting and gel electrophoresis before participating in a crime solving activity. Students simulate their DNA using adding tape and complete the steps necessary to do a gel electrophoresis. They discuss the...
Curated OER
Crime School Investigations
Students solve a mystery at their school. In this classifying instructional activity, students find suspects who committed the crime. Students categorize them into race, sex, and fingerprint type. Students show their results in graphs.
Curated OER
Crimes on the Great Lakes
Students solve simulated crimes using real-time online information. They research data on items such as ship tracking through GPS, lake conditions, and weather systems. They also collect information about invasive plant and animal...
Curated OER
Solve the Case!
Students discover the habits of panthers by solving fictitious crime mysteries. In this animal life lesson, students utilize their research from previous lessons to solve mysteries in a panther activity. Students answer questions about...
Curated OER
CSI Podcasts
Students investigate crime scene scenarios to meet standards. In this crime scene scenario lesson, students gather background information during the first week. They investigate topics such as mammals, genetics, bacteria, or fungi. They...
Curated OER
Flipping Coins: Density as a Characteristic Property
Young scholars explore linear functions in a crime solving context. They collect and analyze data using linear equations, then interpret the slope and intercepts from a linear model.
Curated OER
The Visible Spectroscopy Expert Witness Problem
In a simulated crime science investigation, chemistry or physics sleuths use spectroscopy to analyze solutions. The instructional activity gives learners practice making salicylate solutions, using spectrophotometers, calculating...
Curated OER
Who Took Jerell's iPod? ~ An Organic Compound Mystery
Within the setting of a crime scene investigation, biochemistry beginners analyze organic compounds as a means of determining "Who dunnit." They use a brown paper test for lipids, glucose test strips and iodine to identify carbohydrates,...
Curated OER
DNA Fingerprinting
Students study the process of DNA Fingerprinting and how DNA Fingerprinting is used in solving crimes. They examine a crime scenario that involves collecting DNA Fingerprinting information from blood collected at the crime scene. They...
Curated OER
Fly Forensics
Freddy's Friendly Fruit Market is under attack by fruit flies, and it is up to your aspiring biologists to solve the crime! By reading and analyzing the phenotypes, detectives determine which fly is responsible. This memorable assignment...
Texas Instruments
Vandalism 101
Learners explore logic and use Geometer’s Sketchpad and patterns of logic to solve a puzzle.
Macmillan Education
The Tell-Tale Heart
Rather than who done it, the mystery literary detectives have to solve as they examine the evidence found in Edgar Allan Poe's famous "The Tell-Tale Heart" is why did he do it?
Towson University
Case of the Crown Jewels
Can your biology class crack the Case of the Crown Jewels? Junior forensics experts try their hands at DNA restriction analysis in an exciting lab activity. The activity introduces the concept of restriction analysis, teaches pipetting...
University of Pennsylvania
Using Comic Strips to Teach Multiple Perspectives
Scholars view comics from two different perspectives; one paints the Alfred Dreyfus as innocent, while the other portrays the exact opposite. They solve the mystery of what happened by analyzing the source, working in groups, and...
Curated OER
Engineer a Solution
Pupils start by considering the numerous problems facing New York City during the first half of the 19th century, including fire, epidemics, and crime. In addition, they explore how New York's citizens and government tried to solve these...
101 Questions
Bone Collector
Feel like a detective yet? Pupils first watch a brief clip from the movie The Bone Collector. Using a photo of the suspect's footprint next to a dollar bill, they then use proportions to determine the size of the suspect's shoe.
Curated OER
Detective Fiction: Focus On Critical Thinking
Turn your 6th graders into detectives while growing their love of reading. Using critical thinking skills, they will be able to describe the five basic elements of detective fiction, read detective novels, make predictions, use the...
Curated OER
NUMB3RS Activity: Where’s the Source? Episode: “Undercurrents”
Several real-world problems are posed as a way to learn about vector fields in order to make some predictions after analyzing the data. The main problem comes from the tv show NUMB3RS and is based on solving a crime where a body has...