Trial by Science

The activity is engaging for students and allows them to use the tools of forensics in an authentic manner. The article contains good information as to the materials needed. I would have l... See More

The activity is engaging for students and allows them to use the tools of forensics in an authentic manner. The article contains good information as to the materials needed. I would have liked to have had a more in depth explanation of the actual “crime”, though that could easily be created by you before sharing the activity with the class. Personally, I would put it into a police report format so students have the opportunity to read a technical document for information. The Scilink is greatly appreciated and provides a ton of really useful resources. This resource alone will take you quite awhile to wander through.

Another Crime Scene

This article explains how a crime scene setup for informal science at a museum translates to a science classroom in a school setting. It reminds me of the GEMS “Mystery Festival” publicatio... See More

This article explains how a crime scene setup for informal science at a museum translates to a science classroom in a school setting. It reminds me of the GEMS “Mystery Festival” publication. The authors set the scene and explain that larger groups of students are then subdivided into smaller one. The difference in this crime scene event is that there are suspects that ‘detectives’ have to interview. There are guidelines for the evidence and for interviewing the suspects. There is a trial at the finale. All information is provided to initiate, run and conclude this activity. This would be an interesting article for those teachers unfamiliar with forensic science.