Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) with Powdery Mildew Fungi

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students explore a specific method of identifying fungi, using a written key and an illustrated key. Powdery mildew fungi can be identified to genus by the morphology (appearance) of the sexual stage (cleistothecia).
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Zen and the Art of Murder

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Students describe the importance of citizen involvement in the judicial system. They play the role of a witness to a crime scene by watching the video clip. Students discuss how differing eyewitness accounts can affect a police...
Activity
PBS

Super Sleuths

For Teachers 3rd - 8th Standards
There's no such thing as the perfect crime! Your class of sleuths are ready to investigate the trace evidence at a crime scene and compare it to a list of suspects. They use their investigative skills to record physical properties of the...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Who Done It?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Pick and choose which activities to include in this crime scene investigation. Junior detectives can examine fingerprints, DNA, blood samples, or bone structure.  The plan suggests you have teams solve a mystery, but it does not...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Cardiac Arrest! Using Forensics to Investigate Cardiovascular Anatomy and Function

For Teachers 11th - 12th
Students identify the different parts and functions of the cardiovascular system. In this forensics lesson, students collect and analyze evidence on a fictional crime. They describe different causes of cardiac arrest.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

DNA Fingerprinting

For Teachers 9th
Ninth graders investigate what restriction enzymes do, and explain how a DNA sample can link a suspect to a crime.
Worksheet
Curated OER

License Plate Investigation

For Students 6th
In this license plate investigation worksheet, 6th graders identify and complete 6 different word problems related to auto license plates. First, they complete the chart showing the number of combinations possible based on the license...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Crime Scene Investigation: Hair Analysis Lab

For Teachers 8th - 12th
Learners participate in a hair analysis lab. Using a digital microscope, students compare and contrast hair samples. They determine if the hair samples are human or animal. After completing lab results sheets, learners share their...
Activity
Howard Hughes Medical Institute

DNA Profiling Activity

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Everyone loves a good mystery ... can your class actually solve one? Partnered pupils take on the role of forensic investigators during a three-part activity focusing on DNA evidence processing. Learners discover the methods used to...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Interdisciplinary Applications of Chemistry Through Engineering in Modern Medicine

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students explore the different techniques used in forensic science. In this chemistry lesson, students investigate a fictional crime and identify the culprit. They create a brochure or collage career bulletin.
Worksheet
Curated OER

Who Ate The Cheese?!

For Students 10th - 12th
In this crime scene investigation activity, students simulate DNA sequencing and DNA restriction analysis using paper strips of DNA. Students compare the crime scene DNA to the suspects and determine who is guilty.
Worksheet
Curated OER

Hair Test

For Students 9th - Higher Ed
In this forensic science worksheet, students answer 3 open response questions about hair evidence collected from the crime scene.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Life Science: DNA Whodunit?

For Teachers 2nd - 4th
Students 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...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Science: Criminalistics - A New Look at Crime

For Teachers K - 12th
Students examine the world of forensic science, focusing on fingerprint analysis. In the lesson plan, they implement a method by which fingerprints of class members are categorized and identified. Elementary students study...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

NUMB3RS Activity: Regular Ploygon Centroids

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students investigate geo-profiling.  In this secondary mathematics lesson, students use geo-profiling to determine the most probable location of a criminal.  Students find the centroid of a polygon where the vertices represent...
Unit Plan
Intel

Forensics: Get a Clue

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Although the methods are all scientific, forensic science was started by police officers rather than scientists, who relied on observation and common sense. Young detectives use many tools to solve crimes around the school in a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Blood Typing Investigation

For Teachers 6th - 10th
Learners role-play a scenario in which a car crash patient is inadvertently given the wrong blood type during a transfusion. They perform blood typing and explore the genetics behind ABO and RH blood types using simulated blood.
Lesson Plan
Texas Instruments

Vandalism 101

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Learners explore logic and use Geometer’s Sketchpad and patterns of logic to solve a puzzle.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Murder Mystery

For Teachers 4th - 12th
High schoolers examine how to capture foot prints while they simulate a criminal investigation. They discover how the clues are needed for identifying or eliminating murder suspects.
Lesson Plan
3
3
American Documentary

The Benefits and Drawbacks of Plea Bargains

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
The outcome of 90 percent of criminal cases in the US is determined by plea bargains. Clips from the documentary Better This World create the backdrop for an investigation of the benefits and drawbacks of the plea bargaining process....
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

DNA Detectives

For Teachers 10th - 12th
In order to understand DNA fingerprinting, advanced biology aces divise a crime scenario and analyze three different samples of lambda DNA. This creative lesson plan provides practice with micropipettes, electrophoresis boxes, and other...
Lesson Plan
EngageNY

Newton’s Law of Cooling

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
As part of an investigation of transformations of exponential functions, class members use Newton's Law of Cooling as an exponential model to determine temperature based on varying aspects. The resource makes comparisons between...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Hair Test

For Students 10th - 12th
In this forensic science worksheet, students write an open response to 3 short answer questions on hair evidence collected at the crime scene.
Worksheet
Curated OER

Hair Test

For Students 11th - 12th
For this forensic science worksheet, students write an open response to 1 question about hair evidence collected from the crime scene.